The convergence theory is an important movement within pedagogy. It is a middle ground between the natural goodness of man and the malleability of man. Below I will try to briefly explain what is meant by the convergence theory and name a number of its founders. Naturalists view development as the unfolding of innate qualities while idealists emphasize experience. These are one-sided views. William Stern sees a child’s development as a matter of talent and experience. He does this in his convergence theory. What are the predisposing factors called the capabilities of man? To develop these capabilities, an environment is needed, education. The child helps create this environment and actively participates. This is called self-formation.
He brings construction and environment together (converge). This coming together of predisposition and environment as working forces in education is perhaps better described with the concepts of interaction and interaction, these concepts better reflect the active and dynamic. Some people even speak of inter-penetration, which means the joint development of organism and environment.
Development as a journey of discovery
By the concept of self-education we mean the active participation of the child in education. The child goes on a journey of discovery. An example: A child has the ability to speak. But the fact that the child actually starts speaking is not just a case of maturation or learning. The child must discover the language himself. According to Langeveld, the child’s journey of discovery depends on 2 conditions:
- 1. There is an individual, a person.
- 2. There are peers
The most important discoveries according to Langeveld are:
- The discovery of things that do not depend on the nature of the earth: Such as the world with its processes and cycles, the plant and animal world.
- The discovery of life as a task: You have to make something of it yourself
- The discovery of your own inner self: You are unique, you have your own memories and you can make your own decisions.
- The discovery of the opposite sex as attractive: As the child grows older he will feel attracted to the opposite sex, for gay people this can cause a problem that requires outside help.