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Child Development and Educational Psychology · Chapter 7

Cognitive, Constructivist and Humanist Learning

What to remember

  • Cognitive and constructivist theories say the learner builds knowledge actively. Piaget stresses stages of thinking, Bruner stresses discovery and representation, Vygotsky stresses social help and the zone of proximal development.
  • Bandura's social learning theory says people learn by watching models. It has four steps: attention, retention, reproduction and motivation.
  • Teaching models follow these ideas: the 5E model (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate), collaborative learning and reciprocal teaching (predict, question, clarify, summarise).

From behaviourism to cognitivism

Behaviourists look only at stimulus and response. Cognitive psychologists look inside the mind: thinking, memory, understanding and problem solving. Constructivism adds that each learner builds meaning from experience, and the teacher is a guide, not only a giver of facts. Humanist thinkers (Maslow, Rogers) say learning grows best when the learner feels safe, valued and free to choose.

Piaget: cognitive development

Jean Piaget (Swiss) studied how children think. He said the child is a "little scientist" who builds knowledge.

Key terms:

  • Schema: a mental pattern or structure for organising knowledge.
  • Assimilation: fitting new information into an existing schema (a child calls a zebra a "horse").
  • Accommodation: changing the schema to fit new information (the child learns that a zebra is a different animal).
  • Equilibration: the balance between the two; it drives growth.
  • Adaptation: the whole process of assimilation plus accommodation.
StageAge (approx.)Main features
SensorimotorBirth to 2 yearsLearns by senses and actions; object permanence develops
Preoperational2 to 7 yearsLanguage and symbols; egocentrism; animism; cannot conserve
Concrete operational7 to 11 yearsLogical thinking about real objects; conservation; classification, seriation
Formal operational11 years and aboveAbstract and hypothetical thinking; scientific reasoning

Object permanence means knowing an object exists even when it is out of sight. Egocentrism means the child sees the world only from his own view. Conservation means knowing that quantity stays the same when only the shape changes (water poured into a taller glass is still the same amount). Animism is thinking that objects are alive.

Classroom use: use real objects for young children, allow activity and exploration, ask questions that create mild conflict so the child must adjust, and match teaching to the child's stage.

Bruner: discovery learning

Jerome Bruner said learners should discover principles themselves. Three modes of representing knowledge:

ModeMeaningExample
EnactiveLearning by doing, using actionsRiding a bicycle, using blocks
IconicLearning through images and picturesDiagrams, charts, models
SymbolicLearning through language and symbolsWords, numbers, formulae

These modes are not strict age stages; an adult also uses all three, though the order enactive, iconic, symbolic is the usual path for a new topic.

Main ideas:

  • Discovery learning: the teacher gives examples and questions, and the learner finds the rule.
  • Spiral curriculum: the same topic is taught again and again at growing depth as the child matures.
  • Scaffolding: temporary support from the teacher that is slowly withdrawn (Wood, Bruner and Ross).
  • Structure of the subject: teach the basic ideas of a subject first; any subject can be taught in an honest form to any child at any age.
  • Concept attainment through examples and non-examples.

Vygotsky: social constructivism

Lev Vygotsky (Russian) said thinking grows first between people, then inside the child. Language and culture shape the mind.

  • Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): the gap between what a child can do alone and what he can do with help. Teaching works best in this zone.
  • More Knowledgeable Other (MKO): anyone who knows more: teacher, parent, or a peer.
  • Scaffolding: the support given within the ZPD, reduced as the child gains skill.
  • Private speech: children talk aloud to themselves to guide thought; it later becomes silent inner speech.
  • Vygotsky said learning can lead development; Piaget said development comes before learning.
PointPiagetVygotsky
Source of knowledgeChild's own activitySocial interaction
Role of languageResult of thoughtTool that shapes thought
StagesFixed universal stagesNo fixed stages; culture matters
TeacherProvides materials and conflictGuide and partner (MKO)
Private speechEgocentric and immatureUseful self-guidance

Bandura: social learning (observational learning)

Albert Bandura said people learn by observing others, without direct reward. His Bobo doll experiment showed that children copy aggressive acts they have seen.

