Situated learning theory holds that effective education requires learning that is embedded in authentic contexts of

practice, wherein students engage in increasingly more complex tasks within social communities. Opponents of the
theory point out its failure to account for individual differences among students and its insufficient emphasis on
knowledge acquisition. In this essay, by using the qualitative methods, I describe situated learning and review the
arguments for and against it, contrasting participatory and acquisitive learning models as they apply in classroom
settings. The view that all learning should be situated if it is to be effective is too strong. Such a statement ignores
the fact that learning is a matter of acquiring knowledge before one can participate effectively in the situation or real
setting. The teacher acts as a provider, facilitator, and mediator of knowledge; students are able to learn from that
knowledge and practice it in group activities. In turn, students arrive at a new level of knowledge and understanding
based on their experience as a real practitioner in the group or community. The different norms and values attached
to participation and acquisition complement one another, and either one alone would be insufficient. I then assess
religious education in Brunei Darussalam, where education has traditionally focused on memorization and written
exams. I suggest that a blend of participatory and acquisitive learning models may be the most effective approach to
classroom instruction.

Situated Learning (J. Lave)

Lave argues that learning as it normally occurs is a function of the activity, context and culture
in which it occurs (i.e., it is situated). This contrasts with most classroom learning activities
which involve knowledge which is abstract and out of context. Social interaction is a critical
component of situated learning — learners become involved in a “community of practice”
which embodies certain beliefs and behaviors to be acquired. As the beginner or newcomer
moves from the periphery of this community to its center, they become more active and
engaged within the culture and hence assume the role of expert or old-timer. Furthermore,
situated learning is usually unintentional rather than deliberate. These ideas are what Lave &
Wenger (1991) call the process of “legitimate peripheral participation.”

Other researchers have further developed the theory of situated learning. Brown, Collins &
Duguid (1989) emphasize the idea of cognitive apprenticeship: “Cognitive apprenticeship
supports learning in a domain by enabling students to acquire, develop and use cognitive
tools in authentic domain activity. Learning, both outside and inside school, advances through
collaborative social interaction and the social construction of knowledge.” Brown et al. also
emphasize the need for a new epistemology for learning — one that emphasizes active
perception over concepts and representation. Suchman (1988) explores the situated learning
framework in the context of artificial intelligence.

Situated learning theory states that every idea and human action is a
generalization, adapted to the ongoing environment; it is founded on the belief
that what people learn, see, and do is situated in their role as a member of a
community (Lave and Wenger, 1991). Situated learning was observed among
Yucatec midwives, native tailors, navy quartermasters, and meat cutters (Lave
and Wenger, 1991). Learners achieved a gradual acquisition of knowledge and
skills and moved from being novices to experts. Such learning is contrasted with
classroom learning that often involves abstract and out-of-context knowledge.
Social interaction within an authentic context is critical because learners become
involved in a “community of practice” that embodies beliefs and behaviors to be
acquired. As beginners move from the periphery of the community to its center,
they become more active and engaged within the culture and, hence, assume
the role of expert or old-timer. Furthermore, situated learning is usually
unintentional rather than deliberate.

