CONSTRUCTIVISM
EDSA700
Unit 3
Definition of constructivism
Definition: “A view that sees knowledge not as given, but as actively
and continuously constructed and reconstructed by individuals, groups and
societies” (Donald, Lazarus and Moolla, 2014:72)
Alternative to positivism: Positivism uses scientific methods to try to establish
‘the truth’
Positivists: Learners are passive individuals that need to be filled with
knowledge
Constructivists challenge this view by emphasising the active agency of
learners in constructing their own understandings of knowledge such as in
the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky
Refer to diagram on pillars of constructivist
learning (to be shown separately)
CRITICAL ENGAGEMENT,
ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION:
AN ASSESSMENT OF APPLICATION TO THE SOUTH
CONSTRUCTIVIST THEORIES AFRICAN CONTEXT
Central idea 1: Active learners develop
their own knowledge
Learners have active
agency to develop their They engage, debate,
e.g. Piaget: active
own understandings of work in groups to
engagement ‘from the
knowledge through collaborate and negotiate
inside out’
interacting with their knowledge
physical and social worlds
What are your thoughts on
e.g. Vygotsky: active e.g. Bruner: active active versus passive
engagement ‘from the engagement ‘from the learning in relation to the
outside in’ inside out and outside in’ SP and FET phases in
particular?
Central idea 2: Social interaction is
important in collaboration with others
Knowledge is shaped, Learners do this through Knowledge is regarded as
constructed and cooperation, collaboration more flexible in nature: it is
reconstructed in different and cooperative learning forever changing and is not
social environments with others a fixed phenomenon
The different discourse in
different environments also How does this concept of
play a role in terms of the social interaction resonate
underlying assumptions and with you as teachers in the
world views within different SP and FET phases?
contexts
Two related concepts
This refers to the learner
being aware of his/her
Metacognition: thought processes: how the
learner would think, plan,
remember
Awareness of learning
strategies and how to How can this knowledge
choose what is best in what help us as teachers?
situation
Tools of cognition:
These tools help learners to represent knowledge as they
understand it
e.g. systems of symbols such as language, mathematics,
musical notation
What is the purpose of using language within a constructivist
paradigm?
• Keep these ideas in mind when studying these different
views and theories that follow constructivist approaches
Learners
Construction
knowledge sharing
Explain what this diagram Peers Teacher
represents.
