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The Genetic EpistemologistFall 1995Vol. XXIII, No. 3 1995 |
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(Note: The program for this symposium is available in the Symposium area of the JPS site)
The 26th annual symposium of the Jean Piaget Society will return to its city of origin to celebrate the Centennial of Piaget's birth. The Symposium will be held on June 6-8th, 1996 at the Doubletree Hotel. Barbel Inhelder will be the keynote speaker.
The theme of the Symposium is "Conceptual Development: Piaget's Legacy." Three plenary panels will focus on issues of conceptual development fundamental to Piaget's genetic epistemology. The topics of the panels are:
- What is the nature of a cognitive model?
- What are the foundations of conceptual development and how do they constrain the directions for development?
- What are the sources of change?
The panel discussion will focus on delineating the Piagetian legacy and an interdisciplinary set of speakers will reflect on the ways their own work is consistent with or departs from the Piagetian tradition, and on the implications of their ideas for future theoretical, experimental, and applied work. Panels will be followed by an open informal discussion with the speakers.
Among the planned invited symposia topics are: Applications of Piagetian Theory (chaired by Irv Sigel); The nature of representation; and The History of Piagetian Thought (chaired by Terrance Brown & Jacques Montangero) as well as some collaborative ventures with the Association for Constructivist Teaching.
Queries about the meeting should be directed to:
- Peter Pufall
- Clark Science Center
- Smith College
- Northampton, MA 01063
- E-mail: PPufall@science.smith.edu
The program organizers are:
- Susan Gelman: gelman@umich.edu
- Pat Miller: pmiller@webb.psych.edu
- Katherine Nelson: kan@cunyvms1.gc.cuny.edu
- Ellin Scholnick: ES8@Umail.umd.edu
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(Note: The full program from this symposium is available in the previous issue of the GE)
The 25th Anniversary Symposium of the Jean Piaget Society was a big success. We had a high level of attendance (as high as in most off-SRCD years) and we received enthusiastic comments about the topic, speakers, and location. We thank Connie Milbrath at UC San Francisco and the graduate students at UC Berkeley for making the local arrangements work smoothly.
Evolutionary theory and development pervaded the talks and discussion. Aside from the intellectual content of the conference there was much to rave about the location. Ginger Island and Bucci's restaurants were big hits; and the view of San Francisco across the Bay from the Berkeley Marina was much appreciated.
The Plenary Speakers at the Symposium were: P. Damerow, "Prehistory;" S. Parker, "Self-knowlege;" M. McKinney, "Biological evolution;" E.S. Savage-Rumbaugh, "Language development;" S. Suomi, "Attachment;" and M. Tomasello, "Social cognition and culture." Invited symposia were organized on the following topics: F. de Waal, "Conflict resolution;" F. Dore, "Object permanence;" A. Russon, "Imitation;" E. Turiel, "Culture and evolution;" A. Whiten, "Theory of mind."
The theme for the 25th Symposium of the Jean Piaget Society is, "Piaget, Evolution, and Development." In planning this conference, we chose to focus on three aspects of evolution concerning which there has been ample research on comparative development: Language, cognition, and social knowledge.
The research tradition in these three areas has been extensive. Research on language development has examined the linguistic capacities of non-human primates in order to inform us about the innate and learned aspects of linguistic development. Specifically, theories of human language acquisition have proposed that the ability to process syntactical information is unique to humans and reflects a novelbiological adaptation. As we shall hear at this conference, recent studies have shown that non-human primates have the ability to comprehend novel requests, thus suggesting that comprehension abilities are not limited to humans.
Comparative studies on cognition have focused on categorization, logic, number, imitation, object permanence, and causal concepts in animals, in order to investigate what is unique to human comprehension. These studies, more than in any other domain, have investigated cognitive capacities in a wide range of animals, and are not restricted to non-human primates in the way that other domains are often limited. As we will see, there have been fascinating discoveries regarding cognitive developmental trajectories in a number of species.
Finally, research on social knowledge, which has been fairly recent, has concentrated on several avenues. First, researchers have studied psychological knowledge. Two approaches stand out, one is referred to as "theory of mind," and the other has focussed on self-knowledge. The theory of mind field is concerned with documenting whether animals understand that others have intentions and desires differnt from our own, and how animals use such social knowledge as a means to an end. The research on self-knowledge has examined self-awareness in non-human primates and other species.
Second, researchers have also investiated social strategies that animals use, such as methods of conflict resolution. In the past, predominant characterizations of conflict resolution by non-human primates were that animals used aggressive means to dominate and resolve disputes. More recently, research has shown how animals use reconciliation and negotiation to faciliate social interaction. This work comes closest to examining moral knowledge in non-human primates: how and why do animals use non-aggressive means to resolve disputes? Third, research has looked at cultural knowledge and knowledge about others. This includes cultural learning, including how cultural traditions are passed down from one generation to the next. A fourth approach to studying social knowledge has been studies that examine parent-child attachment patterns, providing insights regarding some of the most basic questions related to human nature and its development.
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Book Review by ESR
Deborah Meier, The Power of Their Ideas (Boston: Beacon Press, 1995)
Here is an inspiring and thought-provoking "summer read." In an engaging style, Deborah Meier tells the story of the Central Park East schools in East Harlem. Beginning in the 1970s, Meier, along with a band of dedicated teachers created first an elementary school and later a high school that are great examples of what public schools can be.
Full of intriguing vignettes that never try to disguise the rocky road to success, and laced with quotes from diaries and newsletters written over the last twenty years, "The Power of Their Ideas" gives readers a real feel for the process of establishing these schools, as well as for the ideas and goals of the teachers and the community.
