Assignment: Thought Paper 3

ETEC 512

Claude DSouza

4167007

Section 64B
 In his article, Learning as Constructive Activity, Von Glasersfeld (2008) states that to

assess the truth of your knowledge you would have to know what you come to know before you

come to know it" (p37). He is responding to the problem of how one can know for sure that the

knowledge presented to them is true. Although this seems unlikely, the implication is that there

must be consistency between the constructed knowledge system of the individual and what

he/she comes to know through experience. If what one thinks one knows does not fit with what

one experiences, then conceptual structures must be reorganized to accommodate the challenging

experience and develop understanding. Therefore, a constructivist teacher presents students with

a problem situation that facilitates reassessment and reorganization of previously built

knowledge structures in order to make sense of it. The teacher must carefully choose the

experience such that it must challenge the students current (inaccurate) conceptual model, but it

must not require drastic cognitive restructuring that is not within the students current

developmental capability.

Furthermore, when he says " it appears that knowledge is not a transferable commodity

and communication not a conveyance" (p. 48), Von Glasersfeld is expressing his belief that

learners are not empty vessels who simply absorb knowledge that is delivered by their teacher.

The individual is not a passive receptacle of knowledge, but actively reflects on and applies the

information in order to produce knowledge and competence. The constructivist teacher must

therefore help and guide the students in this process of organizing their knowledge through the

learning experience. Grouping students for tasks, scaffolding, and asking questions that direct

student learning are examples of successful constructivist teaching strategies.

Reference:

Von Glasersfeld, E. (2008). Learning as Constructive Activity. AntiMatters, 2(3), 33-49.