Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development

Piaget’s (1936, 1950) theory of cognitive development explains how a child constructs a mental
model of the world. He disagreed with the idea that intelligence was a fixed trait, and regarded
cognitive development as a process that occurs due to biological maturation and interaction with
the environment. The goal of the theory is to explain the mechanisms and processes by which the
infant, and then the child, develops into an individual who can reason and think using
hypotheses. To Piaget, cognitive development was a progressive reorganization of mental
processes as a result of biological maturation and environmental experience.

Piaget's theory of cognitive development revolves around the central idea that intelligence
develops as children grow. Piaget believed that cognitive development occurs as a child's mind
evolves through a series of set stages until they reach adulthood. Piaget named these 'the four
stages of cognitive development'.

Although no stage can be missed out, there are individual differences in the rate at which
children progress through stages, and some individuals may never attain the later stages. Piaget
did not claim that a particular stage was reached at a certain age – although descriptions of the
stages often include an indication of the age at which the average child would reach each stage.

Sensorimotor stage

At this stage, children will learn predominantly through sensory experiences and manipulating
objects. The main goal of this stage is gaining object permanence - recognizing that objects still
exist, even when they cannot be seen.

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 The infant learns about the world through their senses and through their actions (moving
around and exploring their environment).
 During the sensorimotor stage, a range of cognitive abilities develop. These include:
object permanence;
 self-recognition (the child realizes that other people are separate from them); deferred
imitation; and representational play.
 They relate to the emergence of the general symbolic function, which is the capacity to
represent the world mentally
 At about 8 months, the infant will understand the permanence of objects and that they
will still exist even if they can’t see them and the infant will search for them when they
disappear.

During the beginning of this stage, the infant lives in the present. It does not yet have a mental
picture of the world stored in its memory therefore it does not have a sense of object
permanence. If it cannot see something, then it does not exist. This is why you can hide a toy
from an infant, while it watches, but it will not search for the object once it has gone out of sight.
The main achievement during this stage is object permanence – knowing that an object still
exists, even if it is hidden. It requires the ability to form a mental representation of the object.

Individual Differences

 Cultural Practices: In some cultures, babies are carried on their mothers’ backs
throughout the day. This constant physical contact and varied stimuli can influence how a
child perceives their environment and their sense of object permanence.
 Gender Norms: Toys assigned to babies can differ based on gender expectations. A boy
might be given more cars or action figures, while a girl might receive dolls or kitchen
sets. This can influence early interactions and sensory explorations.

Preoperational stage

At this stage, children begin to develop symbolic thought and are able to create an internal
representation of the world via language and mental imagery. Children are not yet able to think
logically and have a very egocentric view of the world. A child cannot conserve which means
that the child does not understand that quantity remains the same even if the appearance changes.

Furthermore, the child is egocentric; he assumes that other people see the world as he does. This
has been shown in the three mountains study. As the preoperational stage develops, egocentrism
declines, and children begin to enjoy the participation of another child in their games, and let’s
pretend play becomes more important. Toddlers often pretend to be people they are not (e.g.
superheroes, policemen), and may play these roles with props that symbolize real-life objects.
Children may also invent an imaginary playmate.

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 Toddlers and young children acquire the ability to internally represent the world through
language and mental imagery.
 During this stage, young children can think about things symbolically. This is the ability
to make one thing, such as a word or an object, stand for something other than itself.
  A child’s thinking is dominated by how the world looks, not how the world is. It is not
yet capable of logical (problem-solving) type of thought.
 Moreover, the child has difficulties with class inclusion; he can classify objects but
cannot include objects in sub-sets, which involves classifying objects as belonging to two
or more categories simultaneously.
 Infants at this stage also demonstrate animism. This is the tendency for the child to think
that non-living objects (such as toys) have life and feelings like a person’s.

Individual Differences

 Cultural Storytelling: Different cultures have unique stories, myths, and folklore.
Children from diverse backgrounds might understand and interpret symbolic elements
differently based on their cultural narratives.
 Race & Representation: A child’s racial identity can influence how they engage in
pretend play. For instance, a lack of diverse representation in media and toys might lead
children of color to recreate scenarios that don’t reflect their experiences or background.

