From conceptual development to science education: a psychological point of view

A theoretical framework based on cognitive/developmental research is described. It is argued that science learning is a gradual process during which initial conceptual structures based on children's interpretations of everyday experience are continuously enriched and restructured. Conceptual change also involves increased metaconceptual awareness, cognitive flexibility, and theoretical coherence. Some of the implications of this research for the development of science curricula and for instruction are discussed. It is also argued that while cognitive/developmental research can provide us with important information about the process of learning science, it does not provide much information about the external, environmental variables that can facilitate cognitive performance and conceptual change. What is needed in the future is the development of a theory of learning that bridges science education and cognitive/developmental research. Such a theory should specify the mechanisms that can take an individual from one level of cognitive performance to the next and relate them to situational and cultural factors.     

The Teaching Brain and the End of the Empty Vessel

I am excited to present this special section that explores the teaching brain. The goal of the series is to facilitate a transition in the lens on teaching from an empty vessel to a phenomenon as dynamic, variable, and context‐dependent as learning. This transformation will likely push all of us to reevaluate our understanding and research on teaching. Over the coming year, each issue will provide several articles that seek to shed light on a different aspect of this burgeoning new area of research. This issue opens the series with a piece designed to lay out the conceptual framework and evidence base for a new way to think about teaching: the teaching brain. Next, Michael Chazan gives an archeological grounding for the existence of teaching in the earliest ancestors of Homo sapiens. Sidney Strauss and Margalit Ziv then describe how teaching is a fundamental human cognitive ability. Together, these articles begin to create a paradigm shift in the definition of teaching. We look forward to an exciting journey.     

Shifting sands: a case study of conceptual development as competition between alternative conceptions

Conceptual change may be considered as a process of coming to view one theory or model as having more explanatory power than others. Various theorists have described how an individual's understanding of a concept may be multifaceted; how conceptual frameworks develop in a cognitive ecology, and are subject to selection pressures; and how alternative frameworks compete in terms of their explanatory coherence. The present paper applies these ideas to a case study of learning in science. It is argued that conceptual development may be described in terms of a gradual shift in which of several alternative explanatory principles is the learners' preferred choice. The case study illustrates the long-term nature of conceptual change, as a learner comes to see the limitations of one explanatory framework, and the scope for exploring and developing another.     

Enhancing Instructional Efficiency of Interactive E-learning Environments: A Cognitive Load Perspective

This concluding paper summarizes the main points and recommendations of the previous papers in this Special issue within a conceptual framework of cognitive load theory. Design of efficient interactive learning environments should take into account main features and limitations of our cognitive architecture. The paper provides a brief overview of this architecture and sources of cognitive load, considers their instructional implications for interactive e-learning environments, and analyzes methods for managing cognitive load and enhancing instructional efficiency of such environments.     

A Framework for Re‐thinking Learning in Science from Recent Cognitive Science Perspectives

Recent accounts by cognitive scientists of factors affecting cognition imply the need to reconsider current dominant conceptual theories about science learning. These new accounts emphasize the role of context, embodied practices, and narrative‐based representation rather than learners’ cognitive constructs. In this paper we analyse data from a longitudinal study of primary school children’s learning to outline a framework based on these contemporary accounts and to delineate key points of difference from conceptual change perspectives. The findings suggest this framework provides strong theoretical and practical insights into how children learn and the key role of representational negotiation in this learning. We argue that the nature and process of conceptual change can be re‐interpreted in terms of the development of students’ representational resources.     

Cognitive Load Theory: New Conceptualizations,Specifications, and Integrated Research Perspectives

Over the last few years, cognitive load theory has progressed and advanced rapidly. The articles in this special issue, which document those advances, are based on contributions to the 3rd International Cognitive Load Theory Conference (2009), Heerlen, The Netherlands. The articles of this special issue on cognitive load theory discuss new conceptualizations of the different categories of cognitive load, an integrated research perspective of process-oriented and cognitive load approaches to collaborative learning, an integrated research perspective of cognitive and social–cognitive approaches to example-based learning, and a specification of the theory focusing on the acquisition of generalized knowledge structures as a means to facilitate flexible problem-solving skills. This article provides a short introduction to the theory, discusses some of its recent advances, and provides an overview of the contributions to this issue.     

