The New Aptitudes and Adaptive Education. CAE Newsletter, Volume 4, Number 2, July 197
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 084 321 UD 013 889 AUTHOR Glaser, Robert TITLE The New Aptitudes and Adaptive Education. CAE Newsletter, Volume 4, Number 2, July 197/. INSTITUTION Council on Anthropology and Education, Washington, D.C. PUB DATE Jul 73 NOTE 8p. AVAILABLE FROMCAE Subscription and Membership Office, c/o American Anthropological Association, 1703 New Hampshire Ave., N.H., Washington, D. C. 20009 (Price not quoted) EDRS PRICE MF-$0.65 HC-$3.29 DESCRI: TORS Cognitive Development; Developmental Psychology; Educational Change; *Educational Diagnosis; Educational Philosophy; *Educational Planning; Educational Psychology; *Elementary Education; Individual Development; *Individualized Instruction; Learning Processes; Preschool Education; Psychology; Psychometrics; Teaching Methods ABSTRACT This paper begins with the discussion of how centain developments in psychology have influenced present educational methods, and how recent work in learning theory, developmental psychology, and psychometrics strongly suggests new directions for educational research and practice. This theme is discussed in the context of a central problem in education--the individualization cf instruction, or, in other terms, adapting educational environments to individual differences. The paper focuses on the education of the young child in the preschool and elementary school years, although the discussion seems applicable to all levels of our educational system. A selective mode of education is characterized by minimal variation in the conditions under which individuals are expected to learn. A narrow range of instructional options is provided, and a limited number of ways to succeed are available. In contrast, an adaptive mode of education assumes that the educational environment can provide for a wide range and variety of instructional methods and opportunities for success. Alternative means of learning are adaptive to and are in some way matched to knowledge about each individual--his background, talents, interests, and the nature of his past performance. (Author/JM) (.:.G;U":`1;4'Eg, ott ANTErirE,ICINPID;71.,(r.i7V and f,,:f..11.74.7.AT'il:r.n.' :cCiWP,TI.V.TTEL t). Vol IV, No. 2 July 1973 CAE NEWSLETTER Forthcoming Issues: October 1, 1973 February 1, 1974 Item Submissions by: September 15, 1973 January 15, 1974 -PERMISSION TO REPFIDDUCE THIS COPY. * * * * * * * * P.GHTED MATERIAL HAS BEEN Grimirto BY Council on Anthropology CN) John Singletoi Editor ;re-` Jacquetta Burnett . Co-Editor & Education,D. C. TO ERIC AND ORGANIZATIONS OPERATING Arthur A. Katz Asst. Editor UNDER AGREEMENTS WITH THE NATIONAL IN- 00 Carol Jones STITUTE OF EDUCATION FURTHER REPRO- Typist DUCTION OUTSIDE THE ERIC SYSTEM RE O MIRES PERMISSION OF THE COPYRIGHT CAE Subscr'otion and Membership Office: OWNER' c/o American Anthropological Assn. w. 1703 New Hampshire Ave.,N. W. Washington, D. C. 20009 TABLE OF CONTENTS Ne.vsletter Editorial Office Page c/o IDEP University of Pittsburgh Gold Medallions: The Pittsburgh. Pennsylvania Arithmetic Calculations 15260 of an Illiterate Ne,.v5:letter published by the R. Thomas Rosin 1 University of Pittsburgh. What Makes School Ethnography Copyright © 1973 "Ethnographic?" Council on Anthropology and Education, Frederick Erickson 10 affiliated with American AnthropologicalAssn. All rights reserved. Mid. in USA The New Aptitudes and Adaptive Evaluation Robert Glaser 20 Rules for Anthropologists I: The Future is Now Arthur Harkins 27 To Live on This Earth: U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, A Review Article EDUCATION A WELFARE 33 NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF Philleo Nash EDUCATION THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO 35 OUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM President's Report THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGIN- ATING IT. POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS Singara 36 STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRE SENT OFFICIAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION POSITION OR POLICY Professional News 39 Recent Publications 45 NOTE: Following this issue of the Newsletter, all editorial correspondence will be handled by the new Editor, Professor John Chilcott. Department of Anthropology. University of Arizona, Tucson.The Newsletter phone number will be (602) 884-2964. All corresroncience regarding subscription, membership, or business matters will con- tinue to be handled by the American Anthropological Association, 1703 New Hampshire Avenue, N. W., Washington, D. C.20009, (202) 232-8800. FILMED FROM BEST AVAILABLE COPY THE NEW APTITUDES AND ADAPTIVE EDUCATION Robert Glaser University of Pittsburgh [Ed. Note: Challenging anthropologists to respond to the problems of an evolving educational approach to individual and group differences, Professor