CONSTRUCTIVISM AND PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING APPROACH

EMERGING TRENDS IN LEARNER-CENTERED APPROACHES

-Ms. Kanu Priya

Dayalbagh Educational Institute

The most important moment in a child’s education is when he connects with

something that will engage his interest and encourage further exploration.

—Howard Gardner, Address at Brigham Young University, March 1998

Constructivism is a view of learning based on the belief

that knowledge isn't a thing that can be simply given by the

teacher at the front of the room to students in their desks.

Rather, knowledge is constructed by learners through an

active, mental process of development; learners are the

builders and creators of meaning and knowledge.

Constructivism draws on the developmental work of Piaget

(1977) and Kelly (1991). Twomey Fosnot (1989) defines

constructivism by reference to four principles: learning, in an important way,

depends on what we already know; new ideas occur as we adapt and change our

old ideas; learning involves inventing ideas rather than mechanically

accumulating facts; meaningful learning occurs through rethinking old ideas

and coming to new conclusions about new ideas which conflict with our old

ideas. A productive, constructivist classroom, then, consists

of learner-centered, active instruction. In such a

1

classroom, the teacher provides students with experiences

that allow them to hypothesize, predict, manipulate objects,

pose questions, research, investigate, imagine, and invent.

The teacher's role is to facilitate this process.

Piaget (1977) asserts that learning occurs by an active

construction of meaning, rather than by passive recipience.

He explains that when we, as learners, encounter an

experience or a situation that conflicts with our current

way of thinking, a state of disequilibrium or imbalance is

created. We must then alter our thinking to restore

equilibrium or balance. To do this, we make sense of the new

information by associating it with what we already know,

that is, by attempting to assimilate it into our existing

knowledge. When we are unable to do this, we accommodate the

new information to our old way of thinking by restructuring

our present knowledge to a higher level of thinking.

Similar to this is Kelly's theory of personal constructs

(Kelly, 1991). Kelly proposes that we look at the world

through mental constructs or patterns which we create. We

develop ways of construing or understanding the world based

on our experiences. When we encounter a new experience, we

attempt to fit these patterns over the new experience. For

example, we know from experience that when we see a red

traffic light, we are supposed to stop. The point is that we

create our own ways of seeing the world in which we live;

2

the world does not create them for us. Constructivist

beliefs have recently been applied to teaching and learning

in the classroom situation.

Early Efforts towards Constructivism

In past centuries, constructivist ideas were not widely

valued due to the perception that children's play was seen

as aimless and of little importance. Jean Piaget did not

agree with these traditional views, however. He saw play as

an important and necessary part of the student's cognitive

development and provided scientific evidence for his views.

Today, constructivist theories are influential throughout

much of the informal learning sector. One good example of

constructivist learning in an informal setting is the

Investigate Centre at The Natural History Museum, London.

Here visitors are encouraged to explore a collection of real

natural history specimens, to practice some scientific

skills and make discoveries for themselves.

Formalization of the theory of constructivism is generally

attributed to Jean Piaget, who articulated mechanisms by

which knowledge is internalized by learners. He suggested

that through processes of accommodation and assimilation,

individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences.

When individuals assimilate, they incorporate the new

experience into an already existing framework without

changing that framework. This may occur when individuals'3

experiences are aligned with their internal representations

of the world, but may also occur as a failure to change a

faulty understanding; for example, they may not notice

events, may misunderstand input from others, or may decide

that an event is a fluke and is therefore unimportant as

information about the world. In contrast, when individuals'

experiences contradict their internal representations, they

may change their perceptions of the experiences to fit their

internal representations. According to the theory,

accommodation is the process of reframing one's mental

representation of the external world to fit new experiences.

Accommodation can be understood as the mechanism by which

failure leads to learning: when we act on the expectation

that the world operates in one way and it violates our

expectations, we often fail, but by accommodating this new

experience and reframing our model of the way the world

works, we learn from the experience of failure, or others'

failure.

It is important to note that constructivism is not a

particular pedagogy. In fact, constructivism is a theory

describing how learning happens, regardless of whether

learners are using their experiences to understand a lecture

or following the instructions for building a model airplane.

In both cases, the theory of constructivism suggests that

learners construct knowledge out of their experiences.

However, constructivism is often associated with pedagogic

4

approaches that promote active learning, or learning by

doing.

Characteristics of Constructivist Learning & Teaching 

Moving from constructivist philosophy, psychology and

epistemology to the characterization of constructivist

learning environments presents the challenge of synthesizing

a large spectrum of somewhat disparate concepts. An

appropriate analogy for the way in which constructivist

concepts have evolved is that of a prism with many facets.

