Jerome Bruner was an influential American psychologist born in 1915. He received his PhD from Harvard in 1947 and taught there from 1952-1972, making important contributions to educational theory and practice. Bruner developed a constructivist theory of learning that emphasized how people actively construct new ideas based on previous knowledge and experience. He identified four major principles of learning: motivation, structure, sequence, and reinforcement. According to Bruner, intrinsic motivations like curiosity and a drive for competence are most effective for sustaining learning.

1. Jerome Seymour Bruner
Born New York City, October 1, 1915. He received his A.B. degree from Duke University in 1937 and his
Ph.D in 1947 from Harvard. He was on the faculty in the Department of Psychology at Harvard
University.from 1952 - 1972. In 1960 Bruner published The Process of Education. This was a landmark
book which led to much experimentation and a broad range of educational programs in the 1960's.
Howard Gardner and other young researchers worked under Bruner and were much-influenced by his
work. In the early 70's Bruner left Harvard to teach at University of Oxford for several years (1972 -
1979). He returned to Harvard in 1979. Later he joined the New York University of Law, where he is a
senior research fellow (at the age of 93).
Theory
Bruner was one of the founding fathers of constructivist theory. Constructivism is a broad conceptual
framework with numerous perspectives, and Bruner's is only one. Bruner's theoretical framework is
based on the theme that learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon existing knowledge.
Learning is an active process. Facets of the process include selection and transformation of information,
decision making, generating hypotheses, and making meaning from information and experiences.
Bruner's theories emphasize the significance of categorization in learning. "To perceive is to categorize,
to conceptualize is to categorize, to learn is to form categories, to make decisions is to categorize."
Interpreting information and experiences by similarities and differences is a key concept.
Bruner was influenced by Piaget's ideas about cognitive development in children. During the 1940's his
early work focused on the impact of needs, motivations, & expectations (“mental sets”) and their
influence on perception. He also looked at the role of strategies in the process of human categorization,
and development of human cognition. He presented the point of view that children are active problem-
solvers and capable of exploring “difficult subjects”. This was widely divergent from the dominant views
in education at the time, but found an audience.
Bruner‘s theory has four major principles: motivation, structure, sequence, and reinforcement.
Bruner’s First Principle: MOTIVATION
Bruner‘s first principle specifies the conditions that predispose an individual toward learning. What are
the critical variables, especially during the preschool years, that help motivate and enable the child to
learn? Implicit in Bruner‘s principles is the belief that almost all children have a built-in ―will to learn‖.
However, Bruner has not discarded the notion of reinforcement. He believes that reinforcement, or
external reward, may be important for initiating certain actions or for making sure they are repeated. He
insists, however, that it is only through intrinsic motivation that the will to learn is sustained. Bruner is
far more concerned with intrinsic motivation than with what he believes to be the more transitory
effects of external motivation.
Perhaps the best example of intrinsic motivation is curiosity. Bruner believes that we come into the
world equipped with a curiosity drive. He feels this drive is biologically relevant, that curiosity is

2. necessary to the survival of the species. Bruner suggests that young children are often too curious; they
are unable to ―stick with‖ any one activity. Their curiosity leads the to turn from one activity to another
in rapid succession, and it must therefore be channeled into a more powerful intellectual pursuit.
Another motivation we bring into the world with us is the drive to achieve competence. Children
become interested in what they are good at, and it is virtually impossible to motivate them to engage in
activities in which they have no degree of competence.
Finally, Bruner lists reciprocity as a motivation that is built into the species. Reciprocity involves a need
to work with other cooperatively, and Bruner feels that society itself developed as a result of this most
basic motivation.
According to Bruner, the intrinsic motivations are rewarding in themselves and are therefore self-
sustaining. How can the teacher take advantage of this in the classroom situation? Bruner‘s answer is
that teacher must facilitate and regulate their students‘ exploration of alternatives. Since learning and
problem solving demand the exploration of alternatives, this at the very core of the issue and is critical
in creating a predisposition to the long-term pursuit of learning. The exploration of alternatives has
three phases: activation, maintenance, and direction.
Activation
In order to activate exploration, in order to get it started, children must experience a certain level of
uncertainty. If the task is too easy, they will be too bored to explore alternatives, and yet if it is too
difficult, they will be too confused to explore alternatives. The teacher must provide students with
problems that are just difficult enough for the children‘s intrinsic curiosity, motivation to itself activate
exploration.
Maintenance
Once activated, exploration must be maintained. This involves assuring children that exploration is not
going to be a dangerous or painful experience. Children must view exploration under the guiding hand
of a teacher as less risky, less dangerous than exploration on their own. The advantages of exploration
must be made greater that the risks.
Direction
Meaningful exploration must have direction. The direction of exploration is a function of two factors:
knowledge of the goal, and the knowledge that the exploration of alternatives is relevant to the
achievement of that goal. Children must know what the goal is and how close they are to achieving it.
Thus Bruner‘s first principle indicates that children have a built-in will to learn. Teachers must manage
and enhance this motivation so that children will see that guided exploration is more meaningful and
satisfying than the spontaneous learning they can achieve on their own. In short, Bruner‘s first principle
is a justification of formal schooling.
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