Understanding Cognitive Developments of Students

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Running Head: UNDERSTANDING COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENTS OF STUDENTS Understanding Cognitive Developments of Students using theories of Piaget, Erikson and Vygotsky Understanding Cognitive Developments of Students 1 Introduction The articles chosen for discussion include theories from Piaget, Erikson and Vgotsky. Each article details the importance of cognitive development as well as the importance of social interactions between students and their environments. Theorist Piaget described four stages of development which includes creating new schemes that move from one stage to another, creation of mental maps, and human environment adaptation. Erikson also described specific stages of development within his psychological theories, “pre-determined unfolding of our personalities in stages (Boeree, 2006). Vygotsky advocated that children are born with the ability and motivation to learn and discover. In his opinion, a child should be engaged in learning then the conceptual skills will follow. Educators should determine the appropriate learning strategies that should be used to associate new knowledge with existing knowledge in the classroom. Development cannot occur with active experiences, the primary mode of acquiring knowledge is through action (Wadsworth, 1996). Background The first article, “ Making Conservationist and Classifers of Pre-occupational Fifth-Grade Children”, Piaget (1971a) further suggested that, as children get older, genetic factors play a decreasing role, whereas the environment’s impact on cognitive development increases. The study suggest that children raised within surroundings with limited opportunities to explore will develop more slowly than will children who grow up with many
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