While the facets reflect the same light and form one part of

a whole, they nonetheless each present distinct and finely

delineated boundaries.

The presentation of characteristics aims to remain true to

this analogy in that it recognizes and attempts to represent

the variety of ways in which constructivism is articulated.

Situated cognition, anchored instruction, apprenticeship

learning, problem-based learning, generative learning,

constructionism, exploratory learning: these approaches to

learning are grounded in and derived from constructivist

epistemology. Each approach articulates the way in which the

concepts are operationalized for learning. The researchers

and theorists whose perspectives are listed below suggest

links between constructivist theory and practice. They

5

provide the beginnings of an orienting framework for a

constructivist approach to design, teaching or learning.

Multiple perspectives and representations of concepts

and content are presented and encouraged.

Goals and objectives are derived by the student or in

negotiation with the teacher or system.

Teachers serve in the role of guides, monitors,

coaches, tutors and facilitators.

Activities, opportunities, tools and environments are

provided to encourage metacognition, self-analysis -

regulation, -reflection & -awareness.

The student plays a central role in mediating and

controlling learning.

Learning situations, environments, skills, content and

tasks are relevant, realistic, authentic and represent

the natural complexities of the 'real world'.

Primary sources of data are used in order to ensure

authenticity and real-world complexity.

Knowledge construction and not reproduction is

emphasized.

6

This construction takes place in individual contexts

and through social negotiation, collaboration and

experience.

The learner's previous knowledge constructions, beliefs

and attitudes are considered in the knowledge

construction process.

Problem-solving, higher-order thinking skills and deep

understanding are emphasized.

Errors provide the opportunity for insight into

students' previous knowledge constructions.

Exploration is a favoured approach in order to

encourage students to seek knowledge independently and

to manage the pursuit of their goals.

Learners are provided with the opportunity for

apprenticeship learning in which there is an increasing

complexity of tasks, skills and knowledge acquisition.

Knowledge complexity is reflected in an emphasis on

conceptual interrelatedness and interdisciplinary

learning.

Collaborative and cooperative learning are favoured in

order to expose the learner to alternative viewpoints.

7

Scaffolding is facilitated to help students perform

just beyond the limits of their ability.

Assessment is authentic and interwoven with teaching.

FIVE PRINCIPLES OF CONSTRUCTIVISM

In the book In Search of Understanding, The Case for the Constructivist

Classroom (1993), the authors, Brooks and Brooks, list five

important principles of constructivism. These principles

further define for teachers the type of teaching practices

that would produce a constructivist classroom.

1. Students need to be able to transfer learning—applying

the learning to new situations—and feel free to change

their views when appropriate.

2. Learning should center around key concepts, and the

instructor should continually assess students' understanding

of the essential concepts.

3. Students' viewpoints should be sought and valued.

4. Teachers may change the instructional practices to fit

the cognitive development of the class, instead of rigidly

sticking with a preplanned agenda.

8

5. Feedback should be nonjudgmental, and assessment should

occur within the context.

Why Is Constructivism Important?

Educational curricula and teaching methods are changing. One

component of the current redevelopment of all subject area

curricula is the change in focus of instruction from the

transmission curriculum to a transactional curriculum. In a

traditional curriculum, a teacher transmits information to

students who passively listen and acquire facts. In a

transactional curriculum, students are actively involved in

their learning to reach new understandings.

Constructivist teaching fosters critical thinking and

creates active and motivated learners. Zemelman, Daniels,

and Hyde (1993) tell us that learning in all subject areas

involves inventing and constructing new ideas. They suggest

that constructivist theory be incorporated into the

curriculum, and advocate that teachers create environments

in which children can construct their own

understandings .Twomey Fosnot (1989) recommends that a

constructivist approach be used to create learners who are

autonomous, inquisitive thinkers who question, investigate,

and reason. A constructivist approach frees teachers to make

decisions that will enhance and enrich students'

development" in these areas. These are goals that are

consistent with those stated by Saskatchewan Education in9

the 1984 government report, Directions, that launched the

restructuring of Saskatchewan's curricula. This demonstrates

that constructivism is evident in current educational

change.

A Constructivist Classroom is a Learner-Centered Classroom

The student-centeredness of a constructivist classroom is

clearly apparent in a reader response approach. Recognizing

the significance of the unique experiences that each

individual brings to the reading of a selection of

literature, the teacher in a response-centered approach

seeks to explore the transaction between the student and the

text to promote or extract a meaningful response

(Rosenblatt, 1978). This places the student in a central

position in the classroom since exploring this transaction

seems unlikely to occur unless the teacher is willing to

relinquish the traditional position of sole authority,

thereby legitimating the unique experiences that all members

of the class bring to the reading rather than just those

experiences the teacher brings. The resulting perception and

effect in the classroom is evident in students' recognition

that the discussion is a legitimate one involving questions

to which nobody knows the answer. It isn't a treasure

hunting game where they are trying to guess what is in their

teacher's head, but a process that creates meaning and

knowledge.

