File Attachment

2001414fcoverv05bjpg

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

The Foundations and Futures of Education series focuses on key emerging issues in education as well as continuing debates within the fi eld The series is interdisciplinary and includes historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative perspectives on three major themes the purposes and nature of education increasing interdisciplinarity within the subject and the theoryndashpractice divide

Learners Learning and Educational Activity offers a new and creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and socio-cultural theory The central idea in the book is that learning in schools and other educational settings is best understood by paying attention to both individual learners and the educational contexts in which learning takes place Taking a broad educational perspective the author explores a variety of settings ndash including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges ndash to see how they promote learning and encourage different learning outcomes

The book provides an accessible introduction to new ideas and recent developments in psychology and socio-cultural perspectives It reviews advances in selected topics that are especially relevant for teachers and other educators including

learnersrsquo conceptions of the nature of learningthe development of advanced levels of learning and thinkingthe role of motivation and self-regulation in learninghow learning and thinking relate to social and cultural contextsthe ways in which these contexts infl uence interactions between teachers and learners

By illustrating connections between individual and social aspects of learning in educational settings in and out of school the book will encourage teachers and other educators to think about learners and learning in new ways

Judith Ireson is Professor of Psychology in Education at the Institute of Education University of London UK

bullbullbullbullbull

Foundations and Futures of EducationSeries EditorsPeter Aggleton University of London UKDavid Halpin University of London UKSally Power Cardiff University UK

Education and the FamilyPassing success across the generationsLeon Feinstein Kathryn Duckworth and Ricardo Sabates

Education Philosophy and the Ethical EnvironmentGraham Haydon

Learners Learning and Educational ActivityJudith Ireson

Schooling Society and CurriculumAlex Moore

Gender Schooling and Global Social JusticeElaine Unterhalter

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

Judith Ireson

First published 2008by Routledge2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge270 Madison Ave New York NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor amp Francis Group an informa business

copy 2008 Judith Ireson

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented including photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers

British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataIreson Judith Learners learning and educational activity Judith Ireson p cm 1 Learning 2 Teaching I Title LB1060174 2008 37015acute23 ndashdc22 2007038790

ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41407ndash5 (hbk)ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN10 0ndash203ndash92909ndash8 (ebk)

ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41407ndash4 (hbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash203ndash92909ndash4 (ebk)

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2008

ldquoTo purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor amp Francis or Routledgersquoscollection of thousands of eBooks please go to wwweBookstoretandfcoukrdquo

ISBN 0-203-92909-8 Master e-book ISBN

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

The Foundations and Futures of Education series focuses on key emerging issues in education as well as continuing debates within the fi eld The series is interdisciplinary and includes historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative perspectives on three major themes the purposes and nature of education increasing interdisciplinarity within the subject and the theoryndashpractice divide

Learners Learning and Educational Activity offers a new and creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and socio-cultural theory The central idea in the book is that learning in schools and other educational settings is best understood by paying attention to both individual learners and the educational contexts in which learning takes place Taking a broad educational perspective the author explores a variety of settings ndash including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges ndash to see how they promote learning and encourage different learning outcomes

The book provides an accessible introduction to new ideas and recent developments in psychology and socio-cultural perspectives It reviews advances in selected topics that are especially relevant for teachers and other educators including

learnersrsquo conceptions of the nature of learningthe development of advanced levels of learning and thinkingthe role of motivation and self-regulation in learninghow learning and thinking relate to social and cultural contextsthe ways in which these contexts infl uence interactions between teachers and learners

By illustrating connections between individual and social aspects of learning in educational settings in and out of school the book will encourage teachers and other educators to think about learners and learning in new ways

Judith Ireson is Professor of Psychology in Education at the Institute of Education University of London UK

bullbullbullbullbull

Foundations and Futures of EducationSeries EditorsPeter Aggleton University of London UKDavid Halpin University of London UKSally Power Cardiff University UK

Education and the FamilyPassing success across the generationsLeon Feinstein Kathryn Duckworth and Ricardo Sabates

