How Do Humans Acquire Knowledge? And What Does That Imply About the Nature of Knowledge?

This paper offers a resolution to the debate between constructivists andrealists regarding the epistemological status of human knowledge. Evidence in the form of three case studies and one experimentalstudy is presented. The conclusion drawn is that knowledge acquisitioninvolves a pattern of idea (representation) generation and test that, whencast in the form of a verbal argument, follows an If/then/Thereforepattern. Self-generated ideas/representations are tested by comparingexpected and observed outcomes. Ideas may be retained or rejected,but can not be proved or disproved. Therefore, absolute Truth aboutany and all ideas, including the idea that the external world exists, isunattainable. Yet learning at all levels above the sensory-motor requiresthat one assume the independent existence of the external world becauseonly then can the behavior of the objects in that world be used to testsubsequent higher-order ideas. In the final analysis, ideas – includingscientific hypotheses and theories – stand or fall, not due to socialnegotiation, but due to their ability to predict future events. Althoughthe knowledge acquisition process has limitations, its use neverthelessresults in increasingly useful representations about an assumed to existexternal world as evidenced by technological progress that is undeniablybased on sound scientific theory. The primary instructional implicationis that science instruction should remain committed to helping studentsunderstand the crucial role played by hypotheses, predictions and evidencein learning.

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