Pembelajaran untuk kefahaman - kajian keberkesanan pengajaran dan pembelajaran sejarah menggunakan teori pembelajaran konstruktivisme

This case study research aims at giving a description of the teaching and learning of history in a secondary school. It then proceeds to elaborate the teaching and learning process that occurs, based on the use of a Constructivist Teaching Module for History (MPKdS being its acronym in the Malay Language), designed based on Needham’s “Phases in Teaching Schemes”. The study involves four phases: Orientation Phase, Observation Phase, Participation Phase and Consolidation Phase. Sampling in the Observation phase consisted of six teachers and seven students. For the Participation Phase, a sample of 28 form four students were selected. They were divided into two groups of fourteen students each. Both the groups underwent two lessons using the MPKdS module. The findings of the study showed that the teaching and learning of history was geared more towards the need of preparing the students for examinations, to the extent that it detracted from the actual purpose of learning history for citizenship. The study also showed that MPKdS had the potential to improve the students’ level of understanding of history. The serious thinking approach in groups allowed the students to enable their minds to become more productive in producing ideas that exhibited a higher level of understanding of the topics learnt. It can be concluded that MPKdS has the potential to be used as an alternative method in the teaching and learning of history in schools. MPKdS, which is based on constructivism is able to change learning based on memorization to facilitation of learning based on understanding, with the use of constructivist methods.