Four processes:

  • 1. Attention: the learner notices the model.
  • 2. Retention: the learner remembers what was seen.
  • 3. Reproduction (motor reproduction): the learner is able to do it.
  • 4. Motivation: the learner has a reason to do it (reinforcement).

Vicarious reinforcement means seeing a model rewarded makes the learner more likely to copy. Self-efficacy is a person's belief in his own ability to succeed in a task; it strongly affects effort. Bandura's later name for his view is social cognitive theory.

Classroom use: the teacher is a model; good behaviour of the teacher and of peers is copied. Show worked examples, and praise good behaviour in front of the class.

Humanist learning

Carl Rogers urged learner-centred teaching: respect, empathy and genuineness from the teacher, and freedom for the learner. Abraham Maslow said needs form a hierarchy; only when basic needs are met can a child seek knowledge and growth. The teacher's aim is a whole person who reaches self-actualisation.

The 5E instructional model

Developed by Rodger Bybee and his team (BSCS) from constructivist ideas; widely used in science teaching.

PhaseWhat happens
EngageTeacher stirs curiosity with a question, a story or an object; finds prior knowledge
ExploreLearners do activities and gather data in groups
ExplainLearners and teacher form concepts and terms
ElaborateLearners apply the idea to new situations
EvaluateTeacher and learners check understanding

Collaborative learning

Pupils work together in small groups to reach a shared goal, helping each other. Features: positive interdependence, face-to-face talk, individual responsibility and group skills. It builds social and thinking skills. Examples are peer tutoring, group projects and think-pair-share. It is rooted in Vygotsky's view of social learning.

Reciprocal teaching

Developed by Annemarie Palincsar and Ann Brown for reading comprehension. Teacher and students take turns acting as the "teacher" of a text passage. The four strategies are:

  • 1. Predicting: guess what the text will say.
  • 2. Questioning: ask questions about the main points.
  • 3. Clarifying: sort out hard words and unclear ideas.
  • 4. Summarising: state the main idea in short.

It uses scaffolding: the teacher models at first and then hands over the role to students.

Putting the theories together in class

A good lesson often uses several ideas at once. The teacher begins with a question or object that raises curiosity (Engage), lets pupils handle materials and talk in groups (Explore, collaborative learning), gives hints and then steps back (scaffolding in the ZPD), and later asks pupils to apply the idea to a new case (Elaborate). The teacher also acts as a model, because pupils copy attitudes and habits (Bandura). Pupils of the preoperational stage need real objects and pictures; pupils of the formal stage can handle rules and hypotheses. Mistakes are treated as useful information about the learner's schema, not as failures. Assessment checks understanding, not only memory, by asking pupils to explain, predict or solve new problems.

Constructivist teaching asks for a change in the teacher's role. The teacher plans, questions and guides; the pupils think, talk and build. Groups should be mixed in ability so that a more knowledgeable peer can help, and every pupil should have a role. Peer help works well because a classmate often explains an idea in simple words that are close to the learner's own level.

Exam traps

  • Assimilation fits new facts into old schema; accommodation changes the schema.
  • Piaget's stage names in order: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational. Conservation begins in the concrete stage, not the preoperational.
  • Bruner's modes are enactive, iconic, symbolic, not "iconic, enactive".
  • ZPD belongs to Vygotsky; spiral curriculum to Bruner; Bobo doll to Bandura.
  • Scaffolding is used by both Bruner and Vygotsky, but the ZPD is only Vygotsky's.
  • In Bandura's model, retention means remembering what was seen; reproduction means being able to do it; motivation means wanting to do it.
  • 5E last two steps: Elaborate (apply) comes before Evaluate.
  • Reciprocal teaching has four steps, collaborative learning is not the same thing.

One-liners

  • 1. Schema means a mental structure for organising knowledge.
  • 2. Piaget's second stage is preoperational, from about 2 to 7 years.
  • 3. Object permanence is gained in the sensorimotor stage.
  • 4. Formal operational thinking is abstract and hypothetical.
  • 5. Bruner's three modes: enactive, iconic and symbolic.
  • 6. Spiral curriculum was proposed by Bruner.
  • 7. ZPD stands for Zone of Proximal Development.
  • 8. The MKO in Vygotsky's theory may be a teacher or a peer.
  • 9. Bandura's Bobo doll study showed observational learning.
  • 10. Self-efficacy means belief in one's own ability.
  • 11. The 5Es are Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate and Evaluate.
  • 12. Reciprocal teaching uses predicting, questioning, clarifying and summarising.

