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Assimilation

By Lisa Fritscher, About.com

Updated: May 9, 2008

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by Steven Gans, MD

Definition: In constructivism, assimilation is learning that occurs when new information is absorbed into an existing framework. The person’s overall beliefs and understanding of the world do not change as a result of the new information. Instead, the information is incorporated into the beliefs that already exist.
Examples: John has a basic understanding of physics. Therefore, it was easy for him to assimilate the things he learned in his graduate physics class.

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