Bruner’s Constructivist Theory

A) Description

Bruner's constructivist theory is based upon the study of cognition. A major theme in this theory is that "learning is an active process in which learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current/past knowledge" (Kearsely 1994b). Cognitive structures are used to provide meaning and organization to experiences and allows the individual to go beyond the information given.


According to Bruner, the instructor should try and encourage students to construct hypotheses, makes decisions, and discover principles by themselves (Kearsley 1994b). The instructor's task is to "translate information to be learned into a format appropriate to the learner's current state of understanding" and organize it in a spiral manner "so that the student continually builds upon what they have already learned."