Unit 3 Perspectives on Human Development II: Cognitive Perspective PDF

Overview and Perspectives UNIT 3 PERSPECTIVES ON HUMAN in Human Development DEVELOPMENT II: COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE3 Structure 3.0 Introduction 3.1 Piaget’s...

Overview and Perspectives UNIT 3 PERSPECTIVES ON HUMAN in Human Development DEVELOPMENT II: COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE3 Structure 3.0 Introduction 3.1 Piaget’s theory on Cognitive Development: The structural organismic view 3.1.1 Cognitive Schemas 3.1.2 Piaget’s stages of cognitive development 3.1.3 Cognitive abilities in the Sensorimotor Stage 3.1.4 Cognitive abilities in the Pre-operational Stage 3.1.4.1 Major deficits in Pre-operational reasoning 3.1.5 Cognitive abilities in Concrete Operational Stage 3.1.6 Cognitive abilities in Formal Operational Stage 3.1.7 Beyond Piaget-Post-formal reasoning 3.1.8 Contribution 3.1.9 Piaget’s approach: Critical lens 3.2 Vygotsky’s theory on cognitive development: The sociocultural approach 3.2.1 Major concepts 3.2.1.1 Types of Development 3.2.1.2 Tools of Intellectual Adaptation 3.2.1.3 Zone of Proximal Development 3.2.1.4 Scaffolding 3.2.1.5 Guided Participation 3.2.1.6 Culture and Thought 3.2.1.7 Language and Thought 3.2.1.8 Application of Vygotsky’s theory 3.2.1.9 Vygotsky’s theory: Critical lens 3.3 Information Processing Approach to Cognitive Development 3.3.1 Siegler’s Information Processing Approach: An example 3.3.2 Information Processing Approach: Critical Lens 3.4 Summary 3.5 Keywords 3.6 Review Questions 3.7 References and Further Reading 3.8 Additional Online Resources 54 3 Dr Sabeen H. Rizvi, Department of Psychology, Gargi College, University of Delhi. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Perspectives On Human After reading this Unit, you will be able to: Development Ii: Cognitive Perspective explain cognitive perspective to development; elucidate Piaget’s conceptualization of cognitive development; describe the four developmental stages and give examples to explain each stage; critically evaluate Piaget’s constructivist approach considering evidence from India as well; explain Vygotsky’s socio-cultural perspective to cognitive development; describe major concepts like zone of proximal development, scaffolding, guided participation with examples; discuss the applications of Vygotsky’s sociocultural approach; critically evaluate Vygotsky’s sociocultural approach; and explain information processing approach to cognitive development. 3.0 INTRODUCTION The process of cognitive development is lifelong and involves dynamic changes in the content of cognitions or thoughts and the processes that regulate this mechanism. Cognitive development is a complex process and reflects the interplay of biological capabilities and the ability to acquire new skills by adapting to the environment using social cues, support, and cultural knowledge. Various theorists have tried explaining the process of development from their own theoretical positions and have used a variety of methods to study this process. Most of the research has focused on cognitive development during childhood and adolescence as the development stabilizes relatively during the adult years. Recent developments in the field have paid cognizance to the role of cultural factors in contributing to the development of the cognitive world of an individual. The skills, abilities and values that are appreciated in one culture, gain competence over other less desirable skills over time, thus making it clear that the process is adaptive. Thus, the process of cognitive development is embedded in the sociocultural fabric of the community in which the child grows up. In this Unit, the focus will be on cognitive perspectives on human development as posited by Piaget, Vygotsky, and information processing approach. 3.1 PIAGET’S THEORY ON COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT: THE STRUCTURAL ORGANISMIC VIEW Jean Piaget (1896-1980), a Swiss developmental psychologist was one of the most significant figures of twentieth century developmental psychology. He proposed the structural-organismic view, that is cognitive development is embedded in biology and emerges from experiences as children slowly and 55 Overview and steadily adapt their thoughts to optimally function in the world. This entire Perspectives process undergoes qualitative changes, and each stage is a stepping stone to in Human Development the next one. The stages are same for all species and therefore universal. He proposed four basic stages: sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete operational and formal operations. Figure 3.1: Jean Piaget Source: http://t1.gstatic.com/licensed-image?q=tbn:ANd9GcTGjJjtQfiDycoM Fr7XXbcuTmjs8oLF _8Ei2yD5r0RbYh-cWyT2u2Y0ymZnDPAJ Piaget in his theory suggested that there may be some common and universally found characteristics in the process of a child’s cognitive development. Piaget said that on encountering novel and challenging experiences or the state of “cognitive disequilibria” in the early developmental years of childhood, individuals respond by attempting to gain new knowledge and insight about those experiences, that would in turn lead to intellectual maturation and restoration of equilibrium. He defined intelligence as a “basic life function” and that all mental activities function to reach “cognitive equilibrium” by adapting to one’s surrounding environment. He described it as a state of balance between one’s cognitive processes and the environment, and named the process “equilibration” (1950, pg.6). He described a child to be a “constructivist” or one who makes sense of their reality by interacting with the objects available in the external environment. Elkind (1974), identified three major phases in Piaget’s theory. 1. Beginning from 1922 to 1928, Piaget was concerned about the ideas that children held about the physical world. 56 2. In the second phase in 1929, Piaget studied children’s mental growth Perspectives On primarily by his interest in his own children’s growth. Human Development Ii: Cognitive 3. In the third phase, beginning in 1940s he dealt with children’s Perspective understanding of concepts such as quantity, numbers and speed. 3.1.1 Cognitive Schemes According to Piaget and Inhelder (1969), a child’s mental abilities progress with the development of organized systems of knowledge which he called “cognitive schemes” that otherwise cannot be located or identified by means of observation. These organized reserves of knowledge represent the totality of a child’s construction or understanding of reality. The cognitive schemes or structures aid in the child’s ongoing interactions with the surrounding environment, which resultantly further expands these knowledge systems. Piaget said that the formation of these cognitive structures happened because of two inborn mental processes: organization and adaptation.Organization has been described as the process by which a child integrates existing knowledge systems to form sophisticated and coherent cognitive structures. He also said it is a continuous and ongoing process that occurs to adapt to the new experiences in the environment.The underlying activities in the process of adaptation are assimilation, i.e, making meaning of new stimuli by using existing cognitive structures as points of reference; and accommodation, which is, integrating new knowledge and redefining the existing cognitive in order to form a linkage between new and old structures and new knowledge. Piaget believed that the formation of earliest cognitive schemes is governed by an infant’s inborn reflexes, which are its available means of exploration up to two years of age. 3.1.2 Stages of Cognitive Development Piaget suggested that an individual’s cognitive development happens in the course of four sequential stages. Each stage upgrades the cognitive skills of the child and helps her/him/them move on to the next. Table 3.1: Piaget's stages of cognitive development Age Cognitive Stage Primary characteristics 0-2 years Sensorimotor stage Understanding the world primarily through the senses. Object concept is acquired. 2-6 years Pre operational stage Beginning of thought and language but from an ego centric perspective. 