Social Constructivism by Katie Lederhaus

katielederhaus19 — 2025-06-03 21:22:13 UTC

The "Implications for Teaching" section of this article is helpful! It gives examples of how to create opportunities for collaboration.

-Katie

katielederhaus19 — 2025-06-03 21:35:46 UTC

This article helps me understand the difference between constructivism and its specific types, like social constructivism.

The article also quotes Vygotsky, who states: "Every function in the child’s cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level and, later on, on the individual level; first, between people and then inside the child." To me, this sums up social constructivism's emphasis on collaboration pretty well.

There are also critiques of the theory in this article, such as concern that quieter students may not be as engaged in collaboration as more outgoing peers. Can anyone think of other critiques of this approach?

-Katie

lnuh — 2025-06-04 21:28:54 UTC

This article introduced me to the idea that learning isn't just about absorbing information but about actively constructing knowledge through social interactions. It emphasized the role of collaboration and discussion in the classroom, highlighting how students learn more effectively when they engage with peers and teachers in meaningful dialogue.

- Harshit

lnuh — 2025-06-04 21:32:23 UTC

Reading this helped me understand how Vygotsky viewed learning as a deeply social process. The concept that our interactions with more knowledgeable others can expand our learning potential resonated with me. It made me reflect on times when group work or discussions led to deeper understanding than studying alone.

- Harshit

lnuh — 2025-06-04 21:35:37 UTC

This source clarified how our cultural and social environments shape the way we learn. It introduced me to the idea that tools like language and symbols are crucial in cognitive development. It made me appreciate the diverse ways people construct knowledge based on their unique cultural contexts.

- Harshit

rpbice — 2025-06-05 15:46:31 UTC

This Youtube video gives a brief overview of social constructivism. It emphasizes that understanding is constructed through our soical interactions. Collaboration and discussion are important in the learning process. This video emphasizes the role that teachers/librarians can play in creating environments where learners are actively engaged in the learning process and construct understanding which leads to better understanding of content.

Bice

Social Constructivism: A New Paradigm in Teaching and Learning Environment

rpbice — 2025-06-05 15:59:38 UTC

This article discusses that knowledge is built through our interactions, language, and culture. It further emphasizes the importance of the teacher as a facilitator of learning by creating opportunities for students to collaborate, which promotes inquiry and critical thinking skills. Social constructivism shifts the paradigm away from traditional lectures toward deeper engagement and allows students to create knowledge through experience-based learning.

Bice

Constructivism - Infographic

rpbice — 2025-06-05 16:10:07 UTC

I like the infographic on this page because it helps explain the layers of constructivist view. There is a lot of overlap between constructivism and social constructivism, the graphic illustrates how Vygotsky, Bruner, and Piaget each approach constructivism and the differences in their perspectives.

Bice

Piaget vs. Vygotsky

rpbice — 2025-06-05 16:21:57 UTC

Understanding the differences between Piaget and Vygotsky is essential to grasping social construction (something I struggled with in researching this topic). This video does an excellent job clearly outlining their two theories.

Bice

katielederhaus19 — 2025-06-05 22:24:33 UTC

Fun fact: Vygotsky was homeschooled until he was 15! Could have something to do with this theory's focus on collaboration.

Social, and other, constructivisms

juliekersting — 2025-06-08 02:02:54 UTC

This article explained social constructivism, and offered the contexts of both cognitive constructivism and radical constructivism for comparison. I screenshotted this chart as I thought it did a good job of encapsulating the three theories.

It also got me wondering about how social constructivism in education must affect refugee students and those who speak other languages.

Social Constructivism and Second Language Learning

juliekersting — 2025-06-08 16:23:20 UTC

This video gives a good overview of social constructivism within the context of second language learning.

I realize now that MANY of the methods I was taught to teach content bilingually are based in social constructivism.

The video talks a lot about theory, and concedes that Vygotsky theorized based one-to-one instruction, which makes differentiating language instruction for large classes of students with potentially incongruent zones of proximal development a VERY difficult task.

I still wonder how refugee students from cultures with very different social structures fit into the social constructivism picture as a whole. I've seen firsthand the tendency of some students (not the majority!) to reject those who are from different backgrounds, and on the other hand, for students who have recently arrived or feel like outcasts, to isolate themselves.

juliekersting — 2025-06-08 17:00:53 UTC

This site provided helpful examples of the teacher role and student role in the socially constructivist classroom/library. Particularly with regard to assessment, I thought this perspective was really interesting: "...assessment should be used as a tool to enhance both the student’s learning and the teacher’s understanding of student’s progress. It should not be used as an accountability tool that serves to stress or demoralise students."