1、The Role of Culture in Cognitive Development,PSYC 353 LectureDr. Schwartz,Sociocultural Perspective,How we develop, particularly how we learn and think is primarily a function of the social and cultural environment in which we are reared. Emphasizes what makes people different thinkers rather than w
2、hat we share in common.,Consider the differences between children who grow up in a technologically driven society and children who grow up in a hunter-gatherer type of society in Africa,According to Piaget, children will solve problems relevant to their daily lives using species-specific cognitive m
3、echanisms that develop according to a species-typical schedule.,However,Sociocultural theorists see cognitive development very differentlyCognitive development is inseparable from culture,Furthermore,Culture is transmitted to children by their parents and other members of society. Childrens intellec
4、tual processes are developed to handle tasks and problems important to the particular surroundings. Sociocultural theory addresses how children come to understand their and function in their social world.,Lev Vygotsky,Russian Psychologist (1896 1934), died at 38 from Tuberculosis. His writing in the
5、 20s and 30s emphasized that development is guided by adults interacting with children, with culture determining how, where, and when these interactions take place.,Vygotsky,Proposed that cognitive development occurs in situations where a childs problem solving is guided by an adult. Cognitive devel
6、opment progresses through the collaborations of members of one generation with another. Cognitive development is embedded within culture.,Vygotsky - Genetic Method,Another of Vygotskys key ideas is his “genetic” domains: Onto-genesis: Development by an individual over lifetime Socio-historical: Deve
7、lopment of the society Phylo-genesis: Development of the (human) species Micro-genesis: Creation of ideas & concept learningFocusing only on the individual or only on the environment cannot provide an adequate explanation of development.Therefore, his social theory involves the interplay between 1 a
8、nd 2.,Tools of Intellectual Adaptation,Infants are born with some elementary mental functions. Attention, sensation, perception, and memory.Transformed by the culture into new and sophisticated mental processeshigher mental functions,Tools of Intellectual Adaptation,Thinking and problem solving stra
9、tegies that children internalize from their interactions with more competent people.Teach children how to use their minds how to think and what to think.,Vygotsky on Cognition,Cognitioneven in isolation, is socioultural.Affected by values, beliefs and tools of intellectual adaptation transmitted to
10、individuals by their culture.Varies from culture to culture, therefore, not universal as Piaget assumed.,Cognitive Development,Young children are curious explorers Active in learning and discovering new principles Importance of social contributions to cognitive growth Higher psychological processes
11、(involve social awareness) have a social origin, developing first on a social plane and then later internalized on a psychological plane.,Dual Nature of Cognitive Development,General Genetic Law of Cultural Development Social Plane Psychological Plane Between people as an interpsychological category
12、 Within the child as a intrapsychological category,Culturally Constituted Cognitive Activity,Cognitions are not characteristics of individuals, but are functions that can be carried out between individuals. Individual thinking is embedded within the contributions of the social world. Vygotsky sugges
13、ted that individuals be examined as they participate in culturally valued activities.,Many important discoveries that children make occur within the context of cooperative and collaborative dialogues between a skillful tutor. Child tries to understand the instructions and internalizes the informatio
14、n to regulate his own performance. Fosters cognitive growth.,Zone of Proximal Development,The difference between a childs “actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving” and the level of “potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in
15、 collaboration with more capable peers”.,Zone of Proximal Development,Children learn best when they solve problems at a level between their current ability and their ability when assisted by a more competent person,Zone of Proximal Development,Zone of Proximal Development,Instruction should occur wi
16、thin the zone.Effective teaching should be focused here.Cognitive growth occurs here.,Scaffolding,When an expert is aware of the abilities of a novice and responds contingently to the novices responses so that the novice eventually increases his or her understanding of the problem.,In other words,Sc
17、affolding is an instructional technique where the teacher provides the novice learner with just enough assistance for achievement of understanding. Students receive help that enables them to complete tasks that they cannot complete independently.,Gradually, as the learner becomes more proficient, th
18、e scaffolding is removed.However, studies show that students do not learn as well when told everything to do, nor when left alone to discover on their own.,Adult Child Interactions,Vary with culture What is taught depends on what roles the child is expected to play eventually in society,Rogoff,The t
19、ransaction between adults and children reflects an apprenticeship in thinking. Improving skills and understanding through participation with more skilled partners.,Guided Participation,Extending the Zone of Proximal DevelopmentRefers to adult-child interactions during routine activities of everyday
20、life. (not just explicit instruction) Going to the post office, dry-cleaners, supermarketCommunicating and engaging in shared activities with others,Furthermore,It focuses on the daily activities in childrens lives Chores, watching televisionRogoff believed that childrens cognitions are shaped from
21、these routine day-to-day activities more so than in formal education settings.,Consider the differences between children who grow up in a technologically driven society and children who grow up in a hunter-gatherer type of society in Africa,Tribal-type cultures may involve children in the daily acti
22、vities of life more so than children growing-up in an information-age culture. Cognitive development has been shifted from the parents to professional educators. Context-independent learning Knowledge for knowledges sake,Language Development,All children acquire language at about the same time.In th
23、e U.S. and most of the developed world, parents talk to their young children and include them as conversational partners. Preparation for formal schooling,Reading Development,Joint reading activity: A parent who reads to their child regularly is a good predictor of the childs reading ability later i
24、n life. TV vs. Reading Interactive Story Reading Stopping periodically to ask open-ended questions Asking progressively more challenging questions,Symbolic Play,Pretending all children do thisCan be solitary or cooperativeChair race car,Symbolic Play,Requires the child to form a mental representatio
25、n of the activity An indicator of a childs general cognitive development Children advance their cognitions about people, objects, and actions Constructing an increasingly sophisticated representation of the world and how it works,Play it again,When a child who interacts with a more skilled partner w
26、ho structures the situation appropriate for them, then they advance in their skills faster than when this support is not provided. Relationship between the amount of cooperative social play that preschoolers engage in and their later understanding of peoples feelings and beliefs.,Two Types of Cultur
27、es,Like ours beginning in preschool, children are often segregated from adults and receive culturally important information and instruction outside of the context of skilled activities. Cultures where children are in close contact with adults for most of the day and observe and interact with adults
28、while they perform culturally important activities,Different Trajectories,Different forms of guided are going to be used for different cultures Depends on the demands of the culturesCultural beliefs and technological tools influence cognitive development through child-rearing practices.,Educational
29、Implications,Vygotsky stressed active learning Assessing what they already know Establishing what they are capable of learning Allowing teachers to teach within the zone Allowing teachers to provide sufficient scaffolding for fostering growth and development,Guided Participation in the Classroom,Whe
30、re teachers Structure learning activities Provide helpful hints or instruction Carefully tailored to childs abilities Monitoring learners progress Gradually turning over more mental activity to the students,Cooperative Learning Environments,Design exercises where students are encouraged to help each
31、 other Less competent students will benefit from the instruction of more competent peers Teaching somebody something is the best way to solidify ones own knowledge Problem solving skills advance when working together more so than when working alone,Studying for your exams,Is not fun But can be more fun when done in a group Best in a dyadTaking turns teaching each other the subject matter,Why?,Motivation is increased Use more high quality cognitive and metacognitive stratagies Increases your overall understanding Clears-up any confusion Builds a solid knowledge foundation,
