LaunchPad for The Development of Children (12 month Access Card)

Cynthia Lightfoot is Professor of Human Development and acting head of Psychology as the Pennsylvania State University, Brandywine. Her published works focus on the sociocultural contexts of child and adolescent development, most recently on teen pregnancy, risk-taking, identity development, and youth culture. Lightfoot currently serves on the editorial board of Culture and Psychology and the executive board of the Jean Piaget Society. She became interested in developmental psychology as an undergraduate student, when she worked with emotionally troubled and autistic children in school settings, and became engaged in research focused on language development, communication, and culture.
Michael Cole is an all-University of California Professor of Psychology, Communication, and Human Development. His home base is University of California, San Diego, where he is the Director of the Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition. For many years he spent his afternoons participating with children and undergraduates in development-enhancing after-school programs. He is an editor of the journal Mind, Culture, and Activity. He has published widely on the role of culture and schooling in development, for which he has been awarded honorary degrees at Copenhagen University and the University of Helsinki. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academies of Education (of the United States and Russia).
Sheila R. Cole is a former journalist who specialized in writing about families, children, development, and education. She also writes books for children. Her most recent book offers a history of American childhood and is written for young people. She has also authored picture books, historical fictions, and novels for young adults. She participates in literacy programs for homeless adolescents.