CONSTRUCTIVISM: ORIGIN, HISTORICAL CONTEXT, THEORY AND AUTHORS - PSYCHOLOGY - 2025

The constructivism is a pedagogical model that raises the need to provide students with a series of tools that allow them to build their own criteria and learning, which will help them solve any problems in the future.

For constructivist thought, knowledge is understood as a construction process through which the person -or the student- must pass to develop as a human being. This process is carried out dynamically, so the student must take a participatory and interactive attitude.

For constructivist thought, knowledge is understood as a construction process through which the person -or the student- must pass to develop as a human being. Source: pixabay.com

Consequently, it is affirmed that constructivism is a type of teaching that is oriented towards action; The objective is for students to become active agents and not only receive information passively, as is often the case in traditional teaching.

Likewise, this pedagogical model considers that a person is not the result of their environment. In reality, for constructivism, every individual is formed from a self-construction, which is done continuously and is influenced by reality and by the internal skills of the person.

This pedagogical current was defended by two main authors: Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget. Vygotsky focused on knowing how the social environment influences the internal construction of people; Piaget, on the contrary, focused on investigating how people construct their knowledge based on their interaction with reality.

Although these authors followed different perspectives, they both agreed on the idea that all human beings are active disciples who have the ability to develop knowledge on their own. They also considered that knowledge cannot be calculated, since for each person it is different and varies according to the experiences and subjectivities of each individual.

Origin and historical context of constructivism

Classical antiquity

Constructivism raises a reflection on the way in which knowledge is produced and obtained; For this reason, many authors associate it with philosophical thought.

In fact, constructivism is considered to have its beginnings in the ancient pre-Socratic philosophers (that is, before Socrates), especially Xenophanes (570-478 BC).

Xenophanes painting

This thinker considered that people are not instructed by the gods from their birth (as previously believed), but that in reality a search process is required that over time will lead to greater discoveries and learning.

With Xenophanes, analysis and critical tradition were born; Furthermore, this philosopher was committed to independent reflection, which implies that each person has the necessary capacities to think and learn for himself.

Another important author of classical antiquity who influenced the birth of Constructivism was Heraclitus (540-475 BC). This thinker affirmed that everything that exists changes constantly, therefore, life is a process full of changes.

Heraclitus sculpture

Consequently, knowledge also changes and varies according to the modifications experienced by communities and individuals.

Later centuries

René Descartes, although he did not agree with the authority arguments, used them in his works. Via wikimedia commons.

Later, there is the figure of Descartes (1596-1650), whose philosophical contributions served as support to the constructivist theory. In fact, in one of his letters this thinker affirmed that people are only capable of knowing what they build themselves.

Kant, main thinker of apriorism. Source: nach Veit Hans Schnorr

Kant (1724-1804) was also an author who addressed the subject related to the acquisition of knowledge. For him, the knowledge of reality is a constant process of adaptation; According to Kant, people develop their models of reality throughout their evolutionary process, which allows them to build their behavior.

Emergence of constructivism as a pedagogical model

Although other authors had already made reflections on knowledge, constructivism as a concept was born with Jean Piaget (1896-1980), a psychologist who dedicated himself to studying the way in which children's knowledge evolved and changed.

Through these studies, Piaget was able to formulate a theory of learning. In it the author established that each person has a different perception of reality, therefore, their way of interpreting knowledge is also different.

Each person has a different perception of reality, therefore, their way of interpreting knowledge is also different. Source: pixabay.com

Although Piaget's theories are considered to have originated constructivism, the development of this model was not actually deepened until the second part of the 20th century, especially between the 1950s and 1970s.

Then, starting in 1980, the constructivist model managed to consolidate in its entirety. This resulted in the emergence of two aspects: the critical trend and the radical trend.

Critical constructivism focuses primarily on the internal processes of the individual, while radical constructivism is based on the premise that it is impossible to fully know the real.

Constructivist theory

It can be said that the constructivist theory is based on five principles:

- Human interaction with the environment

This principle refers to the fact that the construction of knowledge is influenced by the relationship that the human being maintains with the environment in which it develops. For example, a person will build their knowledge based on their family, work, educational experiences, among others.

