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5 - Bridging to the unknown: A transition mechanism in learning and development

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 September 2009

By
Nira Granott ,
Kurt W. Fischer  and
Jim Parziale
Edited by
Nira Granott  and
Jim Parziale
Nira Granott
Affiliation:
Assistant Professor School of Human Development, University of Texas at Dallas; Director of the Microdevelopmental Lab UT Dallas
Kurt W. Fischer
Affiliation:
Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, USA
Jim Parziale
Affiliation:
Part-Time Professor Graduate School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Boston; Classroom Teacher and Science Resource Teacher for Brookline Public School Brookline, Massachusetts
Nira Granott
Affiliation:
University of Texas, Dallas
Jim Parziale
Affiliation:
University of Massachusetts, Boston
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Summary

How are new abilities created out of existing, less advanced abilities? This question has puzzled researchers for centuries. Various answers have been suggested, yet the mechanisms underlying development have remained enigmatic. In this chapter, we analyze and demonstrate a process called bridging that provides a specific answer to the fundamental question of how more powerful structures can be achieved on the basis of less powerful ones.

Bridging is a process of leaping into the unknown by inserting marker shells that indicate targets for development and learning (Granott, 1993a, 1994, Granott & Parziale, 1996). The marker shells serve as place-holders that people use to direct their own learning and development toward achieving these targets. A shell is like a formula in mathematics, in which the variables represent an unknown whose values can be later defined. Bridging operates as an attractor in dynamic systems and pulls development toward more advanced, relatively stable levels. People use bridging by creating partially defined shells that mark future skills to be constructed at higher knowledge levels. The shells do not contain the relevant knowledge yet, but they outline it. The shells serve as scaffolds that guide the construction of new knowledge by providing a perspective for processing new experiences. A bridging shell serves as a dynamic attractor after its initial emergence in real-time activities within context.

We suggest that bridging is a transition mechanism that people use spontaneously at a wide range of ages.

Type
Chapter
Information
Microdevelopment
Transition Processes in Development and Learning
 , pp. 131 - 156
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2002

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  • Bridging to the unknown: A transition mechanism in learning and development
    • By Nira Granott, Assistant Professor School of Human Development, University of Texas at Dallas; Director of the Microdevelopmental Lab UT Dallas, Kurt W. Fischer, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, USA, Jim Parziale, Part-Time Professor Graduate School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Boston; Classroom Teacher and Science Resource Teacher for Brookline Public School Brookline, Massachusetts
  • Edited by Nira Granott, University of Texas, Dallas, Jim Parziale, University of Massachusetts, Boston
  • Book: Microdevelopment
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511489709.006
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  • Bridging to the unknown: A transition mechanism in learning and development
    • By Nira Granott, Assistant Professor School of Human Development, University of Texas at Dallas; Director of the Microdevelopmental Lab UT Dallas, Kurt W. Fischer, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, USA, Jim Parziale, Part-Time Professor Graduate School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Boston; Classroom Teacher and Science Resource Teacher for Brookline Public School Brookline, Massachusetts
  • Edited by Nira Granott, University of Texas, Dallas, Jim Parziale, University of Massachusetts, Boston
  • Book: Microdevelopment
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511489709.006
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Bridging to the unknown: A transition mechanism in learning and development
    • By Nira Granott, Assistant Professor School of Human Development, University of Texas at Dallas; Director of the Microdevelopmental Lab UT Dallas, Kurt W. Fischer, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, USA, Jim Parziale, Part-Time Professor Graduate School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Boston; Classroom Teacher and Science Resource Teacher for Brookline Public School Brookline, Massachusetts
  • Edited by Nira Granott, University of Texas, Dallas, Jim Parziale, University of Massachusetts, Boston
  • Book: Microdevelopment
  • Online publication: 22 September 2009
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511489709.006
Available formats
×