Feb. 24 Reflection- Constructivism and Constructionism

Constructivism and constructionism are two separate ideas that have some similarities and some differences. Constructivists believe a person never learns anything from scratch. They believe ideas are built on already existing ideas, but where did the original idea come from? Are they saying we are born with ideas? This is where constructionism comes in. This is the idea that when technology is assimilated with constructivism, students learn new ways of thinking. Computers assist in the development and thinking of students. The four sub-categories of constructionism; learning by designing within a community, technological tools for learning, powerful ideas and wonderful ideas, and learning about learning with technology explain the different aspects of constructionism.

Personally, I think both ideas are applicable. Constructivists believe no ideas are new ideas, that they are old ideas that are built upon. I think this is possible. Lets take language for example. Linguist Noam Chomsky proposed that every human has an innate knowledge of language. We already have the rules in our head at birth and we build on the grammar as we develop and are exposed to language. This is the same idea of constructivism. Another example would be the way humans care for their young. All mammals have this natural ability to care for their children, whether its a human or a lion. We grow on that ability and learn as we go along.

I also believe in constructionism. Sometimes I learn something that I never knew or never would think of on my own. Constructionism and constructivism go hand in hand even though they may seem separate because without the belief that ideas are built upon, students who are collaborating on a project, which constructionism is based on, won't be able to gain knowledge and form their own ideas from what they've heard from their peers. Working in pairs or groups is a great way for children to learn, especially early childhood, because it allows them to feed off of each other and learn how to think of their own ideas.