Social constructivism is a theory of knowledge and learning that states that categories of knowledge and reality are actively created by social relationships and interactions. Based on the work of theoreticians such as L. S. Vygotsky, he focuses on the personal construction of knowledge through social interaction.
Constructivism and Social Constructivism
Constructivism is an epistemology, an educational or semantic theory that explains the nature of knowledge and the process of teaching people. He claims that people create their own new knowledge in the process of interaction, on the one hand, between what they already know and what they believe in, and the ideas, events, and actions that they come into contact with on the other. According to the theory of social constructivism, knowledge is acquired through direct participation in the learning process, and not through imitation or repetition. Educational activities in constructivist conditions are characterized by active interaction, inquiry, problem solving and interaction with others. A teacher is a leader, facilitator, and job seeker who encourages students to ask questions, challenge, and formulate their own ideas, opinions, and conclusions.
The pedagogical tasks of social constructivism are based on the social nature of cognition. In accordance with this, approaches are proposed that:
- provide students with the opportunity to gain concrete, contextually relevant experience through which they seek patterns, raise their own questions, and build their own models;
- create conditions for educational activity, analysis and reflection;
- encourage students to be more responsible for their ideas, to ensure autonomy, to develop social relations and expand opportunities aimed at achieving goals.
Prerequisites for Social Constructivism
The educational theory under consideration emphasizes the importance of culture and context in the process of knowledge formation. According to the principles of social constructivism, there are several prerequisites that determine this phenomenon:
- Reality: Social Constructivists believe that reality is built through human activity. Members of society together invent the properties of the world. For a social constructivist, reality cannot be discovered: it does not exist before its social manifestation.
- Knowledge: for social constructivists, knowledge is also a human product and socially and culturally constructed. People create meaning through their interaction with each other and with the environment in which they live.
- Training: social constructivists see learning as a social process. It not only occurs inside a person, but is not a passive development of behavior that is formed by external forces. Significant learning occurs when people engage in social activities.
The social context of learning
It is represented by historical events inherited by students as members of a particular culture. Symbol systems such as language, logic, and mathematical systems are studied throughout the student’s life. These symbol systems dictate how and what to learn. Of great importance is the nature of the student’s social interaction with knowledgeable members of society. Without social interaction with more knowledgeable others, it is impossible to get the social meaning of important systems of symbols and learn to use them. So, young children develop their mental abilities by interacting with adults.
Learning theory
According to the founder of social constructivism L. S. Vygotsky, knowledge is formed through social interaction and is a common, not an individual experience.
Learning Theory suggests that people create “meaning” from educational experience while learning from others. This theory says that the learning process goes best when students function as a social group that together creates a common culture of artifacts with a common meaning.
Within the framework of this theory, the leading role is assigned to the activity of people in the learning process, which distinguishes it from other educational theories, mainly based on the passive and receptive role of the student. It also recognizes the great importance of symbol systems, such as language, logic and mathematical systems, which are inherited by students as members of a particular culture.
Social constructivism assumes that students study concepts or create the meaning of ideas through their interaction with other ideas, their world and through interpretations of this world in the process of actively constructing meaning. Students create knowledge or understanding through active learning, thinking, and working in a social context.
According to this theory, the student’s ability to learn depends to a large extent on what he already knows and understands, and the acquisition of knowledge should be an individually selected construction process. The theory of transformational learning focuses on the often needed changes that are required in a student's bias and worldview.
Constructivist philosophy emphasizes the importance of social interactions in building knowledge.
According to the theory of teaching social constructivism, the formation of each of us occurs through our own experience and interactions. Each new experience or interaction is taken into account in our schemes and shape our perspectives and behavior.