Education Philosophy and the Ethical EnvironmentGraham Haydon

Learners Learning and Educational ActivityJudith Ireson

Schooling Society and CurriculumAlex Moore

Gender Schooling and Global Social JusticeElaine Unterhalter

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

Judith Ireson

First published 2008by Routledge2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge270 Madison Ave New York NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor amp Francis Group an informa business

copy 2008 Judith Ireson

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented including photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers

British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataIreson Judith Learners learning and educational activity Judith Ireson p cm 1 Learning 2 Teaching I Title LB1060174 2008 37015acute23 ndashdc22 2007038790

ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41407ndash5 (hbk)ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN10 0ndash203ndash92909ndash8 (ebk)

ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41407ndash4 (hbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash203ndash92909ndash4 (ebk)

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2008

ldquoTo purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor amp Francis or Routledgersquoscollection of thousands of eBooks please go to wwweBookstoretandfcoukrdquo

ISBN 0-203-92909-8 Master e-book ISBN

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Foundations and Futures of EducationSeries EditorsPeter Aggleton University of London UKDavid Halpin University of London UKSally Power Cardiff University UK

Education and the FamilyPassing success across the generationsLeon Feinstein Kathryn Duckworth and Ricardo Sabates

Education Philosophy and the Ethical EnvironmentGraham Haydon

Learners Learning and Educational ActivityJudith Ireson

Schooling Society and CurriculumAlex Moore

Gender Schooling and Global Social JusticeElaine Unterhalter

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

Judith Ireson

First published 2008by Routledge2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge270 Madison Ave New York NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor amp Francis Group an informa business

copy 2008 Judith Ireson

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented including photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers

British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataIreson Judith Learners learning and educational activity Judith Ireson p cm 1 Learning 2 Teaching I Title LB1060174 2008 37015acute23 ndashdc22 2007038790

ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41407ndash5 (hbk)ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN10 0ndash203ndash92909ndash8 (ebk)

ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41407ndash4 (hbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash203ndash92909ndash4 (ebk)

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2008

ldquoTo purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor amp Francis or Routledgersquoscollection of thousands of eBooks please go to wwweBookstoretandfcoukrdquo

ISBN 0-203-92909-8 Master e-book ISBN

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Learners Learning and Educational Activity

Judith Ireson

First published 2008by Routledge2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge270 Madison Ave New York NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor amp Francis Group an informa business

copy 2008 Judith Ireson

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented including photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers

British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataIreson Judith Learners learning and educational activity Judith Ireson p cm 1 Learning 2 Teaching I Title LB1060174 2008 37015acute23 ndashdc22 2007038790

ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41407ndash5 (hbk)ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN10 0ndash203ndash92909ndash8 (ebk)

ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41407ndash4 (hbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash203ndash92909ndash4 (ebk)

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2008

ldquoTo purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor amp Francis or Routledgersquoscollection of thousands of eBooks please go to wwweBookstoretandfcoukrdquo

ISBN 0-203-92909-8 Master e-book ISBN

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

First published 2008by Routledge2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby Routledge270 Madison Ave New York NY 10016

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor amp Francis Group an informa business

copy 2008 Judith Ireson

All rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented including photocopying and recording or in any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers

British Library Cataloguing in Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataIreson Judith Learners learning and educational activity Judith Ireson p cm 1 Learning 2 Teaching I Title LB1060174 2008 37015acute23 ndashdc22 2007038790

ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41407ndash5 (hbk)ISBN10 0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN10 0ndash203ndash92909ndash8 (ebk)

ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41407ndash4 (hbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash415ndash41406ndash7 (pbk)ISBN13 978ndash0ndash203ndash92909ndash4 (ebk)

This edition published in the Taylor amp Francis e-Library 2008

ldquoTo purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor amp Francis or Routledgersquoscollection of thousands of eBooks please go to wwweBookstoretandfcoukrdquo

ISBN 0-203-92909-8 Master e-book ISBN

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

To my family

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

List of fi gures and tables viiiSeries editorsrsquo preface ixAcknowledgements xi

