Anayensy Cárcamo Group 5 Pamela Ávila Rocío Flores

 Jerome Seymour Bruner was born on October 1, 1915 in New York.  Bruner is currently a senior researcher fellow at the New York University School of Law.  He received his B.A. in 1937 from Duke University and his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1941 under the guidance of Gordon Allport.

 Bruner was one of the founding fathers of constructivist theory.  Learning is an active process.  Facets of the process include: selection and transformation of information, making decision, generating hypotheses, and making meaning from information and experiences. CONTRUCTIVIST THEORY

Bruner's ideas are based on categorization: "To perceive is to categorize, to conceptualize is to categorize, to learn is to form categories, to make decisions is to categorize."CATEGORIZATION Categorization is the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated and under- stood.

Bruner believed that perception, conceptualization, learning, making decision, and making inferences all involved categorization. To form a category is necessary follow four rules to specify an object: 1. Criterial attributes - required characteristics for inclusion of an object in a category.

2. The second rule prescribes how the criteral attributes are combined. 3. The third rule assignees weight to various properties. 4. The fourth rule sets acceptance limits on attributes. Bruner also suggested that there are two primary modes of thought: the narrative mode and the paradigmatic mode:

In narrative thinking, the mind engages in sequential, action-oriented, detail- driven thought. In paradigmatic thinking, the mind transcends particularities to achieve systematic, categorical cognition.

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT Bruner was influenced by Piaget's ideas about cognitive development in children. During the 1940's his early work focused on the impact of needs, motivations, & expectations (“mental sets”) and their influence on perception.

He presented the point of view that children are active problem-solvers and capable of exploring “difficult subjects”.

 The first stage he termed "Enactive", when a person learns about the world through actions on physical objects and the outcomes of these actions.  From child's birth to 3 years old.  Children perceive the environment through actions that they initiate.  Showing and modeling have more learning value than telling.

 The second stage was called "Iconic" where learning can be obtained through using models and pictures.  From age 3 to about age 8.  Children can remember and use information through imagery.  Visual memory increases.  Decisions are still made on the basis o f perceptions.

The final stage was "Symbolic" in which the learner develops the capacity to think in abstract terms.  Children began to use symbols to represent people, things, etc.  They have the ability to think and talk about things in abstract terms.  They can better understand mathematical principles and use symbolic idioms.

SOCIAL LEARNING Bruner argued that aspects of cognitive performance are facilitated by language. He also mentioned that the setting is very important in the adcquisition of language.

The earliest social setting is the mother- child dyad, where children work out the meanings of utterances to which they are repeatedly exposed. Bruner identified several important social devices including joint attention, mutual gaze, and turn- taking.

THE PROCESS OF EDUCATION In 1960 Bruner published The Process of Education. This was a landmark book which led to much experimentation and a broad range of educational programs. CULTURAL LEARNING Bruner adopted the point of view that culture shapes the mind and provides the raw material with which we constrict our world and our self-conception.

Four Key themes emerged in Bruner's early work: Bruner emphasized the role of structure in learning and how it may be made central in teaching. Structure refers to relationships among factual elements and techniques. Readiness for learning. Bruner believed that any subject could be taught at any stage of development in a way that fit the child's cognitive abilities.

Spiral curriculum. Refers to the idea of revisiting basic ideas over and over, building upon them and elaborating to the level of full understanding and mastery. Intuitive and analytical thinking. Bruner believed that intuitive and analytical thinking should both be encouraged and rewarded.

Effective Instruction Theory 1. Predisposition to learn/Personalized: Instruction should relate to learners' predisposition, and facilitate interest toward learning. 2. Content Structure: Content should be structured so it can be most easily grasped by the learner.

3. Sequencing: Sequencing is an important aspect for presentation of material (visual, words, symbols). 4. Reinforcement: Rewards and punishment should be selected and paced appropriately.

CONCLUSIONS  Constructivism is widely considered an important model of effective teaching practice, and Bruner’s ideas underlie many contemporary approaches and practices, such as thinking skills and assessment for learning.

 The teacher should utilize the internal imagery development of the child for his educational purposes. This mental imagery of the child would enable him in the conversation of his experiences and forge ahead with new experiences.

 BIBLIOGRAPHY Answers. com. Jerome Burner. Recovered on September 5 th, 2011, from Jerome Bruner and the process of education. Recovered on September 5 th, 2011, from The Contributions of Jerome Bruner. Recovered on September 5 th, 2011, from contributions-of-jerome-bruner Theories of Learning in Educational Psychology. Jerome Bruner: Constructivism & Discovery Learning. Recovered on September 5 th, 2011, from inc.com/Learningtheories/constructivism/bruner.html Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Categorization. Recovered on September 5 th, 2011, from