Concrete operational stage

During this stage, children begin to think more logically about concrete events and solve
problems. Thinking is still very literal at this stage. By the beginning of the concrete operational
stage, the child can use operations (a set of logical rules) so she can conserve quantities, she
realizes that people see the world in a different way than he does (decentring) and he has
improved in inclusion tasks. Children still have difficulties with abstract thinking.

The stage is called concrete because children can think logically much more successfully if they
can manipulate real (concrete) materials or pictures of them. Piaget considered the concrete stage
a major turning point in the child’s cognitive development because it marks the beginning of
logical or operational thought. This means the child can work things out internally in their head
(rather than physically try things out in the real world).

Children can conserve number (age 6), mass (age 7), and weight (age 9). Conservation is the
understanding that something stays the same in quantity even though its appearance changes. But
operational thought is only effective here if the child is asked to reason about materials that are
physically present. Children at this stage will tend to make mistakes or be overwhelmed when
asked to reason about abstract or hypothetical problems.

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 During this stage, children begin to think logically about concrete events.
 Children begin to understand the concept of conservation; understanding that, although
things may change in appearance, certain properties remain the same.
 During this stage, children can mentally reverse things (e.g. picture a ball of plasticine
returning to its original shape).
  During this stage, children also become less egocentric and begin to think about how
other people might think and feel.

Individual Differences

 Cultural Context in Conservation Tasks: In a society where resources are scarce,

children might demonstrate conservation skills earlier due to the cultural emphasis on
preserving and reusing materials.
 Gender & Learning: Stereotypes about gender abilities, like “boys are better at math,”
can influence how children approach logical problems or classify objects based on
perceived gender norms

Formal operational stage

The final stage of cognitive development involves increased logical thought and the beginning of
the ability to understand more abstract and theoretical concepts. Teenagers will begin to think
more about philosophical, ethical, and political ideas that require a deeper theoretical
understanding. The formal operational period begins at about age 11. As adolescents enter this
stage, they gain the ability to think in an abstract manner, the ability to combine and classify
items in a more sophisticated way, and the capacity for higher-order reasoning.

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 Concrete operations are carried out on things whereas formal operations are carried out
on ideas. Formal operational thought is entirely freed from physical and perceptual
constraints.
 During this stage, adolescents can deal with abstract ideas (e.g. no longer needing to
think about slicing up cakes or sharing sweets to understand division and fractions).
 They can follow the form of an argument without having to think in terms of specific
examples.
 Adolescents can deal with hypothetical problems with many possible solutions. E.g. if
asked ‘What would happen if money were abolished in one hour’s time? they could
speculate about many possible consequences.

From about 12 years children can follow the form of a logical argument without reference to its
content. During this time, people develop the ability to think about abstract concepts, and
logically test hypotheses. This stage sees the emergence of scientific thinking, formulating
abstract theories and hypotheses when faced with a problem.

Individual Differences

 Culture & Abstract Thinking: Cultures emphasize different kinds of logical or abstract
thinking. For example, in societies with a strong oral tradition, the ability to hold
complex narratives might develop prominently.
  Gender & Ethics: Discussions about morality and ethics can be influenced by gender
norms. For instance, in some cultures, girls might be encouraged to prioritize community
harmony, while boys might be encouraged to prioritize individual rights.

