Description
The
reading this week in EDAT 6115 focused on the cognitive development of children. To understand and teach children
appropriately, teachers need to have an understanding of how their student’s
thinking develops and changes, and how this development affects their
learning. Along with cognitive
development, a children’s language and literacy development also have a
specific sequence that must be acknowledged by teachers
Analysis
Children
go through so many changes throughout their first eighteen years of life, and
it is vital that teachers “understand how children grow and develop to be able
to understand how children learn and how to best teach them” (Slavin, 2018,
p.23). Development happens in different
ways and at different times and speed. Children
think and view the world differently than adults (Slavin, 2018).
Slavin
(2018) asserts that psychologists debate two issues about child
development. One point questions whether
development is affected more by biological and heredity factors, or by
experiences and the environment. It is
now thought “that nature and nurture combine to influence development, with
biological factors playing a stronger role in some aspects” (Slavin, 2018,
p.24). The other issue consists of thinking
about how change happens. Continuous
theories of development presume that development happens in a progression as skills
grow and experiences are provided.
Discontinuous theories of development say that biological and inborn
factors describe changes (Slavin, 2018).
Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky are two theorists that have
done extensive research about a child’s cognitive development. Although their theories vary in the specifics
and quantity of stages, they both believe that there are definite stages in the
cognitive development of children (Slavin, 2018). Piaget’s theory of cognitive development
asserts that children acquire knowledge through actions and that “a child’s
intellect, or cognitive ability, progresses through four stages” (Slavin, 2018,
p.25). As children progress through
these stages, new abilities and ways of handling information emerge. They use schemes, or “patterns of behavior or
thinking” to “interact with and make sense of their environment” (Slavin, 2012,
p.25). Children adapt their schemes by
either assimilating or accommodating their thinking to new experiences (Slavin,
2018).
Slavin (2018) states that Piaget’s
four stages of development include sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete
operational, and formal operational. The
sensorimotor stage is the earliest stage that occurs from birth to age
two. During this stage, infants and very
young children use their senses and motor skills to explore the world around
them. They also develop the ability to understand
that even though you can’t see an object, it is still there and has not
disappeared. This concept is called
object permanence. Slavin (2018) continues to say that the
next stage all children go through is called the preoperational stage which occurs between the
ages of two and seven. During this
stage, “children have greater ability to think about things and can use symbols
to mentally represent objects” (Slavin, 2018, p.27). Children in this stage do not understand the
concept of conservation. They can only
pay attention to one part of a situation at a time and have a hard time
changing the direction of their thinking.
They are very egocentric in their rational and think that everyone sees
the world around them, just like they do.
Students in the concrete operational stage need familiar situations and
objects to solve problems and understand concepts (Slavin, 2018). Between the ages of seven and eleven, children
begin to have decentered thinking, which allows them to “see that others can
have different perceptions than they do” (Slavin, 2018, p.29). Finally,
the formal operational stage occurs between the ages of eleven and
adulthood. During this stage, “the
preadolescent begins to be able to think abstractly and to see possibilities beyond
the here and now” (Slavin, 2018, p.29).
Salvin (2018) states that many people never reach this final stage of
development. “As many as two-thirds of
U.S high school students do not succeed on Piaget’s formal operational tasks”
(Slavin, 2018, p.31). Some research
challenges Piaget’s original theory. It
has been found that if children are directly taught and have meaningful experiences,
the pace of development can be affected, and they will have success in Piaget’s
tasks (Salvin, 2018).
Vygotsky believed that children’s cognitive development
is connected to the input and help of others.
He suggests that learning comes before development and involves intentional
teaching (Slavin, 2018). Vygotsky has
several beliefs that support his theory for development. He
believed that several things happen as development occurs. Slavin (2018) states the children use the speech
of others and in turn, use that speech to support themselves to solve
problems. This is known as private
speech, and it changes as children develop. It has been found that children who
engage in private speech are more successful in completing complex tasks than
other children. Vygotsky also believed that
effective learning takes place when children are operating within their zone of
proximal development. Children may have
difficulty completing a task individually but could have success with the help
of an adult or peer. Mediation,
scaffolding, and cooperative learning all support Vygotsky’s theory and assist
children so they can be successful in their learning (Slavin, 2018).
