Constructivism Philosophy of Education: Essay

Communication is a core element in teaching and learning a foreign language as it is an important tool. It is quite impossible to interact without communication. In order to learn a foreign language communication is really crucial, useful, and noteworthy. In this perspective competence over the years English language learning and teaching has become widely popular all over the world to learn a foreign language because English has gained the prestige of becoming a global language in the era of globalization. English is also considered as Lingua Franca to all the people of the world for specific reasons such as educational purposes, business purposes technological purposes, etc. Jenkins (2000) and Barbara Seidlhofer (2002) have mentioned different types of English for interaction among non-native English speakers and native speakers who speak for expanding English language all over the world. A number of methods and techniques are prevailing to communicate in foreign languages. It is hard and impossible to find a proper method to teach and learn a language. Among all the methods the communication teaching method is the best for achieving a foreign language because it is a real method for having the importance of interaction among the language learners.

Communicative Language teaching originated in teaching English as a foreign language. According to Savignan (1991), CLT originated in both sides of Atlantics for example Europe and USA. Being dissatisfied with the prevailing approaches to teaching and learning language researchers and linguists try to find out a new approach that will meet the demands of the language learners. The main purpose of language is to communicate and from this perspective, the CLT emerged in language teaching. The traditional methods focus on the form or structure of the language while the communicative approach gives importance to communication known as the core aim of language learning (Richards,2006). He also further says that human beings learn language only for communication. In CLT the learners use the target language in real-life situations and 'according to the functions being taught' (Richards, 2006). In the opinion of Larsen (2003), CLT class is conducted for communication with the target language according to the situation such as buying an air ticket, going to the supermarket, and collecting information. CLT class does not give emphasis on linguistics issues like forms and structures of the language rather the importance is given to social communication through learning and teaching. According to Hewing (2000), In the communicative language class, the focus is on the meaning. Furthermore, the meaning and the context of the situation are given priority at the time of teaching and learning in the CLT class for proper communication (Baepler,2003). CLT method emerged replacing the traditional methods for instance Grammar- translation and audio-lingual method which are based on behaviorism and structuralism (Brown,2001) and here' learning a language considered as a habit formation that is quite mechanical' (Richards,2006). According to Finocchiaro and Brumfit (1983), the CLT method is completely opposite to the traditional methods that focus on forms and grammatical structures. CLT gives emphasis on communication and it is the transfer from traditional methods to CLT. In the grammar-translation method, the words are taught in an isolated way while contextualization is given priority in CLT classrooms (Brown,2001). To teach language CLT has influenced the model of theory which has been appreciated by many educators, researchers, and linguists (Barney and Sun,1989 and Ellis,1996). According to Littlewood (1981), CLT focuses not only on functional but also structural aspects of language and combines all of these for communication. In communicative language teaching the focus is given to proficiency in communication not the structures of language (Candlin,1981 and Widdowsin,1978). Communicative language teaching is not traditional rather it is a progressive and hybrid method to teach language (wright, 2000).In communicative language teaching fluency and accuracy are the most vital parts (Brown, 1994). The more innovative approach can play a vital role in teaching grammar besides traditional ways by giving less focus on methods. CLT is the combination of form-focused exercises with meaning-focused experience (Savignon,2002). Communicative methods give importance to the four skills such as listening, speaking, reading, and writing and it does not focus on the single skills (Celce-Murcia, 1991). According to Savignon (2002), CLT does not emphasize only oral communication directly. In the communicative classroom, the teachers play the role of facilitators to the learners, manage all the activities in the classroom, advise the learners and they also engage with learners in communicative activities (Littlewood 1981; Breen and Candlin 1980).