10

In most pedagogies based on constructivism, the teacher's

role is not only to observe and assess but to also engage

with the students while they are completing activities,

wondering aloud and posing questions to the students for

promotion of reasoning (DeVries et al., 2002). (ex: I wonder

why the water does not spill over the edge of the full cup?)

Teachers also intervene when there are conflicts that arise;

however, they simply facilitate the students' resolutions

and self-regulation, with an emphasis on the conflict being

the students' and that they must figure things out for

themselves. For example, promotion of literacy is

accomplished by integrating the need to read and write

throughout individual activities within print-rich

classrooms. The teacher, after reading a story, encourages

the students to write or draw stories of their own, or by

having the students reenact a story that they may know well,

both activities encourage the students to conceive themselves as

reader and writers.

Specific Approaches To Education Based On Constructivism:

Critical Exploration (Duckworth, 2006) The two

components of critical exploration are curriculum

development and pedagogy. In this method teachers find

ways to encourage their students to explore the subject

matter and express their thoughts on the

material(Duckworth).

11

Cognitively Guided Instruction ; A research and teacher

professional development program in elementary

mathematics created by Thomas P. Carpenter, Elizabeth

Fennema, and their colleagues at the University of

Wisconsin-Madison. Its major premise is that teachers

can use students' informal strategies (i.e., strategies

students construct based on their understanding of

everyday situations, such as losing marbles or picking

flowers) as a primary basis for teaching mathematics in

the elementary grades.

Inquiry-based learning

Anchored Instruction (Bransford et al.) : Problems and

approaches to solutions are embedded in a narrative

environment.

Cognitive Apprenticeship (Collins et al.) ; Learning is

achieved by integration into a specific implicit and

explicit culture of knowledge. Six features of

cognitive apprenticeships: modeling of the performance,

support through coaching/tutoring, scaffolding,

students articulate knowledge, reflection on progress,

exploration of new applications.

Problem-based learning

Problem-based Learning (PBL)

12

PBL is a learning environment that embodies most of the

principles that improve learning: active, cooperating,

getting prompt feedback, tailored to student's learning

preference, with student empowerment and accountability. PBL

encourages the students to learn the fundamental principles

of the subject in the context of needing it to solve a

problem. Hence, the subject knowledge is learned in formats

different from those found in traditional subject-based

formats. PBL offers an opportunity to practice, use, and

even develop such key skills as problem solving,

interpersonal, group and team skills, and the ability to

cope with change

Origin of PBL

Boud and Feletti (1997) stated that PBL as it is generally known

today evolved from innovative health sciences curricula introduced in North

America over 30 years ago. Medical education, with its intensive pattern of basic

science lectures followed by an equally exhaustive clinical teaching programme,

was rapidly becoming an ineffective and inhumane way to prepare students,

given the explosion in medical information and new technology and the rapidly

changing demands of future practice. Medical faculty at McMaster University in

Canada introduced the tutorial process, not only as a specific instructional

method (Barrows & Tamblyn, 1980) but also as central to their philosophy for

structuring an entire curriculum promoting student-centered, multidisciplinary

education, and lifelong learning in professional practice.

13

During the 1980s and 1990s the PBL approach was adopted in

other medical schools and became an accepted instructional

approach across North America and in Europe. There were some

who questioned whether or not a physician trained using PBL

was as well prepared for professional practice as a

physician trained using traditional approaches. This was a

fair question, and extensive research was conducted to

answer it. A meta-analysis of 20 years of PBL evaluation

studies was conducted by Albanese and Mitchell (1993), and

also by Vernon and Blake (1993), and concluded that a

problem-based approach to instruction was equal to

traditional approaches in terms of conventional tests of

knowledge (i.e., scores on medical board examinations), and

that students who studied using PBL exhibited better

clinical problem-solving skills. A smaller study of

graduates of a physical therapy program that utilized PBL

(Denton, Adams, Blatt, & Lorish, 2000) showed that graduates

of the program performed equally well with PBL or

traditional approaches but students reported a preference

for the problem-centered approach. Anecdotal reports from

PBL practitioners suggest that students are more engaged in

learning the expected content (Torp & Sage, 2002).

