Contextual Teaching & Learning in Preservice Teacher Education Project
OVERVIEW

The Contextual Teaching and Learning Project at UGA:

DEFINITION

Contextual teaching and learning:

  • helps students make connections between their learning and "real world" applications.
  • includes teaching strategies that focus on students as active learners.
  • provides students with opportunities to solve complex "real world" problems in varied settings.
  • connects students' knowledge and its applications their lives as family members, citizens, and workers.
  • is based on theoretical concepts derived from research and practice.
KEY ASSUMPTIONS
  • Students learn more and retain it longer if they can apply or connect their learning to meaningful contexts in the world outside the classroom.
  • Optimal learning occurs when classroom learning is situated in context, incorporates authentic activities, and transfers to environments beyond the classroom, including "real life" applications in work and community settings.
OVERALL PROJECT GOAL

Develop and implement a prteservice teacher education model where students:

  • complete courses, seminars, and other experiences in professional education and content areas which integrate contextual teaching and learning concepts into instruction.
  • use experiences in community, workplace, and school contexts to inform teaching and learning.
  • are prepared to use contextual teaching strategies.
COMPONENTS OF THE PROGRAM MODEL
  • Pre-professional Courses: Educational Psychology (Learning and Development) and Educational Foundations are existing required courses for teacher education and other majors, which are being revised to include contextual teaching and learning principles.
  • Community Work Experiences: Service Learning is an existing course involving service projects in various community agencies, programs, or settings. A new course to be developed by project faculty will introduce other structured field experience opportunities (internships in business, industry, or professional work settings) for teacher education students.
  • Seminars: A new series of seminars i being developed to reflect upon how field experiences connect education and the world outside of schools. They will include:
    • Disciplinary knowledge: Basic Principles and Ways of Knowing
    • Workplace and Community Experiences: Connecting Academic Learning to Out-of-Classroom Contexts
    • Contextual Teaching and Learning in Schools
  • Disciplinary Courses: Required courses in methods of teaching and subject matter disciplines will be revised to incorporate contextual teaching and learning examples and concepts so that students can experience and apply these settings in school settings.
COMMUNITY & WORKPLACE EXPERIENCES

Both faculty and students are provided a variety of experiences:

  • Faculty Professional Development Activities created for this project include:
  • Student Internships: work and community settings
PROJECT PARTICIPANTS
  • Faculty within College of Education departments including:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Department of Mathematics Education
University of Georgia
©2001