A Sporting Chance
project toolkit

Use the right methods

This project is about creating a climate that is not school or formal training. This is what happens normally so don’t reproduce it again; make this project special. And it is not just about the location, it involves teachers using new methods. Social constructivism demands learners acquire an understanding of what they are doing before going into detail. Ownership of learning is a key factor in its success; this is achieved through action research and self-analysis.

The most significant bases of a social constructivist theory were laid down by Vygotsky in his theory of the "Zone of Proximal Development" (ZPD). "Proximal" simply means "next". He observed that when children were tested on tasks on their own, they rarely did as well as when they were working in collaboration with an adult. It was by no means always the case that the adult was teaching them how to perform the task, but that the process of engagement with the adult enabled them to refine their thinking or their performance to make it more effective. Hence, for him, the development of language and articulation of ideas was central to learning and development. The common-sense idea, which fits most closely with this model is that of "stretching" learners.