Constructivism is a theory based on the active construction of knowledge that

determines the reality of learning based on experience. This learning process can be
achieved with the previous interaction or new events that are added to their
foundation. This theory has its basic principles and can be divided into three types.
First, the main principles of constructivism are the construction of learning, it is
active learning rather than passive, knowledge is socially constructed and is personal,
and it exists in the mind. As mentioned, the building process of new knowledge on
the previously learned knowledge is one of the key principles of this theory. This
process is also active, meaning that the learner has to be engaged with the world,
participate in different events, and create connections. All that knowledge acquired is
socially constructed because all the interaction between people, the participation in a
community to “make meaning” as Vygotsky (1978) mentions and the influence of the
surroundings of the kid while learning are important for this process of building.
This is a co-construction that involves the children and their parents. It is also
personal since each learner is unique and distinctive, producing different points of
view from their existing knowledge and values. Different interpretations can be a
result of the same lesson for each individual. However, the learners can share
common knowledge and learn from the same culture and reshape it. And finally, all
this knowledge only resides in the mean of each learner who tries to constantly
improve and create their mentality with all that they perceive from the world.
Secondly, the three main types of constructivism are cognitive constructivism
based on Jean Piaget, social constructivism based on Lev Vygotsky, and
radical constructivism. Piaget names cognitive constructivism as the
construction of knowledge based on existing cognitive structures and
consequently learning is related to cognitive development. That learning
process is not getting the information passively and using it, but constructing
their own knowledge by being active in order to acquire it. All the information
is shaped to fit into the cognitive structures of the learner and establish new
connections to the new information learned. From this theory, assimilation
and accommodation are later explained as important features of the learning
process. Then, social constructivism from Vygotsky understands the learning
process as common and collaborative in which all the individuals interact,
depending on others to build and help them create their knowledge. It has
similar characteristics to Piaget’s theory, but with the social aspects as the key
elements of the theory. As the last type, social constructivism differs from the
previous theories, and it is defined by von Glasersfeld as the knowledge that is
not passively received through communication or senses but is built by the
cognizing subject. The world is organized by the individual and it is not a
discovery of their own reality.
Lastly, as previously mentioned, assimilation and accommodation are both
processes of learning. Assimilation, on one hand, is the cognitive process of
fitting new information in the previous knowledge structure