Ramps, Pathways & Balls: A Constructivist Endeavor in Physical Knowledge (#1-INTRODUCTION)

BACKGROUND: In addition to working full-time as a library media specialist, I am also a part-time student at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.  Currently, I am in the coursework stage of UAB's School of Education's doctoral program in early childhood education.  I am enrolled in a course this semester that centers around Jean Piaget's epistemology on how humans construct knowledge and how this applies to the teaching and learning of children.

CONTEXT: Piaget posited that all learning is made up of three kinds of knowledge-social, physical, and logico-mathematical.  Social knowledge is defined as learning acquired socially based on the culture and society in which one lives.  Physical knowledge is defined as learning (related to objects in the world) acquired through perceptual properties.  Logico-mathematical knowledge is defined as learning derived from active mental processes including but not limited to the ability to reason, solve problems, and analyze cause and effect relationships.  

ACTION RESEARCH: This activity is intended for early learners; however, because of time and scheduling constraints, my professor and I have decided to embark upon this endeavor with the students I work with currently.  In an effort to explore physical and logico-mathematical knowledge constructions in children, a small group of high school students will be given an opportunity to work with ramps, pathways, blocks, and balls each day for a two week period for approximately 20-30 minutes per session.  Each session will extend the work of the previous session to observe how students' construction of physical and logico-mathematical knowledge grows and progresses.   These extensions will also serve as a way to motivate, engage, and challenge the students.  There are three students participating in this activity.  The participants are classified as senior high school students.  All participants are female students ranging in ages from 17 to 18 years.  The school in which they are enrolled is located within a small metropolis just outside of Birmingham, Alabama.  The school reports that the majority of its students have a socio-economic status that falls at or below the poverty level.  A majority of its students are classified by race as African-American.