In this major new work, covering 10 years' research of the Geneva School, the authors carry the pioneering investigations of Jean Piaget to a profound new level.Their findings shed new light on the dynamics of the development of cognitive structures as well as on basic mechanisms of learning.Jean Piaget, in his foreword, says of the book: "The novelty of the findings, the clarity of the theoretical interpretation, and the sometimes even excessive caution of the conclusions enable the reader to separate clearly the experimental results from the authors' theoretical tenets." $15.00
It has become increasingly clear during the past decade that developmental psychology represents, as Piaget and Werner have emphasized for so long, an important substantive area in the behavioral sciences. The recent paper, "The Course of Cognitive Development," by J. S. Bruner (American Psychologist, 1964, 19, 1-16) adds further support to this position and may be expected to increase efforts devoted to both the theoretical and empirical analysis of ontogenetic processes. Certainly many fundamental issues, some old and some new, emerge from consideration of Bruncr's genetic approach to cognitive growth. It is not our intent to present a discussion of these issues at this time, however. Rather, our concern is to clarify certain basic differences in theory and methodology between the Harvard and Genevan cognitive growth projects that have the common purpose of investigating the underlying processes which control the transition from one mode of thinking to another. Theoretical differences centering on the nature of developmental changes resulted in differences in the kind of transition studied as well as in the conclusions regarding the processes underlying the cognitive learning.According to Bruner, cognitive development consists in the acquisition of "techniques" of information processing. These techniques, through an "interiorization" process, form the basis for three information-processing systems: the enactive, the iconic, and the symbolic, representing different levels of cognitive functioning that are presumably correlated with cognitive development. The Harvard project was primarily concerned with the conditions necessary for transition from the iconic to the symbolic level of cognitive functioning. In the Genevan studies, however, the main preoccupation was clarification of the structurization processes which mediate the transition from one stage (in the Piagetian sense) of development to another stage. The difference between Bruner's concept of level and Piaget's concept of stage is more real than is apparent-and in order to understand this difference it is necessary to give a brief outline of the most pertinent aspects of Piagct's concept of developmental change.In Piagct's developmental theory, cognitive development consists of a progressive structurization whereby actions and intellectual operations become organized into coherent systems. These systems of coordinated actions are characterized by laws applying to the sys-tem as a whole, for example, the laws of reversibility and compensation. Three main stages can be distinguished in this structurization process:
Plusieurs problèmes portant sur la notion de temps ont été posés à une population rurale de la Côte‐d'Ivoire. Les situations expérimentales comportaient divers déplacements de personnes ou d'objets. Au sujet de ces déplacements, on posait des questions de durée, de vitesse et d'espace parcouru. Des solutions correctes nécessitaient une mise en relation coordonnée de ces trois paramètres. La méthode d'interrogatoire critique utilisée conduit à une analyse détaillée des arguments explicitant les réponses des sujets. Les résultats montrent que des hommes sans scolarisation et des adolescents scolarisés parviennent à une bonne compréhension des problèmes posés, tandis que des femmes et des adolescents sans scolarisation n'accèdent pas à la réussite. Les faits obtenus soulèvent le problème de la comparaison de deux milieux culturels (Genève‐Côte‐d'Ivoire) scolarisés et non scolarisés, quant à une influence sur le système conceptuel. Uno discussion finale s'efforce de montrer en quoi le recours à la théorie de Piaget pour l'interprétation des données observées peut apporter des éclaircissements sur le problème.
Several experiments with 8- to 9-year-old children are reported to demonstrate that the décalage observed between success in problems of conservation of weight, volume and density is due to the different task situations as presented by Piaget and Inhelder. When the tasks are rendered parallel, the traditional décalage disappears. A superior level of conservation of volume was found in 12- to 15-year-old adolescents. The explanation of the observed phenomena is to be sought in Piaget and Garcia’s conception of a dialectical interaction between logical operations and notions of physical causality.
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