Classroom Activities

1. Sensorimotor Stage (0-2 years):

Although most kids in this age range are not in a traditional classroom setting, they
can still benefit from games that stimulate their senses and motor skills.

o Object Permanence Games: Play peek-a-boo or hide toys under a blanket to

help babies understand that objects still exist even when they can’t see them.
o Sensory Play: Activities like water play, sand play, or playdough encourage
exploration through touch.
o Imitation: Children at this age love to imitate adults. Use imitation as a way to
teach new skills.
2. Preoperational Stage (2-7 years):
o Role Playing: Set up pretend play areas where children can act out different
scenarios, such as a kitchen, hospital, or market.
o Use of Symbols: Encourage drawing, building, and using props to represent other
things.
o Hands-on Activities: Children should interact physically with their environment,
so provide plenty of opportunities for hands-on learning.
o Egocentrism Activities: Use exercises that highlight different perspectives. For
instance, having two children sit across from each other with an object in between
and asking them what the other sees.
3. Concrete Operational Stage (7-11 years):
o Classification Tasks: Provide objects or pictures to group, based on various
characteristics.
o Hands-on Experiments: Introduce basic science experiments where they can
observe cause and effect, like a simple volcano with baking soda and vinegar.
o Logical Games: Board games, puzzles, and logic problems help develop their
thinking skills.
o Conservation Tasks: Use experiments to showcase that quantity doesn’t change
with alterations in shape, such as the classic liquid conservation task using
different shaped glasses.
4. Formal Operational Stage (11 years and older):
o Hypothesis Testing: Encourage students to make predictions and test them out.
o Abstract Thinking: Introduce topics that require abstract reasoning, such as
algebra or ethical dilemmas.
o Problem Solving: Provide complex problems and have students work on
solutions, integrating various subjects and concepts.
o Debate and Discussion: Encourage group discussions and debates on abstract
topics, highlighting the importance of logic and evidence.
 o Feedback and Questioning: Use open-ended questions to challenge students and
promote higher-order thinking. For instance, rather than asking, “Is this the right
answer?”, ask, “How did you arrive at this conclusion?”

Social Media (Digital Learning)

Jean Piaget could not have anticipated the expansive digital age we now live in.

Today, knowledge dissemination and creation are democratized by the Internet, with platforms
like blogs, wikis, and social media allowing for vast collaboration and shared knowledge. This
development has prompted a reimagining of the future of education.

Classrooms, traditionally seen as primary sites of learning, are being overshadowed by the rise of
mobile technologies and platforms like MOOCs (Passey, 2013).

The millennial generation, defined as the first to grow up with cable TV, the internet, and cell
phones, relies heavily on technology.

They view it as an integral part of their identity, with most using it extensively in their daily
lives, from keeping in touch with loved ones to consuming news and entertainment (Nielsen,
2014).

Social media platforms offer a dynamic environment conducive to Piaget’s principles. These
platforms allow for interactions that nurture knowledge evolution through cognitive processes
like assimilation and accommodation.

They emphasize communal interaction and shared activity, fostering both cognitive and socio-
cultural constructivism. This shared activity promotes understanding and exploration beyond
individual perspectives, enhancing social-emotional learning (Gehlbach, 2010).

A standout advantage of social media in an educational context is its capacity to extend beyond
traditional classroom confines. As the material indicates, these platforms can foster more
inclusive learning, bridging diverse learner groups.

This inclusivity can equalize learning opportunities, potentially diminishing biases based on
factors like race or socio-economic status, resonating with Kegan’s (1982) concept of “recruit
ability.”

However, there are challenges. While the potential of social media in learning is vast, its
practical application necessitates intention and guidance. Cuban, Kirkpatrick, and Peck (2001)
note that certain educators and students are hesitant about integrating social media into
educational contexts.
This hesitancy can stem from technological complexities or potential distractions. Yet, when
harnessed effectively, social media can provide a rich environment for collaborative learning and
interpersonal development, fostering a deeper understanding of content.

In essence, the rise of social media aligns seamlessly with constructivist philosophies. Social
media platforms act as tools for everyday cognition, merging daily social interactions with the
academic world, and providing avenues for diverse, interactive, and engaging learning
experiences.

Applications to Parenting

Parents can use Piaget’s stages to have realistic developmental expectations of their children’s
behavior and cognitive capabilities.

For instance, understanding that a toddler is in the pre-operational stage can help parents be
patient when the child is egocentric.

Play Activities

Recognizing the importance of play in cognitive development, many parents provide toys and
games suited for their child’s developmental stage. Parents can offer activities that are slightly
beyond their child’s current abilities, leveraging Vygotsky’s concept of the “Zone of Proximal
Development,” which complements Piaget’s ideas.

