Much of my work has been informed by the theoretical perspective of constructivism, and a number of my publications explore this theme.
"Man tries to make for himself in the fashion that suits him best a simplified and intelligible picture of the world…"
Albert Einstein
"We shall call 'primary concepts' such concepts as are directly and intuitively connected with typical complexes of sense experiences. All other notions are – from the physical point of view – possessed of meaning only in so far as they are connected, by propositions, with the primary notions."
There are various flavours of constructivism, but my research has been mainly influenced by what is known as personal constructivism (or pedagogic constructivism) which focuses on the way that learning is facilitated through existing conceptual schemes (an individual's personal construct system) that act as the interpretive frameworks for making sense of experience, which acknowledging that much learning about the natural world is not undertaken in a social vacuum but is mediated by interaction with others and cultural tools (books, videos, and representational systems such as the periodic table!)
Constructivist perspectives on learning
Some years go, I was asked if I could give a short, filmed, input on 'Constructivist Perspectives on Learning' for our Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. The video is on YouTube:
Other talks on constructivism:
Lecture on constructivism and learning: The constructivist perspective on learning
Lecture on constructivist teaching: Seven slogans for constructivist teachers: key ideas for teaching in accordance with learning theory
Seminar talk and Q&A on scholarly debates about constructivism in education: Constructivism – the good; the bad; and the abhorrent?
Constructivism as educational theory
'Constructivism as educational theory: Contingency in learning, and optimally guided instruction' is a book chapter that is freely available.
This chapter sets out the basis of one version of constructivism: that which is informed by findings from both cognitive science, and from educational studies exploring learners' thinking about curriculum topics and about classroom processes. A key concept here is the way in which new learning is contingent on features of the learner, the learning context and the teaching
Download a copy of 'Constructivism as educational theory'.
Constructivist pedagogy
Constructivism is a theory of, or perspective on, learning rather than teaching. However approaches to teaching that are designed to be informed by the theory/perspective are sometimes referred to as constructivist teaching, or constructivist pedagogies.
Read about constructivist pedagogies
Flavours of constructivism
There are different 'flavours' of constructivism, with different emphases. There have been some vigorous debates around constructivism / constructivisms. Some key issues are:
Personal versus social constructivism?
How radical is radical constructivism?
What is constructivist pedagogy?
The constructivist research programme in science education
It has been argued that constructivism in science education forms the basis of a progressive 'scientific research programme'.
Read about 'Constructivism in Science Education as a Scientific Research Programme'