6-12 Concrete Operational Mental manipulation is possible at years stage this stage but is tied to concrete operations. 12 years Formal operational Abstract ideas, logical systematic and stage thinking and reflective thought. above 57 Overview and Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years)- Understanding of the world is formed Perspectives through coordination of sensory experiences and motor activities. The child’s in Human Development basic method of knowing is through the actions she/he/they perform on the world through their senses. Substages of the Sensorimotor period a) Simple Reflexes: In the first month after birth, all sensory experiences and motor actions are governed by reflexive behaviors in response to external stimuli. For instance, sucking as a reflexive behavior at the time of breastfeeding. Such reflexes can occur even in the absence of direct stimulation, such as when the infant reaches out to suck an object when it is within their reach. b) First habits or Primary Circular Reactions: In the second substage, infants between 1 to 4 months display what Piaget called first habits i.e., first set of voluntary behaviours evolved from reflexive behaviours that are imitative of the latter. For instance, sucking thumb is imitative of sucking behaviours during feeding. Such behaviours are centered around the infant’s own body. They are called circular because they are repetitive in nature; and these actions are repetitive because the infant finds pleasure in being able to control its behaviors. c) Secondary Circular Reactions: Between 4 to 8 months, the infant displays circular or repetitive behaviour on other objects, such as toys, etc. The sudden discovery of his/her/their ability to exercise control over external objects apart from their own body is pleasurable for the infant. d) Coordination of Secondary Reactions: Between 8 to 12 months, infants first display fully intentional behaviours. Prior to this, simple motor activities are discovered to be pleasurable; however, in this stage, otherwise unrelated and non-pleasurable motor activities such as grasping, and sucking are coordinated to achieve simple goals. For instance, an infant may reach out and grasp the feeding bottle kept nearby on its own when hungry. e) Tertiary Circular Reactions: Between 12 to 18 months of age, infants begin to display exploratory behaviours. Through an infant’s advancing cognitive abilities, he/she learns through trial and error how different actions can produce different results. In this stage, the infant can alter or form new cognitive schemas to produce desired results in a given situation. For instance, the infant may realize how creating different oral sounds may elicit different reactions from the caregiver. f) Symbolic Problem Solving: Between 18 months to 24 months, infants are able to symbolically engage in problem solving and carry out inner experimentation instead of trial and error to achieve simple objectives. Play becomes progressively symbolic and important. A kitchen utensil is not just a utensil; it can be transformed into a stool to sit or a bathtub for the doll or robot in the child’s mind. 58 3.1.3 Cognitive abilities in the Sensorimotor Stage Perspectives On Human Deferred Imitation: Piaget talked at length about the role of imitation in the Development Ii: Cognitive development of cognitive abilities. Throughout the sensory motor stage, Perspective infant displays imitative behaviours of different degrees, from imitating reflexive actions in the first habits stage, to imitating the behaviours of a model. Up until 12 months of age, the infant imitates behaviors of a model, such as the caregiver, while they are present at the same time. However, later, the infant becomes capable of performing deferred imitation, which is, imitating the behaviours of an absent model. Object permanence: By the end of sensory motor stage, the infant gains insight regarding the existence of an external object as a separate, permanently existing entity. Before this insight, infants lack an awareness of objects existing even when they can no longer see or hear them. For instance, the game Peek A Boo, which is often played with infants, illustrates the same idea. Each time the infant sees the face of the caregiver pop up from hiding, he/she/they displays expressions of amusement and wonder. 3.1.4 Cognitive abilities in the Preoperational stage At this stage, children form an understanding of the world. The child is able to recognize, label and differentiate between different objects. In other words, the child is able to form stable concepts. However, what the child is not capable of doing is mentally engaging or manipulating information, hence the name, pre operation. Operations being the ability to perform the same set of actions mentally that the child is able to perform physically. Preoperational stage is marked by two major developments: symbolic function and representational insight. Symbolic function is the child’s ability to use symbols to represent objects and images (for example, words or images) and representational insight refers to the insight that the child develops that the object can represent anything other than itself. The Symbolic Function Stage: Between 2 to 4 years, children are able to form concepts and schemas about external objects that may not be present in front of them. This stage is also marked by language development and pretend play. Symbolism in language is displayed by the age of 18 months and only gains sophistication hence forth. The child is able to express her/his/their ideas through words and images. In pretend or symbolic play children create imaginary characters and play with them. These imaginary characters are represented through symbols such as words. Clouds can have wings; houses can be in the air, and drawings can be full of imaginary things that are not connected with reality. Intuitive Thought Substage:This is the second substage and occurs between 4 to 7 years of age approximately. Children begin to use intuitive, primitive reasoning and will keep bombarding others with never ending questions! This is termed as intuitive by Piaget as they know things but do not know how they know those things. For example, it is difficult for them to answer questions that put them in two categories simultaneously. So, if you would ask the child if they were a girl or boy and Indian or Japanese. They probably 59 Overview and would answer in terms of only being a boy or a girl or being an Indian or Perspectives Japanese. Most 4-year-olds would not be able to put the two categories in Human Development together and say ‘I am an Indian boy/girl’. Such thought process exemplifies centration. Centration as per Piaget, is the focusing of attention on only one characteristic or aspect, at the cost of exclusion of the others. Children at this stage lack conservation. Conservation is the belief that certain attributes remain permanently within an object or situation, despite the superficial changes. Piaget’s famous experiment on conservation is described in the next stage. 3.1.4.1 Major Deficitsin Preoperational Reasoning Piaget called this stage pre operational as he believed that the child is still not mature enough to reach the concrete operational stage. She/he/they had certain deficiencies in their thinking. Some of these have been elaborated by him. Egocentrism is a salient deficit of the preoperational stage. The child is unable to decenter and focus on other’s perspective or world view. In other words, it is his/her/their inability to distinguish between self and other’s perspective. Piaget and Inhelder (1969) gave the children the three-mountain task to study egocentrism. They first familiarized the children with the mountain scene and then asked them to describe what an observer on the other side of the mountain would see as he/she/they looked at the scene. Most 3- and 4-year-old children described what they were able to see from their side. For instance, if five-years old is asked of what she was doing. Often, the child would reply, ‘I am playing “here” with “this” (probably pointing out to the location and the object, oblivious to the fact that the other person has no idea about her “here” and “this”!)’