Theory Highlights

Please watch the following video for an introduction of the main topics of this page.


Constructivism & The Learning Process

According to Amarin and Ghishan (2013) :

    • “People of all ages do not discover knowledge; rather they construct it or create it.
    • People create knowledge by relating or connecting it to their previous knowledge.
    • Learning involves active cognitive activity and cognitive restricting.
    • People use personal experiences to create knowledge.
    • Cognitive growth is stimulated when people are confronted with practical or personal problems that create cognitive disconnects. “( p. 54)


Basic Assumptions & Principles of the Constructivist View of Learning

  • “Learning is an active process.
  • Learning is an adaptive activity.
  • Learning is situated in the context in which it occurs.
  • Knowledge is not innate, passively absorbed, or invented but is constructed by the learner.
  • All knowledge is personal and idiosyncratic.
  • All knowledge is socially constructed.
  • Learning is essentially a process of making sense of the world.
  • Experience and prior understanding play a role in learning.
  • Social interaction plays a role in learning.
  • Effective learning requires meaningful, open-ended, challenging problems for the learner to solve. “(Amarin & Ghishan, 2013, p.55)


Five Pillars On Which Constructivist Classrooms Are Based

  1. “Posing problems of emerging relevance to learners.
  2. Structuring learning around primary concepts.
  3. Seeking and valuing students’ points of view.
  4. Adapting curricula to address students’ suppositions.
  5. Assessing student learning in the context of teaching.” (Amarin & Ghishan, 2013, p. 56)


Constructivism and Its Implications for Educational Technology


The teacher must “first recognize and respect students’ backgrounds, beliefs, assumptions, and prior knowledge; provide abundant opportunities for group dialogue aimed at fostering shared understanding of the topic under study; establish a learning environment that encourages students to examine, change, and even challenge their existing beliefs and understandings through meaningful, stimulating, interesting, and relevant instructional tasks; help students develop meta-awareness of their own understandings and learning process; and introduce the formal domain of knowledge or subject matter into the conversation through a sort of loosely structured instruction and the use of technological tools as Web sites” (Amarin,& Ghishan, 2013, pg, 56).


Discussion Question 1

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References