How long has it been since your students explored a topic freely and constructed their meaning of it?
An effective way to accomplish this is to adopt a constructivist approach. This emphasizes self-directed learning, reflection, and assessment to promote student agency. The constructivist perspective recognizes that many points of view are valid and that there is more than one correct answer.
When a learner works collaboratively with others and integrates new information with past experiences, they are building knowledge.
An argument that is comprehensive in a constructivist fashion has the following characteristics:
- When the student presents an explicit argument, he usually states clearly the assumptions, inferences, and reasoning that relate the different parts of the work to one another.
- There is no doubt that the student’s research question and conclusions are significant, and he or she has explained the impact of their findings.
- Only pertinent and necessary information is provided.
- The argument is coherent; there are no contradictory elements or statements.
What is a Comprehensive Constructivist Pedagogy Thesis Argument
How to prepare for a constructive thesis argument?
As a constructivist, you should be:
- Be considerate of others’ opinion
- Take you stand firmly
- Be well-informed
- Talk smart
- Be persuasive
Follow some of these below mentioned tips in adherence to the above said features of a constructivist speaker!
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Present at conferences!
Your Ph.D. journey will not be complete without presenting your work at academic conferences.
You will be better prepared to travel and present your work when you have presented your work to a few international audiences. Your confidence will increase with every presentation you make.
Your presentation and presentation skills will get a little bit sharper every time you present your work. In this context, you should use your Ph.D. time to present at as many industry events, conferences, and workshops as possible.
It will take you years to prepare for your defense after all this practice.
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Make a list of questions of your own!
Ask yourself: How can you conclude the presentation? Consider it from the reader’s perspective. You ought then to come up with some questions and brainstorm.
You can also learn how to anticipate dissertation defense questions by listening to open discussions with other candidates. You can tell what a committee’s approach to candidates is by watching their behavior.
Remember, they do not intend to confuse. Just thinking more about things may help you expand your perspective.
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Get your friends to watch you and ask questions!
It will be time for the actual presentation when you have practiced enough. Gather some friends and prepare some snacks. Your lab mates should also be invited because it’s important to have people who have a basic understanding of the topic.
They should be shown the presentation. After that, invite them to ask questions and respond to them! Practice in this way prepares you for the real thing.
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Mistakes are inevitable, learn from them!
There is a good chance you will make few mistakes when giving the thesis presentation to your friends. There’s nothing to worry about. Errors happen to everyone. Keep going, it’s essential. Take the mistake in stride and don’t let it derail your efforts. The next point should be addressed after you take a deep breath.
- Be confident!
- Be calm!
- Do not get fidgety!
- Take actions and fast!
Keep your worries to a minimum. The audience and committee members are likely to forget this flaw once the presentation is over. The candidates know that they are nervous, so they expect a few minor flaws in their presentations.
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Get in the habit of practicing your speech and body language!
Make sure you practice, practice, practice! Your dissertation defense will be successful if you follow these steps.
Is your dissertation ready? Outline your presentation’s main points with the assistance of a thesis help service. Start practicing after you have prepared the slides. It’s best to practice before a mirror if possible.
It doesn’t matter if you look silly; nobody is looking at you. You are not being observed. Don’t be afraid to speak up. With practice, getting into the flow will become easier.
You should also take note of the way you appear. Standing straight with relaxed shoulders and a straight back is ideal. Your self-confidence is boosted by that. Watch your movements in the mirror. You must be aware and deliberate with your body language.
You shouldn’t use your hands a lot, but try not to be stiff, either. Put in the practice; you’ll improve.
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Base your work on what your committee does!
Your committee will determine the questions you will face during your defense. Avoid navel-gazing during your dissertation defense. Think of your work from your committee member’s perspective rather than your own.
- Look at the most recent publications of your committee members to ensure you’re fully aware of what they are working on (you don’t want to completely ignore a committee member when he/she mentions that he/she performed work relevant to your research a short time ago).
- Check out the latest in-press publications while preparing your dissertation – don’t assume that you will read everything.
- Review your meeting notes, identify their main criticisms of your work, and revise those notes if you have met with your committee members while completing your Ph.D. thesis and preparing for the defense.
Members of some committees will tell you in advance the exam questions they plan to use, while others won’t share such information with you. Prepare additional material as necessary to answer the questions you come up with as well.
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How to deal with an unknown situation!
An aspect of the argument that is a bit scary is if you are asked a question which you can’t answer. It is impossible to know everything. It is not about knowing everything and being perfect. It is about how you handle challenging situations.
Rather than just say “I don’t know,” we recommend, “I’m not sure, but I believe […] due to x and y, but you’ll need to try […] to find out”. This shows that you have the ability of a constructivist.
