John T.

Crescitelli - EdTech 504 Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology

June 13, 2010
John Crescitelli – EdTech 504 Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology
June 30, 2010

The constructivist theory as it applies to the mathematics classroom: an annotated bibliography

Introduction

Building mathematical understandings begins before the onset of official schooling. According
to Piaget, mathematical foundations begin in those early experiences well before school begins.
As concepts and experiences build, more abstract mathematical understandings come into play.
Growing as a math student depends on building on past understandings and manipulating those
understandings to meet more challenging needs and experiences. This annotated bibliography
begins to explore constructivist theories and how they pertain to math instruction.

Resources

Anderson, J., Reder, L., & Simon, H. (n.d.). Applications and Misapplications. Retrieved June
27, 2010, from http://act-r.psy.cmu.edu/papers/misapplied.html
Anderson, Reder, and Simon challenge the concepts of situate learning and constructivism in the
mathematics classroom. They examine both the external knowledge acquisition of Situated
Learning and the internal acquisition associated with Constructivism and dispute both as highly
questionable practices. It is the belief of the authors that cognitive psychology rejects both
notions, and they set out in this essay to show how decomposition and decontextualization are
firmly grounded in mathematics education.

Boudourides, M. (n.d.). Constructivism in Education: A Shopper's Guide. Retrieved June 27,

2010, from http://www.math.upatras.gr/~mboudour/articles/constr.html
This essay focuses on a review of four central areas of constructivism - philosophical, cybernetic,
educational, and Social. The objective of the piece is to enable educators to refine his/her
pedagogy to mathematics classroom environments. The article goes on to support the
constructivist approach by examining Piaget, Von Glassersfeld, and Vygotsky.

Brown, T. (1994). Creating and knowing mathematics through language and experience.
Educational studies in mathematics, 27(1), 79-100. doi:10.1007/BF01284529
This paper focuses on the teacher role in the classroom as traditions of post-structuralism and
hermeneutic phenomenology strengthen the concepts of constructivist thinking in mathematics
instruction today. Brown focuses his article on radical constructivism and how that teaching
environment is conducive to today's learner and today's learning needs.

Carraher, D.W., & Schliemann, A.S., (2000). Lessons from everyday reasoning in mathematics
education: realism versus meaningfulness. In Theoretical foundations of learning
environments (pp. 173-195). New Jersey. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.

1
 John T. Crescitelli - EdTech 504 Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology
June 13, 2010

Carraher and Schliemann compare traditional instruction vs. realism in mathematics education.
They provide several examples of people using advanced math skills (volume, decimals) without
having received a formal education. They use these models to show that those who had received
a formal education that did not center on project-based learning, but on traditional instruction,
faired much worse than those who learned by doing. They project that it is the connectedness to
the learning that allows for manipulation and understanding. They then relate these
understandings to elementary school children and their relative inability to conceptualize
division, especially with remainders. They show it is the lack of relatedness that brings about the
confusions, and that an appropriately designed constructivist instructional model would address
these inadequacies.

Constructivism, Situated Learning, and Other Learning Theories. (n.d.). Retrieved June 27, 2010,
from http://www.uoregon.edu/~moursund/Math/learning-theories.htm
This web site is devoted to examining both constructivism and situated learning and the positive
effects they have on the mathematics learning environment. Much of the article focuses on
Constructivism, giving examples that help classroom teachers with appropriate interventions.
The article investigates project-based learning, journaling, and other constructivist approaches.
It provides links to sites on situated learning.

Glasersfeld, E. V. (1991). Radical constructivism in mathematics education. Norwell, MA.,

Kluwer Academic Publishers.
This book is a compilation of essays from authors who use a constructivist philosophical
approach in their classrooms. Essays examine issues from attitude and motivation, to success in
testing situations. Essays address teacher preparation and approaches. They range from
elementary school to undergraduate in scenarios and situations.

Hoover, W. A. (n.d.). The Practice Implications of Constructivism. SEDL Advancing Research,

Improving Education. Retrieved June 27, 2010, from
http://www.sedl.org/pubs/sedletter/v09n03/practice.html
Hoover distinguishes between transmission education (sage on the stage) where a teacher
instructs from the front of the room, and constructivist theories of learning. The focus is on the
transformation of the teacher role to that of a facilitator in the group learning process. The
emphasis is on the teacher role and the ability to provide learning environments that incorporate
project-based learning activities that are student centered and able to be differentiated. There is
a lengthy investigation on how teachers teach the way they are taught. Strategies to address
these inconsistencies are addressed.

Ishii, D. K. (n.d.). Constructivist Views of Learning in Science and Mathematics. ERIC Digest.
ERIC Digests. Retrieved June 27, 2010, from http://www.ericdigests.org/2004-
3/views.html

2
 John T. Crescitelli - EdTech 504 Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology
June 13, 2010
The author postulates that the concept of constructivism in math and science may be perceived as
an oxymoron. In math and science there are concrete principles and theorems. However, the
author concludes that it is not the facts or arithmetic that are being questioned. It is the
understanding that each learner constructs his/her own understandings, and that constructivist
approaches are successful in those educational environs. Through the use of classroom and
teacher examples, Ishii shows how constructivist approaches are effective in classrooms.

Lerman, S. (1989). Constructivism, mathematics and mathematics education. Educational

studies in mathematics, 20(Number 2), 211-223. doi:10.1007/BF00579463
Lerman debates the use of a constructivist model in today's mathematics classroom. He spends
considerable time comparing the theories of intuitionist philosophers versus what he deems a
constructivist or relativist view of mathematics. The goal of the article is to compare and
contrast the two viewpoints in an effort to show how a constructivist approach is an effect
teaching methodology in today's mathematics classroom.

Maloney, M. (n.d.). Constructivism: A Realistic Approach to Math? Retrieved June 26 from

http://mathdl.maa.org/images/upload_library/46/HOMSIGMAA/Shell_1st-Maloney-
constructivists.pdf
Maloney sets to dispel the use of a constructivist approach to mathematics on the premise that it
is unable to sway 'working' mathematicians from their behaviouristic beliefs about mathematics
instruction. By focusing on the philosophies of three authors, Errett Bishop, Arend Heyting, and
L.E. Brouwer, Maloney tries to prove that intuitionistic tendencies in mathematics disprove
constructivist understandings.

McDermott, L. C. (1993). How we teach and how students learn - A mismatch? American
Journal of Physics, 61(4). Retrieved from
http://wolfweb.unr.edu/homepage/jcannon/ejse/mcdermott.html
This investigation examines the conflict between traditional instruction and the needs of today's
math and science students. The article focuses on areas where traditional instruction is not
providing adequate instruction and examines ways to address these inadequacies. Examples
include such subjects as algebra, physics, and kinematics. Concepts of project-based learning
computer task integration are examined.

Shepherd, G. (n.d.). The Probe Method - A Constructivist Insructional Strategy. Meridian - A

kindergarten through high school information and communication technologies journal.
Retrieved June 28, 2010, from
http://www.ncsu.edu/meridian/winter2010/shepherd/index.htm
This article introduces the Probe Method, an instructional constructivist model that can be used
uniformly in grades 1-12. The premise of Probe entails a group of students being introduced to a
unit or study or objective via whole class instruction. Each group is then assigned a real world

3
 John T. Crescitelli - EdTech 504 Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology
June 13, 2010
problem to apply the learning. After small group investigations and presentations, the whole
class is reconvened for teacher led discussion to look at understandings and interpretations.
Topics also range to include the use of computer-based instruction and integration.