Key takeaways
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Pedagogy is a term that is used to represent many aspects of education, including philosophy, theories, and practices. Pedagogy comes from the Greek meaning ‘to lead the child’.
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Pedagogical approaches are derived from research findings in the social sciences. The initial research into learning theories began in the early 20th century and can be categorized into five major theories.
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Educators have many demands on their time and may be limited in their awareness of research findings, which can impact their instructional practices. Teachers need professional learning focused on evidence-based findings that are immediately applicable to the classroom environment.
What is Pedagogy in Education?
The study of teaching and learning can be traced back to the works of Socrates in ancient Greece. Many centuries later, the earliest social scientists in psychology and sociology began to outline their theories about how adults can effectively teach children. This shift in the late 19th and early 20th century is when the concept of pedagogy began to be appraised empirically.
Pedagogy is an overarching educational term that refers to the effective teaching of children. If you were to search the internet for a definitive list of pedagogical approaches, you would likely find results including philosophies, learning theories, and methodologies. Many educators consider there to be two main elements of pedagogy: the art of teaching and the science of teaching.
When studying pedagogy, you traditionally start with an examination of learning theories. These are the conceptual frameworks established by researchers related to how students learn. Current research has moved from traditional learning theories, through progressive theories, to transformative theories. There are five learning theories that are universally recognized.
These most recent and widely accepted learning theories inform pedagogical approaches that impact classroom instruction. And finally, an educator gets into the specifics of the methodologies, or the techniques and strategies, to be used directly with students in the classroom.
Foundational Learning Theories
Over the last 125 years, social scientists have proposed a number of theories about learning. The five most recognized theories are behaviorism, constructivism, cognitivism, humanism, and connectivism.
Behaviorism
Behaviorism is a learning theory outlined by Thorndike and Skinner, which suggested that all learning is built upon conditioning, or the idea that behaviors are learned through a system of rewards and punishments. In a classroom setting, the teacher would be in control of the learning environment, and learning would occur through repetition and immediate feedback.
Constructivism
Constructivism is a learning theory that was based on the stages of childhood development established by Piaget. Constructivism states that a student must make connections between content and their own experiences to learn. Vygotsky went a step further with social constructivism, claiming that social interaction is key to retaining knowledge. Constructivists believe that true learning occurs through ongoing interactions and discussions with both the teacher and student as active participants.
Cognitivism
Cognitivism, also referred to as cognitive learning theory, is built upon the inner workings of individual thinking. Cognitivism also used the work of Piaget, but was made famous by Neisser, who felt learning required active mental processes. In this theory, the mind was compared to a computer, meaning rather than just a response to an outside stimulus, the learner must process incoming information. The skills required include attention, memory, thinking, and creativity and rely heavily upon the internal processes of the student.
Humanism
Humanism is a learning theory that considers the needs of the whole child in the learning process. Built upon the work of Maslow and Rogers, humanism held that a student must feel mentally and physically safe in order to learn. In this theory, students should have self-directed learning in which they monitor their own progress. Standardized testing and grading would take a back seat to the overall wellbeing of a student, in order to create a suitable learning environment.
Connectivism
Connectivism is a learning theory that accounts for the role of technology in education, specifically making connections between the information available to you. Siemens stated that students need to be taught using the technology that provides them with access to vast networks of knowledge. In connectivism, teachers take the role of a facilitator guiding students to locate and analyze the information they can access via technology.
What are the Different Approaches to Pedagogy?
In education, one can still identify components of each of the learning theories. It should be noted that many of the practices associated with behaviorism have lost widespread support in the educational community. These approaches cast students and teachers as equally important members of the learning environment, rather than putting the responsibility for learning solely on one or the other.
Constructivism
Constructivism is a student-centered classroom approach where students construct their own understanding through talking and reflecting. This approach would require active participation from students so that they can learn through individual experiences, as well as in cooperation with others.
Collaborative
The collaborative approach holds that students cannot learn in complete isolation. In fact, with this approach students work with small groups both in and outside of the classroom. Students are expected to learn from each other to develop critical thinking and an understanding of diverse perspectives. In this approach, students are team members and teachers provide the framework for collaborative learning.
Integrative
The integrative approach is based on removing boundaries between areas of learning. This is the belief that learning should be cross-curricular so that students develop the ability to apply knowledge in novel situations. Teachers work collaboratively to provide students with real-world learning opportunities to build interconnections. Many US students are exposed to practices from this approach through STEM learning.
Reflective
The reflective approach is based on thinking about one’s own processes and progress. Interestingly, this approach is applicable to teachers and students, calling upon both to monitor progress and identify areas for improvement. Many schools emphasize the use of metacognition, or thinking about your own thinking, to improve student learning.
Inquiry based
The inquiry-based approach is built upon asking questions and exploring your own understanding. Students are engaged in acquiring skills for their future learning. Teachers are tasked with questioning, modeling, and providing opportunities for exploration. This approach values challenging commonly held beliefs and opinions in order to grow.
Why does Pedagogy Matter in Classrooms?
Pedagogy has a daily direct impact on teachers, even though they may not be aware. When a teacher considers how to set up their classroom environment, whether to include direct explicit instruction or select a group activity, or whether to use a traditional test or project to demonstrate student mastery, they are considering their pedagogy.
It is meaningful for teachers to understand their own pedagogical stances. For example, do they believe in a teacher-centered or student-centered environment? Do they embrace both based on the selected activity? Teachers can also reflect on their philosophy of assessment. Are they interested in formative assessments or summative assessments, or do they create the time and place for both in their classroom?
Teachers are tasked with hundreds of decisions every single day. When it comes down to making time to plan a lesson, respond to an email, or locate a new research finding, teachers will always pick planning and communication. In order to support teachers, school leaders should incorporate time for professional development during the workday and commit to providing teachers with briefs into current research, but with the majority of time spent on evidence-based practices. Evidence based practices refer to the methods and strategies that were initially studied through research and then tested in a classroom setting. Leaders and instructional coaches should do the heavy lifting of locating resources that will inform teachers, but more importantly provide educators with immediately applicable resources and classroom strategies.
Pedagogically Sound Classroom Strategies
Metacognition
Both teachers and students benefit from metacognition. Teachers can introduce students to the conscious monitoring of cognitive processes. This is a set of skills that will require instruction, modeling, practice, and experience. When students take time to consider their thought patterns, skills, and areas for growth, they will develop independence and resilience.
Active Learning
The needs for direct instruction will vary in each classroom based on the subject matter and its difficulty for students. Regardless of if a classroom is teacher-led or student-led, there needs to be active learning. This means students have a high number of opportunities to respond, and they are doing the bulk of the talking and thinking. Active learning encourages students to write, think, talk, problem solve, and interact frequently with peers and teachers.
Specific Immediate Feedback
Providing students with meaningful and specific feedback during or immediately after a task avoids reinforcing incorrect answers. Teachers can use their advanced knowledge of the subject or skill to push students towards a deeper understanding of the material. To lead to faster learning and the opportunity for enrichment, teacher feedback must be explicit and actionable.
Productive Struggle
Teachers can identify tasks or activities during the day to challenge students to work through frustration. This often includes more attempts than typical to allow students to make connections themselves and develop transferable skills. It is important to limit time spent in productive struggle so that students do not feel overwhelmed. Becoming comfortable with being uncomfortable in learning will strengthen critical thinking and self-regulation skills.
