Research Translation

Web 2.0 and Social Constructivism

Melanie L.  Buffington, with Kathryn R. Helms, Jan A. Johnston, and Sohhyoun Yoon

            The argument/research problem, or “hunch,” the article discusses is that Web 2.0 supports socially mediated, constructivist learning environments and that its emergence has the potential to dramatically alter current educational practices.  The data sources are three technologies associated with Web 2.0.  The article seeks to explore how teachers and students could utilize them to promote constructivist learning.  The article defines constructivism as “the notion that knowledge is not a thing that can be easily conveyed from on person to another in the manner that a coin can be exchanged.”  The article references Vygotsky and his argument that “social environment significantly affects what and how students learn.” 

            The first data source technology is Delicious, “a social bookmarking site that allows a user to ‘tag’ websites, add descriptions, categorize them, and save them for future use.”  It is proposed that through Delicious, classroom teachers can share links with students to start research, collect resources for group projects, and for documentation of their own research process.  This would allow students to understand their “artmaking process and see the relationships between and among disparate ideas.  This sort of research would prepare students for speaking thoughtfully about their own artwork.”  This type of technology source can be used in ways to promote constructivist teaching and learning.  “For instance, through reviewing the tags of others, a user can learn from someone else and build a network of other Delicious users who are interested in similar topics.” 

            The second data source technology is blogs.  The articles describes blogs as a venue that “may contribute to socially constructing new knowledge, but it is up to the blogger and the commenters to make this type of interaction happen… Blogs may promote conversation and learning that can be constructivist.”   The article states that using a blog with a class as a form of ongoing critique could also be a way to continue dialogue and artmaking.  Additionally, the art world changes rapidly and blogs can accommodate these changes.   

            The third and last data source technology the article discusses is Second Life, a virtual three-dimensional online community created by users.  It allows users to create their avatars, which are graphical representations of people within the program.  The avatars represent virtual identities of the users and navigate virtual places.  The article argues that this type of program “may be used to help students learn about their identity and to collaborate with others through experience a virtual 3-D society.” 

            The article concludes that “as students will encounter these technologies in their lives, we need to teach them meaningful ways to use these technologies that can further their classroom learning… teachers and school districts will need to rethink the structure of the traditional curriculum and classroom dynamic to bring about other practices that foster constructivist teaching and learning.”