Introduction 1

1 Perspectives on learning 5

2 Acquiring skills and expertise 30

3 Taking control of learning 51

4 Cultural perspectives on learning and thinking 70

5 Interaction and learning 94

6 Exploring connections between individual and culture at home and at school 116

7 Connecting spheres of learning 137

References 147Index 163

Contents

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Figures 21 Using an analogy to solve a problem 39 41 Ecosystemic model 72 42 Infl uences on secondary school learning 76 61 Average GCSE grades for students in high middle and

low sets by Key Stage 3 levels 135

Tables 11 Central metaphors of major theories of learning 22 21 Novice advanced beginner and expert teachersrsquo interpretations

of video footage of classroom activity 36 31 Self-regulatory processes reported by expert athletes

musicians and students 54 32 Conceptual framework for studying self-regulation 64

Figures and tables

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Series editorsrsquo preface

One of the most remarkable transformations over the last 200 years has been the universal development of mass education With each successive decade provision has expanded to encompass more learners at more stages in their lives The ambitions for education systems have also expanded to encompass objectives as diverse as personal fulfi lment and wellbeing cultural transmission active citizenship social cohesion and increasingly international economic competitiveness

The broad range of ambitions and the sheer pace of change have created a climate in which it is sometimes diffi cult to stand back and make sense of what education is for and where it should be going The Foundations and Futures of Education series of books provides an opportunity to engage with these fundamental issues in new and exciting ways The series adopts a broad and interdisciplinary stance including historical philosophical sociological psychological and comparative approaches as well as those from within the fi elds of media and cultural studies The series also refl ects wider conceptions of education embedded in concepts such as lsquothe knowledge economyrsquo lsquothe learning societyrsquo and lsquolifelong learningrsquo

In each volume the academic rigour of the arguments is balanced with accessible writing which engages the interest of those working in and for education as well as a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate students Although it will be clear that there are few lsquoeasy answersrsquo to many of the questions currently being asked we hope you fi nd the debates and dialogues exciting and thought-provoking

This book examines one of the most fundamental issues in education ndash learning Once understood as a highly individual process learning is now recognised to be a strongly social event infl uenced not only by mental processes but also by the context in which it occurs Much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system in homes and families for example as well as in classrooms schools and colleges Insights from across these different contexts shed light on what learning is and how opportunities for it can be maximized

In this lively and accessible book Judy Ireson maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives as well as the

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

x Series editorsrsquo preface

perspectives of learners themselves She examines the acquisition of skills and expertise as well as the development of self-regulated learning In recent years teachers and educators have taken more seriously the importance of preferred learning environments in infl uencing learning outcomes the use of different cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding and the importance of monitoring and refl ection Up-to-date research on all of these issues is presented and discussed

Finally Learners Learning and Educational Activity examines the social and cultural factors shaping the settings for interaction between adults and children ndash in school at home and in the community It highlights how the beliefs and values of parents and teachers cultural expectations and customary practices and pedagogical culture affect the experiences of learning and the outcomes of learning itself Understanding the links between the individual interpersonal and cultural dimensions of learning is central to individual and education system success

Peter AggletonDavid Halpin

Institute of Education University of London

Sally PowerCardiff University

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Acknowledgements

Many people have contributed to this book though I take responsibility for the fi nal product and of course for any errors or omissions Several chapters are developed from my teaching with students taking masters courses in psychology of education and their thoughtful comments over the years have contributed to these pages I refer to several studies undertaken by masters and doctoral students and to collaborative research undertaken with colleagues all of which has informed my thinking Findings from several funded research projects also feature here and this research would not have been undertaken without support from research councils charitable organizations and government Virtually all the research referred to in the book involves participants and collaborators and the discoveries made would not have been possible without the help of children and young people teachers parents and others Colleagues family and friends have given support in various ways and Kate Sym assisted with preparation of the fi nal manuscript Series editor Peter Aggletonrsquos skilful editing helped to polish the fi nal version and his patience and that of the other series editors and publishers is much appreciated

