Exploring cognitive development : the child as problem solver / Alison F. Garton.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 129-135) and indexes.

1. Introduction -- Problem solving -- Social explanations for cognitive change -- Change in the context of interactive/collaborative problem solving -- Domain specific knowledge -- Children's potential to change -- Theories of mind -- The way forward -- 2. Theoretical overview -- Piaget and Vygotsky : is there any common ground? -- Peer interaction : various perspectives -- Implications for Piagetian and Vygotskian theories -- Research on collaboration : beyond social interaction -- Sociocultural theory -- Dynamic systems -- Nature of the problem to be solved -- How else can problem solving be described and explained? -- 3. Strategy use and learning in problem solving -- Domains -- Domains as constraints on cognitive development -- Innateness and domain-specificity -- Domains and the social environment -- Strategy choice -- Learning new strategies -- 4. Social problem solving -- Peer interaction and problem solving : a theoretical conundrum -- Peer interaction in the classroom -- Peer interaction and adult-child interaction -- Theory of mind and problem solving -- Self-regulation in problem solving -- Help seeking in problem solving -- The role of talk in collaborative problem solving -- Conclusion -- 5. What the child brings to the task -- Readiness to benefit from interaction -- Cognitive flexibility -- Friendship and sociability -- Motivation to collaborate -- 6. Summary, review, and implications -- What and how revisited -- Difficulties yet to be surmounted -- Implications.

This text seeks to explore the many different contemporary approaches to the study of thinking and learning, focusing on problem-solving as a window into developing theories of cognitive development and thinking in children.

Print version record.