Cognitive Development Theories _Cañelas,Almira B.

Introduction

ByJean Piaget, The Cognitive Theory of Development

The four-stage model of how the mind processes new information encountered was established by Swiss biologist and psychologist Jean Piaget (1896-1980) after studying his own children and how they made sense of the world. According to his theory, children move through four stages in the same order. We will become familiar with the idea of Peaget's theory and how human beings acquire cognitive abilities.

For more work on this, go directly to the task of the web quest. In this case, the four stages of cognitive development as proposed by biologist and psychologist Gean Peaget are given the most attention.

Task

THEORY OF CONGITIVE DEVELOPMENT

Cognitive development is the creation of mental processes from birth through adolescence and maturity, including memory, problem-solving, and decision-making.

Description

It was once thought that infants lacked the capacity for complex thought or concept formation and remained cognitively deficient until they learnt to speak. It is now understood that newborns are interested in exploring their environment and aware of their surroundings from the moment they are born. Babies start actively learning as soon as they are born. They gather, categorize, and analyze the information they are exposed to, using it to hone their perceptual and critical-thinking abilities.

Cognitive development is the process through which an individual perceives, thinks, and comprehends his or her environment as a result of the interaction of inherited and learned elements. Information processing, intelligence, reasoning, language development, and memory are some of the domains of cognitive development.

Piaget's cognitive development theory

French psychologist Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development is the most well-known and significant (1896–1980). In contrast to the behaviorists' laboratory experiments, Piaget's theory was developed over many years through extensive observation of children, including his own, in their natural settings. It was first published in 1952. Despite his interest in children's responses to their surroundings, Piaget advocated for a more active role for them than learning theory suggested. He thought that a child's knowledge was made up of schemas, which are fundamental information chunks that are utilized to categorize previous experiences and form the foundation for understanding brand-new ones.

Two related processes that Piaget referred to as assimilation and accommodation are constantly changing schemas. Assimilation is the process of assimilating new knowledge by integrating it into an already-existing paradigm. In other words, through connecting new experiences to things they already know, people integrate new information. On the other side, accommodation occurs when the schema itself modifies to take into account new information. Piaget claimed that equilibration—a state of constant striving to strike a balance between assimilation and accommodation—is a necessary component of cognitive growth.

The fundamental tenet of Piaget's theory is that mind evolves into increasingly complex and abstract levels of thought over the course of four separate, universal stages. Each of these stages builds on what was discovered in the prior step, and they always take place in the same order. These are what they are:

1.Sensorimotor stage (infancy): During this stage, which has six substages, motor activity rather than the use of symbols is used to indicate intelligence. Because it is founded on physical interaction and experiences, knowledge of the world is still restricted but expanding. Around seven months old is when children first develop object permanence (memory). The youngster can start learning new intellectual skills thanks to physical development (mobility). The end of this phase sees the development of some symbolic (language) skills.

2.The pre-operational stage (toddlerhood and early childhood) is divided into two substages. During this time, intelligence is displayed through the use of symbols, language development matures, memory and imagination grow, but thinking is non-logical and non-reversible. There is a strong egocentric bias.

3.Concrete operational stage (elementary and early adolescence): During this stage, which is defined by seven types of conservation (number, length, liquid, mass, weight, area, and volume), intelligence is displayed through the methodical and logical manipulation of symbols associated with concrete objects. Operational thought evolves (mental actions that are reversible). There is less egocentric thinking.

During the formal operational stage (adolescence and adulthood), intelligence is shown through the logical application of symbols that are connected to abstract notions. There is a return to egocentric thinking at the beginning of the phase. In industrialized nations, just 35% of high school graduates acquire formal employment; many people do not think formally as adults.

Process

CHILD DEVELOPMENT STAGES

Infancy

Infants start to learn how to use their senses to investigate the world around them as soon as they are born. The majority of infants can track and focus on moving objects, recognize the volume and pitch of sound, recognize all colors and their hue and brightness, and begin to anticipate events, such as sucking when they see a nipple. Infants can remember faces, mimic facial emotions like smiling and frowning, and respond to familiar sounds by the time they are three months old.

Babies are just starting to comprehend how the world works at six months of age. They mimic sounds, love to hear their own voice, can identify their parents, are afraid of strangers, can tell the difference between animate and inanimate items, and can judge distance based on the size of an object. They are also aware that they can pick up an object again if they drop it. Baby names can be recognized at four to seven months of age.

 

Infants can imitate motions and actions, experiment with the physical features of items, comprehend basic words like "no," and comprehend that an object still exists even though it is hidden from view by the time they are nine months old. Additionally, they start to experiment with how their parents may react to their actions, such as spilling food. They recall the response and retest the parents to see if they receive the same response.

