CHILDRENS APPLICATION OF SIMULTANEOUS AND SUCCESSIVE PROCESSING IN INDUCTIVE AND DEDUCTIVE REASONING PROBLEMS - IMPLICATIONS FOR DEVELOPINGSCIENTIFIC REASONING SKILLS

The research reported in this article was undertaken to obtain a bette r understanding of problem solving and scientific reasoning in 10-year -old children. The study involved measuring children's competence at s yllogistic reasoning and in solving a series of problems requiring ind uctive reasoning. Children were also categorized on the basis of level s of simultaneous and successive synthesis. Simultaneous and successiv e synthesis represent two dimensions of information processing identif ied by Luria in a program of neuropsychological research. Simultaneous synthesis involves integration of information in a holistic or spatia l fashion, whereas successive synthesis involves processing informatio n sequentially with temporal links between stimuli. Analysis of the da ta generated in the study indicated that syllogistic reasoning and ind uctive reasoning were significantly correlated with both simultaneous and successive synthesis. However, the strongest correlation was found between simultaneous synthesis and inductive reasoning. These finding s provide a basis for understanding the roles of spatial and verbal-lo gical ability as defined by Luria's neuropsychological theory in scien tific problem solving. The results also highlight the need for teacher s to provide experiences which are compatible with individual students ' information processing styles.