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Jerome Bruner: Scaffolding and Constructivism Theories

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  • 0:01 Jerome Bruner
  • 0:26 Scaffolding Theory
  • 1:18 Constructivism
  • 2:33 Lesson Summary
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Lesson Transcript
Instructor: Mary Firestone
Find out who Jerome Bruner is, and his role in identifying theories of scaffolding and constructivism. Read the lesson, then take a brief quiz to test your new knowledge about education theories.

Jerome Bruner

Jerome Bruner was a psychologist noted for his contributions in the field of educational psychology. Born in 1915, Bruner held psychology chairs at Harvard University and at the University of Cambridge. Bruner was influenced by the work of Lev Vygotsky, who shared Bruner's belief that a child's social environment and social interactions are key elements of the learning process. Bruner died in 2016.

Scaffolding Theory

Bruner's studies on learning led to his research and ultimate development of the famous scaffolding theory in education, which identifies the importance of providing students with enough support in the initial stages of learning a new subject.

A 'scaffold' ensures that children aren't left to their own devices to understand something. The support, or scaffold, is removed when the student is ready, like the scaffolding that supports workers who've been constructing or repairing a building, which is removed when the construction is complete.

For instance, if a student is learning a new concept in an algebra class, he or she might observe it being done step-by-step by a more advanced peer in a small group or by a teacher. This support is the 'scaffold' he needs temporarily. Each step is demonstrated and explained, and then the student tries it on his or her own, without the scaffold.

Constructivism

Bruner's theory of constructivism holds that students should be active in the learning process. Such experiential learning allows learners to better process their newfound knowledge and skills. Constructivism is also based on the idea that students construct their learning on past knowledge, and that reasoning plays an important role in the learning process.

Approaches to constructivist teaching vary, but Bruner's idea of a constructivist approach is called the spiral curriculum, which involves students building on their existing knowledge. The 'spiral' is a process that begins with presenting students with a foundation of various topics early on and then touching on these subjects more deeply throughout a student's school years.

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