Jerome Bruner

Born: 1 October, 1915
Died: 5 June, 2016

For Bruner, the process of education is as important as its product.  The development of conceptual understanding and of cognitive skills and strategies is a central aim of education, rather than the acquisition of factual information.  He saw that learning must have a purpose that learners must experience success and that learning should take place in contexts that have familiar formats and routines, such as, e.g. bedtime story telling.  His research emphasised the role of the teacher: children need someone to lead them on to higher levels (scaffolding learning). In principle, anything can be taught to children of any age, provided it is presented in a 

Here is a summary of constructivist principles from Brooks and Brooks (1993):

Student autonomy and initiative are accepted and encouraged.
Students who frame questions and issues and then go about analysing and answering them take responsibility for their own learning and become problem solvers.

The teacher asks open-ended questions and allows wait time for responses.
Reflective thought built on others' ideas and comments.

Higher-level thinking is encouraged.
The teacher encourages students to connect and summarize concepts by analysing, predicting, justifying, and defending their ideas.

Students are engaged in dialogue with the teacher and with each other.
Social discourse helps students change or reinforce their ideas.  If they have the chance to present what they think and hear others' ideas, students can build a personal knowledge base that they understand.

Students are engaged in experiences that challenge hypotheses and encourage discussion.
The constructivist teacher provides opportunities for students to test their hypotheses, especially through group discussion of concrete experiences.

The class uses raw data, primary sources, physical, ans interactive materials.
The constructivist approach involves students in real-world possibilities.