CONSTRUCtionism

What is CONSTRUCTIonism?
Constructionism is an educational theory that believes children learn
most effectively when actively doing, or constructing, things, rather than
being taught information in a traditional schooling method.
The objects in the surroundings shared by both children and adults opens
paths of communication between them. These paths of communication
can become paths to learning for students.
Constructionists believe that learning best occurs through the following
caveats: embodiment, collaborative dialogue encouraged by the problem
presented, and the reflection, explanation, and feedback given
immediately afterwards.

Social CONSTRUCTIonism
Social constructionism focuses on the artifacts that are created through
the social interactions of a group.
Suggests that social forces are just as influential to what we view as "the
truth" as objective "facts" are. We as humans with social biases and
privileges are able to adjust the truth based on social standing, gender,
etc.

CONSTRUCTionism and technology

A structure for constructionist learning may be a project-based activity or a
challenge-based activity. Both of these approaches may be open-ended in
nature, encouraging the student to try new approaches to the problem.
Embodiment of constructivist principles with the use of technology:
creating personally meaningful artifacts;
using the artifacts as an "object-to-think-with";
the "object-to-think-with" serves as a tool for immediate feedback,
providing students opportunities to reflect on their work while actively
improving their work;
these technologies provide students with a program in which they have
agency in problem-creating and solving.
The Role of a teacher in a
CONSTRUCTIonist classroom

It is ultimately the teacher's responsibility not only to decide what

constructionist-learning technology should be incorporated in their
classroom, but also how students will utilize it in a meaningful way. This
involves the design of both the physical space of the classroom as well as
engaging activities and participation structures.
The second role of the teacher is as both a facilitator and a more
experienced learner in the environment. The adult takes an active, hands-on
approach to the learning, modelling the behaviors they wish to see, and, in
turn, the children are influenced by what they see and utilize the new skills.

Questions
Social Constructionism suggests that truth is subjective to personal
bias. What role does a teacher play in this?
Carol Gilligan demonstrates in her research that women and men interpret
moral dilemmas with different lenses and that the development of these
lenses is influenced by the relative social location of women and men in a
patriarchal society. How do you think this impacts the way a
constructionist classroom works?
As researchers and teachers, to combat our own bias, we should work to
gain multiple perspectives on a single problem. How can this be
accomplished?
How can we move towards a constructionist classroom when technology
quickly becomes obsolete? Would you use the program Scratch that the
article suggested? Why or why not?
If students are problem solving on a computer, can it still be considered
creative? or is it just creative problem solving? Is there a difference?