I suspect most educators and psychologists will agree with Meier's vigorous critiques of many of the simple-minded ideas for "reform" of public education being touted today. She cuts through the cant and obfuscation and gets down to the real questions of who we are going to educate and how.
But Meier's own
Meier insists that education begins with the community, and with non-cognitive processes. Her Procedure is to carve out small "schools" (often purely housed within larger school buildings
I personally see in all this a vindication of the Dewey of "Democracy and Education." But we still have a long way to go to understand the details of making education a communal project, and many a difficult battle will have to be fought. Let us hope we can succeed as well, and with as good humor and respect for her opponents, as Deborah Meier.
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Note: Click here for more detailed information about these (and other) centenary conferences.
Geneva, Switzerland, September 14-18, 1996
A conference on "The Growing Mind: Multidisciplinary Approaches" will be one of the major events taking place in Geneva to celebrate Piaget's centenary. This conference will evaluate the various approaches pioneered by Piaget in the study of development and cognition, providing an opportunity to reflect upon the fruitfulness of Piaget's contribution.
The conference will open with an introduction by Barbel Inhelder.
A lecture by Jerome Bruner on Culture and Cognition will be sponsored jointly between this conference and one devoted to discussing Piaget and Vygotsky.
The conference will emphasize discussion, and each symposium will be followed by a one-hour round-table introduced by a discussant.
Finally, in conjunction with the Piaget & Vygotsky Conference, we will sponsor two Joint Symposia:
For more information:
Brighton, England, April 11-12, 1996
The aims of this Centenary Conference are twofold. First, to mark the original contributions made by Piaget and Vygotsky and their enduring influence; second, to contribute to the evaluation of perspectives in developmental psychology and education over the decade leading into the next century.
Procedure: Send 4 copies of both an Abstract and an Outline by 17 995 to Dr Leslie Smith (address below). The Abstract should be 250 words, including paper title, name(s), affiliation and address. The Outlines shouId be 1000 words, including paper title only. Decisions will be rendered by 31 January, 1996.
This conference is independent, but linked to the British Psychological Society Annual Conference, and has been planned with the support of the Developmental Psychology Section, the Education Section, and the Standing Conference Committee of The British Psychological Society.
Geneva, Switzerland, September 11-15, 1996
Sponsored by the Society for Socio-Cultural Research, this conference celebrates the Centenary of the birth of these two most influential developmentalists of the Twentieth Century.
For more information:
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Hello! I look forward to making the GE as lively and fun as all the people in JPS. That means you can help by sending interesting material to share with us. I would like to start a Queries column, which I hope will stimulate discussion. Any other suggestions for regular or irregular features would be welcome. Keep those cards and letters coming! Table of Contents for: This Issue | All Issues
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Send comments to: webmaster@piaget.org
Last Update: 15 April 1999
25th JPS Symposium a Success
Melanie Killen, Introductory Remarks
Lessons in Schooling
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clearly successfulphilosophy itself offers a chaIlenge, especially to developmental theorists who have been concerned the understanding the educational process. By and large, we developmentalists have focused exclusively on the individual student and the cognitive processes required for that student to succeed in becoming educated. But it is a fundamental tenet of Meier's approach that this is exactly the wrong place to begin.
the legacy of our society's penchant for warehouse school buildings). These smaller entities can be run with an emphasis on respect and democratic process. Meier is adamant that in modern American society, with its diversity and strong centrifugal forces pulling on children (and especially on high school kids), it is only by basing schooling on respect for the dignity of persons that one can even begin to educate a community. Almost nothing in current educational theory would predict that changes in size and attitude would have the fundamental impact on children's education that Meier demonstrates they do.
Three Conferences Celebrating the
Centennial of the births of Piaget and Vygotsky
Jean Piaget
(1896 - 1980)
Lev Vygotsky
(1896 - 1934)
The Growing Mind
Invited Lectures
Symposia
UK Piaget-Vygotsky Centenary Conference
Invited Papers
These are organized around five themes:
Organizers: M. Beveridge, M. Shayer, & K. Sylva
Organizers: G. Duveen, A-N. Perret-Clermont
Organizers: P. Bryant, L. Resnick& R. Campbell
Organizers: T. Bond, M. Chalmers, & B. McGonigle
Organizers: P. Harris. L. Smith & P. Tomlinson
Keynote Address
Prof. Deanna Kuhn
(Columbia University)
Submitted Papers
Submitted papers will contribute an integral element and occupy a central place in the Piaget-Vygotsky Conference. All submitted papers will be presented in poster format with specifically arranged discussion sections. Papers may be empirical or theoretical. Submitted papers may overlap the themes of the Invited Papers or deal with any issue compatible with the Centenary Conference aims. Contact any member of the Planning Group for further information.
For more information
2nd Conference for Socio-Cultural Research: Vygotsky & Piaget
Greetings from the New Editor
ESR.
Archives Jean Piaget Award to Terrance Brown
At the annual symposium of the Jean Piaget Society in Berkeley, Jacques Voneche, Director of Archives Jean Piaget in Geneva, presented the Premier Prix Archives Jean Piaget, the first prize ever awarded by the Archives, to Terrance Brown, out-going President of JPS. The citation read: "For the whole of his translations and his personal oeuvre fostering the diffusion of Piagetian thought throughout the world." Particularly appropriate to Terry's personality and passsions, the prize included a picture of Piaget at his mountain retreat opening a bottle of wine.
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