Teaching style in Venezuelan university professors, according to the behaviorist, cognitivist and constructivist approaches

Abstract

A research with university professors from the Venezuelan university system is presented. The purpose is to analyze their teaching styles according to their tendency to apply the predominant theoretical tendencies in education, such as the behaviorist, cognitivist and constructivist approaches. The research was carried out from January to April 2010, in a graduate seminar on Learning Psychology, within the framework of the Master in Education, with a specialization in Computer Sciences and Instructional Design from the Universidad de Los Andes, Mérida, Venezuela. 18 professors, 10 male and 8 female, 16 working in undergraduate level and 2 in graduate level were analyzed. 9 professors with constructivist style, 4 with cognitivist style, 4 with behaviorist style and 1 mixed style were found. The instruments were designed on purpose because it was not possible to find specific previous ones. It was concluded that the method and typology is useful, and it must be tested in further studies.