The Influence of Piaget in the Field of Learning Science

Abstract

As the most influential figure in the field of learning science, Piaget’s research on children's concepts and consciousness, his concept of 'Piagetian education', his contribution to constructivism have been greatly adopted in education. However, the weaknesses of his work have been criticised by many scholars. This paper illustrates how Piaget’s work has challenged traditional educational approach regarded as instructionism and the differences between Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s theories. This paper also discusses and compares the theories proposed by a number of other researchers based on Piaget's constructivism, including Papert's constructionism and his theory of children's use of computers; Lave's situated learning, and Wells' theory of group learning.