How do we construct knowledge?
Chip Bruce
(chip@uiuc.edu)
(ready to use)
ASK
Subject Areas
| Education, Philosophy, Science |
Grade Levels
| Kinder, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, Vocational, Undergraduate, Continuing |
Unit Keywords
|
knowledge, constructivism, learning, teaching |
Open Directory Category
Rationale of the Unit
| Looks at constructivism and ways of knowing. |
Background and Resources
Activities and Open-ended problems
Dialogues, Discussions, and Presentations
Constructing Meaning
We often speak of teaching as a way of transmitting knowledge, from
the expert to the novice. But going back at least to the days of Socrates
is the recognition that important ideas can never be simply told; they
must be constructed anew. Our ability to make meaning out of prior knowledge
and new experiences is a powerful attribute of the way we think. It is
also a necessary condition for learning.
An example, drawn from the research of Bill Brewer and Stella Vosniadou,
may help here. If you ask a child of age five to draw a picture of himself
standing on the world, you might see something like a stick figure standing
on a line representing a flat world. That's not surprising; most of our
daily experience supports that idea that we live on a gigantic plain. So,
if an adult were to ask, you might hear this dialogue:
Adult: Tell me the shape of the world.
Child: The world is flat. I can see it.
If the adult were to insist, you might hear:
Adult: No, the world is round.
Child: Oh! The world is round? Like a pancake!
This would be a rational and creative solution to the apparent contradiction
between his experiential reality and the statement of the adult.
Of course, the adult might be a bit frustrated:
Adult: No, no. It's round like a ball! Look at this picture of the world
taken by astronauts in outer space.
Child: Now I see! There are two worlds, the one in space is round, and
the one we're standing on is flat.
Although this example artificially compresses a long developmental sequence,
the overall pattern is very real. Children who say funny, even bizarre
things, are often making perfectly reasonable inferences combining observation,
theory, and creative problem solving. In that sense, their thinking is
scientific, even if the particular statements vary from currently accepted
scientific concepts or might change as they integrate more observations. |
Assessment, Related Questions, and Story of the Unit
If you want to add your comments on this Unit, please login first.
|
