Studying the Implementation of Constructivist Learning Materials in Rural Colombia

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 24
  In Roundtable Session: International Perspectives on Curriculum and Instruction

Abstract

This study examined the professional training and classroom use of an innovative, constructivist teaching curriculum called La Aldea (“The Village”) in schools in one region of Colombia, South America. La Aldea is a set of learning materials for grades 4-6 using text, illustrations, activities, and teacher questions to present stories about a fictional village in which animals-as-characters learn civic responsibility, selflessness, and conflict-resolution as they solve common Colombian problems such as corruption and environmental sustainability. Drawing on collected interviews, surveys, and observation data, we analyzed the implementation of La Aldea for 28,000 students and learned how teachers and students used it and to what extent it improved learning, teaching, and school-community connectedness in this rural part of South America.

Authors

• Brad Olsen, The Brookings Institution

• Monica Rodriguez, Harvard University