1. Social Constructivism/
Activity Theory
Jess Boucher
Diane Pereira
Gary Heverly
John McDonough
October 25, 2012

2. Class Activity
 Your Task:
 Tell the robot how to autonomously walk in a square.
 What you know:
 Each leg is a separate motor
 Motors turn on for seconds at a time (ex. “Left motor on for three
seconds”)
 Motors can turn on or off at the same time
 Rules:
 Only one person can submit a task list at once.
 Once the task has been completed, the robot will return to the starting
position.

3. Definition(s) & Assumptions
 Social constructivism emphasizes the importance of
culture and context in understanding what occurs in
society and constructing knowledge based on this
understanding (Derry, 1999; McMahon, 1997).
 3 Assumptions:
 Knowledge is a product of human interaction
 Knowledge is socially and culturally constructed that is
influenced by the group and its’ environment
 Learning is a social activity
Derry, S. J. (1999). A Fish called peer learning: Searching for common themes. In A. M. O'Donnell & A. King (Eds.).
Kim, B. (2001). Social Constructivism.. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved <insert date>, from
http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/
McMahon, M. (1997, December). Social Constructivism and the World Wide Web - A Paradigm for Learning. Paper presented at the ASCILITE conference.
Perth, Australia.

4. Lev Vygotsky (1896 – 1934)
 After college, taught in secondary school and
at a teacher’s college.
 Joined a research team lead by Alexander Luria at Moscow Institute of
Psychology.
 Soon after, became the leader and formed a troika with Luria and
Alexei Leont’ev.
 After his death, academic life became politicized and his published
work did not re-emerge until the 1960’s.
 Some aspects of his research were ultimately discarded, but cultural-
historical research, now seen as social constructivism, survived.

5. Jean Piaget (1896 - 1980)
 Theory of Cognitive Development
 Children construct an understanding of the world
around them, then experience discrepancies between
what they already know and what they discover in
their environment.
 Assimilation and Accommodation Theory
 Stages of Cognitive Development

6. Alexei Leont’ev (1903 – 1979)
 Worked with Alexander Luria and Lev Vygotsky at the
Moscow Institute of Psychology.
 Worked with Vygotsky between 1924 and 1930, but moved to Kharkov with
Luria in 1931.
 After Vygotsky’s death, Luria and Leont’ev was joined by the research team
when Vygotsky’s work was viewed as disloyal to the Communist Party.
 Leont’ev expanded on one aspect of Vygotsky’s Cultural-Historical theory and
created Activity Theory.
 In the 1935, moved back to Moscow State University, although he worked
closely with the Kharkovites.

7. Activity Model

8. Jerome Bruner (1915- )
 Key figure in Cognitive Revolution
 All children are naturally curious. Learning is an
active, social process in which students construct
new ideas or concepts based on current knowledge.
 Three Modes of Representation -Enactive, Iconic
and Symbolic
 The Process of Education
 Role of Structure in Learning
 Readiness for Learning
 Intuitive and analytical thinking
 Motives for Learning

9. Yrjö Engeström (1948 – )
 Currently Professor of Adult Education
and Director of the Center for Activity Theory at University
of Helsinki. Also Professor Emeritus of Communications at
UC, San Diego.
 In late 1980’s, started working on integrating Vygotsky’s
Cultural-Historical approach, Leont’ev Activity Theory, and
western developments in psychology, particularly cognitive
science and constructivism.
 Current research focused on applying cultural-historical
activity theory within work organizations.

10. Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
 Theory developed by Lev Vygotsky; “Actual developmental
level as determined by independent problem solving and
the level of potential development as determined through
problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration
with more capable peers.”
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press

11. Concept(s) of ZPD
 Scaffolding
Assistance to the learner, through positive reinforcement,
until the assistance is no longer needed of becomes
repetitive.

12. Zone of Reflective Capacity
 Adults’ ability to describe and understand concepts
increases when working in a group and collaborate
over a period of time. This increased further when
trust has been established between members of the
group. (Gordon Wells, 1999)
 Self reflection increases over time as information is
shared among group members.
 “In a short amount of time we are seeing improvement in each
other. We are starting to question ourselves, like how am I
doing this, or can I do this better.” (Tinsley & Lebak, 2009)
Lebak, K., Tinsley R. (2009). Expanding the Zone of Reflective Capacity: Taking Separate Journeys Together. Networks, Vol. 11 (Issue 2), pg. 1 – 11.
Wells, G. (1999). Dialogic inquiry: Towards a sociocultural practice and theory of education. NY: Cambridge University Press.

13. More Knowledgeable Other (MKO)
 The More Knowledgeable Other (MKO) helps the
learner bridge the gap within the Zone of Proximal
Development.
 Can be a…
 Mentor
 Peer
 Resources
MKO Example

14. Social Constructivism & The Internet

15. Social Constructivism & The Internet

16. Discussion Questions
1. How is social sharing and discovery related to the
internet?
2. Have you noticed a change in your own self
reflection after working within your presentation
groups?
3. After reflecting on the exercise from the
beginning of the class, is there anything you
would do differently?