DDD-E Model and Constructivism

Heyyy.
Welcome back to my blog!
Today' topic is about DDD-E Model, Constructivism in teaching and the role of Multimedia.

DDD-E Model was a new term for me, so I had to take a look on Google and I found that it is a model of how you organize a project.
Have you ever heard it before ?
Each letter stands for a specific action.
D- stands for Decide.
During this phase, we determine what kind of project we wish to do. We decide the topic/subject, roles of team members and so on.
D- stands for Design.
In this phase you use different tools to structure your assignment such as flowcharts and storyboards.
D- stands for Develop.
In this phase you pull together all the materials you find and you support the framework you built on the design phase.
E- stands for Evaluate.
In this phase you reflect on your success.

DDD-E Model is a practical step-by-step approach to teaching multimedia skills as well. We choose and determine which media components are better to use, which are the most productive ones.
I think all the teachers should teach this model to their students, because it will be a big help for them when dealing with different projects. This model allows us to have a very-well planned and a detailed project.
So, first we decide the topic and we determine the project's goals.
Next we find tools.
Then we find and develop all the materials.
At the end we assess its success.
Actually, evaluation happens every time, it is behind every stage.
DDD-E Model clarifies what we really want to do with our project.

What about Constructivism? What is it?
It is a theory which states that people build, construct and even create their own knowledge through experiencing things.
To do this, we have to ask a lot of questions and at the same time assess what we already know and what we want to learn.
It is not a passive method and this is very important.
It is a student-centered approach. Everything is focused on them.
Maybe, we are not used to this method, because what traditional teachers use are only textbooks and workbooks and everything is based on them.
Sometimes, using only the textbook can be a framed method, since learning is based on repetition.
Of course, repetition is the mother of learning, but it becomes boring if it's the only thing happening in the class.
Traditional teachers has always been the authority in class and sometimes students learned nothing. Teachers speaking all the time and students just listening is not fruitful.
A quote by Benjamin Franklin says:
         "Tell me and I forget
          Teach me and I remember
          Involve me and I learn."
So, students learn better if they are actively engaged during the lessons. That's what constructivism suggests.
In traditional teaching, students work mostly alone. Yes, there are students who work better individually, but team work is proved to be highly productive, because students have the possibility to share their opinions and to 'get' from others what they don't know. Students learn more by their peers than by their teachers. While working in groups, students may display their talent or what they are good at. This allows every student to work on and to show their strongest abilities.

Teacher's role in Constructivism is very significant because it stimulates students to formulate their questions and it allows for different points of view. In constructivism there's not only one interpretation.
Teachers help students develop what they already know and use that knowledge to solve problems. Ideas should be reinforced. Reintroducing concepts already learned in a  'spiral' format helps students to reach a deeper level of understanding.
As you can notice, this method is closely connected to Cooperative Learning, Multiple Intelligences and Project Based Learning, as it emphasizes the importance of team work and projects.
We can make Cooperative Learning, MI and Constructivism part of our teaching by using Kagan structures.
The focus of Kagan structures is to find a funny and fresh way to deliver a content. This method allows students to work as a team. Students don't just learn about the skills, they acquire them, because they practice them daily.

Here are some of the benefits of Constructivism and at the same time of Kagan structures.
•Students learn more, because they are active, involved and engaged in what they learn. They experience things themselves. This method has nothing to do with just memorizing things and repeating them, but it emphasizes the idea of critical thinking and understanding.
•Constructivism gives students ownership of what they learn. They understand that they have created their knowledge and they feel proud of it.
•Since students work primarily in groups, they collaborate with each-other and improve their communication and social skills.
•Kagan structures lead to authentic assessment, because the teacher can listen to all the students in the classroom, what they are thinking and what they know.

What is the role of Multimedia in all this?
As we have said Multimedia is the integration of texts, graphics, animation, videos, pictures and sounds.
The most used form of Multimedia in our classrooms is Power Point Presentations used mainly by the teachers, but even by the students when they present a project.
By using multimedia students:
•Can apply real-world skills related to technology.
•Are encouraged to work together in order to solve problems and construct knowledge. They learn the value of teamwork.
•Learn the importance of different media.
•Learn how to present information in compelling ways by including pictures, audio and all elements of Multimedia.
•Learn the importance of research and organization skills. Since students are going to make their own research, they will learn how to choose the most appropriate information and how to organize it in order to be fully conveyed.

All in all, the methods mentioned above can be highly productive if they are used properly. As future teachers, we have the opportunity to include them in our teaching, not just to make it efficient, but also attractive and funny.

Hope you enjoyed my post!
Stay safe!
Thank you for your time! :)