When
Elizabeth S. Spelke
Marshall L. Berkman
Professor of Psychology
Harvard University
Zoom: https://arizona.zoom.us/j/86810732501
How Children Learn
Abstract: Children are likely the most prodigious learners on earth: With little to no instruction, they master the commonsense concepts and skills that life in their culture requires, and then they go on, in school, to master highly demanding symbolic skills and systems of knowledge beyond both intuition and perception. How do children do this? Research on human infants, children, adults, and non-human animals, using diverse methods from the developmental, brain, and computational cognitive sciences, provides evidence for six systems of core knowledge that emerge in infancy, are shared with other animals, and guide children’s learning at home. Despite these systems, however, not all children successfully master the symbolic skills taught in school: especially reading and mathematics. Here I ask why this is the case, and discuss recent educational interventions that prompt further insights into the nature and workings of children’s developing minds.