There is another theorist Slavin (2018) mentioned that also
had beliefs about cognitive development.
Urie Bronfenbrenner believed in the bioecological approach for
development (Slavin, 2018). “The focus of his model is on the social and
institutional influences on a child’s development” (Slavin, 2018, p.36). He believed that the influence of the home and
family, and the influence between the child and the family were of great importance
(Slavin, 2018). Slavin (2018) points out
that although the bioecological approach does not have the research and support
like Piaget’s or Vygotsky’s theories, it provides “a more complete model of
influences beyond biology on child development (p.36).
It is vital that a teacher not only understands how a
child’s thinking develops but also how their language and literacy skills develop. “Children who develop large vocabularies and
become effective speakers, readers, and writers are likely to be successful in
school and beyond (Slavin, 2018, p.37).
Slavin (2018) asserts that although children may develop language
abilities at different rates, the sequence of achievements is the same. Oral language, reading, and writing all
follow a course of development. The
development of oral language is influenced a great deal by how much parents
talk to their children at home. Reading,
and emergent literacy is crucial to a student’s success later on in life. “Children who do not learn to read well by
third grade are at a great risk for long-term problems” (Slavin, 2018,
p.38). Language and literacy develop at
a rapid pace during the elementary and secondary years. Fluency and decoding are the main focus in
early elementary. Once those skills are
mastered, the emphasis is then put on utilizing strategies to increase
comprehension and vocabulary (Slavin, 2018).
Reflection
The
content of this chapter is very significant to me. It is crucial that, as a teacher and an instructional
specialist, I am knowledgeable about the development of the students I
support. I need to be familiar with
where they came from, where they currently are in their development, and what will
happen in the future. I can better support both teachers and students if I am
knowledgeable about what is expected during each stage. Understanding the development of literacy and
language is also vital for me to be successful in my job as a literacy instructional
specialist. This information can help me to better support
teachers on what to expect from their students.
Understanding what concepts to teach and when to teach them will help
teachers and students to have success in the classroom.
One
new thing I learned as I read about a child's cognitive development was about
an aspect of the preoperational stage. I
did not realize that centration and reversibility was the explanation as to why
children were not successful with conservation.
It makes total sense to me, especially after reading about the liquid
quantity milk example. Another thing I
learned was about Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological approach to child
development. I found it interesting how
he felt that family changes could influence not only the child but also the child’s
environment (Slavin, 2018). I have seen
examples of this throughout my years of being in the classroom, but I never
knew that it had a name.
Cognitive
development was a significant aspect of my undergraduate course work when I
attended college over 20 years ago. As I
read more into the chapter this week, I realized how much of the information I
had forgotten. When I was going through
school, I was taught to teach children using the whole language approach, and Piaget’s
theory and beliefs were what was used to support this way of teaching. I have tweaked my teaching methods a little
bit over the years, due to changing research, classroom experience, and ongoing
professional development, and it has seemed to stray away from my core beliefs
and foundation set forth by Piaget. By
digging into cognitive development again this week, and reviewing the different
stages of development, it has solidified and confirmed for me what is best for
students and helped me to define again what they are truly capable of doing in
a classroom.
The
information I have reviewed this week will be used to support my teaching and
how I encourage other teachers in my building.
It has brought me back to my roots and familiarized me again with what
students at various ages need and are truly capable of doing. Many things that are being asked of students
are not developmentally appropriate. It
especially makes me think of the students in kindergarten, and how we, as teachers,
can better support their thinking and not get frustrated with their actions or
thought processes. Knowing that children
in the preoperational stage are egocentric in their thinking and not able to
take on the perspective of others can help us better understand our students
(Slavin, 2018).
Reference
Slavin, R. E. (2018). Educational Psychology:
Theory and practice. NY, NY: Pearson.
