The Cognitive Theory of Jerome Bruner

How do we represent reality through our consciousness?

Today the idea that knowing or learning something consists of a process in which we receive information from the outside, process it, and finally interpret it in such a way that we end up having knowledge of the item in question may seem logical and commonplace.

This idea indicates that the individual who knows participates in the process of knowing, shaping and interpreting reality in a direct way. However, this consideration has not always existed, and there have been multiple theories and ways of conceptualizing reality that linked the fact of knowing with the exact transfer of objective reality to our consciousness, the person being a passive element between reality and cognition, or that although there is an intermediate step, this is an indecipherable element.

The theories that affirm that the fact of knowing and learning are mediated by a series of internal cognitive processes, manipulating the symbolic elements that we perceive in order to endow reality with meaning are the so-called cognitivist theories, one of the first of these is the cognitive theory of Jerome Bruner..

Bruner's cognitive theory: active subject and categorization theory

For Jerome Bruner and for the rest of the cognitivist theories, one of the main elements in learning is the active participation of the learner. That is to say, it is not a matter of the individual simply taking information from the outside, but for it to be transformed into knowledge, it must be processed, worked on and endowed with meaning.and endowed with meaning by the subject.

According to Bruner's cognitive theory, in the process of knowing and learning, human beings try to categorize events and elements of reality into sets of equivalent items. Thus, we experience experiences and perceived reality by creating concepts based on the discrimination of different stimuli.

In this process, called categorization, the information received from the outside is actively worked, being codified and classified with a series of labels or categories in order to enable the understanding of reality. This categorization allows the formation of concepts and the ability to make predictions and decisions. It is an explanatory model strongly influenced by the computer scienceswhich was based on the functioning of the computers of the time.

From Bruner's cognitive perspectiveFrom Bruner's cognitive perspective, from categorization we are able to generate knowledge. These categorizations will not always remain stable and closed, but will vary from life experience, modifying and expanding. When faced with a reality to categorize, the individual can establish two types of processes, Concept Formation or Concept Attainment.

Concept Formation

This process is typical of initial stages of development. The subject proceeds to learning a concept or category, generating by himself/herself the information to be classified in the category he/she in the category created by him/her. Common patterns are recognized in various units of information and are unified in certain concepts.

Concept Attainment

The second type of process that can be performed is the identification of properties that allow the stimulus to be registered in an already existing category created by others. The subject infers the main attributes of the category that has been formed.In other words, this process allows the creation of inclusion and exclusion criteria within a category. In other words, this process allows the creation of inclusion and exclusion criteria within a category.

Ways of representing reality according to Bruner's cognitive theory

On the basis of what has been discussed so far, it can be deduced that for Bruner, learning is activeThe individual has a cognitive structure based on association with previous knowledge that allows him to construct knowledge and make inferences.

The representation of reality through cognition can be acquired in three ways or modes, used at different evolutionary moments of development due to the need for sufficient cognitive resources as they become more complicated. These modes of representation are not mutually exclusive, and several can be applied at the same time to facilitate learning.

Enactive representation

In this mode, knowledge is acquired through action and direct interaction with the element to be learned.. This mode of representing reality is typical of the initial stages of development, i.e. in the first years of life. It is the type of representation that is obtained with procedural learning, such as learning to ride a car or a bicycle, or to use cutlery to eat.

Iconic representation

It is known through the iconic mode when recognizable, low symbolic visual elements, such as a photograph or drawing, are used.such as a photograph or drawing. It is from the age of three that most children are able to use this type of representation, due to their higher level of development.

Symbolic representation

Knowing from a symbolic mode implies that information is obtained through symbols, such as words, concepts, abstractions and written language. The level of intellectual development necessary for this type of representation is much higher than the previous ones, since it requires the capacity for abstraction and recognition of symbols and their meaning.The level of intellectual development required for this type of representation is much higher than the previous ones, since it requires the capacity for abstraction and recognition of symbols and their meaning. It is considered that this type of representation has emerged around six years of age in most children.

Applications of cognitive theory in education

Learning is the means by which human beings and other organisms acquire information and knowledge of the environment. For this reasonFor this reason, Bruner's cognitive theory has served and indeed has largely focused on promoting the processes of learning and development from infancy onward, although it has also been used as a tool to promote the development of children. and development from infancy, although his perspective becomes constructivist.

For Bruner, education consists of the inculcation of skills and knowledge through the representation of what is already known and what is intended to be known, seeking to enable the individual to generalize knowledge while taking into account the particularities of each knowledge.

The concept of scaffolding

Another of the fundamental concepts in Bruner's theory, in this case from a constructivist conception, is the concept of scaffolding. For Bruner learning, or the process by which we obtain knowledge, must be facilitated through the provision of external aids. The individual is not the only source of learning, but facilities can be created from outside so that they "fit" the learning level of the other person and, thus, improve the quality and speed of education.

These aids must be provided in a graduated manner, providing a high level of help at the beginning or in the presence of great difficulties, so that over time and with the progressive mastery by the learner, they are withdrawn, giving the individual greater and greater autonomy.

The metaphor of a scaffold used to construct a building is evident, referring to this process of adaptation and transience of the aids as scaffolding.

Importance of values, needs and expectations

Knowledge and even perception of phenomena have been shown to be largely dependent on needs, beliefs and expectations.beliefs and expectations. When outcomes do not match expectations that are too high, frustration can cause learning to stop, while expectations that are too low can hinder learning and prevent potential progress.

An example of the importance of expectations is visible in some experiments, in which, for example, subjects with low economic status are able to perceive coins as larger because of the higher value they place on them.

Giving meaning: working with what is already known

It is also essential for knowledge that the new knowledge is based on the old, on what the person already knows, in order to be able to construct and modify the new information based on it.

This allows the subject to give a meaning to the new information.This allows the subject to make sense of the new information, being able to learn not only decontextualized information but also other cognitions that he/she can use in his/her daily life.

In search of learning by discovery

As stipulated in his cognitive theory, for Bruner the subject is an active entity in learning and the process of knowing.He believes that learning is not limited to recording information from the outside, but must operate with it in order to convert it into knowledge. In this sense, he considers that traditional learning in schools has been based too much on a process of acquiring decontextualized information.

In opposition to this, he proposes a learning by discovery, in which the subject learns and is stimulated to know through curiosity, motivation and self-learning, the teacher being a guide for this.

Bibliographical references:

• Bruner, J. S. (Ed.). (1980). Research on cognitive development. Madrid: Pablo del Río.

• Bruner, J. S. (1981). Mental reality and possible worlds. Madrid: Gedisa.

• Bruner, J. S., Goodnaw, J. J. and Austin, G. A. (1978). The mental process in learning. Madrid: Nancea.

• Guilar, M.E. (2009). Bruner's ideas: from the cognitive revolution to the cultural revolution. Educere, 13; 44, 235-241. Universidad de los Andes, Venezuela.

• Méndez, Z. (2003). Learning and Cognition. San José, Costa Rica. Editorial: EUNED, sixth reprint.