Communicative competence refers to the ability of a speaker to use language appropriately according to the context of the situation. The term first was used by Hymes in 1972 and it was suggested by Noam Chomsky in 1965. Communicative competence means the capability of the learners to exchange communicative information successfully. Language learners are able to use language not only in the classroom but also outside the world. He also says that competent language users know very well how and where to use language (Hymes, 1972). The idea of Hymes was upgraded by Canale and Swain in 1980. The blending of grammatical knowledge and sociolinguistic competence builds up the interaction and relationship (Canale and Swain, 1980). According to the theory of Canale and Swain (1980), there are three sections of communicative competence such as sociolinguistic, grammatical, and strategic competence. Sociolinguistics means understanding and producing the language based on the context of social situations. The structures, forms, and words are learned in the grammatical competence. Strategic competence indicates the ability to use language for proper communication. In communicative competence, the four beliefs are coined by Macaro (1997) for example the importance of listening and speaking ignoring reading and writing, less value in current information than gathering new information for communication, the students' engagement in active learning, and the focus on meaningful situation instead of full sentences. Communicative competence has some challenges. Though communicative competence is very familiar in the world, a lot of language teachers have faced challenges in achieving and goal (Sano et al.1984). To gain competence there are many arguments against this language program which has been designed to teach foreign languages (Huda,1999; Alptekin,2002). Being teacher-centered, the students will not be able to improve their communicative skills as they get less time for practicing (Cuban,1993; Ellis,2003; Rico, 2008; Yilmaz, 2009). In second language acquisition, the comprehensible input, output, interaction, and negotiation of meaning play a vital and influential role. Input hypothesis(Krashen,1980,1983, 1985) and the interaction of modification of input hypothesis (Long, 1980,1983a,1985) sway the second language acquisition. Second language acquisition and comprehension are co-related along with different inputs, for example, motherese (e.g., Snow and Ferguson,1977), the talk of the foreigners (e.g., Long,1980), the talk of the teachers (Chaudron,1988), and premodified input (e.g., Parker and Chaudron, 1987; Ross, Long and Yano, 1991), the research on the negotiated interaction (e.g., Long, 1980,1983a; Pica et al.,1987). According to Krashen (1985), the input hypothesis is related to acquisition and human beings can acquire the language properly with the help of this input which is beyond the current level of the learners (i l). The learners can understand the meaning and comprehension though they do not acquire (i l) the structure and form of the language ( Krashen, 1983). According to Krashen (1985), people can acquire language only one way such as understanding a message or receiving comprehensible input. The two kinds of modifications are evident between native speakers and non-native speakers for instance modified input and modified interaction. Modified input is used by non-native speakers in the case of linguistic forms to make them better understand while the interaction of modification refers to the discourse between native speakers and non-native speakers. The modified interaction is more important than modified input in the field of comprehensible input (Long, 1981,1983b). The negotiated meaning helps the learners understand the meaning of the discourse by repeating the interaction between native and non-native speakers. So the comprehensible input results from negotiated meaning (Pica,1987). On the other hand, in the opinion of Swain (1985) and White (1987), for second language acquisition comprehensible input is not necessary. Aston (1986) and Faerch and Kasper (1986) have raised questions about comprehensible input. Aston has also mentioned that the negotiated meaning may not be fruitful in the discourse of native speakers and non-native speakers.

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To solve the problem of traditional learning and teaching Vygotsky, Perkins, and Piaget have mentioned the term constructivism theory which explains the role of teaching, learning, learners, and teachers. In spite of having familiarity in the present moment, constructivism is an old theory from the age of Socrates who mentioned that learners and teachers can exchange information and build up the dominant knowledge through question-answer (Hilav,1990, cited in Erden,2001). According to the thoughts of Gruber and Voneche (1977), The origin of constructivism has come from Piaget's 'constructivism '(1967), and Bruner's (1996) constructivism which narrates the learning of discovery. Perkins (1992) has said that the roots of constructivism have emerged from psychology and philosophy within a hundred years. Constructivism means the learning system of constructing meaning and it refers to the experience of people (Merriam and Caffarella,1999). Mvududu and Thiel-Burgess (2012) refer that the constructivist approach helps the understanding level of the children and enhances their thinking stage. The teachers can realize the depth of knowledge of the learners and assist them to use their knowledge for practical purpose and the learners can gain knowledge about the course materials which increase their learning process. According to Kanselaar (2002), Constructivism has main two parts and social constructivism is one of them. Cooper(1993) mentions the transformation of knowledge from behaviorism to cognitivism and constructivism such as the subject of psychology. This transferring process has swayed the learning and teaching method incredibly. Phillips (2000) has suggested a lot of changes in constructivism that are educational. In the view of Hoover (1969) with the help of existing knowledge the learners build their comprehension in the learning process. On the contrary, the new or acquired knowledge is influenced by the past gained knowledge. The learners learn by following the active process mentioned as the negotiated understanding that they acquire in new learning circumstances. Cook (1992) supports the system negotiation in the course curriculum and the learners work a lot to find the answers to the questions. Learning comes from hard work. Through the negotiation of curriculum, the learners can actively participate in the educational activities to get their original benefit from the learning path (Bruner,1992). According to Christie (2005), A learner can demonstrate his or her real world through an active process in constructivism known as the theory of learning. From this theory of learning the learners gain knowledge emerging from experience and the solution of the problems which they face. Collaboration, experience, assessment, and real tasks can be the crucial part of this learning process. The learning approach is learner-centered in which the teachers apply their teaching method by observing the experience level of their learners (Hare, 2005). Piaget (1973) states that children can develop their learning through construction and reconstruction as they go through several stages to enhance their knowledge.

