Abstract
Learning is a lifelong process, implying that there is always more knowledge to be gained by doing rather than through other forms. When a child grows from infancy to toddler-hood, a vast amount of knowledge is acquired, before she sets foot in school. The child learns by gathering information and experiencing the world around her. Such learning exemplifies “Constructivism”. Constructivism emphasizes importance of knowledge, beliefs and skills an individual brings to the experience of learning.
Language is a systematic means of communication, using sounds or conventional symbols. It is the code we all use to express ourselves and communicate to the others. It is a system to communicate ideas and feelings, using sounds, gestures, signs or marks. A set of linguists, who based their assumptions of language on Psychology, made their claim that language is nothing but habit formations.
The aim of the present paper is to highlight the findings of a study, in the process of developing comprehension skills in english language, using the constructivist approach. The scope of this study is applicable to all the primary students of English medium schools. Since it is difficult to provide individualized attention to the students, and the interest and attention of the students cannot be controlled during the teaching-learning process, the research was restricted to the students of only one English medium school of Pune, with the students of Std.VII, and the programme was aimed at the development of only the comprehension skill of English language.
In the light of the aforementioned background, the paper intends to objectively discuss, the effectiveness of a programme, developed based on the constructivist approach, to improve the comprehension skills in students, of an English medium school, and thereby stating findings, conclusions, recommendations and suggestions towards the implementation of such programmes in regular classroom settings.
Dr. Smita Phatak is an Associate Professor at the Tilak College of Education, Pune and has an illustrious career as a research guide and a facilitator for education.
Ms. Pinaze P. Dubash has completed her completed B.Ed from H. G. M. Azam College, in 2009 and completed her M.Ed from Tilak College of Education in 2010.
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