Glaser originally planned to give this paper in the symposium on "Reference Groups for Researchers in Anthropology and Education' at the 1972 M.meetings. Unable to get to Tcronto then, he has allowed us to add this paper to those published from that sympcsium in the pre- vious Newsletter.Robert Glaser is Director of the Learning Research anti Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh, a past President of the American Educational Research Association, and a well-known educational psychologist. In this paper,I describe an approach to edu- situation by noting that the teaching profession and cation '.vhich, 'believe, will become increasingly education in general were showing signs of a vio- prevalent.I will describe itin general terms lent reaction against the uniformity of method that because the specific forms of its application will for so lent; clutched and mechanized the schools. vary with the setting in which it occurs.Par- The cicaciening effects of uniformity needed to be ticularly, by publishing in this newsletter at the recoenized.Parents and students had been the request of the edi.tor,I am eager to solicit the first to notice this:now the professional conscious- interest of anthropelogists and sociologists with ness was deeply penetrated because the teachers respect totwoquestions: (1) Flow can the learning themselves reaiized that they were caught in the environment created by this approach ha studied? iron machinery of tneir own making.These turns --how are the problems for investigation to be of piJase. were written in 1911, and throughout the fcrmulated? and (2) What predictions can be made twentieth century,the problem has been raised of the influence of this eppreach on the culture and again ant' again- society of the school and the broader community? In 1925,a major effort appeared in the 24th --I have hinted at my own primitive thoughts on this yearbook ofhe National Society for the Study of latter in a very brielconcluOing parceiraph.Much Education enti!led Schools to Indi- tf v:hat I have to say has elreedy been said in a vid1:31 Differences.Carleton Wa shburne's intro- previous paper (Glaser, 1972), but for present pur- duction states in forceful terms that the widespread poses,I emphasize some history and background, use of intelligence and lchieverient tests has made and the contrast between selective and adaptive every educator realiza that children vary greatly as education. incii.iduals,and"throughouttheeducational wcrio, there has therefore awakened the desire to To begin, Ipropose to show how certain find tome way of adapting schools to the differing developments in psychology have influenced pres- individuals who attend them (Washburne,1925). " ent educational methods, and to show further how Shouts of alarm have been ubiquitous; many sug- recent work in learning theory,developmental gestions have been made and a few sustained psychology, and psychometrics strongly suggests experiments have bean launched.Nevertheless, new directions for educational research and prac- it is now 1972, and time goes by with still only a tice.I shall discuss this theme in the context of recognition of th.e problem, but as yet, no directions a central problem in educationthe individualiza- towards solution realized. Thisis the situation tion of instruction or,in other terms, adapting that I would like to examine. educational environments to individual differences. An analysis of the problem involves the idto- I shall focus on the education of the young child syncracies of two major fields of psychology. As in the preschool and elementary school years, is known, the English and German traditions of the although what I have to sey seems applicable to nineteenth century gave rise to two separate disci- all levels of our educational system. The problem plines of scientific psychology: psychometrics and obviously has been a persistent one; it has been experimental psychology. It was the psychometric- recognized and proclaimed at least since the begin- ians with their emphasis on technology who had ning of this century, three generations ago. Very significant impact uponeducational methods. early in the century, Edward L. Thorndike (1911) Indeed,the major activity in educational psy- published a r .:eograph entitled Individuality.His chology revolved around measurement and psycho- editor's int....eduet:on summarizes the t1.an current metric practice.Psychometrics emphasized the 20 nature of individual differences and the utility of variety of instructional methods and opportunities measuring these differences for education. Learn- for success.Alternate means of learning are ing variables and modification of the educational adaptive to and are in some way matched to know- environment, however, were not part of this field. ledge about each individualhis background, tal- Meanwhile, the experimental psychologists went ents,interests, and the nature of his past per-