Constructivism in learning

Constructivism is the label given to a set of theories about learning which fall somewhere between cognitive and humanistic views. If behaviourism treats the organism as a black box, cognitive theory recognises the importance of the mind in making sense of the material with which it is presented. Nevertheless, it still presupposes that the role of the learner is primarily to assimilate whatever the teacher presents. Constructivism — particularly in its "social" forms — suggests that the learner is much more actively involved in a joint enterprise with the teacher of creating ("constructing") new meanings. We can distinguish between "cognitive constructivism" which is about how the individual learner understands things, in terms of developmental stages and learning styles, and "social constructivism", which emphasises how meanings and understandings grow out of social encounters—see Vygotsky below. In this sense, conversational theories of learning fit into the constructivist framework.

Social Constructivism From Emerging Perspectives on Learning, Teaching and Technology Beaumie Kim The University of Georgia Review of Social Constructivism Social Constructivism Vignette Vignette By Roy Jackson, Jessica Karp, Ellen Patrick, Amanda Thrower (2006) Mrs. Instead of reading the play aloud in class, allowing the students to remain passive and uninvolved with the text, Mrs. The class was divided into groups of four. At the first meeting, the group decided it was best to start by reading and discussing Act I together; Nia offered her writing skills to the task of making notes about the progression of the plot and the characters’ actions as the group interacted and constructed meaning out of what they read. At the next meeting, they moved on to the more creative aspects of the project, where everyone was able to contribute their own personal skills and talents. By the time the product was constructed, each group member’s mark was on the final outcome, so each had a sense of ownership. References Citation

Learning Theories/Constructivist Theories Introduction[edit] Constructivism is a learning theory that attempts to explain how learners learn by constructing understanding for themselves. This section will explore the constructivist learning theory by defining constructivism, providing varying views of constructivism, and illustrating how constructivism relates to independent learning and higher education. Constructivism really got its start in the late 1980s. In the 1990s, constructivist books abounded. The principles of Constructivism are broadly adopted in many areas of education today. Constructivism gives teachers another perspective to rethink how students learn and to focus on process and provide ways of documenting change and transformation. the model building effort, elicit and communicate student perceptions and interpretations(Abdal-Haqq, 1998). Principles of Constructivism (Abdal-Haqq, I. 1998; Jonassen, 1994) Constructivism defined[edit] Constructivism is a synthesis of multiple theories diffused into one form.

Informal learning networks online: Benefits for students and academics From the President... Welcome to the website of the Australian Association for Research in Education. AARE is a large, national, member-run organisation for educational researchers and educators, and our association plays a critical role in supporting and strengthening major research partnerships and networks for the Australian educational research community. More... AARE-NZARE Joint Conference 2014 The website for the joint AARE-NZARE Conference, to be held in Brisbane from the 30th of November 2014, is now live. We look forward to seeing you in Brisbane in 2014. 2013 Conference Papers now Available Details of all papers presented at the 2013 conference have now been entered into the conference paper archive. Click the link to the left to access and search the database. AER Open Access 'Highlight Articles' A selection of six articles from the Australian Educational Researcher has been made available free of charge for a limited time. New Grant Funding for SIGs Read our Blog EduResearch Matters

Learning literacies in a digital age Download this document1 This paper draws on a JISC report, Thriving in the 21st century: Learning Literacies for the Digital Age, which explores examples of learning literacies provision in UK further and higher education. The nature of work is changing, not just for the growing numbers of graduates directly employed in the ‘digital’ industries. ‘Education can play a role in influencing future cultural and social practices with technology.’Opportunities for learning are also changing and by most measures becoming more numerous and openly available. The nature of knowledge is changing, so that what counts as useful knowledge is increasingly biased towards what can be represented in digital form, and/or applied to immediate problems and situations. The texture of social life is changing, with more and more people conducting and sustaining relationships via digital media. Literacy practices are changing. Institutional strategy for learning literacies Practice in central services