New models for the learning process: Beyond constructivism? (original) (raw)

When we observe the teaching or mediation of science, three main traditions may be discerned. The first tradition, which is the most widespread and long established, is founded on the idea of frontal transmission of knowledge. Each stage in the process introduces specific subject matter, taken from a syllabus or table of objectives, that in sum makes up the knowledge to be acquired. In this type of teaching or mediation there is a linear relationship between the teacher, the repository of a body of knowledge, who delivers an increasingly often illustrated lecture, and the pupil on the receiving end. In museums, this tradition is reflected in a 'bookish' presentation or in the presentation of a 'medium'. In every case a 'person who knows' pours out a predetermined package of knowledge to a passive listener. At school, this transmission of information is reinforced by a corresponding effort of memorization. The second tradition, developed since the 1950s, is based on a training process upgraded to the rank of learning principle. The chosen propositions are of the stimulus-response type, and faith is pinned on ideas of 'conditioning' and 'reinforcement'. The teacher, or most commonly the programme designer, analyses the behaviour, the chaining of which expresses the skills to be acquired. He or she then devises questions capable of bringing those skills into the open and couples the replies of the pupil with approving or disapproving reinforcement stimuli. In practice, this tradition takes the form of teaching through exercises. In museums, it is reflected in the widespread 'push-button' trend. Programmed teaching of this sort has been given a new lease of life with the development of computers. Lastly, the third tradition, of more recent origin, 1 corresponds to what is generally called 'the discovery method' or 'learning by construction'. It responds to the spontaneous needs and interests of the pupils; it advocates their freedom of expression, creativity and life skills; it highlights independent discovery and the importance of proceeding by trial and error in a process of construction initiated by the pupil.