Higher Education 

Task  : Take a look at the two university classrooms above and ponder these three questions:

1. What are some adjectives that describe each classroom.

2. Which classroom would you most like to learn or teach in?

3. Is one classroom better than the other in all cases, or does it depend on the subject

Instructivist History

Education, and higher education in particular has a history of being traditionally instructivist.  This method focuses strongly on content, where knowledge is seen as being transferred from the all-knowing teacher expert whose job it is to cover the material as outlined in the syllabus, students are viewed as "passive vessels ingesting knowledge for recall on tests" (Barr and  Tagg 1995). This form of education relies on rote-memorization and high-stakes exams. Many aspects of this paradigm can be viewed today - the traditional 50-minute lecture is one example. Higher education often defaults to this model, due to tradition and the logistics of large class sizes.

The Active Learner

As opposed to the passive vessel mentioned above, both Piaget-based and social constructionism  involves active engagement - with the objects and people in the environment. Knowledge is not transmitted, but created. One way this takes shape in the University classroom is students are active - learning takes place through students engaging with each other and class materials to help them construct meaning.   This idea was heavily influenced by  Dewey who established an experimental school at the University of Chicago based on the idea that learning is more interesting if the learner is actively involved in his own learning (Schmidt, 2012), Below, an instructor explains how he runs an active class of 800 students.

Prior Knowledge within Constructivism

In higher education,  the constructivist educator is expected to take the student's existing knowledge into account. Piaget’s ideas about iterative, interpretive, and incremental learning are especially relevant according to Taber (2014):

• Iterative learning in higher education means students build on a foundation of existing knowledge and gain better understanding as they progress through increasingly difficult tasks. This approach helps them connect new insights to prior learning, deepening comprehension over time.

• Interpretive learning is critical at this stage, as students are encouraged to bring their own perspectives and experiences into their studies. Higher education often involves analyzing and questioning established ideas, and students interpret content using their background knowledge, helping them develop unique, informed viewpoints. This also leads to acknowledging the diverse viewpoints of others through  sharing and discussion

• Incremental learning means that learning takes place at a slow pace, and that that gaining complex, advanced knowledge takes time. In higher education, students often engage in long-term study and research, allowing them to consolidate and apply new concepts gradually. This approach enables deep, lasting understanding, which is important for mastering specialized fields.

Social Constructionism and Collaboration 

One key aspect of Vygotsky's social constructivism that has been embraced by higher education is the collaborative approach to learning. Learning and development therefore take place in culturally and socially shaped contexts (John-Steiner and Mahn, 2011). The importance of social interaction can be seen in collaborative  activities, group discussions and peer teaching . Constructivist believe that group work will enhance student knowledge through shared perspectives and co-creation of knowledge. (Yew and Gogh, 2016).

Problem Based Learning 

Problem-based learning (PBL) originated at McMaster University in Canada in the late 1960s. The method was developed by the university's medical school faculty, who wanted to create a more student-centered learning experience that was different from traditional lectures. (Schmidt, 2012). Heavily influenced by the constructivist approach to education, the founders of PBL believed that students would learn more effectively by working together to solve realistic problems, rather than memorizing facts. 

Education has been working on a problem-solving approach for decades, but this quote below shows how PBL is a more constructivist approach: 

"The use of real-life problems and intensive group discussions leading to tentative solutions had been a feature of the Harvard School of Business for decades. What was unusual about McMaster was the timing: students acquire the knowledge needed to solve problems after they began working on the problem situations. (Schmidt, 1012)."

Below is an example of Problem based learning at UBC. 

Consider what aspects of Constructionist theory apply to this lesson. 

References:

Barr, R. B., & Tagg, J. (1995). From teaching to learning—A new paradigm for undergraduate education. Change, 27, 18-25. 

CityNews. (2023, August 14). Burger bots: UBC engineering students go head-to-head in autonomous design [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mijFtf3gek

Schmidt, H. G. (2012). A brief history of problem-based learning. In One-day, one-problem (pp. 21-40). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-4021-75-3_2 

Taber, K. S. (2014). Student thinking and learning in science: Perspectives on the nature and development of learners' ideas (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203695081 

Western University Centre for Teaching and Learning. (2021, March 20). Tom Haffie - Active learning large class examples [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@westernuCTL 

Yew, E. H. J., & Goh, K. (2016). Problem-based learning: An overview of its process and impact on learning. Health Professions Education, 2(2), 75-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hpe.2016.01.004