Piaget vs. Vygotsky

Theories on Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget

Works Cited

Woolfolk, Anita. Educational Phychology . 12th . Pearson, 2013. Print. McLeod, S. A. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.simplypsychology.org/

Piaget vs. Vygotsky

Lev Vygotsky

Piaget was the first psychologyist to do a study on cognitive development. He became interested in why children couldn't correctly answer questions delt with logical thinking. Piaget's theory is that children are born with a very basic mental structure, and all later learning is based. To him cognitive development is a reorganization of mental processes as a child matures and has more experience. Children gain an understanding of the world, and then experience discrepancies between what they discover and what they already know.

Differences

1. Vygotsky is more concerned with culture and the way it affects and shapes a childs learning.2. Emphasis more on social situations and what they contribute to learning. 3. Concerned with the role of languarge in cognitive development.

1. Focuses on children, rather than all learners.2. Does not address specific behaviors or learning, he is more concerned with development.3. Deals with the stages of age, rather than increase of behavior

A fundamental role of Vygotsky's theory is social interaction. He has developed a sociolcultural approach to development. Vygotsky sees cognitive functions are affected by beliefs and values of the culture in which the child develops. He believes that learning occurs through social interactions with other people, he refers to this a being collaborative dialogue. Children begin to understand actions that others are performing and use it to guide their own performance.