Preschoolers use intentional and pedagogical cues to guide inductive inferences and exploration

Children are judicious social learners. They may be particularly sensitive to communicative actions done pedagogically for their benefit, as such actions may mark important, generalizable information. Three experiments (N = 224) found striking differences in preschoolers’ inductive generalization and exploration of a novel functional property, depending on whether identical evidence for the property was produced accidentally, intentionally, or pedagogically and communicatively. Results also revealed that although 4‐year‐olds reserved strong generalizations for a property that is pedagogically demonstrated, 3‐year‐olds made such inferences when it was produced either intentionally or pedagogically. These findings suggest that by age 4 children assess whether evidence is produced for their benefit in gauging generalizability, giving them a powerful tool for acquiring important kind‐relevant, generic knowledge.     

Learning From “Thinkers”: Parent Epistemological Understanding Predicts Individual Differences in Children’s Judgments About Reasoners

Four-, 5-, and 6-year olds (N = 102) observed agents perform a reasoning task that required gathering hidden evidence. An agent who made sound inferences was contrasted with an agent who made either unsound inferences (UI; failed to base conclusion on gathered evidence) or guesses (failed to gather evidence). Four-year olds attributed knowledge to all agents and endorsed their conclusions widely. However, 5- and 6-year olds’ knowledge attributions were mitigated by UI, and 6-year olds neither attributed knowledge to a guesser nor endorsed his conclusions. Notably, parents’ tendency to make evaluativist epistemological judgments—which place value in evidence as a basis for belief—predicted children’s reluctance to learn from and credit knowledge to poor reasoners. Parents’ evaluativist judgments also predicted children’s selective learning about object functions.     

Interactions between Instructional Methods and Styles of Concept Learning

Abstract

Statistical interactions between Conceptual Levels Test (CLT) scores and deductive vs. inductive teaching methods were examined among 275 sixth grade pupils. The purposes of the study were to determine whether the two methods are most effective among different students, and whether CLT scores predict which students should receive each kind of instruction. Subjects were randomly assigned to deductive and inductive groups for instruction in critical thinking. Repeated measures of achievements and attitudes provided four sets of criterion scores. The regression of criterion scores on CLT scores yielded one significant disordinal interaction and four confidence intervals within which deductive teaching was significantly more effective than inductive instruction. Regions in which inductive teaching was significantly superior were not observed. While deductive instruction was advantageous for some learners, neither high, medium nor low CLT scorers benefited consistently from inductive teaching.     

Components of young children's trait understanding: behavior-to-trait inferences and trait-to-behavior predictions

Trait attribution is central to people's na?ve theories of people and their actions. Previous developmental research indicates that young children are poor at predicting behaviors from past trait-relevant behaviors. We propose that the cognitive process of behavior-to-behavior predictions consists of two component processes: (1) behavior-to-trait inferences and (2) trait-to-behavior predictions. Experiment 1 demonstrates that 4-, 5-, 7-, and 9-year-olds can infer trait labels from behaviors. Experiment 2 demonstrates that 4-, 5-, and 7-year-olds can predict behaviors from trait labels but not from past behaviors. Experiment 3 demonstrates that 4- and 5-year-olds understand traits as predictive and stable over time. Taken together, these three studies show that young children, in possessing component trait-reasoning processes, have a nascent understanding of traits.     

Thirteen-month-olds rely on shared labels and shape similarity for inductive inferences

This study examined the influence of shape similarity and labels on 13-month-olds' inductive inferences. In 3 experiments, 123 infants were presented with novel target objects with or without a nonvisible property, followed by test objects that varied in shape similarity. When objects were not labeled, infants generalized the nonvisible property to high-similarity objects (Experiment 1). When objects were labeled with the same noun, infants generalized the nonvisible property to high- and low-similarity objects (Experiment 2). Finally, when objects were labeled with different nouns, infants generalized the nonvisible property to high-similarity objects (Experiment 3). Thus, infants who are beginning to acquire productive language rely on shared shape similarity and shared names to guide their inductive inferences.     

