Cognitivism

Cognitivism

mid-20th Century

Was it possible to learn with no Was it possible to learn with no outward signs of changed outward signs of changed behavior?behavior?

The cognitivist goes inside the learner’s head to see what mental processes were activated and changed during learning

Cognitivism

Knowledge is viewed as symbolic mental constructs; learning involves how those constructs are committed to memoryBehavior may change, but only as an indication to what is going on in the learner's head

Piaget

Swiss biologist, psychologist Jean Piaget (1896-1980)Renowned for an influential model of child developmentPiaget attested child’s structures grow more sophisticated with development and defines stages

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Vygotsky

Concepts are formed socially, then individuallyZone of Proximal DevelopmentCulture (family, social, environmental) is the prime determinant of individual development

Humans are the only species to have created culture, and every child develops within that culture

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.cocc.edu 2004

How does learning occur?

Learning is measured by what learners know, not necessarily what they doThe learner processes symbols and grasps the meaning of symbolsThere may or may not be an external behavioral change due to learning

Which factors influence learning?

Active participationDemonstrationsIllustrative examplesCorrective feedback

What is the role of memory?

As long as the learner has the ability to organize, categorize and retrieve information, learning is accomplished

How does transfer occur?

Information is memorized in an organized mannerInduction/deduction 

What types of learning are best explained by this theory?

ReasoningPhilosophizingProblem solvingInformation processing

Strengths of Cognitivism

The context of a learner - their history, culture, thoughts, beliefs and values - are influential in the learning process

Criticisms of Cognitivism

The learner knows a certain way to do things, but that way may not be the best, most efficient or safest way to do something in a different culture or environment

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Zone of Proximal Development

Vygotsky (1978) maintained the child follows the adult's example and gradually develops the ability to do certain tasks without assistance. He called the difference between what a child can do with help and what he or she can do without guidance the "zone of proximal development" (ZPD).

ZPD

What a child can do without help.

Zone of ProximalDevelopment

What a teacher can teach.