1. Sensorimotor Stage (0-2 years):

o Peek-a-boo: Helps with object permanence.
o Texture Touch: Provide different textured materials (soft, rough, bumpy,
smooth) for babies to touch and feel.
o Sound Bottles: Fill small bottles with different items like rice, beans, bells, and
have children shake and listen to the different sounds.
2. Preoperational Stage (2-7 years):
o Memory Games: Using cards with pictures, place them face down, and ask
students to find matching pairs.
o Role Playing and Pretend Play: Let children act out roles or stories that enhance
symbolic thinking. Encourage symbolic play with dress-up clothes, playsets, or
toy cash registers. Provide prompts or scenarios to extend their imagination.
o Story Sequencing: Give children cards with parts of a story and have them
arranged in the correct order.
3. Concrete Operational Stage (7-11 years):
o Number Line Jumps: Create a number line on the floor with tape. Ask students
to jump to the correct answer for math problems.
o Classification Games: Provide a mix of objects and ask students to classify them
based on different criteria (e.g., color, size, shape).
o Logical Puzzle Games: Games that involve problem-solving using logic, such as
simple Sudoku puzzles or logic grid puzzles.
4. Formal Operational Stage (11 years and older):
 o Debate and Discussion: Provide a topic and let students debate on pros and cons.
This promotes abstract thinking and logical reasoning.
o Hypothesis Testing Games: Present a scenario and have students come up with
hypotheses and ways to test them.
o Strategy Board Games: Games like chess, checkers, or Settlers of Catan can
help in developing strategic and forward-thinking skills.

CONCLUSION

He was an inspiration to many who came after and took up his ideas. Piaget’s ideas have
generated a huge amount of research which has increased our understanding of cognitive
development. Piaget (1936) was one of the first psychologists to make a systematic study of
cognitive development. His contributions include a stage theory of child cognitive development,
detailed observational studies of cognition in children, and a series of simple but ingenious tests
to reveal different cognitive abilities. His ideas have been of practical use in understanding and
communicating with children, particularly in the field of education (re: Discovery Learning).
Piaget’s theory has been applied across education.

Vygotsky’s Theory
The work of Lev Vygotsky (1934, 1978) has become the foundation of much research and theory
in cognitive development over the past several decades, particularly what has become known as
sociocultural theory. Vygotsky’s theory comprises concepts such as culture-specific tools,
private speech, and the zone of proximal development. Vygotsky believed cognitive
development is influenced by cultural and social factors. He emphasized the role of social
interaction in the development of mental abilities e.g., speech and reasoning in children.
Vygotsky strongly believed that community plays a central role in the process of “making
meaning.”

Cognitive development is a socially mediated process in which children acquire cultural values,
beliefs, and problem-solving strategies through collaborative dialogues with more
knowledgeable members of society. The more knowledgeable other (MKO) is someone who has
a higher level of ability or greater understanding than the learner regarding a particular task,
process, or concept.

The MKO can be a teacher, parent, coach, or even a peer who provides guidance and modeling
to enable the child to learn skills within their zone of proximal development (the gap between
what a child can do independently and what they can achieve with guidance). The interactions
with more knowledgeable others significantly increase not only the quantity of information and
the number of skills a child develops, but also affects the development of higher-order mental
functions such as formal reasoning. Vygotsky argued that higher mental abilities could only
develop through interaction with more advanced others.
According to Vygotsky, adults in society foster children’s cognitive development by engaging
them in challenging and meaningful activities. Adults convey to children how their culture
interprets and responds to the world. They show the meaning they attach to objects, events, and
experiences. They provide the child with what to think (the knowledge) and how to think (the
processes, the tools to think with).

Vygotsky’s theory encourages collaborative and cooperative learning between children and
teachers or peers. Scaffolding and reciprocal teaching are effective educational strategies based
on Vygotsky’s ideas. Scaffolding involves the teacher providing support structures to help
students master skills just beyond their current level. In reciprocal teaching, teachers and
students take turns leading discussions using strategies like summarizing and clarifying. Both
scaffolding and reciprocal teaching emphasize the shared construction of knowledge, in line with
Vygotsky’s views.

