Constructivism - In Education

Constructivism - In Education - details

1. Constructivism Suresh Babu G Assistant Professor CTE CPAS Paippad , Kottayam

2. Constructivism Constructivism is the name given to a set of learning theories which fall somewhere between cognitive and humanistic views. The term constructivism refers to the idea that learners individually construct meanings and knowledge (from experience) for themselves as they learn. Constructivism emphasizes the building of meaning and knowledge that occurs in people’s minds when they learn.

3. Constructivist teaching  is based on the belief that learning occurs as learners are actively involved in a process of meaning and knowledge construction as opposed to passively receiving information. Learners are the makers of meaning and knowledge. Constructionist learning is when learners construct mental models to understand the world around them. Constructionist advocates student- centered , discovery learning where students use information they already know to acquire more knowledge.

4. Definition of Constructivism Constructivism  is 'an approach to learning that holds that people actively construct or make their own knowledge and that reality is determined by the experiences of the learner' (Elliott et al., 2000:256).

5. Principles of Constructivism Knowledge is socially constructed. Learning is an active process. Learning is an interpretive, recursive, building process. Knowledge is not a fixed object. People learn to learn as they learn. Learning is done on reflective activities. Learning involves language. Learning is social activity. Learning is contextual. One need knowledge to learn.

6. Educational Implications of Constructivism Curriculum : It promotes using curricula customized to the students prior knowledge . Also emphasizes hand on problem solving. Instruction : Focus on making connections between facts and fostering new understanding in students . E mphasizes t eaching strategies to students response and encourage students to analyze, interpret, and predict information. Assessment : Elimination of grades and standardized test instead assessment as a part of learning process that students have major role in judging their own progress.