Social Constructivism in a VLE – How the students rate it 

Geoff RebbeckThanet College

Thanet College

Social Constructivism,

• People actively construct new knowledge as they interact with their environment

• Learning is particularly effective when constructing it for others to experience

• Constructive learning is a combination of separated and connected learning

http://moodle.org/mod/resource/view.php?id=3849

so the Student• People actively construct new

knowledge as they interact with their environment

• Learning is particularly effective when constructing it for others to experience

• Constructive learning is a combination of separated and connected learning

• Becomes an ‘activelearner’,

http://moodle.org/mod/resource/view.php?id=3849

..& the Learning Curve….

• People actively construct new knowledge as they interact with their environment

• Learning is particularly effective when constructing it for others to experience

• Constructive learning is a combination of separated and connected learning

• VLEs facilitate collaborative, constructivist, ‘active’ learning.

http://moodle.org/mod/resource/view.php?id=3849

Learner determined, Task specific

Open ended strategic

Specified tasks

Teacher controlled Learner managed

NE quadrant

Stephenson J (2001) Teaching & Learning Online – Pedagogies for New Technologies London: Kogan Page

The student view

• Two surveys, using QUIA (www.quia.com) taken halfway and at course end to elicit views on the experience

• Students are female teenagers except one in 30s.

• Survey based on ranking of preferences between old & new style of learning, plus free response answers View the surveys!

Main mid course survey:http://www.quia.com/sv/55283.html

End of course survey: http://www.quia.com/sv/60391.html

Student themes

1. Differentiation & course design2. Degree of guidance in learning3. What studying felt like 4. Digital Immigrants and Natives5. Collaborative working

Student themes

1. Differentiation & Course Design

2. Degree of guidance in learning

3. Immediacy of learning 4. Digital Immigrants and N

atives5. Collaborative working

Student themes

1. Differentiation & Course Design

2. Degree of guidance in learning

3. Immediacy of learning 4. Digital Immigrants and

Natives5. Collaborative working

Student themes

1. Differentiation & Course Design

2. Degree of guidance in learning

3. Immediacy of learning

4. Digital Immigrants and Natives

5. Collaborative working

Student themes

1. Differentiation & Course Design

2. Degree of guidance in learning

3. Immediacy of learning

4. Digital Immigrants and Natives

5. Collaborative working

Student themes

1. Differentiation & Course Design

2. Degree of guidance in learning

3. Immediacy of learning 4. Digital Immigrants and N

atives

5. Collaborative working

What have we learned?

• The natives are multi-cultural• It’s the pedagogy (and it always was).• The marriage of Social Constructivism

and VLEs is academically sound• How well this is done is a new craft that

tutors are facing in FE now