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The Constructivist Theory, 21st Century Skills, and Technology Integration

Daniel Kilback

Boise State University

EdTech 504: Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology

Dr. K. Diane Hall

May 9, 2013

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Abstract

The widespread adoption of technology in education has resulted in a constantly

changing and rarely static landscape. The rapidly increasing presence of technology in the daily

lives of teachers and students has shifted the way teachers teach and the way students learn.

Technology has provided new ways for people to make connections between new and existing

knowledge and the subsequent application of this new understanding. Furthermore, educational

technology has the potential to aid teachers in providing students with more meaningful and

authentic learning opportunities as they work together to make connections between content

areas and new and old knowledge. This paper will consider a Constructivist approach to teaching

and learning, the developing field of 21st Century Skills, and the relationships that exist between

constructivism, 21st century skills, and the effective integration of educational technology in

schools today.

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Introduction

Within modern educational circles, there is a push for teachers to design authentic

learning experiences for students. These experiences are expected to be relevant to students and

have real world application. Students of today are eager to see the relationship between what

they are learning and their daily lives. They are connected to information like never before and,

through technology, expect to be able to visualize knowledge connections. There is an effort to

shift classrooms “away from conventional didactic instructional approaches, in which teachers

do most of the talking and students listen and complete short exercises on well-defined, subject

area-specific material” (Means & Olson, 1994, pg. 15). Technology has changed the focus of

teachers, who now challenge students with complex, multidisciplinary projects involving

collaborative research, and engage students in cooperative learning and meaningful authentic

assessments (Means & Olson, 1994). This shift in focus can be seen in the constructivist

approach to teaching and learning.

Constructivism

Constructivism is a broad term and “can represent an epistemological view, a learning

theory, a philosophy of teaching and learning, a general pedagogical approach, or some

combination of these meanings” (Molebash, 2002, pg. 434). The roots of constructivism as a

learning theory stemmed from the work of John Dewey and Jean Piaget in the early part of the

20th

century, and can be seen in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s examination of environment’s impact

on learning, as well as in Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi’s analysis of object teaching and the impact

of student engagement on meaningful knowledge acquisition (Null, 2004). The notion that both

environment and instructional style have an impact on teaching and learning can be seen in

constructivist theory today. Constructivism seeks to explain how people create new

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understandings and meaning from experience as they process and combine new information with

existing knowledge. One’s ability to process and combine information is impacted directly by the

environment in which the new knowledge is acquired.

Constructivism and the Classroom

Classrooms that encourage deep thinking and discussion will produce students who are

more apt to demonstrate connections between disparate ideas. Constructivism proposes a reality

where “learners create their own understanding as they combine what they already believe to be

true based on a blend of past experiences with new experiences” (Rakes, Fields & Fox, 2006, pg.

410). In educational circles, constructivism can be defined as “an interactive process during

which teachers and learners work together to create new ideas in their mutual attempt to connect

previous understandings to new knowledge” (Null, 2004, pg. 182). This focus on interactivity

can be seen in the push for authentic learning experiences in classrooms today. Karagiogi and

Symeou state “today, learning is approached as a constructive, self-regulated, situated,

cooperative, and individually different process. In a world of instant information, constructivism

can become a guiding theoretical foundation and provide a theory of cognitive growth and

learning that can be applied to several learning goals” (Karagiorgi & Symeou, 2005, pg. 24). The

constructivist approach to education emphasizes the importance of considering multiple elements

of the teaching and learning experience when engaged in the process of education in the 21st

century.

21st Century Skills

“The 21st-century schools movement is an effort by educators, business leaders, and

policy makers to inculcate children with the essential skills necessary for success in a rapidly

changing, technology-driven society” (Schoen & Fusarelli, 2008, pg. 185). The essence of 21st

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century skills can be found in students finding information and applying that knowledge, rather

than focusing on acquiring knowledge. The advocacy group Partnership for 21st Century Skills

has identified these skills as including “critical thinking and problem solving skills, creativity

and innovation skills, collaboration skills, information and media literacy skills, [and] contextual

learning skills” (Schoen & Fusarelli, 2008, pg. 185). These skills are not new, they are simply

newly important (Silva 2009). Living in a world where technological change and advancement is

the only constant requires a set of skills that are unique to the technological revolution people are

in the midst of. Identifying these skills can become difficult, as emphasis has shifted from

knowing specific information to knowing how to find information and how to apply that new

knowledge. Considering these skills and discovering new ways to cultivate them is at the

forefront of current educational thought, curriculum design, and instructional practice. As we

experience Moore’s law with the ever-changing technology required in our daily lives, and as we

identify the new skills students need to enter the workplace as competent and technologically

literate, it behooves us to consider how best to teaching and learning in order to leverage the

educational experience and produce the desired skills.

The Constructivist Classroom and 21st Century Skills

Breaking the inertia of the traditional classroom environment is one of the greatest

hurdles in modern education (Rakes, Fields & Cox, 2006). Gone are the days when the purpose

of education was to prepare students to become part of an industrial work force dominated by

assembly lines, linear thinking, and the ability to follow simple directions. Instead, students are

preparing for jobs that require 21st century skills, and traditional classroom environments and

instructional approaches cannot adequately prepare the students of today for the workplace of

tomorrow. The world of today is a more complex place where dynamic change is quickly

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becoming the new constant. “There is a dire need for a new type of employee who understands

systems thinking, can work collaboratively, is flexible, innovative, resourceful, and able to

access and apply new information to solve complex problems” (Schoen & Fusarelli, 2008, pg.