. Animism is another deficit in this stage. Children in this stage, often display a willingness to attribute lifelike characteristics to inanimate objects. As a child and even now, many of us adults enjoy Watterson’s Calvin and Hobbes comic strips. Calvin is six-year-old boy who is inseparable from Hobbes, his ‘stuffed tiger’. Calvin often takes flights of fantasy with Hobbes and indulge in adventures and mischiefs. For Calvin, Hobbes is anthropomorphic and he had all his conversations with him. Another deficit is the appearance /reality distinction. DeVries’s (1969) classical study on appearance/reality distinction explains this deficit. Children between the ages of 3 and 6 years were introduced to a cat and petted it for a while. After that the experimenters put a dog’s mask on the cat’s head and asked the children about the animal’s identity. Almost all 3-years old replied that it was a dog and most six-years old were able to distinguish the appearance from reality and said that it was a cat with a dog’s mask. 60 Thus, according to Piaget, children at this stage are largely centered. During Perspectives On this stage children are unable to indulge in conservation as they lack Human Development Ii: decentration and reversibility, cognitive skills that they will pick up in the Cognitive concrete operations stage. Perspective Box 3.1 In support of Piaget: New Delhi’s ‘Hole-in the Wall Computers’ This is an excellent example to support Piaget’s view about children actively supporting their own development. In the year 1999, Dr. Sugata Mitra, a physicist not a psychologist, began his educational experiment in a street adjoining a slum area in Delhi. He and his team placed, ‘hole in the wall computers’. The children had no knowledge or education as to how to use or operate these machines. Yet within a short span of days, they could draft documents, paint, and browse the internet on their own. The project was later expanded across India and other countries as well (Mitra, 2006). Extending Mirta’s work, Inamdar (2004) reported that rural children who learned computers by using the hole in the wall computers scored only marginally lower on their grade 8 computer science exams as compared with those who studied it formally as part of their curriculum. 3.1.5 Cognitive abilities in Concrete Operational Stage Operational thinking is one of the key concepts given by Piaget and one of the most researched area of Piaget’s theory. Operational thinking is the ability to hold an idea or a thought in one’s head while one is dealing with a problem. The ideas must be present physically hence concrete operations. Conservation. Piaget’s classical experiment on conservation of quantity is an apt example. A tall jar is filled in a child’s presence. The water is then transferred into a wider jar. The child is asked, which jar, has more water. Children in the preoperational stage said the tall jar as water seems more in the tall jar.Whereas concrete operators have now developed the capacity to decenter by simultaneously focusing on both the height and width, they are also able to indulge in reversibility- the mental ability to undo the transfer process and imagine the water in its original container. Concrete operators are armed with the ability to decenter and reversible thinking and hence use logic to reach the conclusion and not to be fooled by the appearance of objects. The dimensions of conservation are numbers, matter, length, volume and area. Relational logic. The understanding of quantitative relations and relational logic. Children at this stage are capable of mental seriation. This is the ability to mentally arrange things or objects as per a prerequisite dimension like big, small, tall, short etc. and this is only mastered in the concrete operational stage. At this stage, young thinkers also acquire the skill of transitivity, i.e., the relations among elements in a series. As an example, if ball C is smaller than ball D and ball A is smaller than ball C, then which is the smallest of all? Some of the specific cognitive abilities that develop during this phase are listed in the table below. 61 Overview and Perspectives in Human Table 3.2 Cognitive abilities during Concrete Operational Stage Development Cognitive ability Examples from day-to-day life Spatial thinking 5-year-old Dhruv can find his way back to his society tower from the bus stop; he is able to remember way to his friend’s house; he knows the shortest route to the playground. Conservation 7-year-old Sara knows that when her slime ball is rolled into a different shape, say a zig-zag line, the quantity of it is still the same. The zig-zag line, bigger than the ball isn’t more slime. Inductive and deductive 6-year-old Tom has three friends who reasoning have pets, Tom thinks all his friends must be having pets (inductive reasoning); deductive reasoning just starts surfacing up, Tom is still learning. Seriation and transitivity 5-year-old Ashi, can arrange her pencils in order of their height and can compare and pinpoint the tallest/shortest/equal in the arrangement. Cause and effect 7-year-old Meher, is able to explain why you get 8 bananas in one kg and 15 in two kgs: the more the weight, the more the numbers. Classification Ali who is 5-year-old, can sort his crayons as per their type (wax/paster/plastic/pencil) into their respective boxes; he can also sort different shapes and sizes. Badakar et.al.(2017), compared the relevance of Piaget’s theory among 4-to 7-year old parented and orphaned children in Belagavi city, Karnataka, India. The 240 participants were assessed on various characteristics like egocentrism, centration, lack of conservation, reversibility using experiments and comparisons between groups. They found significant differences in the cognitive development of the parented and orphaned children. Parented children were better on most tasks than the orphaned children in the study. Though Piaget has not laid any emphasis on the socio-cultural factors. 3.1.6 Cognitive abilities in Formal Operational Stage This stage is very important in the overall development of the child. This is the stage at which children start to develop the ability to think in abstract 62 terms. Piaget suggested that individuals reach this stage at the start of Perspectives On adolescence, around the age of 11 or 12 years. At this age a child/adolescent Human Development Ii: acquires the ability to think in abstract terms. They are able to think in terms Cognitive of what might be in place of what is.They have the ability to imagine Perspective possibilities and formulate and test hypotheses; this is the development of hypothetical-deductive reasoning. “The great novelty of this stage is that by means of a differentiation of form and content the subject (i.e. the adolescent) becomes capable of reasoning correctly about propositions he does not believe, or at least, not yet: that is propositions that he considers pure hypotheses. He becomes capable of drying the necessary conclusions from truth which are merely possible”, Inhelder & Piaget (1958). 3.1.7 Beyond Piaget’s theory: Post-formal reasoning Many researchers have felt that Piaget did not provide closure to his theory by not integrating the stage for adulthood. Research post 1970s has suggested that mature thinking may be far richer than abstract manipulations as proposed by Piaget (Labouvie-Vief, 1985,1990; Sinnott, 1984, ,2003,2009). They introduced the term post-formal reasoning. Jan Sinnott (1984,2003,2009) has proposed some salient characteristics of post formal reasoning that makes it more advanced than simple abstract logic of adolescence. Shifting gears: The ability to move back and forth in abstract reasoning and practical, real-life considerations. Multiple causality, multiple solutions: Recognition that most problems have multiple causes and multiple solutions. Pragmatism: Of all the possible choices, the ability to choose the best solution and recognizing a criterion for choosing. Awareness of Paradox: Having the awareness that a problem or a solution involves inherent conflict. As evident post-formal reasoning is embedded in the social context of the individual. Empirical evidence to support the value of post-formal thinking has been provided by Morton et.al.