UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Constructivist theories hold that learners are not passive recipients of information but actively construct meaning by linking new experiences with their existing ideas. Teaching in this perspective focuses on providing rich tasks, exploration and reflection opportunities so that the learner can build understanding. Therefore, knowledge is seen as constructed by the learner, not simply transmitted by the teacher.

Option A:
The teacher has an important role as facilitator, organiser and guide, but constructivism emphasises that understanding cannot be directly “poured” into a student’s mind. The teacher creates conditions for learning; however, the actual construction of knowledge still takes place within the learner.

Option B:
Curriculum designers develop syllabi, learning materials and activities that can support constructivist learning, yet they do not construct knowledge inside each student. Their work shapes opportunities, but each learner must personally make sense of those experiences.

Option C:
This option matches the constructivist view that learning is an active, internal process in which the learner reorganises and extends prior knowledge in light of new experiences. Because the question explicitly refers to knowledge being “actively built,” the learner is the most appropriate answer.

Option D:
Administrators mainly look after policies, schedules, budgets and institutional management. While their decisions can influence learning environments, they are not the immediate agents who construct knowledge through interaction with classroom experiences.

Goal setting, questioning and collaboration shift responsibility to learners and promote active engagement—core features of learner-centred participation.

Option A:
Teacher-dominated approaches keep control with the teacher and restrict student initiative, unlike the stem.

Option B:
Examination-oriented teaching focuses on tests and may not promote authentic questioning or collaboration.

Option C:
Learner-centred approach prioritises student agency, inquiry and cooperation, exactly as described.

Option D:
Memory-based approaches emphasise rote recall and reduce student initiative and collaboration.