Situated Learning Theory; Legitimate Peripheral Participation - Literature review Example

Clancey, 1997, stated the theory in the following terms: “the theory of situated cognition.claims that every human thought is adapted to the environment, that is, situated, because what people perceive, how they conceive of their activity, and what they physically do develop together”. In general terms, the theory interrogates learning in a broader perspective that seeks to include the environment, experiment, and the behaviors of the learners in acquiring knowledge and the situation in which such knowledge is acquired.

According to Lave (1988) “people devise satisfactory opportunities for solutions and people do not employ formal approaches to solving problems in everyday thinking. Participation in interaction results in the adaptivity of successful reasoning and learning”. In their 1991 work, they explained their theory in looking at the situation and stating that: “if it is to carry any significant conceptual import, it has to be explored in social and historical terms. Two people together in a room are not inevitably identically situated, and the situated constraints on practice do not simply arise in and through such isolated interactions.

” In the premise, the two scholars are arguing that the situation is not only interaction but legitimate participation in the situation. Communities of practice The theory of situated learning; legitimate peripheral participation, argues that learning takes place through what is referred to as communities of practice. Since the theory advocates for learning through interaction, the scholars argue that the learning and interaction occur much more effectively through the “communities of practice” by engaging learners in a situation where they actively interact and participate with one another to come up with solutions to the problems facing them.

 In this theory, knowledge is considered to be acquired through communication and collaboration with fellow learners in a situation that is moderated by the intention of the learners to acquire knowledge and get solutions to the problem at hand.