However, a recent report on a systematic review and meta-

analysis on the effectiveness of PBL used in higher

education programs for health professionals (Newman, 2003)

stated that “existing overviews of the field do not provide

14

high quality evidence with which to provide robust answers

to questions about the effectiveness of PBL”

Specifically this analysis of research studies attempted to

compare PBL with traditional approaches to discover if PBL

increased performance in adapting to and participating in

change; dealing with problems and making reasoned decisions

in unfamiliar situations; reasoning critically and

creatively; adopting a more universal or holistic approach;

practicing empathy, appreciating the other person’s point of

view; collaborating productively in groups or teams; and

identifying one’s own strengths and weaknesses and

undertaking appropriate remediation (self-directed

learning). A lack of well-designed studies posed a challenge

to this research analysis, and an article on the same topic

by Sanson-Fisher and Lynagh (2005) concluded that “Available

evidence, although methodologically flawed, offers little support for the

superiority of PBL over traditional curricula” (p. 260). This gap in the research on

the short-term and long-term effectiveness of using a PBL approach with a range

of learner populations definitely indicates a need for further study.

Characteristics of PBL

PBL is an instructional (and curricular) learner-centered

approach that empowers learners to conduct research,

integrate theory and practice, and apply knowledge and

15

skills to develop a viable solution to a defined problem.

Critical to the success of the approach is the selection of

ill-structured problems (often interdisciplinary) and a

tutor who guides the learning process and conducts a

thorough debriefing at the conclusion of the learning

experience. Several authors have described the

characteristics and features required for a successful PBL

approach to instruction. The reader is encouraged to read

the source documents, as brief quotes do not do justice to

the level of detail provided by the authors. Boud and

Feletti (1997) provided a list of the practices considered

characteristic of the philosophy, strategies, and tactics of

problem-based learning. Duch, Groh, and Allen (2001)

described the methods used in PBL and the specific skills

developed, including the ability to think critically,

analyze and solve complex, real-world problems, to find,

evaluate, and use appropriate learning resources; to work

cooperatively, to demonstrate effective communication

skills, and to use content knowledge and intellectual skills

to become continual learners. Torp and Sage (2002) described

PBL as focused, experiential learning organized around the

investigation and resolution of messy, real-world problems.

They describe students as engaged problem solvers, seeking

to identify the root problem and the conditions needed for a

good solution and in the process becoming self-directed

learners. Hmelo-Silver (2004) described PBL as an

16

instructional method in which students learn through

facilitated problem solving that centers on a complex

problem that does not have a single correct answer. She

noted that students work in collaborative groups to identify

what they need to learn in order to solve a problem, engage

in self-directed learning, apply their new knowledge to the

problem, and reflect on what they learned and the

effectiveness of the strategies employed.

Torp And Sage (2002) List Three Main Characteristics Of PBL.

1. Engages students as stakeholders in a problem situation.

2. Organizes curriculum around a given holistic problem,

enabling student learning in relevant and connected ways.

3. Creates a learning environment in which teachers coach

student thinking and guide student inquiry, facilitating

deeper levels of understanding.

What Makes Problem-Based Learning Different?

Curriculumasexperience

Learner asproblem solver

Teacher ascognitivecoach

Problematicsituation asorganizingcenter

fosters defines models highlights a17

activelearning

problems andconditions forresolution

interest andenthusiasm forlearning

need forinquiry

supportsknowledgeconstruction

establishes acontext forlearning

coachesstudentthinking

attracts andsustainsstudentinterest

integratescontentareas

pursuesmeaning andunderstanding

exposeseffectivelearningstrategies

connectsschoollearning andthe realworld

providesrelevance

becomes aself-directedlearner

nurtures anenvironmentthat supportsopen inquiry

enablesmeaningfullearning

PROBLEM BASED LEARNING RATIONALE

PBL is a teaching strategy that leads students to learn to

learn and encourages students to develop critical thinking

and problem solving skills that they can carry for life. PBL

is the search for solutions to life’s messy problems. It was

developed by McMaster University Canada in medical and heath

sciences by the end of the 1960’s Problem-based learning

(PBL) is an emerging teaching approach which has taken its

prominence in tertiary education in recent years . PBL

crosses a broad spectrum of instructional patterns, from

18

total teacher control to more emphasis on self directed

student inquiry. Patterns of power and control of decision

making are affected by what calls “reculturing”. It is a

shift from the traditional didactic teaching where the core

knowledge discovery process lies almost entirely in the

hands of the learner rather than the teacher.The researchers

termed it “authentic PBL” and argued that it has four key

characteristics:

1. Problem-based. It begins with the presentation of a real

life (authentic) problem stated as it might be encountered

by practitioners.

