The Differences Between Piaget and Vygotsky's Cognitive Development Theories Essay

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Michael Connolly
Dr. Dupree
PSY203
15 October 2012
Piaget vs. Vygotsky Methods of teaching have been greatly influenced by the theories and contributions of Piaget and Vygotsky about children’s cognitive development and abilities. Piaget believed there were four stages that every child goes through before they are able to fully receive, process, and return information. They are the sensorimotor stage, preoperational stage, concrete operations, and lastly formal operations. He believed that each stage had its limits and that until a child reached the next stage trying to explain something beyond their grasp was futile. For example Piaget would say that in the sensorimotor stage a child who put they’re hand on a hot plate would not touch it again only because of the action. They could not reverse their thinking and realize why it was hot, they could only recognize that the plate should not be touched. Vygotsky took a much more hands on approach to child development. He believed that children grew through sociocultural development, meaning it was their culture and social encounters that taught them how to behave and what was acceptable. The biggest difference between them is their approach to discovery learning. Piaget believed children should be left alone to discover the world and interpret it themselves while Vygotsky believed that a child should be guided in their discovery. He also believed in scaffolding: providing hints or clues for problem solving so the child would be better prepared should they encounter this problem again. It is the difference

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