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Introduction

This book is about learning and how individual learning is shaped by the various contexts in which it takes place both inside educational institutions and in informal settings such as the home It takes a creative approach to the subject of learning by bringing together ideas and research from psychology and sociocultural theory In so doing it argues that these two fi elds of study are complementary in certain respects and when used together provide a more complete picture of learning than has so far been achieved by either one independently Psychology offers strong models of the mental processes involved in learning but tends to be less concerned about aspects of the social world that affect learnersrsquo opportunities to learn Sociocultural theories on the other hand have much to say about the cultural contexts in which learning takes place but tend to be less concerned with mental processes involved in different kinds of learning

The seeds of the book and its focus on relations between individual learning and the educational contexts in which it takes place were sown many years ago when I was researching psychological studies of learning and thinking These studies were designed to compare the performance of people in different cultural groups on a variety of mental tasks Psychologists tended to highlight differences between groups in the mental operations tested such as categorization or logical reasoning A small number of researchers drew on insights from anthropology to shed light on the cultural practices that might permeate and go some way to explain differences in the performance of participants in these studies These two perspectives seemed to me to complement each other in productive ways even though they were based on very different theoretical foundations

More recently my attention has turned to education which arguably provides some of the most important contexts for learning Here learning is frequently seen as an individual process yet there is ample evidence that schools and classrooms infl uence teachers and learners and the learning outcomes they achieve Educational researchers have made considerable progress is identifying and measuring the effects of individual school and classroom variables on studentsrsquo achievement For understandable reasons more progress has been made with variables that are relatively easy to measure

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

2 Introduction

such as student time on task (or academic learning time) Yet when interpreting the fi ndings of these studies it is not always easy to see why differences in such fundamental aspects of classroom life come into existence

It is now widely acknowledged that much learning takes place in contexts outside the education system From a broad educational perspective therefore there is an important agenda to understand a variety of settings including homes and families as well as classrooms schools and colleges that promote learning and how they encourage different learning outcomes Insights gained from studies of learning in one of these settings can be used to think productively about learning in other settings

Socio-cultural approaches offer conceptual tools for thinking about learners and their contexts in and out of school and have added to our stock of knowledge concerning pedagogic interactions between teachers and learners

A tendency for there to be limited interaction between the realms of cognitive and socio-cultural psychology which has been noted by several scholars makes it diffi cult to construct a coherent account of learning that encompasses both individual cognition and the social and cultural settings in which children and young people grow and learn The task is made more challenging due to the complexity of each setting the content of learning and differences among learners themselves This book aims to contribute to this agenda by bringing elements of these different perspectives together and identifying key ideas and processes that connect individual learning with the settings in which it takes place It offers a fresh approach to educational activity and how activities are constituted as sites for learning

Chapter 1 maps out a range of views on learning including psychological and socio-cultural perspectives and the perspectives of learners themselves It starts with an overview of psychological theories of learning each of which is based on a set of assumptions about the nature of learning and a particular view of learners Learners are characterized variously as absorbers of information observers and imitators thinkers and problem solvers processors of information strategists and appropriators of information Students in school and university provide a similarly broad range of interpretations of learning although their categories do not map neatly on to those identifi ed in psychological theories Evidence suggests that very young children have a restricted set of conceptions of learning whereas young people and adults exhibit a wider range Similarly teachers have a variety of conceptions of teaching and these relate to the means they use to promote learning These different views of learning and teaching are important as they have the potential to infl uence young peoplersquos experiences of learning

Chapter 2 is concerned with the acquisition of skills and expertise In the past psychological perspectives on learning were relegated to the performance of basic skills and implicit forms of learning through association Contemporary approaches now encompass cognitive skills and professional expertise and suggest that similar principles apply to many different domains of learning

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

Introduction 3

Complex skills build on more basic forms and expertise is achieved through extensive practice that is carefully organized to achieve specifi c goals

The organization and regulation of learning that is needed for extensive practice is taken up in Chapter 3 The notion of self-regulated learning encompasses a wide range of thoughts feelings and actions employed by learners before during and after completing tasks and activities These include awareness of preferred learning environments use of cognitive strategies for remembering and understanding monitoring and refl ection Connections between self-regulation motivation and learnersrsquo beliefs suggest that self-regulation relates to affective components and to learnersrsquo beliefs about the nature of learning and ability