(2000) who did a longitudinal study of 130 medical students. The freshman students degree of tolerance for ambiguity, along with their empathy, predicted their clinical performance. 3.1.8 Contribution Piaget’s contribution to psychology has been huge though he described himself not as a psychologist but an epistemologist who used examples from children’s cognitive development to put his point through (Smith,1995). In India, the first systematic review of developmental studies was published in 1972. Parameswaran (1972) cited 139 studies and out of which 21focussed on intelligence. Later in 1980, Anandalakshmy reported studies in India that utilized Piaget’s tasks and procedures, however, Piaget’s stages and measures of cognitive development were not used much- “…Indian researchers have, 63 Overview and on the whole, been slow to take up Piagetian replications” (Anandalakshmy, Perspectives 1980, pg.186). Children at different stages of cognitive development manifest in Human Development certain behavioral features, which are sometimes absent or less observed at other stages. Researchers have reported significant age-related changes for pre operational, concrete operational and moral judgement tasks (Bevli et al. 1990; Sharma and Kaur 1992; Upadhyay and Shukla 2001). In a cross- cultural study based on Piaget’s conceptualization, Parameshwaran (2003) tested 6–12-year-old children from southern India and mid-west America. They were asked to draw a map of their school neighborhood. While Indian children depicted more features than American children, American children drew more coordinated maps and showed features further away from their school. 3.1.9 Piaget’s approach: Critical lens Piaget has been criticized for proposing that cognitive development happens the same way universally. It’s like a step-by-step progress through the stages. He was negligent towards individual differences yet; one cannot ignore the influence of differences in abilities from one person to the next. Going by Piaget’s logic, every person should perform consistently well after reaching a particular stage of development (Siegler, 1994). The stage formulation also implies that cognitive growth is relatively rapid shift from one stage to another. Many psychologists are critical of this idea and propose that cognitive development proceeds in a more continuous way. Piaget also has been criticized to have underestimated the age at which certain capabilities emerge in children. Increasing evidence suggests that infants and children develop faster and are more sophisticated than what Piaget proposed (Bornstein & Lamb, 2005; Kenny, 2013). Howard Gardner (2000;2006) was critical of Piaget’s views on thinking and knowing and asserted these were very narrowly defined. Piaget’s experimental method of clinical interview has also been criticized as being too subjective and value laden. Many critics have questioned the reliance on introspection of young immature minds (Shute & Slee, 2003). Labouvie-Vief & Diehl, (2000) in critique of Piaget proposed the post formal thinking. Labouvie-Vief (1986) argued that the intricacy of the contemporary society requires a kind of thinking that is flexible and leaves room for interpretive processes. Thus, formal operations do not represent the highest order thinking and more sophisticated forms emerge as the person moves towards adulthood. His theory has also been criticized for ignoring the socio-cultural component of the child’s world. Piaget has been attacked for being negligent towards social competence of the child and the role of others as social partners. Vygotsky’s theory was a detailed critique of this deficit (Vygotsky, 1972; Xu & Kushnir, 2013). Thelen and Smith (1994) argued that the theory fails to capture the 64 “complexity and messiness of cognitive development in detail…cognitive development does not look like a marching band; it looks more like a teeming Perspectives On mob” (pg.21-22) Human Development Ii: Cognitive Despite these criticisms, one cannot negate the tremendous influence the man Perspective alone had in the field of cognitive development in children. His contributions cannot be ignored. To borrow from Gardner’s (1979) view-“Whatever its ultimate scientific fate, Piaget’s contribution has over the past few decades provided a major impetus for research in developmental psychology” (pg.73- 74). 3.2 VYGOTSKY’S SOCIOCULTURAL PERSPECTIVE ON COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT Piaget’s theoretical positioning has been challenged by all those theorists who thought that cognitive development cannot be conceptualized in the absence of the context of the sociocultural world in which the child grows up. Lev Semenovich Vygotsky (1896-1934), a Russian psychologist and a contemporary for Piaget (actually born in the same year) was one such forerunner in the field who criticized Piaget for ignoring the sociocultural contributing factors. It is intriguing that his entire work was in Russian and was not published until after his death due to tuberculosis in 1934, at Figure 3.2:Lev Semenovich Vygotsky the young age of 37. The relations Source: http://t1.gstatic.com/licensed- image?q=tbn:ANd9GcT45DookvK7F8Bq97daaCC between U.S.- Soviet relations were L8DTxSV7sM264mDxe6agk0TmBzN3BF- strained due to the cold war, hence xgbyhLBwww his ideas were not translated until the late 1960s and 1970s. Vygotsky emphasized upon the importance of cognitive tools that are shaped by the culture in which the child lives. These tools include language, writing, number system and scientific concepts. He rejected the reductionist model of cognitive development as proposed by the behaviouristically oriented psychologists and strongly believed that the child was an active constructor of one’s own knowledge. Vygotsky’s theoretical position was based on the idea that children’s development can only be understood if we pay full cognizance to their social context and culture. While significant others like parents, teachers, friends, peers play a significant role in the development, the influence of larger sociocultural aspects like art, language, culture cannot be negated. He proposed that there is a complex interaction between the individual, the interpersonal world, and the larger sociocultural domains. 65 Overview and Piaget on the other hand laid more importance on the child’s physical world Perspectives than the sociocultural world. He emphasized the importance of discovery in Human Development learning through play material, whereas Vygotsky emphasized the importance of interaction with other children and adults through social learning, direct support, and instructions. There are two major premises of Vygotsky’s theory (Tavassolie &Winsler, 2018). Cognitive processes are socially constructed, History, language and culture play a significant role in creating a link between social phenomenon and psychological functioning, and Learning and development of higher mental functioning takes place within one’s zone of proximal development. 3.2.1 Major concepts of Vygotsky’s approach The major concepts in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of development are as follows: 3.2.1.1 Types of Development Vygotsky asserted that development can be explained in terms of four interrelated levels in interaction with children’s environment. These are microgenetic, ontogenetic, phylogenetic and sociohistorical development.Microgenetic development refers to changes that occur over relatively short periods of time, like in seconds, or hours or days as compared with larger scale changes. Ontogenetic development encompasses development on an individual over the lifetime. Phylogenetic development refers to changes over evolutionary time, measured in millions of years. Vygotsky was of the view that studying and understanding the species history can provide meaningful insight into child development (Bjorklund & Pelligirini 2002). Historical changes occurring in human mental functions as a result of new cultural tools and sociocultural activities was given importance (Vygotsky and Luria 1930/1993). 