Cobern, W. W. (1993). Contextual Constructivism: The Impact of
Culture on the Learning and Teaching of Science.  In K. G. Tobin
(editor), The Practice of Constructivism in Science Education 
(pp. 51-69).  Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.


Abstract
	Though rooted in Piagetian research, constructivism(1) is an avenue of research 
pertaining to teaching and learning that departed from the neo-Piagetian(2) mainstream 
twenty years ago and has continued on a distinct path of development.  The departure 
was evident by the late seventies, clearly marked by two publications, Novak (1977) 
and Driver & Easley (1978).  For constructivists, learning is not knowledge written on, 
or transplanted to, a person's mind as if the mind were a blank slate waiting to be 
written on or an empty gallery waiting to be filled.  Constructivists use the metaphor of 
construction because it aptly summarizes the epistemological view that knowledge is 
built by individuals.  Since Ausubel, Novak, & Henesian (1978), theorists have argued 
that the construction of new knowledge in science is strongly influenced by prior 
knowledge, that is, conceptions gained prior to the point of new learning.  Learning by 
construction thus implies a change in prior knowledge, where change can mean 
replacement, addition, or modification of extant knowledge.  Learning by construction 
involving change is the basis of the Posner, Hewson, & Gertzog (1982) conceptual 
change model.  In essence, constructivism is an epistemological model of learning, and 
constructivist teaching is mediation.  A constructivist teacher works at the interface 
between curriculum and student to bring the two together in a way that is meaningful 
for the learner.

	If one carries the construction metaphor to its logical conclusion, construction 
implies a foundation in addition to the studs and beams of prior knowledge.  The 
construction of new knowledge takes place at a construction site consisting of existing 
structures standing on a foundation.(3)   In other words, construction takes place in a 
context - a cultural context created by, for example, social and economic class, religion, 
geographical location, ethnicity, and language.  This chapter begins by setting the 
concept of contextual constructivism within the historical development of constructivist 
theory and then examining the types of questions suggested by contextual 
constructivism.  Those questions are then placed in the context of an anthropological 
world view theory.  The chapter concludes with a discussion on the necessity of 
qualitative research techniques for contextual constructivist research.


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