Considering the work of key pioneers and current experts with links to child development theory. There are many theories about how children learn and develop. This area of study is called developmental psychology which covers subjects such as cognitive, language and emotional development. The research methods are based heavily on the on going assessments carried out by observing children over a period of time. Assessment is part of the process of understanding what children know, understand and can do so that future teaching steps can be appropriately planned.
In her essay “Kiddy Thinks,” Alison Gopnik discusses the importance of the cognitive development of children in the first few years of their life. She also attempts to break the traditional view that children, in their early stages, think quite differently than adults. Gopnik uses a logical standard of evaluation to provide information on the different stages children go through when developing important cognitive skills. She supports her information with a variety of experiments as a researcher, and personal experiences as a parent. Unfortunately, she concludes her essay with political and social issues, which weakens her argument as it drifts away from her purpose.
The strands are: • To learn about themselves - Self Concept Development • To learn about their feelings - Emotional Development • To learn about other people - Social Development • To learn to communicate - Language Development • To learn to move and do - Physical Development • To learn to think - Cognitive Development The quality of early experiences is shaped by the individuals with whom infants and toddlers spend their time and by the environments where they spend their time. As early childhood professionals, we know what children need in order to be successful in both school and in life. This document designed for program trainers, directors and parent educators to use as they work with caregivers and parents to insure quality care for infants and toddlers. Infants and toddlers are cared for in a variety of settings. These settings include the child’s own home, child care centers and family child care.
Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development Jean Piaget (1896-1980) studied how children’s thought processes develop and has been very influential in our understanding of children’s cognitive development. He believed that interaction with peers was the most critical factor in children’s cognitive development. ‘He described children as ‘"little scientists," actively constructing their own theories about the world, testing these theories, and adjusting to new information’ (quote taken from Kendra's Psychology Blog at about.com: Psychology). He suggested mental plans - schemas (schemata) function as guides for action, as structure for interpreting information, as frameworks for solving problems. (For full explanation on schemas, conservation, assimilation and accommodation and explanations of terminology see appendix 2).
“Kiddy Thinks” In “Kiddy Thinks”, Alison Gopnik discusses the stages of thinking abilities of babies and young children. Using examples from her personal experiences as a parent and her experiments as a developmental psychologist, she defines these stages and explains the learning processes that take place during them. Through process analysis, Gopnik develops her thesis that babies and young children use the same learning strategies as scientists. Gopnik explains the stages of cognitive development for children from birth to the age of 4 years old. At birth, babies already know they are similar to other people.
Running head: FOUR PERSPECTIVES Four perspectives on the preschool mind D Barret Argosy University Four perspectives on the preschool mind Child development is a combination of social, behavioral, and environmental theories; to separate them leaves an unfinished picture regarding a child’s world. However, for this paper, the perspectives of J. Piaget, E. Erikson, B.F. Skinner, and L. Vygotsky will be compared and contrasted in relation to child development, followed by their theories on cognitive development issues and progress in preschool years. J. Piaget was a renowned Cognitive Theorist focused on how children think (Feldman, 2011). E. Erikson was a Psychosocial Theorist who considered feelings as the motivator of his crisis stages (Feldman, 2011). B.F. Skinner, a Behavioral Psychologist, developed Operant Conditioning as a means to shape and develop behaviors (Feldman, 2011).
Running head: Project Summary Paper, A methodological review – David Ellis 1 Project summary paper, a methodological review David Ellis PSY7650 Research Methods Professor Bob H Project Summary Paper, A methodological review – David Ellis 2 Introduction "Children's drawings as a self-report measurement" (Hamama & Ronen, 2009) is an exploratory qualitative study that investigates cildren's drawings as tools for self-report, in assessing outcome of cognitive-behavioral therapy for agressive behavior. The study has a phenomenological component, in that the children report about the way they experience their changes brought about through the course of 12 therapy sessions. (Leedy & Ormrod, 2010, pp.141-142) The study also has a grounded theory component, in that it examines themes of self-report that children express through drawing (Leedy & Ormrod, 2010, pp.142-144), although it is exploratory and descriptive and does not go into any formal analysis of the data. In this paper, we will examine the approach, the methodology, the validity and the reliability of this study. Validity and Reliability Several aspects of the research support its credibility.
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF EARLY SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN? Everybody is focusing on how early social development affects children. Psychologist made research and came up with a solution to prove why early social development affects children. In scientific terms, early childhood development is a process through which the young children grow and thrive physically, mentally, socially, emotionally and morally. It begins from conception and extends up to 8 years of age.
Others are called mini theories; these on the other hand deals on a limited aspect of development for instance social and cognitive growth. A major theorist such Sigmund Freud outlined the various stages of development in children where growth transformations occur. He called it the psychosexual stages of development, which largely emphasized on the significance of childhood experiences and events. Freud’s stages included oral, anal, phallic, latency and genital stages. All the stages involve the fulfillment of libidinal desires that play significant roles in adulthood.
The first article by (Webb 1980) talks about Piaget belief that within each person there is an internal self-regulation mechanism that responds to environmental stimulation by constantly fitting new experiences into existing cognitive structures called schemas developmental stages in teaching. Piaget's research has generated many suggested implications for teaching, impacted our understanding of child development and helped to usher a new era of research on the mental development of children. In one study, children at different stages of development shared their often contradictory views to problem situations. After these exchanges, many of the preoperational children advanced to