Constructivism

Pondering learning and why ambiguity is easier to mesh into one's worldview than dogma.

Start with a network of associated ideas in one's head.

Bombard with sensory inputs, a small fraction of which will make it through the individual's protective firewall.

The individual's unwitting internal translator reforms the surviving inputs into new entities. These link into the existing network of thoughts. Sometimes there's a delay factor, while the mind looks for the best fit. This occurs during reflection.

Some inputs are too large or rigid or alien to ever establish links, i.e. be learned.

Obviously, the learner plays a large role in what's learned. The richness of the pre-existing network, the nature of the firewall, the range of the internal translator, the effort devoted to reflection, and the desire to increase one's scope all impact how much one learns.

Posted by Jay Cross at October 11, 2003 08:31 PM | TrackBack