Cognitive+Development

Sarah, Nick, Rich, Ken & Joe**
 * On stage with Piaget or in the zone with Vygotsky?

EXCELLENT WORK DONE GUYS! YOUR WORK IS A MODEL FOR OTHER GROUPS. THIS IS A VERY COMPREHENSIVE SUMMARY OF WHAT WAS LEARNED IN CLASS. EXCELLENT WORK DONE!! -- kpicho (ps. I'm not shouting...just giving you props!!) :)

He folks, I am in the process of editing the information that's already written while trying to format how all this great information is presented. Hopefully the weaving is acceptable and makes some sense. -Joe

I'm adding a section on the issues between Piaget and Vygotsky. Everyone should feel free to edit this. -Richard

I worked on this before class today, its not complete at all.. just what I finished before I left this morning. - Ken

It seems like so much of the section has been covered already. I plan to add some important terms and principles for effective teaching. ~Sarah

“Constructivism is a model in psychology that characterizes learning as a process of actively constructing knowledge” (p. 119). The constructivist theories of Piaget and Vygotsky regarding intellectual development has had a large impact on the U.S. education system and are still being studied. Piaget was considered an individual constructivist; meaning he believed that a “person constructs knowledge by using cognitive processes to gain knowledge from experience rather than memorizing facts produced by others” (p. 119). Vygotsky was best known as a social constructivist. His belief was that individuals construct knowledge through an interaction between the knowledge they bring to a situation and social changes within that context. Through their beliefs, each person developed separate theories to attempt to explain cognitive development.


 * Piaget's Theory:**

Piaget proposed that all children’s thinking results from the following four factors: 1. Biological maturation – biological “readiness” to learn 2. Active exploration of the physical environment – to construct new knowledge during self discovery and interaction with surroundings 3. Social experiences – necessary to develop logic 4. Equilibration – maintaining a balance between existing knowledge and new experiences.

Piaget used a stage model to explain how knowledge evolves. As a child matures, they progress through these four stages until their abilities are fully developed. They are as follows: 1. Sensorimotor (0-2) – object permanence, acquiring knowledge through sensory perception and motor actions 2. Pre-operational (2-7) – one way thinking 3. Concrete operational (7-11) – think logically using concrete materials (symbols) 4. Formal operational (11-adult) – form mental representations that accurately reflect possible actions in the real world While Piaget was primarily interested in how meaning is individually constructed, he (like Vygotsky) acknowledged that social experiences were an important factor in cognitive development.


 * Vygotsky's Theory:**

Extending on the belief that learning is a social process, Vygotsky believed that cognitive development resulted from a complex interaction between heredity and environment. He illustrated this theory using a concept called the //Zone of Proximal Development//. This term is used to describe the idea that effective teaching and learning arises from presenting new knowledge to the learner that is just above their cognitive level. A child and an older individual interact with each other to construct knowledge cooperatively. The adult provides scaffolding and the child gradually gains more skill.

Within the ZPD model, Vygotsky differentiates theoretical and empirical learning. He asserts that theoretical learning like that which occurs in school, pulls development to higher levels. By contrast, empirical learning may occur in the years prior to school and arise spontaneously. Empirical learning is unstructured and sometimes incorrect but forms the initial framework (prior knowledge) for theoretical learning where scientific concepts are developed. Thus teachers should build instruction on the prior knowledge of students while giving correct structure to organize the concepts. Vygotsky stressed that learning will only prompt development when organized properly (127). Role of Language in Cognitive Development

Development and Learning Development is the natural, sequential growth and maturation of an organism over the course of their life. Cognitive development involves the natural acquisition of concepts. Learning occurs when these new cognitive structures are applied to new situations (127). Consistent with his stage model, Piaget asserts that developmental stage will determine what can be learned. That is, an applicable developmental stage must be attained before new learning, which requires that cognitive capacity, can occur. Therefore a child’s developmental stage will define what is possible for that child to learn (127).
 * Issues in Cognitive Development between Piaget and Vygotsky**

While Piaget and Vygotsky agreed on much about language they differed on the importance they placed on it. For Vygotsky, language and logical thinking are closely joined. We think in words and we could not be logical without it. For Piaget, language is necessary but not primary. He argued that thinking occurred along a continuum from early in life to organize actions such as sensorimotor schemes, thinking had to come first (127). Vygotsky emphasized the role of externalized speech, stating that it was vital in the ZPD to pull development to a higher level. Children later learned to use internal speech for self-regulation (127). Piaget viewed externalized speech (not necessarily directed to others) to be egocentric which diminishes as children move through the pre-operational stage (128). Vygotsky however saw this external speech as a necessary transition to internal speech. His research showed external speech increased during challenging tasks, which he suggested was evidence of its value (128).