Situated learning theory assumes that all instruction occurs in complex social environments, even when the
learner is alone (Greeno, 1997). For example, a student studying with a textbook or a computer tutor may not
have other people in the same room at the time, but his activity is certainly shaped by the social arrangements
that produced the textbook or computer program and led to the student being enrolled in the class (Greeno,
1997). From this perspective, “every step is . . . adaptively re-coordinated from previous ways of seeing,
talking, and moving. . . . Situated learning is the study of how human knowledge develops in the course of
activity and especially how people create and interpret descriptions (representations) of what they are doing”
(Clancey, 1995). It suggests that interaction with other people creates mental structures that are not individual
mental representations, but rather “participation frames,” which are less rigid and more adaptive (Lave and
Wenger, 1991). Action is situated because it is constrained by a person's understanding of his or her “place” in
a social process (Clancey, 1995).
Critics of situated learning say that because knowledge is not indexed, retrieved and applied, there are “no
internal representations” or “no concepts in the mind” (Clancey, 1995). This is not accurate. The rebuttal
position is that “knowledge” is an analytical abstraction, like energy, not a substance that can be in hand.
Researchers cannot inventory what someone knows. The community rather than the individual defines what it
means to accomplish a given piece of work successfully (Suchman, 1987).
Everything that people can do is both social and individual, but activity can be considered in ways that either
focus on groups of people made up of individuals, or focus on individuals who participate in groups.
Greeno (1997)
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4.7. Situated Learning Situated learning was first proposed by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger as a model of learning in a
community of practice. At its simplest, situated learning is learning that takes place in the same context in which it is
applied. Lave and Wenger argue that learning should not be viewed as simply the transmission of abstract and
decontextualized knowledge from one individual to another, but a social process whereby knowledge is co-constructed;
they suggest that such learning is situated in a specific context and embedded within a particular social and physical
environment. This type of learning allows an individual (students/learner) to learn by socialization, visualization, and
imitation. Learning begins with people trying to solve problems. When learning is problem based, people explore real
life situations to find answers, or to solve the problems. Research also focuses on how important being social is to
learning. In believing that learning is social, learners who gravitate to communities with shared interests tend to benefit
from the knowledge of those who are more knowledgeable than they are. These social experiences provide people with
authentic experiences. When students are in these real-life situations they are compelled to learn. Researchers conclude
that taking a problem-based learning approach to designing curriculum carries students to a higher level of thinking.
Situated learning is becoming more involved with technology in ways to help individuals learn information differently
than they have in the past. The model of learning a skill through technology mimics how individuals learned in the past
from a professional in that skill. In the past when individuals learned about a particular topic it was done in person, in a
hands-on environment. Technology makes it possible to do these same things using a computer or any other similar
device. Interaction through the computer between individuals is one more way to make situated learning more
successful as well as give students an opportunity to have another venue through which to learn. In fact, an
understanding of video games as learning environments is becoming increasingly important as gaming culture rivals
schooling for the attention of children and adolescents across the 8 world. Instruction must be situated in an authentic
context that resembles that of the classroom teacher to enrich their learning process by providing realistic experiences
that more easily transfer. Students process information by visualizing, hearing, reasoning and reflecting so they tend to
learn more easily by having models to go by or imitate. In some study cases, teachers have gone as far as to make the
classroom environment as homey as possible, whether it is a computerized set up or a physical set up. It gives the
students the look and feel of being at home in a comfortable setting which allows them to feel and learn freely. It has
been proven to have a great impact on the students learning abilities. This is another innovative way of utilizing situated
learning

http://courses.aiu.edu/THEORIES%20OF%20LEARNING/4/4.pdf

4.1. Constructivism Overview Formalization of the theory of constructivism is generally attributed to Jean Piaget, who
articulated mechanisms by which knowledge is internalized by learners. He suggested that through processes of
accommodation and assimilation, individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences. When individuals
assimilate, they incorporate the new experience into an already existing framework without changing that framework.
This may occur when individuals' experiences are aligned with their internal representations of the world, but may also
occur as a failure to change a faulty understanding; for example, they may not notice events, may misunderstand input
from others, or may decide that an event is a fluke and is therefore unimportant as information about the world. In
contrast, when individuals' experiences contradict their internal representations, they may change their perceptions of
the experiences to fit their internal representations. According to the theory, accommodation is the process of
reframing one's mental representation of the external world to fit new experiences. Accommodation can be understood
as the mechanism by which failure leads to learning as when we act on the expectation that the world operates in one
way and it violates our expectations, we often fail, but by accommodating this new experience and reframing our model
of the way the world works, we learn from the experience of failure, or others' failure. It is important to note that
constructivism is not a particular pedagogy. In fact, constructivism is a theory describing how learning happens,
regardless of whether learners are using their experiences to understand a lecture or following the instructions for
building a model airplane. In both cases, the theory of constructivism suggests that learners construct knowledge out of
their experiences. Social constructivism or socio-culturalism encourages the learner to arrive at his or her version of the
truth, influenced by his or her background, culture or embedded worldview. Historical developments and symbol
systems, such as language, logic, and mathematical systems, are inherited by the learner as a member of a particular
culture and these are learned throughout the learner's life. This also stresses the importance of the nature of the
learner's social interaction with knowledgeable members of the society. Without the social interaction with other more
knowledgeable people, it is impossible to acquire social meaning of important 2 symbol systems and learn how to utilize
them. Young children develop their thinking abilities by interacting with other children, adults and the physical world.
From the social constructivist viewpoint, it is thus important to take into account the background and culture of the
learner throughout the learning process, as this background also helps to shape the knowledge and truth that the
learner creates, discovers and attains in the learning process
 CONSTRUCTIVISM
Constructivism is a learning theory found in psychology which explains how people might
acquire knowledge and learn. It therefore has direct application to education. The theory
suggests that humans construct knowledge and meaning from their experiences.
Constructivism is not a specific pedagogy. Piaget's theory of Constructivist learning has had
wide ranging impact on learning theories and teaching methods in education and is an
underlying theme of many education reform movements. Research support for constructivist
teaching techniques has been mixed, with some research supporting these techniques and
other research contradicting those results.

