Existing educational practices focus on subject matter knowledge that is, through the act of teaching, brought into the heads of students. Materials, texts, or images qua aspects of the learning environment are treated as given in terms of fixed and unambiguous structures (ontologies). Drawing on examples from a large data base on learning physics through laboratory activities, I show that (a) students do not perceive and act in worlds shared with physicists and physics teachers and (b) during collective activities, students evolve new domain ontologies and language games by interacting with each other. Because of structural constraints in the environment (teacher, textbook, equipment), initially quite different ontologies and language games converge, the shared language games often become more commensurable with (existing) scientific ontologies and language games. In this co-evolution of ontology and language game, gestures provide an important bridge between laboratory experiences in science and scientific discourse about abstract entities.

Open peer commentary on the article “Designing Academic Conferences as a Learning Environment: How to Stimulate Active Learning at Academic Conferences?” by Johan Verbeke. Upshot: As an echo to Verbeke’s writing, I would like to propose the notion of a construction site as a constructive metaphor for dynamically revisiting the template of research conferences and events in the field of art and design.

Excerpt: It is said that there’s nothing so practical as good theory. It may also be said that there’s nothing so theoretically interesting as good practice. This is particularly true of efforts to relate constructivism as a theory of learning to the practice of instruction. Our goal in this chapter is to provide a clear link between the theoretical principles of constructivism, the practice of instructional design, and the practice of teaching. We will begin with a basic characterization of constructivism, identifying what we believe to be the central principles in learning and understanding. We will then identify and elaborate on eight instructional principles for the design of a constructivist learning environment. Finally, we will examine what we consider to be one of the best exemplars of a constructivist learning environment – Problem Based Learning, as described by Barrows (1985, 1986, 1992).

This paper attempts to apply the constructivist approach to the use of new media and to analyze its impact on the instructional design in Social Studies. Our aim is to highlight the connection among the constructivist principles, the learning environment enhanced by the use of the new media and the activities specific to the social studies didactics. The article starts from nowadays social needs, identifies the main issues of the constructivist approach to the new media, presents some examples of good practice and discusses their consequences for the students’ learning as well as possible challenges for the teaching-learning process.

Key words: constructivist approach, new media, teaching environment, student-centered perspective, problem-based learning, critical-thinking.

Radical constructvists believe that knowledge is not disembodied but intimately related to the action and experience the learner. It is always contextual and never separated from the knower. There is no objective reality that is independent of human mental activity. Radical constructivism shares many philosophical perspectives with the semiotic model of Stamper (1993) Semiotics claims that knowledge of the wodd is mediated through signs. A radical subjective synthesis of semiotics and radical constructivism leads to two axioms: There is no known reality without an agent, and the agent constructs reality through his action. This paper begins with a brief review of the philosophies of radical constructivism and semiotics, followed by a discussion of the implications of semiotics for radical constructivist leaming. It concludes with the design of a constructivist learning environment using the semiotic perspective as manifested by Stamper.

Key words: radical constructivian, semiotics, learning environment, collaborative, affordances, agents

Context: The main aim in organizing academic conferences is to share and develop knowledge in the focus area of the conference. Most conferences, however, are organized in a traditional way: two or three keynote presentations and a series of parallel sessions where participants present their research work, mainly using PowerPoint or Prezi presentations, with little interaction between participants. Problem: Each year, a huge number of academic events and conferences is organized. Yet their typical design is mainly based on a passive way of sharing knowledge. No models for an adequate conference design and an appropriate learning environment are available. The overall conference design, however, is a crucial aspect in the learning of the participants and deserves special attention from conference organizers. Method: I have organized around 15 carefully designed conferences (and attended many more. These have been the steps of an ongoing exploration to learn from each of these events and develop a deeper understanding of adequate conference designs and stimulating learning environments. This paper reports on my understandings of the organization of a selection of these conferences (in architecture, arts and design) and on the way knowledge sharing and knowledge development was stimulated at these events. These conferences included less traditional conference designs, collective learning and explicit sharing of understanding between participants. Results: Collaboration in small groups and joint plenary discussions, plenty of time for interaction and generous feedback to presenters turn out to be very valuable for consolidating knowledge and envisioning future developments in a discipline. Also, it is our experience that the presence of design objects as a trigger and catalyst for discussing and learning makes a huge difference in sharing and developing new knowledge. This paper aims to highlight the importance and raise awareness of different methods of stimulating the construction of knowledge by conference participants. I hope it will inspire future conference organizers and help them to induce more deliberate knowledge construction amongst participants. Implications: Insights from this paper are relevant for all conference organizers, especially those in the domain of architecture, arts and design. It has become clear that it is beneficial to have exhibit-type presentations as well as moments of collective learning. Organizers are recommended to adopt an explicit conference design. Constructivist content: Following a constructivist approach to learning environments, this paper stresses the importance of scheduling moments of active and collective learning and knowledge construction explicitly during academic conferences.

Key words: Conference design, collective learning, collective tutoring, knowledge construction.

Purpose: The aim of this research was to test whether Hong Kong science students would prefer a learning environment based on critical constructivism and whether a closer preferred-actual fit to such an environment would be associated with better learning outcomes. Method: The participants were 149 Hong Kong secondary school Chemistry students aged 16–19 years. They completed actual and preferred forms of a Chinese version of the Constructivist Learning Environment Survey and measures of self-efficacy and intrinsic value of their Chemistry course. Their Chemistry examination scores were also obtained at the end of the course. Findings: Analysis showed that these students would prefer their Chemistry classrooms to be more personally relevant, to allow students more say and to share more control, and to encourage more negotiation with their teacher. Regression surface analysis showed that congruence of person environment fit did not influence examination results but was associated with greater valuing of the course and higher student self-efficacy. Research implications: Further research with a wider sampling from Hong Kong and elsewhere and focusing on other subject areas will be necessary to assess the generalizability of these findings. Practical implications: It seems that educational reforms based on critical constructivist principles may be of value in non-Western contexts. Original value: Educational reforms in Hong Kong and elsewhere currently are based on traditional constructivist principles. But this is the first research to support a more radical approach in what is usually regarded as a relatively conservative Asian educational context.

Key words: learning environments, chemistry, Hong Kong Chinese

This paper provides a brief overview of the constructivist learning theories and explains their significance in the design of the ESP digital learning environment. Constructivism provides a unique and challenging learning environment, and coupled with modern technology shows the potential for great advancement in learning practices. Together they provide the opportunity for new possibilities in the learning process. In other words, they allow ESP students to learn to their fullest potential. Complete understanding of ESP needs an increasing research input, including social interaction and intercultural communication competence. The purpose of ESP is to prepare a student (future specialist) to communicate effectively in the professional field and real-life situations. The ultimate goal is to become operational in any learning situation.

Key words: constructivist theories, esp, digital learning environment.