Vygotsky highlighted the importance of language in cognitive development. Inner speech is used
for mental reasoning, and external speech is used to converse with others.These operations occur
separately. Indeed, before age two, a child employs words socially; they possess no internal
language. Once thought and language merge, however, the social language is internalized and
assists the child with their reasoning. Thus, the social environment is ingrained within the child’s
learning.

Effects of Culture
Vygotsky emphasized the role of the social environment in the child’s cognitive development.

Vygotsky claimed that infants are born with the basic abilities for intellectual development called
“elementary mental functions” (Piaget focuses on motor reflexes and sensory abilities). These
develop throughout the first two years of life due to direct environmental contact.

Eventually, through interaction within the sociocultural environment, these are developed into more
sophisticated and effective mental processes, which Vygotsky refers to as “higher mental functions.”

Tools of intellectual adaptation

Each culture provides its children with tools of intellectual adaptation that allow them to use
basic mental functions more effectively/adaptively.

Tools of intellectual adaptation is Vygotsky’s term for methods of thinking and problem-solving
strategies that children internalize through social interactions with the more knowledgeable members of
society.

For example, memory in young children is limited by biological factors. However, culture
determines the type of memory strategy we develop.
For example, in Western culture, children learn note-taking to aid memory, but in pre-literate
societies, other strategies must be developed, such as tying knots in a string to remember,
carrying pebbles, or repeating the names of ancestors until large numbers can be repeated.

Vygotsky, therefore, sees cognitive functions, even those carried out alone, as affected by the
beliefs, values, and tools of intellectual adaptation of the culture in which a person develops and,
therefore, socio-culturally determined.

Therefore, intellectual adaptation tools vary from culture to culture – as in the memory example.

Social Influences on Cognitive Development

Like Piaget, Vygotsky believes that young children are curious and actively involved in their
own learning and discovering and developing new understandings/schema.

However, Vygotsky emphasized social contributions to the development process, whereas Piaget
emphasized self-initiated discovery.

According to Vygotsky (1978), much important learning by the child occurs through social
interaction with a skillful tutor. The tutor may model behaviors and/or provide verbal
instructions for the child.

Vygotsky refers to this as cooperative or collaborative dialogue. The child seeks to understand
the actions or instructions provided by the tutor (often the parent or teacher) and then internalizes
the information, using it to guide or regulate their performance.

Shaffer (1996) gives the example of a young girl given her first jigsaw. Alone, she performs
poorly in attempting to solve the puzzle. The father then sits with her and describes or
demonstrates some basic strategies, such as finding all the corner/edge pieces, and provides a
couple of pieces for the child to put together herself, and offers encouragement when she does
so.

As the child becomes more competent, the father allows the child to work more independently.
According to Vygotsky, this social interaction involving cooperative or collaborative dialogue
promotes cognitive development.

To understand Vygotsky’s theories on cognitive development, one must understand two of the
main principles of Vygotsky’s work: the More Knowledgeable Other (MKO) and the Zone of
Proximal Development (ZPD).

Private Speech
Vygotsky (1987) was the first psychologist to document the importance of private speech.

He considered private speech as the transition point between social and inner speech, the
moment in development where language and thought unite to constitute verbal thinking.
Thus, in Vygotsky’s view, private speech was the earliest manifestation of inner speech. Indeed,
private speech is more similar (in form and function) to inner speech than social speech.

Private speech is “typically defined, in contrast to social speech, as speech addressed to the self
(not to others) for the purpose of self-regulation (rather than communication).”

(Diaz, 1992, p.62)

Private speech is overt, audible, and observable, often seen in children who talk to themselves
while problem-solving.

Conversely, inner speech is covert or hidden because it happens internally. It is the silent,
internal dialogue that adults often engage in while thinking or problem-solving.