Babies are able to track a moving item at 12 months of age, say two to four words, including "mama" and "papa," imitate animal sounds, associate names with objects, form attachments to objects like toys or blankets, and suffer separation when they are separated from their parents. Babies are able to understand 10 to 50 words by the time they are 18 months old. They can also recognize body parts, feel a sense of ownership by referring to certain people or things as "my," and follow instructions that require two different actions, such as picking up toys and putting them in a box.

Toddlerhood

Toddlers have achieved the "sensorimotor" stage of Piaget's theory of cognitive development, which involves rudimentary reasoning, between the ages of 18 months and three. For instance, they start using tools and equipment, comprehend the permanency of things and people, and can visually follow the movement of things. Toddlers begin to push for greater independence, which can be challenging for parents worried about their safety. They also comprehend discipline and the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behavior, as well as the meanings of words like "please" and "thank you."

Children should be able to understand between 100 and 150 words by the age of two and begin to learn roughly ten new words per day. Additionally, toddlers are better at grasping emotions like love, trust, and fear. They start to comprehend some of the routine facets of daily life, such as going grocery shopping, telling the time, and being read to.

Preschool

According to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, preschoolers between the ages of three and six should be in the "preoperational" stage, which means they are employing their memory and imagery skills. Their worldview is typically very self-centered, and they should be trained to study and memorize information. Preschoolers typically have honed their social abilities as well, including playing and collaborating with kids of the same age. Preschoolers frequently push the boundaries of their cognitive ability and pick up harmful ideas and behaviors including lying, bullying, and talking back to adults. Preschoolers also have improved attention span growth, reading acquisition, and routine formation, including chore-related habits.

School Age

The "concrete operations" stage of Piaget's cognitive development theory, which is defined by the capacity to utilize logical and cohesive activities in thinking and solving problems, should be reached by younger school-age children, ages six to twelve. By discovering that volume, weight, and numbers can stay constant despite changes in appearance, they are taught the ideas of permanence and conservation. These kids ought to be able to build off of prior knowledge and use it to justify why certain things occur. Their ability to focus on a task for an hour at age nine should rise with age, from being able to do so for roughly 15 minutes at age six.

Teenagers, between the ages of 12 and 18, should be in Piaget's "formal operations" stage of cognitive development. It is characterized by a greater independence in problem-solving and situational reasoning. Teenagers should be able to comprehend pure abstractions like advanced math concepts and philosophical ideas. Children at this age should be able to understand and use the broad knowledge needed to adjust to particular circumstances. Additionally, they must to be able to pick up the precise knowledge and abilities required for a job. A cognitive shift is a key aspect of the trip through adolescence. Adolescents think in ways that are more sophisticated, effective, and all around more complex than those of youngsters. There are five perspectives on this power.

First, adolescents have the mental capacity to think about what is possible rather than just what is real, which sets them apart from children. Adolescents have the capacity to analyze what they perceive in the context of what is possible, in contrast to children, whose thinking is focused on the present—that is, on things and occurrences that they can observe immediately.

Second, as a person enters adolescence, their capacity for abstract thought improves. Adolescents, for instance, find it simpler than young toddlers to understand the higher-order, abstract logic that puns, proverbs, metaphors, and analogies include. Due to their increased ability to think abstractly, adolescents can also apply sophisticated logic and reasoning to social and ideological issues. The adolescent's improved ability and interest in thinking about interpersonal interactions, politics, philosophy, religion, and morality are a strong indication of this.

 

Evaluation

The following are the key educational ramifications of Piaget's work as a renowned biologist and psychologist.

1. An emphasis on children's thought processes rather than just the results. Teachers need to comprehend the methods kids use to arrive at the answers in addition to ensuring that the answers are accurate. Only when teachers are aware of how children arrive at particular conclusions, are they in a position to provide experiences that build on children's existing level of cognitive functioning.

2. An understanding of the critical importance of kids initiating and taking part in their own learning activities The presentation of pre-made knowledge is downplayed in a Piagetian school, and kids are encouraged to learn on their own through natural interactions with their surroundings. As a result, rather than instructing in a didactic manner, teachers give students access to a wide range of engaging activities.

A reduction in the importance of methods intended to develop in kids an adult-like way of thinking Piaget made mention to the query, "How can we accelerate development? Among the numerous nations he visited, psychologists and educators in the United States appeared to be most curious about the methods that may be applied to hasten children's passage through the phases. His steadfast conviction that early instruction may be worse than no instruction at all is accepted by educational programs with a Piagetian foundation.

Conclusion

To demonstrate how Jean Piaget's theory is integrated into the curriculum.

The theories of Piaget had a significant influence on educational philosophy and practice (Case, 1998). First, the ideas emphasized the concept of developmentally appropriate education, or instruction in environments, curricula, resources, and instruction that are appropriate for students' physical and cognitive capabilities as well as their social and emotional needs.

Credits

Credits to Cognitive Development Theory by Jean Piaget.

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