3.2.1.2 Tools of Intellectual Adaptation Vygotsky maintained that infants were born with very limited and mental functions like sensation, perception, attention, and memory. These functions are transformed into more sophisticated higher order functions by the intervention of sociocultural factors. Culture provides children the ability for divergent thinking. Children acquire thinking and problem-solving strategies form their interactions with the significant others in their sociocultural world. These tools of intellectual adaptation help them to use the basic functions in more sophisticated ways that help them to adapt better with the contemporary challenges. 3.2.1.3 Zone of Proximal Development According to Vygotsky’s sociocultural positioning children learn primarily from other people in their social world. He elaborated upon the concept of 66 zone of proximal development. Zone of proximal development (ZPD) is Perspectives On very important in the acquisition of abstract concepts. Zone of proximal Human Development Ii: development refers to the development that the child can reach with adult Cognitive guidance and the level at which the child functions without their help. Here Perspective ‘proximal’ refers to ‘what comes next’.Vygotsky gave a lot of importance to the role of adults in a child’s life. According to him, adults help the child in engaging in challenging thoughts yet at the same time being mindful of their development level. Children learn and internalize knowledge from the adults, later they de-contextualize it and use it as and when required. In this manner, adults are instrumental in helping them learn and reach their full intellectual potential that may not have been attained by working independently. He pointed out that the skills developed as part of cognitive development are those that are needed to function in the sociocultural world in which the child is growing. For instance, contemporary culture around the world requires one to process numbers, to read, to write to be tech-savvy to a certain degree. However, these were not always required. The development of all these skills is an indication that socio-cultural changes and learning help in acquiring these skills that are not biological. 3.2.1.4 Scaffolding The child can take the next step in cognitive development when they are aided by an adult. This sort of assistance is known as scaffolding (Wood et al., 1976; Rogoff, 1990). Cognitive development requires informal hand holding as discovery is not enough. Vygotsky (1978) stated: “The zone of proximal development defines those functions that have not yet matured but are in the process (of doing so) …what is the zone of proximal development today will be the actual developmental level tomorrow- that is, what a child can do with assistance today she will be able to by herself tomorrow”. A common example of scaffolding is when you would sit with an infant and help her/him/them sort his blocks or crayons by colours. She/he/they completely enjoys the mixed stack of the blocks or crayons but once when you teach them how, they will actively engage in sorting them by themselves. Another example might be when the child sits with an adult like a grandparent and reads a story book with them. The adult may only point and ask the child to describe what might be happening or what is written. This helps the child’s progressively growing ability to relate the concepts in the story and the pictorial representations. These example of scaffolding shows actions that improves a child’s chances of acquiring skills and being successful at the task. These skills will help the child in applying this new knowledge in a novel context. 3.2.1.5 Guided participation In many cultures children do not go through formal schooling or are not formally taught at home as well, they basically learn by “hands on” experience. The term guided participation has been proposed by Barbara Rogoff (1998) and it may be defined as one of the mechanisms employed to advance a sociocultural lens to view human development. Rogoff (1998) opines, “Cognitive development occurs as new generations collaborate with 67 Overview and older generations in varying forms of interpersonal engagements and Perspectives institutional practices”. Guided participation is therefore, an act where in in Human Development children develop by their engagement and involvement in the practices of their community. 3.2.1.6 Culture and Thought Vygotsky and his colleagues studied several contexts to see the impact of culture on development. Luria (1961), a colleague of Vygotsky tested children (between 9-12 years of age), living in different social environment. They were given a free association task where they were to name the first thing that came to their mind after hearing the target word. Most children from rural background gave similar responses and children growing up in large cities gave diversified, distinct responses. The researchers believed that this difference was due to the diverse and extra exposure of city children to various cultures. Children acquire these cognitive tools by interacting with parents and other experienced adult members of the culture and by trying to adopt their language and knowledge (Callaghan & Corbit, 2015).An interesting example of the epigenetic influence of collective culture unfolds from an ongoing ethnographic rural context case study of three-year-old children in India. Ashu (five-year-old) was inseparable from her elder sister Reshu (three-year-old). Reshu seemed almost lost without her sister and would answer simple questions with-“I don’t know”, if Ashu was separated. Her presence became imperative so much so that the researchers had to allow her to be around. She would keep looking at her for cues and was obviously disappointed and awkward that her sister was not allowed to speak (Chaudhary, 2013). 3.2.1.7 Language and Thought Vygotsky was of the view that higher order cognitive abilities begin in the social world and then become integrated into the child’s psychological arena. The mechanism of this kind of acquisition is embedded in language. As per Vygotsky, language is a cultural tool to transmit thoughts, ideas, and beliefs from the sociocultural world to the self. Children internalize language that they use in their social world by virtue of private speech or self-talk. Private talk helps in reorganization of the mind in early childhood. Since native language is deeply rooted in culture it helps in promoting cultural values and customs. Underlying this theory, is the construct of the genetic law of cultural development.According to this theory, all cultural development occurs on two planes: first social plane and then on the psychological plane. Internalization helps in moving from the social plane to the psychological plane. Pillai (2012) has done an interesting research in understanding children’s construing of the word truth, and has reported in her research that the use of the Hindi word for truth- ‘sach’ was semantically loaded in the local language, with ideas of morality, fact-based thinking and parent-centric. As reported by a five-year-old in her study, “Whatever makes Mummy happy is the truth” (Pillai, 2012). Here, we can observe how a child’s understanding of the concept has been internalized and will be used later independently by her in novel situations. It has also been reported by Mohanty 68 (2000;2001;2003) that language socialization in India, encourages the development of competent multilingualism. Nelson (2015) who has Perspectives On researched in the area of language and thought for over 40 years, agrees with Human Development Ii: Vygotsky’s notion of private speech.Table 3.3 gives a brief comparison of the Cognitive theoretical positioning of both Piaget and Vygotsky on some comparable Perspective parallels in their respective research. Table 3.3 Comparison between Vygotsky’s and Piaget view on Cognitive Development Major Issue Vygotsky’s position Piaget’s position Source of cognitive Primarily culture that is An inbuilt tendency and development transmitted by social inquisitiveness for interactions active self-discovery Role of culture Pertinent and cognitive Cognitive development development varies across is by and large universal cultures across cultures Social change agent Adults are especially Peers are especially important as social change important as