185). A constructivist approach not only produces this type of thinker due to its inclination to

break free from convention and rely on interactivity and collaboration, but its essence provides

teachers with a mechanism that allows them to resist lapsing into outdated practices centered on

a stand and deliver approach.

“Current conceptions of learning and schooling include strong focus on constructivist

processes in which learner-centered instruction integrates construction of knowledge [that is] of

relevance to the learner” (Taylor, 2004, pg. 122). This approach to teaching embraces the notion

that instruction and activities engage learners in the construction of new knowledge. It also

emphasizes the collaborative nature of the learning process since learning experiences are

designed to be learner-centered and relevant to real-world application. Further, it “prompts active

engagement in knowledge construction, and motivates learning through meaningful, authentic

tasks” (pg. 122). A constructivist approach to instruction and curriculum design shifts the role of

the teacher from that of purveyor of knowledge to that of a guide walking with students through

the process of discovery. “Students and their teachers are learning-to-learn when engaging in the

process of constructing rather than receiving knowledge” (pg. 122). This shift to mentoring and

facilitating in order to help students connect new and existing knowledge is at the center of a

constructivist classroom and lends itself to using technology to create meaning throughout the

journey.

The skills identified as essential for 21st century students can be taught effectively using

a constructivist model. Constructivist thought stresses learning by doing, where a premium is

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placed on collaboration, real-world experiences, and flexible thought (Schoen & Fusarelli, 2008).

This approach in which the teacher is a guide and emphasis is placed on depth rather than

breadth of knowledge dovetails with the 21st century emphasis on finding and applying

information. “Constructivism, with its emphasis on the progressive elaboration of knowledge

through personal activity” (Downing, 2001, pg. 230), can be directly linked to the types of skills

necessary for success in the 21st century workplace. “In an information-based society, teachers

must be able to employ constructivism and teach students to use their minds well rather than

attain mastery of a static body of knowledge” (Schoen & Fusarelli, 2008, pg. 187). The

recognition of the value in traveling the constructivist route when 21st century skills are the

destination provides an inherent opportunity for the effective integration of technology.

Constructivism, 21st Century Skills, and Educational Technology

Traditional classrooms are places where students are “not provided with whole,

dynamic learning experiences, but rather with limited, arbitrary activities” (Rakes, Fields & Cox,

2006, pg. 409). “A constructivist learning environment is a place in which learners work together

and support each other as they use a variety of tools and information resources in their guided

pursuit of learning goals and problem solving activities” (pg. 411). The traditional classroom is a

place where rows of desks are filled with passive learners and where there is an emphasis on the

ability to memorize and recall specific information. This type of classroom is often a part of an

educational approach where information is taught “from the various disciplines without

providing adequate contextual support with opportunities for students to apply what they are

taught” (pg. 409). This resulting environment is a place where real-world application is non-

existent and authentic learning experiences cannot be designed or delivered. A constructivist

approach to education and technology adoption can remedy this situation and provide context for

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students as well as an opportunity for them to make connections and have the necessary tools to

discover natural interconnectedness. Well-designed, cross-curricular activities that focus on

collaborative Internet research can provide an avenue for discovering these connections and

seeing the inter-relatedness of specific and seemingly disparate subject matters. The flexibility to

easily research one topic, delve deeply into it, and then shift directions in an instant through the

use of search tools such as Google and Bing provide students with a unique opportunity to create

their own connections and develop meaning and understanding at their own pace.

Technology can be integrated into the classroom in a myriad of ways and “when

teachers thoroughly integrate technology into the classroom, constructivist learning

environments can evolve” (pg. 411). In the classroom where technology is being effectively

integrated, there is a blend of appropriate hardware and software balanced by well-developed,

authentic opportunities for teaching and learning. Technology integration in education has

evolved “from teaching programming, to utilizing drill and practice programs, to building

computer literacy, to participating in electronic communities” (Ertmer, 1999, pg. 49). The focus

here is not on adopting a new piece of hardware or software; the view is “technology adds value

to the curriculum not by affecting quantitative changes (doing more of the same in less time) but

by facilitating qualitative ones (accomplishing more authentic and complex goals)” (pg. 49).

This focus results in a learning environment that is constructivist in nature, one that will

“encompass many different applications of media and technology [to]…create active classrooms

that combine the tools of constructivism with communication and visualization tools that enable

communication and collaboration” (Rakes, Fields & Cox, 2006, pg. 411). Learning Management

Systems (LMS) such as Moodle and Blackboard provide a container where conversations can be

stranded and recorded for future use. These conversations can then be reviewed and cited as

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students develop their own connections rather than accept the connections made by someone

else. LMSs can also offer collaborative online work environments such as wikis that can be used

by students and teachers as they work together to explore specific topics. LMSs can help students

visualize the learning process as they connect new and existing knowledge in a constructivist

manner. Teachers who use technology can “transform classrooms into dynamic centers of

purposeful and experiential learning that intuitively move students from awareness to authentic

action” (pg. 411). Effective integration of technology can be seen in classrooms where

technology is leveraged to facilitate learning, rather than simply deliver information.

Conclusion

Effective use of technology in a constructivist educational environment will produce

students with 21st century skills. Constructivism is founded on the principle of connecting new

and existing knowledge and drawing new meaning from those connections. Classrooms that

provide an environment where learning is collaborative, where innovative teaching and learning

are promoted, and where lessons that have been designed using “technology as a tool to promote

students’ ability to reason and solve authentic problems” (pg. 411) are what schools, and

educational as a whole, need today.

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