Acquiring a Naive Theory of Kinship through Inference

The present study focused on how children acquire a naive theory of kinship. Young children appear to have theoretical beliefs about the biological meaning of kinship relations. It was argued here that these beliefs reflect inductive inferences from simple facts about prenatal growth (e.g, where babies grow). An informal model of the inferences linking facts to theory was proposed and tested. In Experiment 1, 4–7-year-olds who knew the basic facts of prenatal growth were most likely to also express the naive theory of kinship. Virtually none of the children who expressed the theory were unaware of the basic facts. In Experiment 2, teaching the facts to a sample of preschoolers led to some increase in their acceptance of the kinship theory. Overall, the results implicate a type of theory building that involves inferences from preexisting knowledge rather than structural change, use of analogy, or acquisition of new knowledge.     

西方教育科学研究方法的演进:历史的视角

作为西方教育科学发展的主题之一,西方教育科学研究方法经历了逻辑性演绎、实证性归纳、演绎与归纳相结合以及多样化发展的不同时期。西方教育科学研究方法的发展历史在显示自身演进规律的同时,还从一个侧面展示了西方教育科学发展的过程。     

Cognitive training for children: Effects on inductive reasoning,deductive reasoning,and mathematics achievement in an Australian school setting

Inductive reasoning is a core cognitive process of fluid intelligence, predicting a variety of educational outcomes. The Cognitive Training for Children (CTC) program is an educational intervention designed to develop children's inductive reasoning skills, with previous investigations finding substantial effects of the program on both inductive reasoning ability and classroom learning. The present study assessed both individual and small‐group CTC training against a no‐treatment control condition to investigate the effects on inductive and deductive reasoning and mathematics achievement in a primary school‐aged Australian cohort. Students who received individual training outperformed those in the control condition on measures of inductive and deductive reasoning, and those in the small‐group condition also outperformed the control condition on a measure of inductive reasoning 3 months following training. However, hypotheses regarding transfer effects to mathematics achievement were not supported. Directions for future research, focusing on extended longitudinal studies and motivational variables, are discussed.     

Cognitive activities in complex science text and diagrams

Ainsworth’s (2006) DeFT framework posits that different representations may lead learners to use different strategies. We wanted to investigate whether students use different strategies, and more broadly, different cognitive activities in diagrams vs. in running text. In order to do so, we collected think-aloud protocol and other measures from 91 beginning biology majors reading an 8-page passage from their own textbook which included seven complex diagrams. We coded the protocols for a wide range of cognitive activities, including strategy use, inference, background knowledge, vocabulary, and word reading. Comparisons of verbalizations while reading running text vs. reading diagrams showed that high-level cognitive activities—inferences and high-level strategy use—were used a higher proportion of the time when comprehending diagrams compared to when reading text. However, in running text vs. diagrams participants used a wider range of different individual cognitive activities (e.g., more different types of inferences). Our results suggest that instructors might consider teaching students how to draw inferences in both text and diagrams. They also show an interesting paradox that warrants further research—students often skipped over or superficially skimmed diagrams, but when they did read the diagrams they engaged in more high-level cognitive activity.     

Two-year-olds use the generic/nongeneric distinction to guide their inferences about novel kinds

These studies investigated two hundred and forty-four 24- and 30-month-olds' sensitivity to generic versus nongeneric language when acquiring knowledge about novel kinds. Toddlers were administered an inductive inference task, during which they heard a generic noun phrase (e.g., "Blicks drink milk") or a nongeneric noun phrase (e.g., "This blick drinks milk") paired with an action (e.g., drinking) modeled on an object. They were then provided with the model and a nonmodel exemplar and asked to imitate the action. After hearing nongeneric phrases, 30-month-olds, but not 24-month-olds, imitated more often with the model than with the nonmodel exemplar. In contrast, after hearing generic phrases, 30-month-olds imitated equally often with both exemplars. These results suggest that 30-month-olds use the generic/nongeneric distinction to guide their inferences about novel kinds.     

