情境學習是一種體驗的學習、是學習者主動建構知識的學習、是與社會互動的學習,強調以學習者為中心,讓學習者在安全環境下,透過自然的情境觀察、模仿及一連串實際活動,經過不斷的試驗、探索、操弄、反思、及修正等歷程,熟稔發現困難與問題,藉教學互動與溝通,提供學習者學習時適當的鷹架,並引導學習者的主動學習,從旁協助,給予方向的指引,讓學習者透過情境身歷其境地學習,協助學習者建構有意義的知識。因此,情境教學強調知識的學習應建構在真實案例,以「學習者」為認知主體的觀點,故在設計上可將學習者參與感納入思維,不管使用何種方式的情境學習,臨床教師可給予示範、解說、提示,應用小組合作學習的方式進行,增進意見交流與經驗分享,適時使用各種科技媒體增加學習者對真實情境的瞭解,建構新的知識模組。總之,情境中的真實問題有其複雜性與困難度,唯學習者實際運用知識,才能瞭解到所學的知識具有意義及價值。
Situated learning emphasizes the process of learning in real-life situations, a matter of creating meaning from learning occurs relative to the teaching environment. It illustrates that learners are actively involved in addressing real world problems. As the practice implies, the learner is situated in the learning experience and knowledge acquisition becomes a part of the learning activity, its context, and the culture in which it is developed and used. They understand and experience the world through the constant interactions by which they reconstruct their identity. That learning is experiential (learning by doing and reflection), and that ideas are formed and modified through experiences. Therefore, the situated learning design is adopted, the teacher can properly arrange the life situation of the learner, and the learning activities therein, so that the learner can learn relevant knowledge from the actual problem context, which can help them the rigid knowledge transform into alive knowledge.