Video Discussion: Pandemic Era College Teaching: Challenges & New Paradigms

Contributed by Jane Nguyen, Instructional Designer I (CSE)

Recently I had the pleasure of hosting a long-form video discussion (Pandemic Era College Teaching: Challenges & New Paradigms) with three Houston-area instructors: Jennifer Adams, Sociology Professor at University of Houston (Main); Kathryn Peterson, Adjunct English Instructor at UHCL; and Amy Larsen, Assistant Professor of English at Lone Star College.

We dialogued about challenges in teaching during the pandemic, hybrid/hy-flex classes, fully online learning, social constructivism, learner-centered approaches, and significant learning.

Social constructivism as a learning theory “focuses on the collaborative nature of learning. Knowledge develops from how people interact with each other, their culture, and society at large. Students rely on others to help create their building blocks, and learning from others helps them construct their own knowledge and reality.”

It is an offshoot of constructivism as a learning theory: “a theory that says learners construct knowledge rather than just passively take in information. As people experience the world and reflect upon those experiences, they build their own representations and incorporate new information into their pre-existing knowledge and schemas.”

We all agreed that centering learners is important, that students be seen as active agents who bring their own knowledge, past experiences, education, and ideas to their learning, and that this impacts how they take in new information and learn. A big part of being learner-centered is allowing students--at least in some parts of their coursework--choice, ownership, voice & authenticity.

Finally, significant learning was addressed. This means not just providing information, theories, and concepts to students, but encouraging them to apply that foundational knowledge in meaningful ways, make connections through integration, gain more connection with & caring toward other humans and themselves, and better learn how to learn.

I hope you’ll listen to our conversation and consider how some of our ideas & thoughts on teaching and learning mesh with your own and how challenges can be addressed.

You may also wish to explore these resources related to social constructivism, learner-centered approaches, and significant learning: 

• Social Constructivism in Education
• Learner-Centered Teaching: Five Key Practices to Change
• The Power of Significant Learning During Course Development