ABSTRACT
Because ideologies are belief systems, they rely on research for supportive evidence. Our beliefs may or may not be true, and it is obvious enough that any beliefs reckoned to be false on empirical grounds should be abandoned. Piaget’s association with the progressivist movement began when his ideas about children’s thinking appeared to coincide with those of child-centred teachers. In recent years, his influence has waned and critics (Alexander, 1994; Bennett, 1987, 1992; Mackenzie, 1997; Richards and Light, 1986; Wells, 1986) find Vygotsky’s (1962, 1978) proposals more in keeping with the routines of modern classrooms. ‘Social constructivism’ (where pupils need a structured support for their learning to guide its progress) is orthodox doctrine now on teacher education courses, replacing the older, Piagetian ‘constructivism’ (where pupils progress intellectually through following their own, self-monitored activity: see Pollard, 1990, for a comparison of constructivist and social-constructivist approaches to school learning). It gives some theoretical sustenance to those who believe that teachers need to structure pupil learning in a strongly directive manner.
