Social Constructivism is a theory of human learning based upon the learners' social situation and community. The zone of proximal development, developed by Lev Vygotsky and expanded upon by numer of scholars is an idea under social constructivism. In recent decades, constructivist theorists in United States have extended the traditional focus on individual learning to address collaborative and social dimensions of learning. It is possible to see social constructivism as a bringing together of aspects of the work of Piaget with that of Vygotsky and for instance Bruner (Wood 1998: 39). The term Communal constructivism was introduced by Bryn Holmes in 2001. As described in an early paper, "in this model, students will not simply pass through a course like water through a sieve but instead leave their own imprint in the learning process."[1]
Cognitive constructivism and social constructivism
These thoughts on learning, which we now call cognitive constructivism, paved the way for the more attention on the educational theory called social constructivism (McMahon 1997). Lev Semenovich Vygotsky (1896 – 1934), a Belarusian psychologist who lived and worked in a Marxist environment, became famous for his view on mediation as an integral part of human psychology: “the central fact about our psychology is the fact of mediation” (Vygotsky 1978:166). Although his work only became known in the United States during the 1960s, his critique on his contemporary Piaget’s cognitive constructivism, led to the understanding of the importance of culture, language and context in the process of constructing knowledge. Whilst Piaget in his Moral judgment of the Child (Piaget, 1932) and Sociological Studies (1977]1995) argued for the importance of co-operation and mutual respect in social interaction as a necessary condition for cognitive development, Vygotsky emphasizeed the importance of discourse with others, languag and culture, in order to, through the process of mediation, get to a higher order of truth that has also been socially tested (Derry 1999). Vygotsky's “zone of proximal development” is probably his best-known concept. It argues that students can, with help from adults or peers who are more advanced, master concepts and ideas that they cannot understand on their own. Again the emphasis falls on learners actively constructing knowledge and meaning through participating in activities and challenges, with the added emphasis on the interaction between learners and facilitators in order to arrive at a higher level of truth (Sternberg and Williams 1998).
A practical definition of Social Constructivism
Social constructivism argues that the optimal learning environment is one where a dynamic interaction between instructors, learners and tasks provides an opportunity for learners to create their own truth due to the interaction with others. Social constructivism thus emphasizes the importance of language, culture and context in understanding what is happening in society and the world and constructing knowledge based on this understanding (Derry 1999; McMahon 1997). Paul Ernest (1991) summarises the main foundations of social constructivism as follows: Knowledge is not passively received but actively built up by the cognizing subjects. “The function of cognition is adaptive and serves the organisation of the experiential world, not the discovery of ontological reality" (Von Glasersfeld 1989:182). The personal theories which result from the organization of the experiential world must fit the constraints imposed by physical and social reality. This is achieved by a cycle of theory-prediction-test-failure-accommodation-new theory. This gives rise to socially agreed theories of the world and social patterns and rules of language use. In what follows, social constructivism is examined in more detail with specific reference to the way social constructivism views the nature of the learner, the role of the instructor, the learning process and the selection, scope and sequencing of the subject matter. One version of social constructivism contends that categories of knowledge and reality are actively created by social relationships and interactions. These interactions also alter the way in which scientific episteme is organized. Social activity presupposes human beings inhabiting shared forms of life, and in the case of social construction, utilizing semiotic resources (meaning making and meaning signifying) with reference to social structures and institutions. Several traditions use the term Social Constructivism: psychology (after Lev Vygotsky), sociology (after Durkheim, Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, themselves influenced by Alfred Schütz), sociology of knowledge (David Bloor), sociology of mathematics (Sal Restivo), philosophy of mathematics (Paul Ernest). Ludwig Wittgenstein's later philosophy can be seen as a foundation for Social Constructivism, with its key theoretical concepts of language games embedded in forms of life. Lev Vygotsky's social constructivist principles can be applied in new collaborative computer tools such as wikis, blogs and kowledge building tools.