Practice questions

  1. The Zone of Proximal Development was proposed by

    1. Bruner
    2. Piaget
    3. Bandura
    4. Vygotsky
    Answer

    D. Vygotsky

    ZPD is the gap between independent and assisted performance, Vygotsky's idea.

  2. Piaget's stage in which a child shows object permanence is the

    1. concrete operational stage
    2. formal operational stage
    3. sensorimotor stage
    4. preoperational stage
    Answer

    C. sensorimotor stage

    Object permanence develops from birth to about 2 years.

  3. The spiral curriculum is associated with

    1. Bruner
    2. Skinner
    3. Piaget
    4. Vygotsky
    Answer

    A. Bruner

    Topics are revisited with growing depth.

  4. The Bobo doll experiment was done by

    1. Vygotsky
    2. Bruner
    3. Bandura
    4. Kohler
    Answer

    C. Bandura

    It showed children imitate aggressive models.

  5. Fitting new information into an existing schema is called

    1. accommodation
    2. assimilation
    3. equilibration
    4. conservation
    Answer

    B. assimilation

    Assimilation uses the old schema as it is.

  6. Changing an existing schema to fit new information is called

    1. animism
    2. egocentrism
    3. assimilation
    4. accommodation
    Answer

    D. accommodation

    Accommodation modifies the structure.

  7. Piaget's stage of abstract and hypothetical thinking is the

    1. formal operational stage
    2. sensorimotor stage
    3. preoperational stage
    4. concrete operational stage
    Answer

    A. formal operational stage

    It begins at about 11 years.

  8. Bruner's three modes of representation, in the usual order, are

    1. enactive, symbolic, iconic
    2. symbolic, iconic, enactive
    3. enactive, iconic, symbolic
    4. iconic, enactive, symbolic
    Answer

    C. enactive, iconic, symbolic

    Doing first, then images, then symbols.

  9. The four steps of observational learning are attention, retention, reproduction and

    1. punishment
    2. insight
    3. conditioning
    4. motivation
    Answer

    D. motivation

    Bandura's four processes end with motivation.

  10. Belief in one's own ability to succeed in a task is called

    1. egocentrism
    2. self-efficacy
    3. self-concept
    4. assimilation
    Answer

    B. self-efficacy

    Self-efficacy is Bandura's term.

  11. The correct order of the 5E model is

    1. Explore, Engage, Explain, Evaluate, Elaborate
    2. Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate
    3. Engage, Explore, Elaborate, Explain, Evaluate
    4. Engage, Explain, Explore, Elaborate, Evaluate
    Answer

    B. Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate

    Elaborate (apply) comes before Evaluate.

  12. In reciprocal teaching, which is NOT one of the four strategies?

    1. Summarising
    2. Questioning
    3. Predicting
    4. Memorising
    Answer

    D. Memorising

    The four are predicting, questioning, clarifying and summarising.

  13. A child thinks that a tall thin glass holds more water than a short wide one holding the same amount. The child lacks

    1. conservation
    2. self-efficacy
    3. object permanence
    4. scaffolding
    Answer

    A. conservation

    Conservation is missing in the preoperational stage.

  14. A teacher helps a pupil with hints and then gradually stops giving help. This is

    1. punishment
    2. accommodation
    3. scaffolding
    4. extinction
    Answer

    C. scaffolding

    Support is reduced as the learner becomes skilled.

  15. A child sees a classmate praised for neatness and starts writing neatly. This best illustrates

    1. vicarious reinforcement
    2. classical conditioning
    3. insight
    4. egocentrism
    Answer

    A. vicarious reinforcement

    Seeing a model rewarded encourages imitation.

