Study of the Influence of Social Relationships among Students on Knowledge Building Using a Moderately Constructivist Learning Model

The main objective of higher education institutions is to educate students to high standards to proficiently perform their role in society. Elsewhere we presented empirical evidence illustrating that the use of a blended learning approach to the learning process that applies a moderate constructivist e-learning instructional model improves students' academic outcomes. In this article, we use social network analysis techniques to analyze how social relationships improve student knowledge building with the deployment of this teaching/learning model. The results of this study suggest that the teaching/ learning model used promotes the social relationship of discussion and generation of new ideas, and this relationship has an impact on improving students' academic outcomes. We also illustrate that advice-seeking and trust among students are the relationships that most influence the discussion and generation of new ideas. We conclude by proposing learning strategies designed to improve these social relationships.