Dr. Keith S. Taber
Publication:
Taber, K. S. (2006)
Constructivism’s new clothes: the trivial, the contingent, and a
progressive research programme into the learning of science
Foundations
of Chemistry
8 (2), pp. 189-219. (Published online first : 31 May 2006 – 31 pages)
Abstract:
Constructivism has been a key referent for research into the learning
of science for several decades. There is little doubt that the research into
learners' ideas in science stimulated by the constructivist movement has been
voluminous, and a great deal is now known about the way various science topics
may commonly be understood by learners of various ages. Despite this significant
research effort, there have been serious criticisms of this area of work:
in terms of its philosophical underpinning, the validity of its most popular
constructs, the limited scope of its focus, and its practical value to science
teaching. This paper frames this area of work as a Lakatosian Research Programme
(RP), and explores the major criticisms of constructivism from that perspective.
It is argued that much of the criticism may be considered as part of the
legitimate academic debate expected within any active RP, i.e. arguments
about the auxiliary theory making up the `protective belt' of the programme.
It is suggested that a shifting focus from constructivism to `contingency
in learning' will allow the RP to draw upon a more diverse range of perspectives,
each consistent with the existing hard core of the programme, which will
provide potentially fruitful directions for future work and ensure the continuity
of a progressive RP into learning science.