Exploring Cognitive Development The Child As Problem Solver

by Garton, Alison F.

• ISBN13: 9780631234586
• ISBN10: 0631234586
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-04-23
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

This book uses the paradigm of the child as problem solver to explore various theories of cognitive development. Focusing on collaborative tasks that are undertaken with other children or adults, the author explores a broad range of contemporary theoretical perspectives that could account for children's thinking and learning. In particular, she asks whether social interaction is the key to improvement in problem-solving skills, or whether the skills and abilities that the child brings to the task are paramount. The book draws on several studies, including the author's own research into dyadic problem solving.

Author Biography

Alison F. Garton is Professor of Psychology and Associate Dean at Edith Cowan University in Western Australia. She is the author of Learning to be Literate (Blackwell Publishing, Second Edition, 1998) and Social Interaction and the Development of Language and Cognition (1992), and the editor of Systems of Representation in Children (1993).

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
1: INTRODUCTION	1	(14)
Problem Solving	3	(3)
Social Explanations for Cognitive Change	6	(3)
Change in the Context of Interactive/Collaborative Problem Solving	9	(1)
Domain Specific Knowledge	10	(1)
Children's Potential to Change	11	(2)
Theories of Mind	13	(1)
The Way Forward	14	(1)
2: THEORETICAL OVERVIEW	15	(29)
Piaget and Vygotsky: Is There Any Common Ground?	17	(6)
Peer Interaction: Various Perspectives	23	(10)
Implications for Piagetian and Vygotskian Theories	33	(1)
Research on Collaboration: Beyond Social Interaction	34	(2)
Sociocultural Theory	36	(5)
Dynamic Systems	41	(1)
Nature of the Problem to be Solved	42	(1)
How Else Can Problem Solving be Described and Explained?	43	(1)
3: STRATEGY USE AND LEARNING IN PROBLEM SOLVING	44	(25)
Domains	45	(3)
Domains as Constraints on Cognitive Development	48	(1)
Innateness and Domain-specificity	49	(3)
Domains and the Social Environment	52	(1)
Strategy Choice	53	(13)
Learning New Strategies	66	(3)
4: SOCIAL PROBLEM SOLVING	69	(27)
Peer Interaction and Problem Solving: A Theoretical Conundrum	70	(7)
Peer Interaction in the Classroom	77	(2)
Peer Interaction and Adult-Child Interaction	79	(1)
Theory of Mind and Problem Solving	80	(4)
Self-regulation in Problem Solving	84	(3)
Help Seeking in Problem Solving	87	(2)
The Role of Talk in Collaborative Problem Solving	89	(5)
Conclusion	94	(2)
5: WHAT THE CHILD BRINGS TO THE TASK	96	(24)
Readiness to Benefit from Interaction	97	(1)
Cognitive Flexibility	97	(9)
Friendship and Sociability	106	(11)
Motivation to Collaborate	117	(3)
6: SUMMARY, REVIEW AND IMPLICATIONS	120	(9)
What and How Revisited	121	(3)
Difficulties Yet to Be Surmounted	124	(2)
Implications	126	(3)
References	129	(7)
Author Index	136	(2)
Subject Index	138