DO YOU HAVE TO BE RIGHT TO REDESCRIBE

Karmiloff-Smith's developmental perspective forces us to recognize that there are many levels at which knowledge can be represented. We first offer empirical support for a distinction made on theoretical grounds between two such levels. We then argue that ''redescription'' onto a new level need not await success (as Karmiloff-Smith proposes), and that this modification of the theory has important implications for the role redescription plays in development.