Clarifies the author's position on constructivism and whether nature determines what is produced as knowledge in human development. The author states his form of constructivism as a theory of rational knowing, not a metaphysics of being, for whatever things we know, we know only insofar as having constructed them as viable entities in our…

Argues against Glasersfeld's (1996) position that individual experience, not metaphysics, dictates that knowing is itself a metaphysical position. It further disputes Glasersfeld's assertion that people are necessarily constructed differently in our minds than objects, but agrees with Glasersfeld that proceeding with the business of education does…

Examines the concept of learning from both constructivist and sociocultural perspectives and introduces a third perspective based on K. R. Popper's philosophy of science. It is argued that constructivism cannot adequately account for the immaterial objects that Popper located in his World 3--abstract mathematical and scientific objects. (GLR)

Reviews the following claims of situated learning: action is grounded in the concrete situation in which it occurs; knowledge does not transfer between tasks; training by abstraction is of little use; and instruction must be done in complex, social environments. The authors, focusing on mathematics education, critically evaluate each claim and…

Notes that Markle's (April 1975 issue of this journal) summary of the current state of research regarding concept teaching conveys a major misconception and omits a major conception. (Author/AM)

Argues that mathematical learning should be viewed as a process of active individual construction and a process of enculturation into the mathematical practices of wider society. It further argues that the sociocultural perspective theorizes the conditions for the possibility of learning, whereas constructivist perspectives focus on what students…

Problems in trying to apply the laws of learning to educational situations derive both from the failure to take account of differences between humans and other animals, and from failure to take into account of important variables interacting with independent variables in natural educational settings. (Author/JM)

Studies comparing the external characteristics of instructional methods have obscured the most important variable which accounts for learning from instruction: macroprocesses, or the frequency and intensity with which students cognitively process instructional input. Further research on macroprocesses may be a meeting point between the psychology…

Conventional schooling too often ignores the influence of school culture on what is learned in school. Knowledge is situated, being in part a product of the activity, context, and culture in which it is developed and used; this is known as cognitive apprenticeship. Implications for understanding learning and teaching are discussed. (Author/BJV)

Presents a view of the interplay among the various factors of personal experience, language, and socialization in the process of learning science in classrooms. Discusses the problematic relations among scientific knowledge, the learning of science, and pedagogy. (GLR)

Carroll's learning model accounts for variations in school learning with variables, which can be expressed in terms of time and achievement. Most aspects of the model have been confirmed. Ways that the model might be used to address current problems in education are considered. (Author/BJV)