‘Conceptual change’ as both revolutionary and evolutionary process

Our argument concerning the debate around the process of ‘conceptual change’ is that it is both an evolutionary learning process and a revolutionary paradigm change. To gain a deeper understanding of the process, the article focuses on the discourse of educational facilitators participating in a community of learners. Applying the methodology of ‘Semiotic Evolution,’ the micro‐process of learning within the group was traced. Analysis of the interaction between individual learning and group learning within the discourse enabled us to postulate a hypothetical three‐stage model of the process. The model indicates that conceptual change is an experiential change rather than a cognitive one, an intentional change of identity, a change of the person's relationship with the world.     

Development of an instrument for measuring cognitive conflict in secondary‐level science classes

Based on conceptual change theory, cognitive conflict is known as an important factor in conceptual change even though there are still questions about its positive and negative effects on science learning. However, there is no reliable method by which to assess the cognitive conflict students experience in their learning. The purpose of this research was to develop an instrument for measuring secondary students' cognitive conflict levels as they learned science. The results of this study indicate that our instrument is a valid and reliable tool for measuring cognitive conflict levels. Factor analysis supported the model that cognitive conflict consists of four constructs: recognition of an anomalous situation, interest, anxiety, and cognitive reappraisal of the conflict situation. Implications for instruction and possibilities for future research are discussed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 585–603, 2003     

一种面向差错控制的认知观测系统模型--平面向量概念理解差错模式实证研究

结合认知理论和系统控制理论,构造了一种面向数学概念理解差错的观测分析模型,建立了对平面向量概念体系的理解进行实证研究的观测分析流程.通过对平面向量概念理解差错进行统计分析,认为数学概念学习中的理解差错,主要有两种模式:一类是概念模板差错,另一类是认知过程差错.基于观测分析,提出了改进设想:概念的表述;在练习中理解;重视教学的整体性;加强相关学科间的联系.     

Investigating cognitive change as a dynamic process / Investigar el cambio cognitivo como proceso dinámico

Abstract

In this introduction to the special issue ‘Dynamic aspects of cognitive development and learning’ we emphasize the current need for studies that address, in depth, the dynamic aspects of cognitive development and learning. We integrate cognitive development and learning into the concept of cognitive change. We then reflect on the scope and limitations of certain procedures that are implemented to turn these processes of cognitive change into limited objects of empirical research. This reflection will allow us to ask ourselves about the potential and validity of studies resulting from these procedures to inform educational and health-related practices. After presenting some methodological alternatives to explain cognitive change in a more productive way, we present the six studies that make up this special issue. The selection seeks to offer a rich repertoire of ideas; data collection, analysis and visualization methods; and evidence and explanations of situated processes of change in an evolutionary-educational arc extending from the first months of life in the context of familiar interactions, to adult learning.     

Managing cognitive load during document-based learning

Designers of interactive learning environments face the issue of managing the learner's cognitive load, reducing irrelevant sources while optimizing useful sources of load. I propose a conceptual framework aimed at organizing the contributions of the papers presented in this special issue. The framework identifies three main dimensions, namely individual, task and environment, which may have specific or combined effects on the amount and type of cognitive load experienced during learning activities. I summarize some of the findings presented in the special issue with respect to each of these dimensions. Then I discuss some limitations of the studies and some perspectives for further research in the domain. I emphasize the need to control learners’ level of familiarity with the task setting and environment features, not just their prior knowledge of the content area, in order to obtain reliable assessments of cognitive load and learning outcomes.     