Chapter 4 moves on to more cultural ground and focuses on several theoretical frameworks that link between individuals and cultural settings including ecosystemic post-Vygotskian and participation perspectives Bronfenbrennerrsquos ecological model and its integration with the idea of a developmental niche highlight the signifi cance of parental beliefs and ideas about childrenrsquos learning including beliefs about developmental milestones the nature of activities children are encouraged to engage in and the people with whom they are allowed to interact Customary practices also set bounds on childrenrsquos activities in and out of school Thus beliefs and customary practices have the potential to affect the learning opportunities provided for children and young people and the knowledge and skills they are encouraged to develop

Vygotsky (1978) and his followers proposed that interactions between learners and more knowledgeable people were crucial for the development of more advanced types of human learning This proposal raises a host of questions about the nature of such interactions and how they assist learning It inspired a generation of observational studies of interactions between adults and children performing a variety of different tasks which produced ideas and metaphors such as scaffolding and contingency Chapter 5 reviews a selection of these studies undertaken in a variety of cultural settings and identifi es a number of key components of individual pedagogy that affect learning

Many of the studies referred to in Chapter 5 are experiments in which adults and children complete tasks designed by a researcher Chapter 6 then turns to the social and cultural factors that shape the settings for interaction between adults and children in schools homes and the community It takes forward some key ideas identifi ed in previous chapters such as beliefs and values of parents and teachers customary practices and pedagogical culture and demonstrates how they may be relevant in school contexts Linkages are explored between these factors and learnersrsquo experiences of learning demonstrating ways in which cultural beliefs and practices permeate and infl uence the nature of interactions between teachers and learners in school Some of these linkages are to be found in classroom dialogues between teachers and learners

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

4 Introduction

Chapter 7 provides a summary of the fi rst six chapters before moving on to take stock of progress made in understanding how educational activity is shaped by the settings in which it takes place It also focuses on the indeterminacy that is inherent in the interactions between learners and more knowledgeable others and highlights some sources including participantsrsquo goals their conceptions of learning and teaching responsibility for regulating task performance and learnersrsquo active participation It concludes that there are strong connections between cultural interpersonal and individual aspects of learning and that these are evident in schools and colleges and in settings outside school It is hoped that drawing attention to these connections may illuminate teachersrsquo understanding of learning and assist them in the task of providing productive learning environments for all learners

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and

1 Perspectives on learning

When we think about learning the images that come to mind are usually connected with going to school attending classes having a coach or working through a self-help book or computer program We often tend to think of learning in terms of acquiring skills and knowledge with help from an instructor For most people learning is both an individual and a social process Individual students see themselves as responsible for learning yet they recognize that other people have an infl uence on what they learn and the quality of the learning experience

It may come as a surprise therefore that much theory and research on learning is concerned with either individual processes or with the broader social dimensions and that until recently there has been relatively little work relating them Theories concerned with individual processes tend to describe and explain changes in behaviour memorizing thinking reasoning and problem solving and also a range of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies that make the process of learning more productive Theories concerned with social processes focus on the nature of a learnerrsquos participation in learning activities and their interactions with others in the settings in which those activities take place They consider the role of others in supporting an individualrsquos learning and the social contexts in which this assistance is offered

Theories of learning offer views of the learner that range from an absorber of information to a thinker and problem solver a strategist who regulates learning and a participant who appropriates information Traditionally texts on the psychology of learning tend to work from a single perspective Learning is considered either from a cognitive or mental processing perspective or a socio-cultural perspective This is understandable as the phenomenon of learning is complex and it makes sense to break off manageable chunks to examine in detail Yet it leaves us with a rather fragmented view of learning Now that considerable advances have been achieved from each of these approaches it is timely to bring them together to give a more complete picture

The fi rst part of this chapter gives an overview of psychological and socio-cultural theories of learning The second part documents studentsrsquo subjective reports of their experiences of learning in schools colleges and university and