Parents’ reading-related knowledge and children’s reading acquisition

Teacher reading-related knowledge (phonological awareness and phonics knowledge) predicts student reading, however little is known about the reading-related knowledge of parents. Participants comprised 70 dyads (children from kindergarten and grade 1 and their parents). Parents were administered a questionnaire tapping into reading-related knowledge, print exposure, storybook reading, and general cultural knowledge. Children were tested on measures of letter-word knowledge, sound awareness, receptive vocabulary, oral expression, and mathematical skill. Parent reading-related knowledge showed significant positive links with child letter-word knowledge and sound awareness, but showed no correlations with child measures of mathematical skill or vocabulary. Furthermore, parent reading-related knowledge was not associated with parents' own print exposure or cultural knowledge, indicating that knowledge about English word structure may be separate from other cognitive skills. Implications are discussed in terms of improving parent reading-related knowledge to promote child literacy.     

Active engagement,emotional impact and changes in practice arising from a residential field trip

This study focused on the learning experiences of 50 undergraduate students undertaking a residential field trip (RFT) to Sweden as part of their Early Childhood Studies degree. Three dimensions were examined: the physical and emotional value afforded to the students from the active learning context; how this was interpreted and reflected in their knowledge, understanding and personal practice once they had left university; and the influence of factors such as age, and professional status on students' practice. The methodology was interpretive, and both deductive and inductive approaches were employed to analyse qualitative, narrative data sets derived from semi-structured questionnaires, interviews and written essays. The findings suggested that the physiological effects of hands on engagement influenced both the students' perceptions of the learning experience and their confidence to become agents of change. Subsequent changes directly attributed to the RFT experience, involved the re-evaluation of both the stereotypical pedagogic role and the way in which they related to children; students re-conceptualised their practices to reflect a more child-centred approach and increased their use of outdoor play and sustainable resources. The RFT was a catalyst that promoted empowerment, and informed both personal and professional transformations.     

Preschoolers modulate contrastive inferences during online language comprehension

This study examined 4- and 5-year-olds' incremental interpretation of size adjectives, focusing on whether contrastive inferences are modulated by speaker behavior. Children (N = 120, 59 females, mostly White, tested between July, 2018 and August, 2019) encountered either a conventional or unconventional speaker who labeled objects in a correspondingly typical or atypical way. Critical utterances contained size adjectives (e.g., “Look at the big duck”). With conventional speakers, gaze measures indicated that children rapidly used the adjective to differentiate members of a contrasting pair, indicating that even 4-year-olds derive contrastive inferences. With unconventional speakers, contrastive inferences were delayed in processing. The findings demonstrate that preschoolers adjust their use of pragmatic cues when presented with evidence disconfirming their default assumptions about a speaker.     

Curricular and Instructional Factors which Facilitate Mathematical Learning

The problem was to investigate basic curriculum factors apart from instructional factors and evaluate heir relative effects upon the learning of mathematics at various cognitive levels, in different mathematical reas and on different mathematical topics by sixth graders. Multivariate analysis of variance and covariance vere used to analyze the data. The findings suggest (a) curriculum characteristics of organization do differentially affect the mathematical learning of sixth graders at the knowledge and evaluation levels of cognition and vithin the area of number theory, and (b) the inductive mode of presentation better facilitates the learning of perations while a deductive mode better facilitates the learning of properties.     

Longitudinal Predictors of Vocabulary Knowledge in Turkish Children: The Role of Maternal Warmth,Inductive Reasoning,and Children’s Inhibitory Control

Research Findings: The present study investigated the social and cognitive precursors of vocabulary knowledge in 239 Turkish preschoolers both concurrently (Time 1 [T1] Mage = 53.29 months, SD = 10.19) and subsequently 1 year later (Time 2 [T2] Mage = 65.40 months, SD = 10.55). We examined the role of parenting behaviors by focusing on emotional and stimulation aspects of parenting (maternal warmth and inductive reasoning) and children’s inhibitory control skills in vocabulary comprehension. The results showed that T1 maternal warmth was linked with neither concurrent nor subsequent vocabulary knowledge, whereas T1 maternal inductive reasoning predicted vocabulary knowledge 1 year later. On the other hand, T1 inhibitory control predicted vocabulary knowledge at both time points, even when the child’s age and SES were controlled. T1 vocabulary knowledge mediated the links from T1 inhibitory control and SES to T2 vocabulary knowledge. The findings highlighted that parenting, children’s regulation skills, and broader contextual variables (SES) are all involved in the development of children’s vocabulary knowledge. Practice or Policy: The findings provided a nuanced understanding of the relation between aspects of parenting and vocabulary knowledge by showing that not maternal warmth but inductive reasoning is crucial for enhancing word comprehension of preschoolers.     