In addition to disagreeing on the functional significance of private speech, Vygotsky and Piaget also
offered opposing views on the developmental course of private speech and the environmental
circumstances in which it occurs most often (Berk & Garvin, 1984).

Through private speech, children collaborate with themselves, in the same way a more
knowledgeable other (e.g., adults) collaborate with them to achieve a given function.

Vygotsky sees “private speech” as a means for children to plan activities and strategies, aiding
their development. Private speech is the use of language for self-regulation of behavior.
Therefore, language accelerates thinking/understanding (Jerome Bruner also views language in
this way). Vygotsky believed that children who engage in large amounts of private speech are
more socially competent than children who do not use it extensively.

Vygotsky (1987) notes that private speech does not merely accompany a child’s activity but acts
as a tool the developing child uses to facilitate cognitive processes, such as overcoming task
obstacles, and enhancing imagination, thinking, and conscious awareness.

Children use private speech most often during intermediate difficulty tasks because they attempt
to self-regulate by verbally planning and organizing their thoughts (Winsler et al., 2007).

The frequency and content of private speech correlate with behavior or performance. For
example, private speech appears functionally related to cognitive performance: It appears at
times of difficulty with a task.

For example, tasks related to executive function (Fernyhough & Fradley, 2005), problem-solving
tasks (Behrend et al., 1992), and schoolwork in both language (Berk & Landau, 1993), and
mathematics (Ostad & Sorensen, 2007).

Berk (1986) provided empirical support for the notion of private speech. She found that most
private speech exhibited by children serves to describe or guide the child’s actions.

Berk also discovered that children engaged in private speech more often when working alone on
challenging tasks and when their teacher was not immediately available to help them.

Furthermore, Berk also found that private speech develops similarly in all children regardless of
cultural background.

There is also evidence (Behrend et al., 1992) that those children who displayed the characteristic
whispering and lip movements associated with private speech when faced with a difficult task
were generally more attentive and successful than their ‘quieter’ classmates.

Vygotsky (1987) proposed that private speech is a product of an individual’s social environment.
This hypothesis is supported by the fact that there exist high positive correlations between rates
of social interaction and private speech in children.

Children raised in cognitively and linguistically stimulating environments (situations more

frequently observed in higher socioeconomic status families) start using and internalizing private
speech faster than children from less privileged backgrounds.

Indeed, children raised in environments characterized by low verbal and social exchanges exhibit
delays in private speech development.

Children’s use of private speech diminishes as they grow older and follows a curvilinear trend.
This is due to changes in ontogenetic development whereby children can internalize language
(through inner speech) to self-regulate their behavior (Vygotsky, 1987).
For example, research has shown that children’s private speech usually peaks at 3–4 years of
age, decreases at 6–7, and gradually fades out to be mostly internalized by age 10 (Diaz, 1992).

Vygotsky proposed that private speech diminishes and disappears with age not because it
becomes socialized, as Piaget suggested, but because it goes underground to constitute inner
speech or verbal thought” (Frauenglass & Diaz, 1985).

ZPD

Because Vygotsky asserts that cognitive change occurs within the zone of proximal
development, instruction would be designed to reach a developmental level just above the
student’s current developmental level.

Vygotsky proclaims, “learning which is oriented toward developmental levels that have already
been reached is ineffective from the viewpoint of the child’s overall development. It does not
aim for a new stage of the developmental process but rather lags behind this process” (Vygotsky,
1978).

Appropriation is necessary for cognitive development within the zone of proximal development.
Individuals participating in peer collaboration or guided teacher instruction must share the same
focus to access the zone of proximal development.

“Joint attention and shared problem solving is needed to create a process of cognitive, social, and
emotional interchange” (Hausfather,1996).

Furthermore, it is essential that the partners be on different developmental levels and the higher-
level partner be aware of the lower’s level. If this does not occur or one partner dominates, the
interaction is less successful (Driscoll, 1994; Hausfather, 1996).

Vygotsky’s theories also feed into the current interest in collaborative learning, suggesting that
group members should have different levels of ability so more advanced peers can help less
advanced members operate within their ZPD.

