ED503-Educational Psychology

Joshua Hester

Definition and Support

According to Woolfolk (1991, p. 311), constructivism is based on these principles:

Individuals construct their own knowledge.

Social interactionsinfluence how individuals learn.

Joshua Hester

Joshua Hester

Emphasizes how the

individual learns (Atherton,

2010)

Popular theorists

John Dewey

Jean Piaget

George Kelly

Emphasizes how society influences learning (Atherton, 2010)

Joshua Hester

Popular theorists

Lev Vygotsky

Jerome Bruner

Diana Laurillard

Joshua Hester

Focuses on the student’s role

Active agents of knowledge

Not “passive recorders” of knowledge (Noll, 2011)

Incorporates current scientific research

Relationship of learning tools to child development

Relationship of learning styles to subject matter

Relationship of learning methods to student types

• Embraces technology in and out of the classroom

• Educational television and software

• Distance and Web-based learning

Emphasizes self-regulated learning By promoting “metacognitive learning

strategies” in students (Cunliffe, 1995) By allowing students to make choices about

their own education (Martin, 2004)

Provides tools for cross-cultural teaching (Hutchison, 2006)

Joshua Hester

Definition and Support

Joshua Hester

According to Rand (1963), objectivism is based on these principles:

Reality is an absolute and immutable certainty.

Reason is the only means of understanding this reality.

Individuals pursue their own self-interest.

Focuses on core subject matters and methods

An established set of knowledge

A simple pedagogy of teaching

Utilizes the existing educational structure

Current teacher education system

Current classroom paradigm

No teacher, curricular or societal readiness is required (Noll, 2011)

Joshua Hester

Constructivism

The constructivist emphasis on students as agents of

learning attempts to adapt education to expanding

student diversity and methodologies. Rather than

ignore the contributions of cultural diversity and

instructional technology, constructivism actively

leverages these aspects in both the traditional and

virtual classrooms. (Yang, Yeh, & Wong, 2010)

Objectivism focuses too heavily on how instructors

teach and neglects how students learn.

Joshua Hester

In biology, university students gained a deeper understanding in a constructivist classroom than a traditional one. (Christianson & Fisher, 1999)

Eighth-grade students spent more time, reported a higher degree of learning and interactivity using a Web site developed through constructivist principles, than a Web site using traditional instruction. (Sherman, 1999)

Joshua Hester

Joshua Hester

Although objectivism can provide guiding

principles for core subject areas and common

measures for standardized evaluation,

constructivism is the only tenable approach for the

modern teacher. Only constructivism provides a

growing repertoire of tools and methods in

education. Whether the objectivist claim of one

immutable reality is true or not, any philosophy of

education must put students at the focus of

learning and push teachers to reach them.

Atherton, J. (2010). Learning and Teaching; Constructivism in learning. Retrieved from http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/constructivism.htm Accessed: 22 July 2010

Christianson, R., & Fisher, K. (1999). Comparison of Student Learning about Diffusion and Osmosis in Constructivist and Traditional Classrooms. International Journal of Science Education, 21(6), 687-98. Retrieved from ERIC database.

Cunliffe, A. (1995). How Do My Students Believe They Learn? Retrieved from ERIC database.

Hutchison, C. (2006). Cultural Constructivism: The Confluence of Cognition, Knowledge Creation, Multiculturalism, and Teaching. Intercultural Education, 17(3), 301-310. Retrieved from ERIC database.

Martin, J. (2004). Self-Regulated Learning, Social Cognitive Theory, and Agency. Educational Psychologist, 39(2), 135-145. Retrieved from ERIC database.

Joshua Hester

Noll, J. W. (2011). Taking sides: Clashing views on educational issues (16th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Rand, A. (1962) Introducing Objectivism. Retrieved from the Ayn Rand Education Web site: http://aynrandeducation.com/ayn-rand-ideas/introducing-objectivism.html Accessed: 22 July 2010

Woolfolk, A. (2010). Educational Psychology (11th Edition). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.

Yang, Y., Yeh, H., & Wong, W. (2010). The Influence of Social Interaction on Meaning Construction in a Virtual Community. British Journal of Educational Technology, 41(2), 287-306. Retrieved from ERIC database.

Joshua Hester