归纳论证与演绎论证结合群的论证强度

类=规律。归纳论证与演绎论证结合群有两种类型:独立结合型,演绎论证强度决定了结合群的论证强度,其论证强度为演绎;连锁结合型,归纳论证强度决定了结合群的论证强度,其论证强度为归纳。简单枚举归纳反驳,从推理形式上看,它是简单枚举归纳推理与演绎推理的结合,但因其是连锁结合型,从论证强度看仍是归纳,故称它为归纳反驳,仍是名实相符。     

Children's inductive inferences within superordinate categories: the role of language and category structure

One important function of categories is to allow inferences that extend beyond surface appearances. In 2 studies, preschool and second-grade children were tested on their understanding that members of a category have similar internal parts. In 1 study, children were taught new information about the internal structure of various objects (e.g., an apple), then were probed to determine how far they generalized the new information (e.g., to another apple, to other fruit, to an unrelated object). In a second study, children participated in an open-ended interview that probed whether various types of objects had "the same kinds of stuff inside." Children at both ages and in both studies drew many inferences concerning the internal children to report that members of a basic-level category had the same internal parts. Older children drew more inferences at the superordinate level than did younger children. Older children were also more sensitive to differences in category domain (natural kind vs. artifact) at both basic and superordinate levels. Altogether, these results suggest that preschool children assume that basic-level categories share internal parts. They need to refine this belief at the basic level and to extend it to superordinate-level categories.     

Analogy in Scientific Argumentation

Analogical reasoning has long been an important tool in the production of scientific knowledge, yet many scientists remain hesitant to fully endorse (or even admit) its use. As the teachers of scientific and technical writers, we have an opportunity and responsibility to teach them to use analogy without their writing becoming “overly inductive,” as Aristotle warned. To that end, I here offer an analysis of an example of the effective use of analogy in Rodney Brooks's “Intelligence Without Representation.” In this article, Brooks provides a model for incorporating these tools into an argument by building four of them into an enthymeme that clearly organizes his argument. This combination of inductive and deductive reasoning helped the article become a very influential piece of scholarship in artificial intelligence research, and it can help our students learn to use analogy in their own writing.

Every one who effects persuasion through proof does in fact use either enthymemes or examples: there is no other way. (Aristotle, 1984b, p. 26)     

Metacognitive knowledge in primary grades: A longitudinal study

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to explore the development of metacognitive knowledge in primary grade children (6–9 years, n=196) from pre-school to third grade. Knowledge about cognitive processes was obtained from children’s oral explanations. The results indicated that the average metacognitive knowledge of the primary grade children developed significantly during the first three school years. The children knew much about simple factors and strategies influencing cognitive activities, but after the first three school years, more complex strategies still remained unfamiliar to them. Moreover, the content analyses of children’s oral explanations revealed interesting differences in children’s metacognitive thinking. There appeared to be two groups of children with either non-developing or developing explanations. In addition, the children understood mental processing better in memory and learning activities, whereas comprehension processes were largely unknown to them.     

Cognitive performance and academic achievement of Japanese, Chinese, and American children

Chinese, Japanese, and American children at grades 1 and 5 were given a battery of 10 cognitive tasks and tests of achievement in reading and mathematics. Samples consisted of 240 children in each grade in each culture. 2 major purposes of the study were to determine possible differences in cognitive abilities of Japanese, Chinese, and American children and to investigate the possible differential relation of scores on cognitive tasks to reading by children of the 3 cultures. Similarity was found among children of the 3 cultures in level, variability, and structure of cognitive abilities. Chinese children surpassed Japanese and American children in reading scores; both Chinese and Japanese children obtained higher scores in mathematics than the American children. Prediction of achievement scores from the cognitive tasks showed few differential effects among children of the 3 cultures. The results suggest that the high achievement of Chinese and Japanese children cannot be attributed to higher intellectual abilities, but must be related to their experiences at home and at school.