- Previous experience conditions the next knowledge to be built

This means that the experiences that human beings create throughout their lives will influence the way they approach new knowledge. In other words, the knowledge acquired previously will have a considerable weight in the construction of the new learning.

For example: a young man learned that to cook beans, it is advisable to soak them the day before. This knowledge will influence that young man when he decides to prepare other types of grains, such as lentils.

- The elaboration of a “sense” from the experiences

It is through the experiences and knowledge acquired, that the human being gives a meaning to reality; that is, it gives its existence meaning.

- The active organization

As mentioned above, constructivism considers learning to be a continuous construction, where the learner participates actively in this process.

For this reason, it is affirmed that it is an active organization: the student or apprentice is organizing their new experiences and knowledge as they obtain them. This allows you to shape your perception of reality.

As human beings acquire new knowledge, they adapt to the needs of reality and the environment in which they live. Source: pixabay.com

- The adaptation between knowledge and reality

This principle establishes that, as the human being acquires new knowledge, these are adapted to the needs of reality and the environment in which he lives; This adaptation allows him to develop cognitively throughout his life.

Authors and their ideas

Jean Piaget (1896-1980)

Jean Piaget. Via wikimedia commons.

He was a Swiss psychologist and biologist, known for his contributions to genetic epistemology; He also stood out for the development of constructivist theory and for the study of childhood patterns.

Regarding his ideas, Piaget was characterized by defending that human knowledge is a consequence of the interaction between the individual and the reality in which he inhabits. Said individual, by acting on the environment in which he operates, builds structures in his own mind.

However, this author came to recognize that there are certain innate capacities in the human being that allow him to act in the world from birth; This is seen in the ability of people to transmit or receive information from an early age.

- Assimilation and accommodation

In general terms, Piaget stated that people's intelligence and cognitive abilities are closely linked to the social and physical environment in which they operate. This phenomenon develops in two processes: assimilation and accommodation.

The first refers to the way in which people integrate new knowledge into their mental schemes; the second refers to the adjustment capacity that people have to introduce this new knowledge to their reality.

Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934)

Lev Vygotsky. Via wikimedia commons.

He was a Russian psychologist, who stood out for his theory of development and for founding historical-cultural psychology. Today he is considered one of the most famous and influential psychologists.

- Cultural influence on cognitive development

This author was characterized by defending the importance of culture in the development of children. For Vygotsky, the individual development of each person cannot be understood without taking into account the environment in which this person develops.

For this reason, the child will develop skills and experiences that are related to his cultural environment.

That is to say, children's perceptual abilities are modified according to the mental tools that culture offers them; It is worth noting that culture encompasses various elements and concepts such as religion, traditions, history and language.

Likewise, after the child -or the person- has contact with an aspect of their social environment, they can internalize the experience and turn it into a new form of knowledge.

To understand this theory, Vygotsky proposed the following example: if a child visualizes an adult pointing with a finger, in the first instance the child will perceive this gesture as an insignificant movement; but by observing the response of other people to this gesture, the child will assign a meaning to it.

In this way, it is appreciated how the cultural environment influences the cognitive development of human beings.

References

1. Araya, V. (2007) Constructivism: origins and perspectives. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Laurus: education magazine (Redalyc.org)
2. Arrufat, G. (2020) What is constructivism in psychology: origin and characteristics. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Psychology online: psicología-online.com
3. Raskin, J. (2019) Constructivism in psychology: personal construct psychology. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Researchgate.net
4. Rolando, L. (sf) Approach to constructivism. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Monographs: monogramas.com
5. SA (2019) Constructivism in Psychology and psychotherapy. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from verywellmind.com
6. SA (sf) Constructivism. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Simply Psychology: simplypsychology.org
7. SA (sf) Constructivism. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org
8. Sánchez, F. (nd) Constructivism (psychology): theories, authors and applications. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from Lifeder: lifeder.com
9. Serrano, J. (2011) Constructivism today: constructivist approaches in education. Retrieved on March 27, 2020 from redie.uabc.mx