Piaget's Theory Of Learning|Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was a Swiss psychologist as well as a biologist. He developed his theory of cognitive development in 1950s. He belonged to a constructivist school of psychology, which believes that learning occurs as a result of the construction of various concepts inside the mind of a child when he/she interacts with his/her environment. His theory is based on the idea that the child builds mental structures; mental maps of the things he/she experiences in his/her environment. These maps initially include some basic and intrinsic reflexes like crying and sucking, but as the child grows and experiences more and more objects/things around him/her, these structures/maps become bigger and more sophisticated.  Piaget was of the view that cognitive development of a child is a function of his/her physical development and that physical development precedes learning. It means that the cognitive development of a child is a continuous process, which undergoes various transformations during different points of her age and the child is seen an active participant in this whole process. According to him, cognitive development is a self-automated process, which depends upon the physical and mental maturation of a child. When the child encounters with a physical experience he/she compares it with the experiences already present in his/her mind, if he/she finds that the experience is a repeated one, he assimilates it easily in his/her mind. Conversely, if the experience is a new one, it causes disequilibrium in his/her mind and the child tries to accommodate it in his/her mind. Piaget specified four distinct stages of a child cognitive development; each stage is dependent upon its previous stage.  These stages are discussed as under:

1. Sensorimotor Stage (Birth to 2 years): During this stage, the child is entirely dependent upon his senses. He/she experiences this world through actions and through his/her senses. He/she is unable to think abstractly. But at the end of this stage the child become able to represent objects with mental images and he/she learns that things exists even they are out of sight, Piaget called it object permanence.
2. Preoperational Stage (2 to 7 years): In this stage, the child is still unable to form abstract thought of physical objects. However, he/she can understand this world through language and images. He/she can now represent his ideas through words and sentences. Egocentric thoughts are common during this stage.
3. Concrete Operation (7 to 11 years): During this stage, the child starts constructing physical structures and logical thinking. Abstract thinking is also possible during this stage. The child learns to classify things in categories and creates logical relationships between them.
4. Formal Stage (11 to 15 years): During this stage, the child starts scientific reasoning and logical thinking like adults. Now, He/she is fully capable to form hypotheses and think systematically and abstractly. He/she becomes able to apply concepts learnt in one context to another.

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Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory Of Learning

Sociocultural  theory of learning was first developed by a Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) in 1930s . Since his work was influenced by the Marxist thinking so it was banned by Joseph Stalin(1879-1953),the leader of Soviet Union in those days. Therefore, it remained unknown for decades even after his death in 1934. His works” Mind in Society” and “Thought and Language” were translated, long after his death, in 1970s and 1980s. His theory got much popularity due to its radical view about a child’s cognitive development. This view is different from that of his counterpart Jean Piaget who thought child’s cognitive development as an automated and independent, of social and cultural influences, process that takes place during various stages of his/her life. Vogotsky’s is of the view that society, culture and language are the primary sources of child’s cognitive development. According to his theory, the cognitive development of a child takes place at two levels. First, at the interpersonal (interpsychology) level, through interacting with his/her peers or adults. Second, at the intrapersonal (intrapsychology) levels, through individual internalization.  In other words, the child first gets a concept through mutual interaction with matured/experienced members of his/her society and then he/she internalize this concept by integrating  it with other concepts already present in his/her mind .  Vygotsky says that culture plays a dual role in the cognitive development of a child. On the one hand, it provides the child with the opportunity of thinking, and on the other hand, it acquaints him/her with the way of thinking. In other words, it tells the child what to think and how to think. Vygotsky argues that social development precedes cognitive development, and social interactions and relations are crucial for learning. In his theory, Vygotsky developed two new concepts namely Zone of Actual Development (ZAD) and Zone of Proximal Development(ZPD). ZAD includes all those tasks, which the learner can do by itself, without the help of others. While ZPD includes all those tasks, which the learner can’t do by itself but with the help of others, parents, teachers, older siblings or peers. Putting it more simply, ZPD specifies those functions which the learner hasn’t mastered yet but are in the process of maturation. ZPD is a gap between the actual development and the potential development of a child, which he/she cannot fill up or narrow down without the help of his/her matured peers or adults.  

In this theory, the cognitive development of a child is discussed in light of mind, tools, zone of proximal development and community of practice. Vygotsky says that mind is socially distributed and we can get knowledge through interaction with each other. The child uses different tools (semiotics) like language, algebraic symbols, art, writing, diagrams, calculator, computer, telephone etc, to facilitate the transfer of various concepts between him/her and the community of experts, and to facilitate the process of internalization of these concepts. Other concepts connected with the Vygotsky theory of learning are:

Cognitive apprenticeship:  It is a situation wherein a child works under the supervision of his/her teacher, matured peers or other more knowledgeable person for getting mastery over a certain activity.

Scaffolding or Mediated Learning: Scaffolding is the process of assisting learner in an activity as much as to enable him/her to complete it by himself/herself.

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