social agents change agents. Concept Results from the child’s A stand-alone process of acquisition social experience adaptation of schemas Role of instruction Increases scope of Aids learning but not cognitive development by cognitive development enabling learning. per se Language and Social speech leads to Language is an outcome thought development of verbal of cognitive thoughts development. Learning Learning precedes Development precedes development (tools are learning (cognitive internalized) structures are pre- requisites for children to master certain tasks) Individual Moderately strong No major emphasis differences emphasis Stages No stages of development Cognitive stages are very important 3.2.1.8 Application of Vygotsky’s theory Thereare wide variety of real-world applications of Vygotsky’s theory. In line with the ZPD, parents themselves may tutor or hire a tutor to provide extra scaffolding for their children to succeed in any area. Alternatively, teachers may even use peer tutoring in classroom settings. Over the course of time, less skilled start performing better independently in classroom or on home assignments. Learning goals may even be created to help the child. These goals must be within her/his/their abilities, yet not too easy achieved that the child does not 69 Overview and have the room to stretch those abilities to reach the learning goals. This is Perspectives simply explained by the fact that if the task is too easy the child will get in Human Development bored very quickly and if the task is too difficult then she/he/they may feel frustrated and eventually give up on it. Vygotsky’s theory also stresses upon valuing one’s culture as it is fundamental to a child’s optimal development. These values are passed on intergenerationally through conversations and interactions, mostly in the native language and helps in preserving the essence of one’s cultural identity. Vygotsky’s contribution in the acquisition of second language also has implications. Adults who are trying to learn a second language can be more successful if they are rooted in a culture and thus have to use the second language compulsorily. This context helps the adult learner to learn a non- native language through tools that are embedded in the cultural context. Vygotsky’s work has also shaped how educational systems incorporate his concepts and make the learning experience richer and contextual. He stressed upon how upon how sociocultural factors influence development. His idea of dynamic assessment, an interactive approach to psychological or psychoeducational assessment, is often used to understand the underlying issues that are making the learning process challenging for the learners in different domains across diverse groups. 3.2.1.9 Vygotsky’s theory: Critical lens Vygotsky’s ideas were very intriguing to researchers worldwide but because of his early demise he could not tie up his theory together. While Piaget has been criticized of giving too much attention to the child and not enough to the social environment, Vygotsky has been criticized of the opposite by paying too much attention to the sociocultural environment and the instructing adult at the cost of the child. He did not pay attention to individual differences in learning processes, motivation, or emotional regulation skills that the child brings in the interaction that will impact the quality and pace of learning. Vygotsky has not elaborated upon the developmental stages or how age impacts the sociocultural development in his theory. His concepts are intriguing but at what age one benefits the most with using the specific cultural tools, has not been paid due attention. To his defense, one may argue that had he not died at such a young age, he might have presented a more holistic representation and application of his position. Vygotsky’s work has found application in the field of education and his contribution has been immense, however, his views about adult as an instructor and child as learner has undergone some modifications over the course of past decades. The contemporary view is that the child is an active agent- a participant in this interaction, helping in contribution to the nature of this interaction and also structuring it. He also believed that adults were best role models to help the child and scaffolding was also related with adult behaviour. However, children can learn from children and teach children too. 70 Group learning and peer to peer tutoring can be very helpful in learning as Perspectives On the child passes through the zone of proximal development. Human Development Ii: Cognitive In many ways conventional research in psychology has paid more importance Perspective to intrapersonal factors and often eluded the role of collective beliefs, shared knowledge and interpersonal perspective taking (Chaudhary & Pillai, 2016), this may especially be important in a culture like ours. Sociocultural theorists, like Vygotsky, Wood, Rogoff propagated the idea that cognitive growth and development can only be understood if one acknowledges the role and contribution of sociocultural factors. Cognitive processes are culturally embedded and sociocultural factors go a long way in unfolding the developmental trajectory. Rowe and Wertsch (2002), conclude it very beautifully and aptly, ‘Study of the “I” is thus abandoned in favour of study of the social, cultural and historically situated ways by which “we” create “I's”.’ Check Your Progress 2 1. Define zone of proximal development. …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 2. What is guided participation? …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 3. What is private speech? …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 4. State the main difference between Piaget and Vygotsky. …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 3.3 INFORMATION PROCESSING APPROACH TO COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT In the age of super computers, artificial intelligence (AI), and ‘bitcoins’, it’s imperative to discuss the information processing approach to cognitive development. Information processing model of cognitive development focuses on ways that helps an individual to take in, use and process information. The quantitative changes in the infant’s abilities to manage and organize the information symbolizes cognitive advancement or development. For example, an infant is introduced to a new colour, is able to identify it at a 71 Overview and later time. After some days she/he/they are able to choose the colour over Perspectives other colours or develop a preference for it is an example of information in Human Development processing approach.To be more precise, information processing approach is not a theory of cognition, rather a generic framework that comprises of theories sharing certain core assumptions. The first assumption is that all cognitive activities engage mental processes that function over real time on internal symbolic representations of information. To put it simply, all the information stored in your brain including what you had for lunch yesterday, which is your favourite movie, what book will be released next week, what is the weather forecast for today, etc. are stored and coded as mental representations with specific structural properties. The second assumption relates with the cognitive architecture, the general structural characteristics of the information processing system. An example might be the amount of information that can be activated at any given time. The mental processes and representations exist within an organized system with inherent properties and limitations. Another assumption is that development occurs via self- modification of the information processing system. Box 3.2 To reflect upon! Have you effortlessly reached out to Alexa to play music for you or sought help to switch off the lights? Have you felt bored enough to ask Siri to recommend movies? Have you relied on ‘Google maps’ when you didn’t know the topography of an unknown area? Have you relied on some of this ‘external aid’ to make your life a little easier and comfortable? Say thank you to AI ! For the proponents of the information processing approach, the computer seemed to provide a good analogy