Resources

What is constructivism?
 Concept to Classroom > Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning
Provides a workshop on the concept of constructivism beginning with an explanation of the term and ending with a
demonstration of how the concept can be applied in the classroom. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Learning Theories.Com
Provides an overview of the concept of Constructivism: that learning is an active, contextualized process of constructing
knowledge rather than acquiring it. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)

How does a constructivist approach differ from a traditional

approach?
 Concept to Classroom. Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning. How does this theory differ from traditional
ideas about teaching and learning?
Provides a comparison of a “traditional classroom” with a “constructivist classroom”. In a constructivist classroom the students
are the focus and the teacher a
facilitator who asks good questions. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Concept to Classroom. Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning. What does constructivism have to do with my
classroom?
Explains through a series of examples how Constructivist principles can be applied in the classroom demonstrating how
Constructivist teachers pose questions and problems, then guide students to help them find their own answers, using many
techniques in the teaching process. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 The Practice Implications of Constructivism
Discusses the notion of Constructivism and its implications for teaching. Concludes that the most important contribution of
constructivism may well be a focus on student-centered learning. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)

How to design student-centered constructivist learning activities

 Moving Towards Constructivist Classrooms (pdf)
This paper suggests strategies and approaches which can be implemented by teachers when planning constructivist
opportunities for the classroom. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 The Role of ICT in a Constructivist Approach to the Teaching of Thinking Skills
Provides an overview of Constructivism and how ICT can be used to support thinking and learning from a Singaporean
perspective. There is a link to the full paper. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)

Examples & case studies

ICT for constructivist learning - K-12

 A Case Study of ICT and School Improvement at Bendigo Senior Secondary College, Victoria, Australia
A case study of an Australian school where change included the installation of an extensive ICT infrastructure, changing
management practices and encouraging teachers to adopt an “active, constructivist and experiential” approach to teaching and
learning.
 Improving Students' ICT Use: The LDCT at Burleigh Heads State School
A research report focusing on student learning in Years 5, 6 and 7 at Burleigh Heads State School where educational
technology is used in many applications by teachers.
 An ICT-based teacher training programme based on a social constructivist model in Ecuador (pdf)
This paper presents several case studies of the impact of ICT on teaching practices and on teaching and learning in primary
schools in Ecuador.
 Learning with ICT: The Challenge of Changing the Way We Teach
This paper discusses the development and implementation of an integrated learning environment (ILE) to support a student
centred constructivist approach to teaching and learning in Hong Kong primary schools.

ICT for constructivist learning - Teacher learning

 A Metacognitive Approach to Computer Education for Teachers: Combining Theory and Practice for Computer Capability
This paper describes a metacognitive approach to computer education for pre-service and practicing teachers which attempts to
foster capable life-long computer learners. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Developing online discussion forums as student centred peer e-learning environments
This paper introduces a conception of discussion forums as student centred peer e-learning environments. (retrieved Jan 19,
2011)
 Teacher Education to Promote Constructivist Use of ICT: Study of a Logo-based Project (pdf)
Describes a project aimed at giving student-teachers a personal experience of exploratory and constructivist learning so that
they would be able to inspire the same educational spirit in their future students. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Creating a constructivist-learning environment using ICT to teach concepts and skills in classroom management: An exploration
at NIE, Singapore.
This paper reports on an experiment to develop a learning environment that delivers course materials to students in a variety of
formats using the new technologies. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Closing the gap: Pre-service teachers' perceptions of an ICT based, student centred learning curriculum (pdf)
An analysis of an ICT based Student-Centred Learning (SCL) curriculum for pre-service teachers. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011)
 Singaporean and Taiwanese pre-service teachers’ beliefs and their attitude towards ICT: A comparative study (pdf)
This paper reports the findings obtained from a survey of Singaporean and Taiwanese pre-service teachers. The findings
suggest that further effort needs to be taken in order to foster more productive use of ICT to support constructivism-oriented
teaching. (retrieved Jan 19, 2011