Scaffolding and reciprocal teaching are effective strategies to access the zone of proximal
development.

Reciprocal Teaching

A contemporary educational application of Vygotsky’s theory is “reciprocal teaching,” used to

improve students” ability to learn from text.

In this method, teachers and students collaborate in learning and practicing four key skills:
summarizing, questioning, clarifying, and predicting. The teacher’s role in the process is reduced
over time.
Reciprocal teaching allows for the creation of a dialogue between students and teachers. This
two-way communication becomes an instructional strategy by encouraging students to go
beyond answering questions and engage in the discourse (Driscoll, 1994; Hausfather, 1996).

A study conducted by Brown and Palincsar (1989) demonstrated the Vygotskian approach with
reciprocal teaching methods in their successful program to teach reading strategies.

The teacher and students alternated turns leading small group discussions on a reading. After
modeling four reading strategies, students began to assume the teaching role.

The results showed significant gains over other instructional strategies (Driscoll, 1994;
Hausfather,1996).

Cognitively Guided Instruction is another strategy to implement Vygotsky’s theory. This strategy
involves the teacher and students exploring math problems and then sharing their problem-
solving strategies in an open dialogue (Hausfather,1996).

Based on Vygotsky’s theory, the physical classroom would provide clustered desks or tables and
workspace for peer instruction, collaboration, and small-group instruction. Learning becomes a
reciprocal experience for the students and teacher.

Like the environment, the instructional design of the material to be learned would be structured
to promote and encourage student interaction and collaboration. Thus the classroom becomes a
community of learning.

Scaffolding

Also, Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development on learners is relevant to instructional

concepts such as “scaffolding” and “apprenticeship,” in which a teacher or more advanced peer
helps to structure or arrange a task so that a novice can work on it successfully.

A teacher’s role is to identify each individual’s current level of development and provide them
with opportunities to cross their ZPD.

A crucial element in this process is the use of what later became known as scaffolding; the way
in which the teacher provides students with frameworks and experiences which encourage them
to extend their existing schemata and incorporate new skills, competencies, and understandings.

Scaffolding describes the conditions that support the child’s learning, to move from what they
already know to new knowledge and abilities.

Scaffolding requires the teacher to allow students to extend their current skills and knowledge.

During scaffolding, the support offered by an adult (or more knowledgeable other) gradually
decreases as the child becomes more skilled in the task.
As the adult withdraws their help, the child assumes more of the strategic planning and
eventually gains competence to master similar problems without a teacher’s aid or a more
knowledgeable peer.

It is important to note that this is more than simply instruction; learning experiences must be
presented in such a way as to actively challenge existing mental structures and provide
frameworks for learning.

Five ways in which an adult can “scaffold” a child’s learning:

1. Engaging the child’s interest

2. Maintaining the child’s interest in the task e.g., avoiding distraction and providing clear
instructions on how to start the task.
3. Keeping the child’s frustration under control e.g., by supportive interactions, adapting
instructions according to where the child is struggling.
4. Emphasizing the important features of the task
5. Demonstrating the task: showing the child how to do the task in simple, clear steps.

As the child progresses through the ZPD, the necessary scaffolding level declines from 5 to 1.
The teacher must engage students’ interests, simplify tasks to be manageable, and motivate
students to pursue the instructional goal. In addition, the teacher must look for discrepancies
between students” efforts and the solution, control for frustration and risk, and model an
idealized version of the act (Hausfather, 1996).

Challenges to Traditional Teaching Methods

Vygotsky’s social development theory challenges traditional teaching methods. Historically,

schools have been organized around recitation teaching.

The teacher disseminates knowledge to be memorized by the students, who in turn recite the
information to the teacher (Hausfather,1996).

However, the studies described above offer empirical evidence that learning based on the social
development theory facilitates cognitive development over other instructional strategies.

The structure of our schools does not reflect the rapid changes our society is experiencing. The
introduction and integration of computer technology in society has tremendously increased the
opportunities for social interaction.