  16. Which stage shows egocentric thinking and animism?

    1. Concrete operational
    2. Formal operational
    3. Sensorimotor
    4. Preoperational
    Answer

    D. Preoperational

    Ages 2 to 7: the child cannot take another's view.

  17. A teacher begins a science lesson with a puzzling demonstration to raise curiosity. This is the phase of

    1. Explore
    2. Engage
    3. Elaborate
    4. Evaluate
    Answer

    B. Engage

    Engage stirs interest and checks prior knowledge.

  18. A pupil can solve a problem only when an elder sibling gives hints. The problem lies in the pupil's

    1. schema of animism
    2. zone of actual development
    3. zone of proximal development
    4. stage of conservation
    Answer

    C. zone of proximal development

    The task is beyond solo ability but possible with help.

  19. The process by which assimilation and accommodation are balanced is

    1. adaptation only
    2. retention
    3. reinforcement
    4. equilibration
    Answer

    D. equilibration

    Equilibration drives cognitive growth.

  20. A student finds a rule himself after the teacher gives several examples. This is

    1. programmed learning
    2. rote learning
    3. discovery learning
    4. operant conditioning
    Answer

    C. discovery learning

    Bruner favoured guided discovery.

  21. Which theorist said development depends on social interaction and culture?

    1. Piaget
    2. Vygotsky
    3. Pavlov
    4. Skinner
    Answer

    B. Vygotsky

    Social constructivism is Vygotsky's view.

  22. Learner-centred teaching with empathy and genuineness is stressed by

    1. Carl Rogers
    2. Kohler
    3. Bandura
    4. Thorndike
    Answer

    A. Carl Rogers

    Rogers is a humanist.

  23. The teacher's good behaviour is copied by pupils. This idea comes from

    1. social learning theory
    2. insight theory
    3. trial and error theory
    4. connectionism
    Answer

    A. social learning theory

    Pupils imitate models.

  24. Learners work in small groups to help each other reach a shared goal. This is

    1. rote learning
    2. collaborative learning
    3. programmed learning
    4. drill method
    Answer

    B. collaborative learning

    Positive interdependence is a key feature.

  25. In which stage can a child classify and order real objects logically but cannot reason about pure ideas?

    1. Preoperational
    2. Formal operational
    3. Sensorimotor
    4. Concrete operational
    Answer

    D. Concrete operational

    Logic is tied to concrete things, ages 7 to 11.

  26. Who developed reciprocal teaching for reading comprehension?

    1. Piaget and Inhelder
    2. Bybee and Bruner
    3. Palincsar and Brown
    4. Wood and Ross
    Answer

    C. Palincsar and Brown

    Annemarie Palincsar and Ann Brown.

  27. A child talks aloud to himself while solving a puzzle. Vygotsky saw this as

    1. a sign of poor intelligence
    2. private speech guiding thought
    3. a disorder of attention
    4. extinction of language
    Answer

    B. private speech guiding thought

    Private speech later becomes inner speech.

  28. Learning through actions such as using blocks is, in Bruner's terms, the

    1. symbolic mode
    2. abstract mode
    3. enactive mode
    4. iconic mode
    Answer

    C. enactive mode

    Enactive means learning by doing.

  29. The 5E model of teaching is mainly based on

    1. classical conditioning
    2. psychoanalysis
    3. behaviourism
    4. constructivism
    Answer

    D. constructivism

    It lets learners build understanding through exploration.

  30. The final phase of the 5E model, where understanding is checked, is

    1. Evaluate
    2. Engage
    3. Elaborate
    4. Explain
    Answer

    A. Evaluate

    Evaluate closes the cycle.

  31. Statements: 1. Piaget believed development comes before learning. 2. Vygotsky believed learning can lead development.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both views are correct and are a classic contrast.

  32. Statements: 1. Scaffolding was described by Wood, Bruner and Ross. 2. The ZPD is a concept of Bruner.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    ZPD is Vygotsky's concept.

  33. Statements: 1. Bandura says learning cannot happen without direct reinforcement. 2. Observing a model can lead to learning.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Bandura said direct reward is not required.

  34. Statements: 1. Egocentrism means selfishness in behaviour. 2. Egocentrism means inability to see another's view.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Egocentrism in Piaget's sense is a thinking limit, not selfishness.

