Designated Learning Theory

Constructivism

Definition:
- "Constructivism is the view that meaningful learning is the active creation of knowledge structures rather than a mere transferring of objective knowledge from one person to another" (Snowman et al, 2009, p.28).
- ….. “children construct their own understanding through interaction with their environment – that is, through their actions on objects in the world” (Mcinerney & Mcinerney, 2006, p.37).

Theorists that pioneered constructivism:
- Dewey, Piaget, Vygotsky, and Bruner (Lein, n.d.).

Pluses:
- Learners take an active role in their own learning (Lein, n.d.).
- Learners find information for themselves and therefore obtain a more thorough understanding of the material (Lein, n.d.).
- Teaches learners to pose questions and find the answers (McInerney & McInerney, 2006).
- Knowledge is constructed from experience (Mergel, 1998).
- Learners engage more through this active form of learning and therefore learn more (Educational Broadcasting Corporation, 2004).
- Learning is personal and therefore the learner has the control (Mergel, 1998).
- Learners are given the opportunity to actively participate in their own learning (Krause et al., 2006).

Minuses:
- Because constructivist approaches are student-centered it may be hard for a teacher to completely plan a lesson because the lesson would constantly change due to student response (Snowman et al, 2009, p.346).
- It is more time consuming to teach in a constructivist way (Snowman et al, 2009, p.346).
- Not all teaching can be done applying a constructivist approach. The memorisation of certain facts, for example, has to be taught differently (Snowman et al, 2009, p.346).

Interesting:
- "Constructivism is often applied in an e-learning context through real-world simulations, collaborations with other students, and by giving the learners access to point-of-need knowledge responses (Lein, n.d.).
- Learners construct and use individual tools for understanding, learning and discovering (McInerney & McInerney, 2006, p.37).


References
Educational Broadcasting Corporation. (2004). Constructivism as a paradigm for teaching and learning. Retrieved from http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/constructivism/index.html
Krause, K., Bochner, S., & Duchesne, S. (2006). Educational psychology for learning and teaching (2nd ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Thomson.
Lein, K. (n.d.). Elearning pedagogy. Retrieved from http://elearningpedagogy.com/index.html
McInerney, D., & McInerney, V. (2006). Educational psychology: Constructing learning (4th ed.). Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.
Mergel, B. (1998). Instructional design & learning theory. Retrieved from http://www.usask.ca/education/coursework/802papers/mergel/brenda.htm
Snowman, J., Dobozy, E., Scevak, J., Bryer, F., Bartlett, B., & Biehler, R. (2010). Psychology: Applied to teaching. Milton, Qld: John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.