The theory of social constructivism refers to the knowledge related to the society where human beings dwell and extract knowledge and understanding from social phenomena. Human beings construct their knowledge, understanding, and reality from the social world by facing experience (Leads-Hurwitz, 2009). Vygotsky (1978) expresses that human beings gradually develop growth from the social level to the individual. Moreover, Derry (1999) and McMahon (1997) say that the cultural and contextual understanding happening in society and knowledge construction have significant roles in social constructivism. Kim (2001) has mentioned three probable estimations of social construction for example reality learning and knowledge. The reality comes through the interaction of human beings who live in society. Kukla(2000) notes that the wealth and asset of the world is the effort of the human beings who produce this. Human beings produce constructed knowledge culturally and socially (Ernest, 1999; Gredler,1997; Prat and Floden, 1994, cited in Kim,2001). Learning in human beings occurs in the system of society and both the individual and external forces assist in construction ( McMahon,1997). According to Smith (2010), Social construction has two forms such as weak and strong. Vygotsky (1978) who has swayed the theory of social constructivism proposes the construction of knowledge from the context of society and the members of the society use this knowledge (Bruning,1999; M. Cole,1991; Eggan and Kauchak, 2004). The sharing of knowledge individually in the case of perspectives is known as collaborative elaboration (Meter and Stevens, 2000). Woolfolk (2010) demonstrates some tactics for assisting the learning process for instance jigsaw classroom, controversial structures, and reciprocal questioning. The learners can enhance their knowledge, perceptions, thoughts, and assumptions by active participation in social constructivism (Brown,1989; Ackerman (1996). Besides, Vygotsky (1978) thinks about the gradual continuation of the learning process shifting from existing knowledge to better. He mentions the Zone of proximal development (ZPD) which originates from social interaction and he has termed ZPD as the distance between the real progressive level as determined by independent problem-solving and the potential development level as determined through problem-solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more capable peers (Vygotsky, 1978).

Social constructivism theory emphasizes the necessity for collaboration with the learners and guides living in the society (Lave and Wenger, 1991; McMahon1997). In the opinion of Wertsch (1997), social constructivism gives importance to both of complex and unique recognition and inspires the learners. He also says that children can improve their knowledge by social interaction with adults, other children, and the real world where they are living. In this approach, the teachers play the role of facilitators to co-operate with the learners (Bauersfeld, 1995). The learning process has transferred from teacher-centered to learner-centered in the classroom (Barr and Tagg, 1995). Hayward (1905) and the work of Dewey (1956) have contributed a lot to the learner-centered classroom (O'Sullivan,2003). A number of terms are included with learner-centered learning for instance experiential learning (Burnard,1999), self-directed learning, and flexible learning (Taylor,2000. Carl Rogers who is termed the pioneer of learner-centered education has associated this learning process with the education theory (Burnard and Rogoff,1999). The work of Malcolm Knowles and Piaget has a close connection with the learner-centered approach (Burnard,1999). According to Rogers (1983a), The traditional learning approach which is teacher-centered and the passive role of the learners has shifted to learners-centered in which the students play the active role in the learning and teaching process because the students feel bored and monotonous. Kember (1997) has said their own creativity and they are active in the learning process and the teachers work as a facilitator who is not presenter. Burnard (1999) has given preference, to the belief of Rogers who has mentioned the constructed knowledge of the students about the world. The teacher-centered learning gives importance to the role and authority of the teachers who impart knowledge to the learners so the learners can achieve their learning and learning approach (Harden and Crosby, 2000). Donnelly and Fitzmaurice (2005) have given emphasis on the needs of the learners in curriculum design. According to Lea et al(2003), The learner-centered learning approach is fruitful for the learners. In the learner-centered classroom, the learners are the main body and at the heart of the classroom. The students learn according to their demand and it is considered as progressive as they do not learn what they already know about the topic. In this learning approach, they can save the resources such as humans and education (Edwards,2001).

To sum up, it can be said that communication is essential for interaction with learners. If the learners have better communication skills, they will perform better in completing the tasks. Actually, the success of the learners depends on the interaction and the language teachers make the environment for the learners to engage them for better performances (Mashburn et al., 2008). The prime objective of learning a foreign language is to communicate successfully. According to Brown (1994), Communicative language teaching is an integrated skill that is theoretical based deals with the nature of language and language teaching and learning. Above all, it is truly evident that the need for communication for foreign language teaching and learning such as English has increased and spread widely for global demand among the language users.