早期教育领域中的“关键期”学说再认识

Review on the Hypothesis of Critical Period in Early Education

作为早期教育领域中的重要理论之一，“关键期”假设对早期教育的实践和理论产生了广泛影响。但新近的研究表明，这一学说并不严密。文章结合不同领域新的研究成果，对这一学说的立论基础、适用范围、应用效果等方面进行了反思，认为不是所有能力的发展都存在着关键期；在关键期里所形成的能力对以后的心理发展会产生何种影响，取决于一系列的条件；关键期的出现不是一种生物钟而是个体在一步步的经验习得中所发展起来的大脑结构；教育也不应该机械地固守关键期，而应该积极主动地促进儿童的发展。

In the past half century, early education has been influenced by the hypothesis of critical periods. But the recent researches have challenged it. They uncover that not all abilities have a critical development period, and how the abilities developed in ＂critical period＂ influence on future development depends on too many factors. They also find if or not a critical period appears sometimes does not lie on body clock, but on individual life experience. Therefore, early education should promote more actively children＇ s development, but not being limited to the concept of critical period.