to the development of the human mind. AI now helps in learning to drive, race, run, playing chess, ludo, cards and so many other games and helps in solving complex problems as efficiently as humans (almost!) and this has helped neuroscientists to understand the limitations and strengths of the human cognition (Newell & Simon, 1995). As per the information processing approach, cognitive growth is described by progressive sophistication, speed, and capacity in processing the information received from multiple sources. The approach lays emphasis on the types of “mental program” that people inherently use when indulge in solving problems (Fagan & Ployhart, 2015).The basic model to understand the information processing approach is a computer. Mayer (2003) has recognized two major perspectives on information processing: the classical view and the constructivist view, though there are a lot of other models too. The classical view has been very popular and construes the human mind as analogous to a computer- with an information encoding, storage, and retrieval process. However, the classical view was propagated in the early 60s and 70s lacked a meaningful approach to the overall understanding. The constructivist view considers an active role of the human in this process and views humans as a progressively complex and 72 sophisticated ‘computer’ with better abilities and more capacity to process Perspectives On this information. Human Development Ii: Cognitive To simplify, the model constitutes of simple processes like encoding, storage Perspective and retrieval. Encoding: Encoding is a process in which an information received is initially recorded in the brain. All humans are exposed to tons of information every minute of the day. If we start processing it all, in no time we will be experiencing burn out. Hence, we selectively attend to information that may help us make sense of the environment around. Storage: Even if we have encoded some information, there is no guarantee that we will utilize it later. It is pertinent that the information must have also been stored in the memory. Storage refers the placement of the material into the faculty of memory. Retrieval: Retrieval is the process by which the stored material is relocated, brought into awareness, and used by the individual. As evident, the process of encoding, storage and retrieval are analogous to different parts or functioning of a computer. When you put information with the help of your keyboard it is encoding; that information is then stored in the computer’s hard drive and retrieval is analogous to the software that helps in accessing the information for display on the screen. All three processes help in processing the information. Automatization: Sometimes the processes of encoding, storing and retrieving is automatic and while at other times these are deliberate. Automatization is the extent to which an activity requires attention; processes that require less attention are automatic and processes that require a lot of attention are controlled. Some activities become automatic with time like driving directions, using cutlery, walking etc. All these activities require full attention in the beginning. Automatization helps children in processing their initial encounters with the world. Without actually intending to or being aware about it, infants develop a sense of how often different stimuli appear simultaneously. This helps them in cultivating an understanding of concepts, categories, events, or people who share some commonality. For example, children encode information that barking sound, waging tail, four legs are often found together and learn early the concept of “dog”. Children do not have it in their awareness as to how they encode this information. Some of the things that we learn automatic and complex. Information Information Information Information The output may input from the processed by the stored in retrieved from be a behavioural environment brain memory memory response or a and coded by decision Figure 3.1 Information processing approach to cognitive development 73 Overview and The model (Figure 3.1) does represent a mechanistic view of mind as it Perspectives seems to be governed by rules similar to a computer. in Human Development 3.3.1 Siegler’s Information Processing Approach: An example Robert Siegler’s approach is a befitting example of the information processing approach as used by children. Based on his studies, he concluded that children’s cognitive development is characterized by progressively complex rules to solve problems (Siegler, 1976, 1978). He used the weight balance scale to demonstrate this. After the experimenter had adjusted the weight on the scale, the task for the children was to predict if the scale would tip left or right or remained balanced if the lever was removed. He was able to identify certain rules that governed children’s problem solving at around five years of age. To accurately predict the weight, children had to factor in both weight and distance. Younger children initially focused on the weight but as they were guided and provide feedback, they were able to progress and encoded more sophisticated rules in their learning (Siegler, 1984). 3.3.2 Information Processing Approach: Critical Lens The information processing approach to cognitive development is one of the dominant perspectives in psychology due to advances in the neuroscientific research.Children have been found to handle information with increasing sophistication as they grow and evolve in their cognitive functioning (Kail, 2003; Zelazo et al.,2003). Lemerise and Arsenio (2000) reviewed research related with social information processing and have reported that new developments in the field have tried integrating social and cognitive aspects in children’s development in order to provide a comprehensive understanding of their behavior. Another interesting application has been the development of the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) by Das and Naglieri (1997). In this assessment, tasks from the information processing research have been adapted to assess four aspects of processing (planning, attention, simultaneous processing and successive processing) that are based on Aleksandr Luria’s theory. In yet another study, Dhillon (1998) explored the behaviour of experts and novices on physics problems and reported that the problem-solving strategies could be analyzed in terms of fourteen different processes. Experts and novices systematically differed in the use and sequence of these processes. Results were applied to formulate problem solving instructions for high school and university students. Despite its applications in so many subfields of development and human cognition, the approach has been attacked for some inherent weaknesses. The approach has been looked at as too mechanistic and often focuses on mental processes than resulting behavioural outcomes. The experiments that are used as evidence in support of the information processing model tend to be theoretical and abstract and lack ecological validity. The information processing approach has constantly used the computer analogy to human cognitive growth, leading to a mechanical view that lacks basic humanity. Human attributes seem to contribute substantially in influencing the 74 processing of this information and this has been sporadically addressed by Perspectives On most theorists. Human Development Ii: Cognitive Thus, these three approaches explain the nature and process of cognitive Perspective development using their own theoretical positions. While all the approaches have contributed to the understanding of cognitive development in children, the influence of Piaget and Vygotsky has been unparalleled in the development of the field. Check Your Progress 3 1. What is the information processing model? …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 2. How is your brain similar to a computer? …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 3. What is a major drawback of the information processing approach? …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 4. Explain with an example how you use the information processing model in your day-to-day life. …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………… 3.4 SUMMARY Now that we have come to the end of this Unit, let us list all the major points that we have learnt: Jean Piaget developed a theory of how children understand the world by constructing their own schemas through their own exploration. Piaget used experiments and question and answer techniques, to formulate his four stages of cognitive development in which children construct their reality progressively. According to Piaget, infants are active and not passive in their development. They develop and think differently during different phases of their development. 