Vygotsky Flashcards
4 Infant Elementary Functions
Attention
Sensation
Perception
Memory
Vygotsky believed infants are born with what functions (4)
Attention
Sensation
Perception
Memory
Vygotsky believed that how we think is a…
Function of the social/cultural world we grew up in
How might socio-culture influence child’s play?
Because children often imitate in play
Socio-culture determines the (2)
- Type of activity we engage in
2. The things we learn
Morelli et al., (2003)
Observed toddlers in 3 different communities:
- US
- The Efe people (Congo)
- Indigenous Mayan group
Morelli et al., (2003)
Method
Observation of toddlers in 3 communities
Morelli et al., (2003)
Findings
Efe/Mayan children imitated adult work in their play more
How might socio-culture influence problem-solving?
Influences how familiar we are with thinking/reasoning about certain topics
Cole et al., 1971
Problem Solving
Participants (2)
The Kpelle people of Liberia
US participants
Cole et al., 1971
Problem Solving
Findings
US - better at estimating length
Kpelle - better at estimating rice quantities
Cole et al., 1971
Problem Solving
Why were the Kpelle people better at estimating rice quantities?
Daily activity for them
Luria (1979)
Participants (2 groups)
Group 1 - traditional unschooled farmers
Group 2 - farmers with formal schooling
Luria (1979)
Method
Showed 4 pics
Asked to pick 3 that went together
Luria (1979)
Findings (educated farmers)
Made an ‘abstract category’
Luria (1979)
Findings (non-educated farmers)
Made decisions based on practical situations
Luria (1979)
What was the ‘abstract category’ made up of
Spade, axe, saw
Chen, Mo + Honomichl (2004)
Method
Pps given 2 problems
One analogous to Hansel and Gretel, one analogous to The Elephant Tale
Chen, Mo + Honomichl (2004)
Coming up with a ‘Hansel and gretel’ like idea is an example of
A culturally specific solution (West)
Chen, Mo + Honomichl (2004)
Which condition were the US participants better at?
Hansel and Gretel-like tale
Chen, Mo + Honomichl (2004)
Which condition were the Chinese participants better at?
The one analogous to ‘The Elephant Tale’
Language
Subtle differences in language can lead to….
Noticeable differences in cognition e.g. maths
Gordon, 2004
What was found regarding the Amazonian languages?
No number words for > 5
Gordon, 2004
In two Amazonian languages there are no words for >5. As a result
Individuals from this culture can only solve math problems easily <5
Gordon, 2004
However, if children from the Amazonian culture learn a language…
With number words >5, they become better at solving math problems
Gordon, 2004
Children become better at math if they learn a language with number words >5. This supports
The idea that language can influence numerical skills
Zuber et al., 2009
German speaking children often…
Have problems converting spoken numbers to written numbers
What did Vygotsky believe is an important tool for the speech–> thought transition?
Self-speech
Inessential for children’s cognitive development
Self-speech
Vygotsky
Children’s behaviour is first controlled
By adults instructions
Vygotsky’s Inner Speech stages (3)
- Behaviour first controlled by adults
- In private, speech said out loud
- Monologues become internalised
At what age does Inner Speech emerge?
7 years
Inner speech, otherwise known as
Thought
Two pieces of evidence suggesting Vygotsky was right about self-speech?
Berk (1992)
Behrend et al., (1992)
Berk (1992)
When do children engage in more self-speech? (3)
- Challenging
- Making mistakes
- Confused about what to do
Behrend et al., (1992)
Children who engage in self-speech…
- More attentive
- Perform better on cog. tasks
A central concept in Vygotsky’s work: the zone
Of proximal development
Children’s cognition improves through…
Interacting with people
Children’s cognition improves through interaction, especially those who
Are more experienced or knowledgeable
The zone of proximal development
Increase in development a child can reach through assistance with a more competent person
Vygotsky believed children work best in
The zone of proximal development
Vygotsky’s ZOPD was developed further by Bruner, who introduced
Scaffolding
Bruner (1983)
Scaffolding
What does Bruner’s (1983) scaffolding theory suggest?
