Contructivism Theory

Models of Learning
Constructivist
1. Discovery Learning (Bruner)
In discovery learning, the student is placed in problem solving situations where

they are required to draw on past experiences and existing knowledge to
discover facts, relationships, and new information.
Students are more likely to retain knowledge attained by engaging real-world

and contextualised problem-solving than by traditional transmission methods.
Models that are based upon discovery learning model include: guided discovery,
problem-based learning, simulation-based learning, case-based learning, and
incidental learning.
Constructivist Theory (Jerome Bruner)

A major theme in the theoretical framework of Bruner is that learning is an active process in which
learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current/past knowledge. The learner
selects and transforms information, constructs hypotheses, and makes decisions, relying on a
cognitive structure to do so. Cognitive structure (i.e., schema, mental models) provides meaning and
organization to experiences and allows the individual to "go beyond the information given".
As far as instruction is concerned, the instructor should try and encourage students to discover
principles by themselves. The instructor and student should engage in an active dialog (i.e., socratic
learning). The task of the instructor is to translate information to be learned into a format appropriate
to the learner's current state of understanding. Curriculum should be organized in a spiral manner so
that the student continually builds upon what they have already learned.
Bruner (1966) states that a theory of instruction should address four major aspects: (1) predisposition
towards learning, (2) the ways in which a body of knowledge can be structured so that it can be most
readily grasped by the learner, (3) the most effective sequences in which to present material, and (4)
the nature and pacing of rewards and punishments. Good methods for structuring knowledge should
result in simplifying, generating new propositions, and increasing the manipulation of information.
In his more recent work, Bruner (1986, 1990, 1996) has expanded his theoretical framework to
encompass the social and cultural aspects of learning as well as the practice of law.
Bruners Theories
Bruner is known for a number of theories. His learning theories evolved from his research during the
1940s and 1950s on the ways people use categories to construct concepts and create mental models
of the world. His studies noted the significance of students' active participation in learning, placing him
in the camp of constructivism (of which he was one of the founding fathers), a cognitive development
theory that contends that learning is an active process in which learners construct new ideas or
concepts based upon their current/past knowledge (Constructivist Theory).
Categories
Bruner believed that the process of learning involved organizing the world around us into mental
categories invented by the learner. By doing this, the learner is forming constructs with which to think
and use information. Every category, its name, the items in it, and their shared features compose a
concept that helps people hold information in its abstract form.
Categories help people:
Reduce the complexity of their environment

Identify objects in the world
Reduce the need for constant learning
Provide direction for activity
Order and relate classes of events rather than deal with individual events.
To perceive is to categorize, to conceptualize is to categorize, to learn is to form categories, to make

decisions is to categorize. Interpreting information and experiences by similarities and differences is
key.
Modes of Representation or Learning

Bruner hypothesized that the usual course of intellectual development moves through three stages:
enactive, iconic, and symbolic, in that order. However, unlike Piaget's stages, Bruner did not contend
that these stages were necessarily age-dependent, or invariant. Any idea or problem or body of
knowledge can be presented in a form simple enough so that any particular learner can understand it
in a recognizable form.
1. Enactive: During earliest childhood, learn about the world through actions on physical objects and the
outcomes of these actions.
2. Iconic: During middle childhood, learning can be obtained through using models and pictures.
3. Symbolic: During adolescence, learner develops the capacity to think in abstract terms.
Based on this model, and believing that all three modes continue to remain available and can be
highly developed even once symbolic learning has begun, Bruner recommended that using a
combination of concrete, pictorial and then symbolic activities will lead to more effective learning.
Source: http://brunerwiki.wikispaces.com/
Discovery Learning
Bruners definition of discovery was not restricted to the act of finding out something that before
was unknown to mankind, but rather (included) all forms of obtaining knowledge for oneself by the
use of ones own mind. He went on to state that there are powerful effects that come from permitting
the student to put things together for himself, to be his own discoverer.
Discovery learning is:

a learning method that encourages students to ask questions and formulate their own tentative
answers, and to deduce general principles from practical examples or experiences.
a learning situation in which the principal content of what is to be learned is not given, but must be
independently discovered by the learner, making the student an active participant in the learning
process.
In discovery learning, the learner is encouraged to actively use their intuition, imagination, and
creativity. In this approach, students are presented with a problem and some evidence: they must
seek to reconcile that information and "discover" the solution to the problem. For example, the teacher
presents examples and the students work with the examples until they discover the interrelationships.
Bruner believed that classroom learning should take place through inductive reasoning by using
specific examples to formulate general principle.He suggested that teachers can nurture inductive
thinking by encouraging students to make guesses based on incomplete evidence and then to confirm
or disprove the guesses systematically.
Educational Implications
Spiral Curriculum
For Bruner, the purpose of education is not to impart knowledge, but instead to facilitate a childs
thinking and problem solving skills which can then be transferred to a range of situations. Specifically,
education should also develop symbolic thinking in children. While there are similarities between
Bruners modes of representation and Piagets stages of cognitive development, he opposed Piagets
theory of readiness which states that cognitive development occurs as a result of maturation
(meaning you cannot teach a child to perform certain activities until they are biologically ready.)
Bruner believes that a child of any age is capable of understanding complex concepts if these are
presented through the use spiralling.
In a spiral curriculum, the information is structured so that complex ideas can be taught at a simplified
level first, and then revisited at more complex levels later. This means subjects would be taught at
levels of gradually increasing difficulty. This allows the introduction of complex concepts at earlier
ages, and allows students to experiment with and discover more about the concept for themselves
over time.
In a Discovery Learning Classroom
According to Bruner, The student is not a bench-bound listener, but is taking part in the formulation
and at times may play the principal role in it. In a discovery learning classroom, you would expect to
find:
A teacher who:
Designs activities and tools matched to students cognitive abilities

Translates information into the learners mode of representation
Activates problem solving by modeling trial and error, curiosity and creates a motivation to learn
Coaches students to discover principles for themselves.
Students who:
Participate in the knowledge-getting process

Test hypotheses
Solve problems
Interact with the environment
Engage in dialogue and collaborate with the teacher and other students.

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What are the three modes of representation according to Bruner?

What is discovery learning according to Bruner?

Models of Learning

1. Discovery Learning (Bruner)

In discovery learning, the student is placed in problem solving situations where

Students are more likely to retain knowledge attained by engaging real-world

Constructivist Theory (Jerome Bruner)

Categories help people:

Reduce the complexity of their environment

To perceive is to categorize, to conceptualize is to categorize, to learn is to form categories, to make

Modes of Representation or Learning

Discovery learning is:

In a Discovery Learning Classroom

Designs activities and tools matched to students cognitive abilities

Participate in the knowledge-getting process

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