75 Overview and Lev Vygotsky emphasized upon the importance of sociocultural factors Perspectives in the cognitive development of children. in Human Development Children acquire sophisticated strategies, tools, beliefs by indulging in collaborative dialogue with skilled adults and later internalize the instructions to master tasks in an optimal way within their zone of proximal development. Optimal learning occurs when the skilled adult properly scaffolds their intervention or help. Cognitive growth is best achieved when the individual’s sociocultural factors and context is attended to. Language is a very important cultural tool that is used by adults to pass on culturally valued thinking inter-generationally. Information processing approach attempts to explain cognitive development in terms of encoding information from the environment, storing it in the brain and retrieving it, when need be, to produce an output in terms of a behavioral response. 3.5 KEYWORDS Preoperational Stage Piaget’s second stage of cognitive development where children develop skills for symbolic thought but can still not use logic. Symbolic Function Ability to use mental representations to which a child has already attached meaning. Intuitive Thought Thinking that show’s a child’s use of primitive reasoning and their enthusiastic acquisition of knowledge about the world. Conservation The recognition that some properties of an object or substance do not change when its external appearance is altered in some way. Zone of Proximal Development According to Vygotsky, the stage at which a child can almost but not fully, perform a task independently, but can do so with the help of an adult. Scaffolding The help extended by an adult to help the child in acquiring new skills. Private Speech Self talk without any underlying intent to communicate with others Information Processing Approach An approach to the study of cognitive development that emphasizes the role of fundamental mental processes in comprehending the world. Encoding Process through which information is stored in the brain with the aid of the senses. Storage Retention of concepts, events, memories etc. for future use. Retrieval Process through which information is accessed from the memory storage. 76 3.6 REVIEW QUESTIONS Perspectives On Human Development Ii: 1. Critically analyze the cognitive development of a child using Piaget’s Cognitive Perspective approach. 2. What are the major differences between the four cognitive stages described by Piaget? 3. Describe the major concepts in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory. 4. Critically compare Vygotsky and Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. 5. 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(1989). Development of concept of speed in Indian children – Eco-cultural context. In U. K. Bevli, P. A. S. Ghuman, & P. R. Dasen (Eds.), Cognitive development of the Indian child (pp. 179–198). New Delhi: National Council of Educational Research and Training. Bjorklund, D. F., & Pellegrini, A. D. (2002). The origins of human nature: Evolutionary developmental psychology. American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10425-000 Callaghan, T., & Corbit, J. (2015). The development of symbolic representation. In L. S. Liben, U. Müller, & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology and developmental science: Cognitive processes (pp. 250–295). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118963418.childpsy207 Chaudhary, N. (2013). Parents’ beliefs, socialisation practices and children’s development in Indian families. Unpublished report of major research project for the University Grants Commission, New Delhi. Chaudhary, N., & Pillai, P. (2016). 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Language Teaching Research, 9(3), 1–33. Rogoff, B. (1998). Cognition as a collaborative process. In D.Kuhn & R.S.Siegler (eds), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 2. Cognition, perception and language (pp. 619–144). New York: Wiley. Salkind, N. J. (2005). Cognitive development. In Encyclopedia of human development (Vol. 1, pp. 276-280). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www- doi-org.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/10.4135/9781412952484.n138 Schaffer, H. R. (2006). Social cognition. In Key concepts in developmental psychology (pp. 123-152). SAGE Publications Ltd, https://www-doi- org.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/10.4135/9781446278826.n7 Sharma, V., & Kaur, K. (1992). Moral judgement as a function of intelligence, birth order and age of the children. Psychologia, 35, 121–124. Siegler, R. S. (1983). Five generalizations about cognitive development. American Psychologist, 38(3), 263– 277. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.38.3.263 Siegler, R. S. (1987). 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Cognitive development as the dance of adaptive transfor- mation: Neo-Piagetian perspectives on adult cognitive development. In C. M. Smith & N. DeFrates-Densch (Eds.), Handbook of research on adult learning and development. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group. Tavassolie, T., & Winsler, A. (2018). Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory. In M. Bornstein (Ed.), The SAGE encyclopedia of lifespan human development (pp. 2307-2310). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www-doi- org.libproxy.lib.unc.edu/ 10.4135/9781506307633.n858 Upadhyay, H., & Shukla, A. (2001). A study of relationship of Piagetian stages of cognitive development and intelligence to creative thinking. Psycho Lingua, 31, 21–24 Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and language (E. Hanfmann & G. Vakar, Eds. & Trans.). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. (Original work published 1934) Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher mental processes (M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman, Eds. & Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. (Original work published 1930–1935) Vygotsky, L. S. (1986). Thought and language. In A. Kozulin (Ed.), Vygotsky in context (pp. 11–56). Cambridge, MA: MIT. Vygotsky, L. S. (1994). The problem of the cultural development of the child. In R. Van derVeer & J. Valsiner (Eds.), The Vygotsky Reader (pp. 57– 72). Cambridge, MA: Blackwell. Vygotsky, L. S. (1997). The crisis in psychology. In R. W. Rieber (Ed.), The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky: Problems of the theory and history of psychology (Vol. 3, pp. 233–343). New York, NY: Plenum. Vygotsky, L.S. (1955/1978). Mind in society: The development higher psychological processes. In M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman (Eds. & Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press (Original work published in 1955). 3.8 ADDITIONAL ONLINE RESOURCES To know more about Piaget’s theory: 80 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XwjIruMI94 Perspectives On Human https://www.britannica.com/topic/human-behavior/Piagets-theory Development Ii: Cognitive To know more about ‘Hole in the wall computers’: Perspective https://www.ted.com/participate/ted-prize/prize-winning-wishes/school-in- the-cloud To know more about Vygotsky’s life and theory: http://www.kolar.org/vygotsky http://www.marxists.org/archive/vygotsky http://www.sk.com.br/sk-vygot.html To know more about information processing approach: https://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1910/Developmental-Theory- COGNITIVE-INFORMATION-PROCESSING.html https://edge.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/9.4_Information_Processing_The ory.pdf 81