Children’s learning is enhanced when competed people provide a ‘framework’ that supports it at a higher level
Scaffolding is _______ as the child becomes more capable
Adjusted
3 ways of Scaffolding
- Modelling an action
- Suggesting a strategy
- Restructuring into manageable chunks
Wood et al., (1976)
Proposed
5 important aspects of scaffolding
Wood et al., (1976)
5 aspects of scaffolding
- Recruitment
- 5.
- Reduction of DOF
- Direction maintenance
- Marking critical features
- Demonstration
Wood et al., (1976)
What does the ‘recruitment’ stage involve?
You need to engage a child’s interest
Wood et al., (1976)
What does the ‘reduction of degrees of freedom’ stage involve?
Reduce number of steps needed to arrive at solution
Wood et al., (1976)
What does the ‘direction maintenance’ stage involve?
Need to maintain a child’s motivation
Wood et al., (1976)
What does the ‘marking critical features’ stage involve?
Highlighting important features
Wood et al., (1976)
What does the ‘demonstration’ stage involve?
Model the solution
So learner can imitate
Behrend et al., (1992)
What was found regarding scaffolding?
Scaffolding (supportive learning environment) –> more private speech –> more successful children
Behrend et al., (1992)
Supported both (1) and (2)
Self-speech
Scaffolding
Devine, Bignardi + Hughes (2016)
Parental scaffolding while children did a jigsaw puzzle…
Predicted academic attainment 1 year later
Devine, Bignardi + Hughes (2016)
Parental scaffolding during jigsaw predicted academic attainment 1 year later. WHY?
Supported development of high-level cognitive skills (i.e. WM)
Aside from parents, what else can help scaffold learning?
Computers
Why can computers be useful scaffolding partners (2)
Feedback
Access to knowledge
van Rosmalen et al., (2007)
How can computers enable productive peer tutoring?
Sharing knowledge/exchanging competencies/emotional support
Freund (1995)
RQ:
Do Vygotskian educational methods help?
Freund (1995)
Participants
3-5 year olds
Freund (1995)
Conditions (2)
- Alone with Fback from experimenter
2. With mother through guided learning
Freund (1995)
Method
Help a puppet decide which furnishings they should put in rooms of a dollhouse
Freund (1995)
Which participants performed better on final task?
Children who worked with mothers
(Johnson + Johnson, 1989)
Suggested motivation is enhanced when….
Working with another person
Co-operative learning means the child has to (3)
Explain
Persuade
Resolve conflicts
Teasley (1995)
Collaborative learning increases
Self-speech
Tudge (1992)
When is collaborative learning NO MORE EFFECTIVE than working alone?
If peers don’t modify their behaviour (scaffold)/aren’t competent
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
Repeated _______ task
Freund’s (1995) dollhouse
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
Repeated Freund’s dollhouse task and found
Many 5 y/o’s in the collab condition thought THEY had made certain actions when it was in fact the adult
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
Many children incorrectly thought it was them who made certain decisions. What is this called?
Attribution errors
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
Interestingly, the attribution errors led to
Greater learning (better memory for location of furniture)
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
What was the conclusion?
Collaboration = greater learning
Major difference between Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s theories?
Piaget = child's OWN EFFORTS Vygotsky = child's SOCIOCULTURAL ENVIRONMENT
Piaget would suggest that self-speech is
Egocentric
Piaget
Does culture influence development?
NO
Children learn best when they are in their ___________ and when ________________
Zone of proximal development
Peers/adults use scaffolding
While Piaget would say self-speech is a sign of egocentricity, Vygotsky would say it
Marks a transition between language for communication and language for thought
Piaget and Vygotsky were both…
Constructivists
“Progresses in distinct, discontinuous stages”
Vygotsky or Piaget
Piaget
“Progresses more flexibly and continuously”
Vygotsky or Piaget
Vygotsky
“The order of development is influenced by various factors”
Vygotsky or Piaget
Vygotsky
“The order does not differ between children”
Vygotsky or Piaget
Piaget
Ratner, Foley + Gimpert (2002)
Collaboration –>
Attribution errors –> Greater learning/memory
Co-operative learning means the child has to explain ideas/resolve conflicts. This involves (2)
- Examining own ideas
2. Greater articulation