  35. Statements: 1. Bruner's iconic mode uses images. 2. Bruner's symbolic mode uses language and symbols.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both match his three modes.

  36. Statements: 1. In reciprocal teaching students and teacher take turns leading. 2. Reciprocal teaching has only one strategy.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    It has four strategies.

  37. Statements: 1. In the 5E model Explore comes after Explain. 2. In the 5E model Elaborate comes before Evaluate.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Explore comes before Explain.

  38. Statements: 1. Concrete operational children understand conservation. 2. Formal operational children can reason about hypotheses.

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both are correct for those stages.

  39. Match the theorist with the idea: 1. Piaget 2. Bruner 3. Vygotsky

    1. 1 ZPD, 2 schema, 3 spiral curriculum
    2. 1 spiral curriculum, 2 ZPD, 3 schema
    3. 1 schema, 2 ZPD, 3 spiral curriculum
    4. 1 schema, 2 spiral curriculum, 3 ZPD
    Answer

    D. 1 schema, 2 spiral curriculum, 3 ZPD

    Each concept belongs to the named theorist.

  40. Match the Piaget stage with the age: 1. Sensorimotor 2. Preoperational 3. Concrete operational

    1. 1 7 to 11, 2 2 to 7, 3 birth to 2
    2. 1 birth to 2, 2 7 to 11, 3 2 to 7
    3. 1 2 to 7, 2 birth to 2, 3 7 to 11
    4. 1 birth to 2, 2 2 to 7, 3 7 to 11
    Answer

    D. 1 birth to 2, 2 2 to 7, 3 7 to 11

    Ages are in years, approximately.

  41. Match the 5E phase with its feature: 1. Explore 2. Elaborate 3. Evaluate

    1. 1 hands-on activity, 2 apply to new situations, 3 check understanding
    2. 1 check understanding, 2 hands-on activity, 3 apply to new situations
    3. 1 apply to new situations, 2 hands-on activity, 3 check understanding
    4. 1 hands-on activity, 2 check understanding, 3 apply to new situations
    Answer

    A. 1 hands-on activity, 2 apply to new situations, 3 check understanding

    Explore is activity, Elaborate is application, Evaluate is checking.

  42. Match the Bandura step with its meaning: 1. Retention 2. Reproduction 3. Motivation

    1. 1 having a reason to do it, 2 remembering, 3 being able to do it
    2. 1 remembering, 2 having a reason to do it, 3 being able to do it
    3. 1 being able to do it, 2 remembering, 3 having a reason to do it
    4. 1 remembering, 2 being able to do it, 3 having a reason to do it
    Answer

    D. 1 remembering, 2 being able to do it, 3 having a reason to do it

    Each step is a stage of observational learning.

  43. Match the strategy with the example in reciprocal teaching: 1. Predicting 2. Clarifying 3. Summarising

    1. 1 state the main idea, 2 explain a hard word, 3 guess what comes next
    2. 1 explain a hard word, 2 guess what comes next, 3 state the main idea
    3. 1 guess what comes next, 2 explain a hard word, 3 state the main idea
    4. 1 guess what comes next, 2 state the main idea, 3 explain a hard word
    Answer

    C. 1 guess what comes next, 2 explain a hard word, 3 state the main idea

    Matches the four-step method.

  44. Which pair correctly shows a difference between Piaget and Vygotsky?

    1. Piaget stressed fixed stages; Vygotsky stressed social interaction
    2. Piaget stressed reinforcement; Vygotsky stressed drives
    3. Piaget stressed the MKO; Vygotsky stressed schema
    4. Piaget stressed culture; Vygotsky stressed fixed stages
    Answer

    A. Piaget stressed fixed stages; Vygotsky stressed social interaction

    Piaget described universal stages; Vygotsky stressed social and cultural help.

  45. A teacher asks a question that the child's current schema cannot answer, creating mild confusion. In Piaget's terms this pushes the child toward

    1. extinction
    2. rote memory
    3. reinforcement
    4. accommodation
    Answer

    D. accommodation

    Cognitive conflict leads to a change of schema.

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