Therefore, the social context for learning is transforming as well. Whereas collaboration and peer
instruction were once only possible in shared physical space, learning relationships can now be
formed from distances through cyberspace.

Computer technology is a cultural tool that students can use to meditate and internalize their
learning. Recent research suggests changing the learning contexts with technology is a powerful
learning activity (Crawford, 1996).
If schools continue to resist structural change, students will be ill-prepared for the world they
will live.

Critical Evaluation
Vygotsky’s work has not received the same level of intense scrutiny that Piaget’s has, partly due
to the time-consuming process of translating Vygotsky’s work from Russian.

Also, Vygotsky’s sociocultural perspective does not provide as many specific hypotheses to test
as Piaget’s theory, making refutation difficult, if not impossible.

Perhaps the main criticism of Vygotsky’s work concerns the assumption that it is relevant to all
cultures. Rogoff (1990) dismisses the idea that Vygotsky’s ideas are culturally universal and
instead states that scaffolding- heavily dependent on verbal instruction – may not be equally
useful in all cultures for all types of learning.

Indeed, in some instances, observation and practice may be more effective ways of learning
certain skills.

There is much emphasis on social interaction and culture, but many other aspects of development
are neglected, such as the importance of emotional factors, e.g., the joys of success and the
disappointments and frustration of failure act as motivation for learning.

Vygotsky overemphasized socio-cultural factors at the expense of biological influences on

cognitive development. This theory cannot explain why cross-cultural studies show that the
stages of development (except the formal operational stage) occur in the same order in all
cultures suggesting that cognitive development is a product of a biological process of maturation.

Vygotky’s theory has been applied successfully to education. Scaffolding has been shown to be
an effective way of teaching (Freund, 1990), and based on this theory, teachers are trained to
guide children from what they can do to the next step in their learning through careful
scaffolding.

Collaborative work is also used in the classroom, mixing children of different levels of ability to
make use of reciprocal / peer teaching.

Vygotsky vs. Piaget

Unlike Piaget’s notion that children’s cognitive development must necessarily precede their
learning, Vygotsky argued, “learning is a necessary and universal aspect of the process of
developing culturally organized, specifically human psychological function” (1978, p. 90). In
other words, social learning precedes (i.e., come before) development.
Vygotsky places more emphasis on culture affecting cognitive development.

Unlike Piaget, who emphasized universal cognitive change (i.e., all children would go through
the same sequence of cognitive development regardless of their cultural experiences), Vygotsky
leads us to expect variable development depending on cultural diversity.

This contradicts Piaget’s view of universal stages of development (Vygotsky does not refer to
stages like Piaget does).

Hence, Vygotsky assumes cognitive development varies across cultures, whereas Piaget states
cognitive development is mostly universal across cultures.

Vygotsky places considerably more emphasis on social factors contributing to cognitive

development.

1. Vygotsky states the importance of cultural and social context for learning. Cognitive
development stems from social interactions from guided learning within the zone of proximal
development as children and their partners co-construct knowledge.

In contrast, Piaget maintains that cognitive development stems largely from independent
explorations in which children construct knowledge.

2. For Vygotsky, the environment in which children grow up will influence how they think and what
they think about.
 The importance of scaffolding and language may differ for all cultures. Rogoff (1990)
emphasizes the importance of observation and practice in pre-industrial societies (e.g.,
learning to use a canoe among Micronesian Islanders).

Vygotsky places more (and different) emphasis on the role of language in cognitive
development.

According to Piaget, language depends on thought for its development (i.e., thought comes
before language). For Vygotsky, thought and language are initially separate systems from the
beginning of life, merging at around three years of age, producing verbal thought (inner speech).

In Piaget’s theory, egocentric (or private) speech gradually disappears as children develop truly
social speech, in which they monitor and adapt what they say to others.

Vygotsky disagreed with this view, arguing that as language helps children to think about and
control their behavior, it is an important foundation for complex cognitive skills.

As children age, this self-directed speech becomes silent (or private) speech, referring to the
inner dialogues we have with ourselves as we plan and carry out activities.