2. Problem-solving. It supports the application of problem-

solving skills required in “practice.” The role of the

instructor is to facilitate the application and development

of effective problem-solving processes.

3. Student-centred. Students assume responsibility for their

own learning and faculty act as facilitators. Instructors

must avoid making students dependent on them for what they

should learn and know.

4. Self-directed learning. It develops research skills. Students

need to learn how to get information when it is needed and

will be current, as this is an essential skill for

professional performance.

19

5. Reflection. This should take place following the completion

of problem work, preferably through group discussion, and is

meant to enhance transfer of learning to new problems.

Impact of PBL on Learners

Increases Motivation

PBL engages students in learning through the attraction or

pull of problem dissonance or tension. They take on more and

delve deeper as they make a personal investment in the

outcome of their inquiry.

Makes Learning Relevant to the Real World

PBL offers students an obvious answer to their questions:

"Why do we need to learn this information?"

"What connection does school work have to the real world?"

Promotes Higher Order Thinking

Coupled with cognitive coaching strategies, the ill-

structured problem scenario calls upon critical and creative

thinking by suspending the guessing game of:

“What's the answer that the teacher wants me to find?" Students gather

information significant to the problem and assess its

credibility and validity. In bringing the problem to

20

acceptable closure with evidence to support decisions,

students meet high benchmarks of thinking.

Encourages Learning How to Learn

PBL promotes metacognition and self-regulated learning as

students generate strategies for defining problems,

gathering information, analyzing data, building and testing

hypotheses, comparing strategies with those of other

students and mentors, and sharing methods and conclusions.

Requires Authenticity

PBL engages student learning in ways that are similar to

real world situations and assesses learning in ways that

demonstrate understanding and not mere replication.

Conclusion

The constructivist approach promises to bring n learner-

centered education. It isn't a treasure hunting game where

they are trying to guess what is in their teacher's head,

but a process that creates meaning and knowledge. In most

pedagogies based on constructivism, the teacher's role is

not only to observe and assess but to also engage with the

students while they are completing activities, wondering

aloud and posing questions to the students for promotion

of reasoning . In fact, constructivism is a theory

describing how learning happens, regardless of whether

21

learners are using their experiences to understand a lecture

or following the instructions for building a model airplane.

In both cases, the theory of constructivism suggests that

learners construct knowledge out of their experiences.

However, constructivism is often associated with pedagogic

approaches that promote active learning, or learning by

doing.

REFERENCES:

Bransford, J., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (2000). HowPeople Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (expandededition), Washington: National Academies Press.

Brooks, J. & Brooks, M. (1993). In search of understanding:The case for constructivist classrooms. Alexandria, VA:Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Boud, D. and G. Feletti (1997). The Challenge of ProblemBased Learning. London: Kogan Page

DeVries et al. (2002) Developing constructivist earlychildhood curriculum: practical principles and activities.Teachers College Press: New York. ISBN 0-8077-4121-3, ISBN0-8077-4120-5.

Doğru and Kalender, 2007, Applying the Subject “Cell”Through Constructivist Approach during Science Lessons andthe Teacher’s View, Journal of Environmental & ScienceEducation, 2 (1), 3-13

Duch, B. J., Groh, S. E., & Allen, D. E. (Eds.). (2001). Thepower of problem-based learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus.

22

Duckworth, E. R. (2006). "The having of wonderful ideas" andother essays on teaching and learning. Third edition. NewYork: Teachers College Press.

Hmelo-Silver, Duncan, & Chinn. (2007)Scaffolding andAchievement in Problem-Based and Inquiry Learning: AResponse to Kirschner, Sweller, and Clark (2006) EducationalPsychologist, 42(2), 99–107

Kelly, G.A. (1991). The psychology of personal constructs:Volume one - A theory of personality. London: Routledge

Jerome I. Rotgans and Henk G. Schmidt, The role of teachers in facilitating situational interest in an active-learning classroom

Krain, The Effects of Different Types of Case Learning on Student Engagement, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1528-3585.2010.00409.x/full

Piaget, J. (1977). The development of thought: Equilibrationof cognitive structures. (A. Rosin, Trans). New York: The Viking Press.

Rosenblatt, Jason P. “Aspects of the Incest Problem inHamlet.” Shakespeare Quarterly 29, no. 3 (summer 1978): 349-64

Twomey Fosnot, C. (1989). Enquiring teachers, enquiringlearners: A constructivist approach for teaching. New York:Teachers College Press

Torp, L and Sage, S. (2002). Problems and Possibilities:Problem-Based Learning for K-16 Education, 2nd Edition(Alexandria, VA: Association of Supervision and CurriculumDevelopment).

23

24