Download Background on Vygotsky

Activity
Joint reading of Vygotsky’s
“Internalization of Higher Psychological Functions”
Outline
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
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Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
Background on Vygotsky
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Psychology in America
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Up to late 1950s … Behaviorism
1960s-70s … Computational Theory & Piaget
1970s … Vygotsky “discovered”
Piaget vs Vygotsky
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Piaget
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Most important source of cognitive change is child
Child as “lone scientist”
Vygotsky
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Also viewed child as active seeker of knowledge, BUT…
NOT child as solitary agent
Rich social/cultural contexts profoundly shape children’s cognition
Rejection of individualistic view of developing child in favor of a socially
formed mind.
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
Development of Knowledge
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Nature of Knowledge
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Primary focus on “concepts” (categories)
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Concept:
a)has a label
b)can be defined by a set of rules
e.g. Square; 4 sides, equal sides, etc
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A child demonstrates mature understanding of true/scientific concepts
when:
a)she knows all of the criteria for that concept
b)she understands that the label for the concept
is arbitrary & conventional
Development of Knowledge
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Types of Concepts
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Pseudoconcept. When a child can use the label for a concept correctly but is
unaware of the defining criteria
Spontaneous concept. A concept constructed by a child that is largely based on
her experience, so they are idiosyncratic & personalized. (e.g., criteria for
grandmother might include “has a soft lap”)
True/scientific concept. Concepts defined in an abstract & context-independent
way, therefore general.
Development of Knowledge
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Concept Development
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Primary goal of instruction is to change children’s spontaneous concepts into their
scientific counterparts
This shift takes a long while, as children do not give up their spontaneous
concepts easily
Spontaneous concepts “grow up” & scientific concepts “grow down”
o Similar to Paiget’s assimilation & accommodation
o Spontaneous concepts give children a foothold to which they partially assimilate a
scientific definition
o Over time, grappling with a given concept causes their spontaneous concepts to
become ever more accurate, general & abstract
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
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Human infants, like all animals, are endowed with basic perceptual, attentional & memory
capacities
These basic capacities develop during first 2 years through direct contact with environment
Then, rapid growth of language leads to profound change in thinking
This broadens children’s participation in social interactions with more knowledgeable
individuals, who encourage them to master culturally important tasks
Soon, young children begin to communicate with themselves in ways similar to how they
communicate with others
As a result, basic mental capacities transform into uniquely human, higher cognitive
capacities
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Three Functions of Language
1. Communicative speech. External speech a child uses to communicate with
someone else
2. Egocentric/private speech. External speech directed to oneself
3. Inner speech. Internal speech to oneself
Both egocentric/private speech
& inner speech function to focus attention & guide
behavior.
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Piaget vs. Vygotsky
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Piaget
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“egocentric” speech reflects the preoperational
child’s inability to imagine the perspective of others
children simply run off thoughts in whatever form they occur, regardless of whether
understandable
to the listener
Vygotsky
• This “talk to self” functions as self-guidance & regulation
• Helps children think about their mental activities & behaviors & select courses of action
• Foundation for all higher cognitive processes (e.g., controlled attention, deliberate memorization &
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recall, categorization, planning, problem-solving, abstract reasoning, self-reflection)
With age & mastery of tasks, this self-directed speech is internalized as silent, inner speech.
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
So… Who is right?
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Patrick & Abravenel (2002) study
4-5 year olds listened
to a list of colors & then
placed color stickers on
a page to match list
researchers increased
the difficulty of tasks
by giving them longer
& longer lists
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
So… Who is right? (con’t.)
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Children who freely use private speech during a challenging activity are more attentive &
show greater improvement in performance (Berk & Spuhl, 1995)
Compared to their normal achieving age-mates, children with learning problems engage in
higher rates of private speech over a longer period of development (Berk & Landau, 1993)
Vygotsky appears to be correct.
Hence “egocentric” speech
now called “private speech.”
Outline
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Background on Vygotsky
Development of Knowledge
Development of
Cognitive Capacities
Self-Regulation &
Children’s Private Speech
Social Origins of
Cognitive Development
Cognitive Apprenticeship
The Social Origins of Cognitive Development
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All higher cognitive processes develop out of social
interaction
Through joint activities with more mature members of
society, children come to master activities & think in ways
that have meaning in their culture
HOW???
Cognitive Apprenticeship
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Joint Activity w/in Zone of Proximal Development
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Scaffolding
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Range of tasks that the learner cannot yet handle alone but can accomplish with the help
of more skilled adults/peers
The changing quality of support over the course of a teaching session, with mentor
adjusting to fit of learner’s current level of performance (support gradually fades)
Proceeds in Phases
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Model the skill —what and why
Let learner imitate with teacher feedback
As learner gain more mastery, teacher pulls back
Activity
The Cognitive Apprenticeship of JellyBean into Being
a Lineage Elf
MMOGs & This Excerpt
Apprenticeship &
Enculturation
Activity
The Cognitive Apprenticeship of JellyBean into being a Lineage Elf
Collaboratively analyze the episode of ‘cognitive apprenticeship’ on your handout. Examine the
data closely & take notes on what features
you find most relevant.
How does Myrandonia go about apprenticing JellyBean into being a Lineage Elf?
Apprenticeship: How does Myrondonia do it?