偶燈斯陋
random thoughts by 偶燈斯陋
看到有人提到皮亞傑“是美國著名的兒童心理學家”, 想忍 可很難忍住不莞爾一笑。老皮先生若九泉有知，恐怕也會對自己被人戴上一頂 “美國佬” 的帽子啼笑皆非。
皮亞傑是著名的瑞士兒童心理學家，在認知發展理論上獨開先河，提出過認知發展四階段理論。生前曾經出訪美國講學。因為名氣很大，聽眾趨之若鶩。在講座上老有人提問，問如何使孩子快速掌握知識，跳級越過那些個認知發展一二三階段直接奔第四級。提這種問題的人次之多，使老皮頗感驚訝。老美們這是幹嗎？爭先恐後急著趕場救火？要那麽快地完成成長過程幹什麽？於是老皮將此類問題稱為“美國問題”。[其實，也滿可以稱之為“老中問題”。哈哈。----補充一下，時至今日，老美們已經全麵接受老皮的慢進原則，“美國問題”得到解決，不再成為問題。反之，這種揠苗助長操之過急的“美國問題”應該名符其實就叫“老中問題”了。]
如果皮亞傑死而複生，轉世化身為一個子女壇上的愛心媽媽，那她一定不是“推媽”, 而是一個放羊的媽媽。給孩子充足的時間，讓他放慢腳步，允許他自己探索發現，甚至允許孩子犯錯誤；而不是由大人把新知識像灌米湯一樣朝孩子喉嚨裏咕嘟咕嘟灌將下去，幾分鍾搞定，讓他食而不化。總之，“慢慢來”在皮亞傑的成長理論裏是一個非常重要的概念。孩子在自己的步伐和速度裏自己琢磨自己領悟出來的習得很容易地使他可以舉一反三，在學習上反而學到更多，反而更加有效，甚至反而節約了時間。還有一點，就是通過讓孩子慢慢來，放手讓他鑽研琢磨，培養了孩子的自主能動性。要想學什麽，都是自己決定的，所以往往可以持之以恒，錯了壞了重新再來。而習慣被推被灌的孩子，也許開始會顯得先有一些技能，但沒有自主性，成了不倒翁，推一推才動一動。不推就不動。這樣，先前的優勢慢慢消失。所以，快與慢孰優孰劣，皮亞傑早就給出了答案。
並且，什麽“輸在起跑線上”的擔憂，在皮氏字典 中大概找不著位置。
Jean Piaget and The American Question
A Conversation with Jean Piaget and Barbel Inhelder
By Elizabeth Hall
Psychology Today, 1970, 3, pp 25-56
Page 30
Hall: Now that we've mentioned an American educator, may I ask what you have called "the American question"? Is it possible to speed up the learning of conservation concepts?
Page 31
Piaget: In turn may I ask the counter-question? Is it a good thing to accelerate the learning of these concepts? Acceleration is certainly possible but first we must find out whether it is desirable or harmful. Take the concept of object permanency - the realization that a ball, a rattle or a person continues to exist when it no longer can be seen. A kitten develops this concept at four months, a human baby at nine months; but the kitten stops right there while the baby goes on to learn more advanced concepts. Perhaps a certain slowness is useful in developing the capacity to assimilate new concepts.
We also know that the ease of learning varies with the developmental level of the child. In the same number of learning sessions children who have reached an advanced stage make marked progress over younger children. It apperars that there is an optimum speed of development. If you write a book too slowly it won't be a good book; if you write it too fast it won't be a good book either. No one has made studies to determine the optimum speed.
Hall: But wouldn't the optimum speed vary with the person? Some people naturally write faster than others - and write just as well.
Piaget: That's highly possible. We know the average speed of the children we have studied in our Swiss culture but there is nothing that says that the average speed is the optimum. But blindly to accelerate the learning of conservation concepts could be even worse than doing nothing.
Hall: I think we ask the American question because the ever-increasing length of education troubles us. Many of us would like to find some way to shorten those years that go into professional preparation.
Piaget: It is difficult to decide just how to shorten studies. If you spend one year studying something verbally that requires two years of active study, then you have actually lost a year. If we were willing to lose a bit more time and let the children be active, let them use trial and error on different things, then the time we seem to have lost we may have actually gained. Children may develop a general method that they can use on other subjects.
Another Topic: Check out Preschool