Task-dependent construction of mental models as a basis for conceptual change

Learning can be seen as a task-oriented process which often requires the reorganization of existing knowledge, usually referred to as conceptual change. This paper describes a theoretical framework for the analysis of conceptual change that considers conceptual knowledge as a generative cognitive tool for the creation of more specific mental representations — propositional symbolic structures and analog mental models. According to this view, conceptual change is based on a task-oriented interaction between these different kinds of mental representations. The assumption is made that it is possible to foster conceptual change by presenting to students well-defined tasks that stimulate the construction of elaborated mental models as well as an intensive interaction between these models and the corresponding propositional representations. In order to test this assumption an empirical study was conducted, in which subjects had to express their prior knowledge about a complex subject matter from the field of geography (time differences on the earth), which contained various conceptual deficits. The subjects were then randomly assigned to different groups who received the same learning material but had to solve different learning tasks requiring differently structured mental models. Afterwards, the subjects were asked to express their knowledge about the subject matter again and were tested for understanding with a comprehension test. The results support the view that a task-oriented interaction between propositional structures and mental models can help learners to evaluate the consistency of their conceptual knowledge. Accordingly, conceptual deficits result in the formation of mental models with an inadequate structure. Such deficits can be detected if the respective model is used in a sufficiently variable way, whereas they can remain unnoticed if it is used in a limited manner.     

LEARNING AND DOING: THE IMPORTANCE OF SERVICE-LEARNING IN GERONTOLOGY

Service-learning is an approach to teaching and learning that has great potential for gerontology. The articles in this special issue present a wealth of conceptual and practical information about how to create service-learning opportunities, manage them effectively, and evaluate them appropriately. This article identifies several common themes in the articles and offers an administrative perspective on the role and value of service-learning.     

Explaining Learning: From analysis to paralysis to hippocampus

This paper seeks to explain learning by examining five theories of learning—conceptual analysis, behavioural, constructivist, computational and connectionist. The first two are found wanting and rejected. Piaget's constructivist theory offers a general explanatory framework (assimilation and accommodation) but fails to provide an adequate account of the empirical mechanisms of learning. Two theories from cognitive science offering rival explanations of learning are finally considered; it is argued that the brain is not like a computer so the computational model is rejected in favour of a neurally‐based connectionist model of learning.     

The write brain: How to educate and entertain with learner‐centered writing

This article presents a conceptual framework for the writing process to facilitate motivation, learning, retention, and knowledge transfer in readers of expository material. Drawing from four well‐developed bodies of knowledge—cognitive science, learning theory, technical communication, and creative writing—the author creates a model that allows developers of performance and educational content to facilitate learning by addressing such principles as engagement, connection, metacognition, learning, and practice.     

概念整合理论的阐释力及其应用

Fauconnier的概念整合理论和Lakoff的概念隐喻理论为研究语言运用背后的认知活动搭起了一个统一的理论框架,成为目前解释隐喻工作机制最有影响力的两大理论。概念隐喻理论的两域模式可以为常规隐喻的工作机制做出合理的阐释,而Fauconnier的概念整合理论的四空间模式却表现出更强大的阐释力,它不但可以解释常规隐喻,而且可以解释虚拟空间、语法结构、谚语、新词、文学与修辞等非常规隐喻的工作机制。     

Effects of Time Perspective on Student Motivation: Introduction to a Special Issue

This article introduces this special issue by establishing a conceptual foundation for thinking about how students' conceptions of time influence motivation and achievement. In particular, we describe how students' perceptions of the utility of what they are learning for their futures can positively affect motivation. Temporal perspective is tied to current models of motivation and learning such as intrinsic motivation and self-regulation. We present 2 purposes for organizing this issue: (a) initiating discussion and research about how conceptions of the future influence and are influenced by students' motivation and (b) bridging gaps in the field between American and international perspectives on learning and motivation. We conclude by introducing the 6 articles that comprise this special issue of Educational Psychology Review.     

Concepts in Change

In this article we focus on the concept of concept in conceptual change. We argue that (1) theories of higher learning must often employ two different notions of concept that should not be conflated: psychological and scientific concepts. The usages for these two notions are partly distinct and thus straightforward identification between them is unwarranted. Hence, the strong analogy between scientific theory change and individual learning should be approached with caution. In addition, we argue that (2) research in psychology and cognitive science provides a promising theoretical basis for developing explanatory mechanistic models of conceptual change. Moreover, we argue that (3) arguments against deeper integration between the fields of psychology and conceptual change are not convincing, and that recent theoretical developments in the cognitive sciences might prove indispensable in filling in the details in mechanisms of conceptual change.