Today, in our workshop, we are all creatives. Constructivism is a learning theory I believe was born from the minds of early 20th-century creatives. In constructivism, learners go on a journey of active engagement and personal discovery. This intellectual playground allows education to transcend the mere absorption of facts; it becomes a dynamic process of constructing knowledge, Brick. By. Brick.
Imagine a workshop where minds hum with activity as learners mould their understanding through interaction, exploration, and reflection. This is where learners are the architects of their own learning or, more accurately, their own understanding. Let’s get into it!
Constructivism as a learning theory has roots that trace back to the early 20th century, but it gained prominence in the 1970s and 1980s through the works of scholars like Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky and John Dewey. Piaget's work on cognitive development, Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, and Dewey's ideas on experiential learning all contributed to the development of constructivist principles. It emphasises learners' active role in constructing their understanding and knowledge of the world. Rather than passively receiving information, learners actively integrate new ideas, experiences and concepts with their existing knowledge and beliefs to form a coherent understanding.
At the heart of constructivism is the belief that learning is a process of ‘meaning-making’, where individuals construct their understanding by actively engaging in the world around them. This process is influenced by various factors, including prior knowledge, social interaction, cultural background, and, most importantly, personal experiences. Rather than passively receiving information, learners reflect on their experiences, create mental representations, and incorporate new knowledge into their schemas, promoting deeper understanding.]
Let's look into some of constructivism's philosophies!
Learning is an active process.
Constructivism states that learning is an active rather than a passive process. The passive view of teaching views learners as ‘an empty vessel’ to be filled with knowledge. In contrast, constructivism states that learners construct meaning only through active engagement with the world (such as through experiments or real-world problem-solving). While information can be passively received, understanding cannot. It must come from the meaningful connection between prior knowledge, new knowledge, and the process involved in learning. This theory believes that if students only passively perceive a problem and do not experience its consequences meaningfully, emotionally, and reflectively, they are unlikely to adapt and revise their construction habits or will only do so superficially.
All knowledge is socially constructed.
“Learning is a social activity – it is something we do together, in interaction with each other, rather than an abstract concept (Dewey, 1938).”
This principle simply means that knowledge is built upon other knowledge. Students put pieces together uniquely, building something different from what another student will build. The student’s previous knowledge, experiences, beliefs, and insights are all important foundations for their continued learning. For example, Vygotsky (1978) believed that community plays a central role in the process of “making meaning.” For Vygotsky, the environment in which children grow up will influence how they think and what they think about. Thus, all teaching and learning is a matter of sharing and negotiating socially constituted knowledge.
Another example is Vygotsky (1978), who states that cognitive development stems from social interactions and guided learning within the zone of proximal development as children and their partners co-construct knowledge.
The zone of proximal development (ZPD) refers to the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she can achieve with guidance and encouragement from a skilled partner. ZPD is the zone where instruction is the most beneficial, as it is when the task is just beyond the individual’s capabilities. To learn, we must be presented with tasks that are just outside our ability range. Challenging tasks promote maximum cognitive growth.
All learning is personal.
Each individual learner has a distinctive point of view based on existing knowledge and values. This means that the same lesson, teaching, or activity may result in different learning by each pupil, as their subjective interpretations differ. This principle appears to contradict the view that knowledge is socially constructed.
Fox (2001, p. 30) argues:
Although individuals have their own personal history of learning, nevertheless they can share in common knowledge and
Although education is a social process powerfully influenced by cultural factors, cultures are made up of sub-cultures, even to the point of being composed of sub-cultures of one.
Cultures and their knowledge bases are constantly changing, and the knowledge stored by individuals is not a rigid copy of some socially constructed template. In learning a culture, each child changes that culture.
Learning exists in the mind.
The constructivist theory posits that knowledge can only exist within the human mind and does not have to match real-world reality (Driscoll, 2000). Engaging the mind is key to successful learning. Learning needs to involve activities for the minds, not just our hands. Mental experiences are needed for retaining knowledge.
Learning is contextual.
Students don’t learn isolated facts and theories separate from the rest of our lives—we learn in ways connected to things we already know, what we believe, and more. The things we learn and the points we tend to remember are connected to the things happening around us.
People learn to learn as they learn.
Imagine learning is like building with Lego bricks. When you first start, you have just a few pieces and can only make simple things. Each new piece you get helps you build something bigger and more complicated. When you learn something new, it’s like getting a new Lego piece. For example, if you learn the order of historical events (like what happened first and what happened next), you’re not just learning those events. You’re also learning how to put things in order, which is called chronology. This skill helps you understand stories better, not just in history but in other subjects, too.
Learning is a social activity.
Learning is directly associated with our connection with other people. Our teachers, family, peers, and acquaintances impact our learning. Educators are more likely to succeed because they understand peer involvement is key to learning. Isolating learning isn’t the best way to help students learn and grow together. Progressive education recognises that social interaction is key to learning, and they use conversation, interaction, and group applications to help students retain their knowledge.
Some of the best ways teachers can use constructivism in the classroom include promoting student autonomy by encouraging students to be active in their learning. Hands-on experimentation with interactive materials can also empower students to learn better, especially in science classes, because it can promote engagement and connectedness in student learning. Open-ended questions are another tool for constructivist learning since they can help foster classroom conversation and dialogue, encouraging students to think critically and form questions and solutions in real time.
Here are some pedagogical (i.e., teaching) goals of constructivist classrooms.
To provide experience with the knowledge construction process (students determine how they will learn).
To provide experience and appreciation for multiple perspectives (evaluating alternative solutions).
To embed learning in realistic contexts (authentic tasks).
To encourage ownership and a voice in the learning process (student-centred learning).
To embed learning in social experience (collaboration).
To encourage the use of multiple modes of representation (video, audio text, etc.)
To encourage awareness of the knowledge construction process (reflection, metacognition).
As we conclude our exploration of constructivism and its focus on learners actively constructing their knowledge, we transition to another pivotal learning theory: humanism. We will look at how humanism shapes educational practices and how to foster environments where students thrive academically and personally.
Have you learnt something new? Comment below on what your favourite learning theory is so far and why!
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