//Hey, guys, I wanted to list the criticisms of Piaget's Theories from the text and some applications for the constructivist approach in the teaching profession since it looks like no one's mentioned either yet. Definitely feel free to add/edit. Also I wanted to put all the vocabulary in one central location. -Nick//


 * __Criticisms of Piaget:__**

//**Evidence:**// infants achieve object permanence earlier than Piaget proposed; pre-operational children can pass concrete-operational tasks when tasks are modified to simplify instructions or reduce memory and language demands //**Counter:**// research suggests infants only possess an awareness that the perceptual array has changed, rather than acquisition of object permanence; children's success on concrete-operational tasks may be due to lower-cognitive competencies rather than logical and mathematical reasoning //**Counter:**// Piaget is not interested in the rate of development, accelerations, and delays, but in describing processes that account for developmental changes. the rate of progression through the stages will vary, depending on individual's previous experiences //**Evidence:**// children master different conservation tasks at different ages even though conservation is a concrete-operational acquisition //**Counter:**// the sequence of development through the four stages has been found in cultures around the world; research indicates the rate of development through the stages varies across cultures supports Piaget's assertion intellectual development depends on specific cultural and educational environments
 * 1.** Underestimates children's cognitive abilities.
 * 2.** Proposes cognitive development cannot be meaningfully accelerated
 * //Evidence://** pre-operational children can learn conservation through various methods, such as providing correct feedback, directing their attention to the appropriate visual cues, adult modeling, and working with peers who have mastered conservation
 * 3.** Wrongly proposes that self-discovery is necessary for cognitive development
 * //Evidence://** there is little data available to support the benefit of self-discovery concepts
 * //Counter://** we have nothing conclusive that suggests instructional methods using self-discovery are best or teaching methods that diverge from self-discovery experiences are ineffective
 * 4.** May not be stagelike
 * //Counter://** Piaget allowed for asynchrony in development, proposing continual transformations and integration of less advanced thinking into more complex forms of thinking. the stages offer a "big picture" of these transformations
 * 5.** Is limited to Western cultures
 * //Evidence://** critics contend Piaget's theories are not universal


 * __Teaching Applications:__**

//**1. Encourage students to be active learners**// active learning is any type of meaningful learning in which students construct a rich knowledge base (rather than memorizing facts) of interconnected concepts, prior knowledge, and real-life experiences. contrary to popular thinking, active learning must not always mean social interaction and group work //**2. Consider students' developmental level when designing curricula and activities**// students profit from experiences that are within their reach cognitively, whether they by stages or ZPD. dynamic testing is an interactive assessment which can help teachers determine the cognitive development of students by identifying how much individual students can achieve above their current level with appropriate support both Piaget and Vygotsky agreed that students learn by placing new knowledge upon previous knowledge and experience, be it within a cognitive structure or everyday life experiences examining content from different perspectives, contexts, and for different purposes leads to students restructuring and modifying their existing knowledge by preventing learned information from being tied to specific situations or contexts teachers must consider how styles of interaction may differ among students from different cultural backgrounds
 * //3. Link new concepts to students' prior knowledge//**
 * //4. Provide multiple exposures to content//**
 * //5. Recognize cultural context in learning situations//**


 * __Vocabulary to be familiar with:__**

active learning assimilation centration concepts conservation constructivism disequilibrium egocentric egocentric speech equilibration identity constancy individual constructivism inner speech internalization intersubjectivity object permanence operations psychological and cultural tools reversibility scaffolding schemes semiotic functions social constructivism socialized speech zone of proximal development (zpd)**
 * accommodation