This paper explains how Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory of development has shaped my development and how these levels influenced my decision to pursue my life’s passion. Urie Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory of development is a theory that is relevant to the lives of all persons. A person’s development is affected by their environment and those relationships are how Bronferbrenner explained his five models of systems. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory suggests an approach that recognizes the significance of a child’s environment during growth, with the interaction factors between the child and their environment routing and fueling the development (McWhirter, McWhirter, McWhirter, & McWhirter, 2013). The Ecological Theory believes that a person’s development is reflective of five environmental systems (1) microsystem, (2) mesosystem, (3) exosystem, (4) macrosystem, and (5) chronosystem (McWhirter, McWhirter, McWhirter, & McWhirter, 2013).
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.
Depending on the genes we inherit and the environmental influences we are exposed to, we will act apon a situation differently. This is what makes us human. In the maturation theory, some aspects of development such as the ability to speak a language are thought to be due to an inbuilt process. As children are born and start to grow and develop, they see different things
The subsequent discussion offers an analysis of these levels and their influence to child development, and then the writer offers a personal analysis of the influence of the ecological theory in decision making. The theory suggests there are four levels of the environment that simultaneously influence individuals. Brofenbrenner suggest that we can’t fully understand development without considering how a person is influenced by each of these levels (Vander Zanden, 2007). Bronfenbrenner examines the mutual accommodations between the developing person and these changing contexts in terms of four levels of environmental influence: the microsystem, the mesosytem, the exosystem, and the macrosystem (Vander Zander, p. 8, 2007). The microsystem consists of the network of social relationships and physical settings in which a person in involved in each and every day.
Each of the four systems is described below. Microsystem The microsystem is defined as the pattern of activities, roles, and interpersonal relationships experienced by a developing person in a particular setting with particular physical and material features and containing other persons with distinctive characteristics of temperament, personality, and systems of belief (Brofenbrenner, U. 1995). The microsystem in a nutshell is the family, peers, school and neighborhood. These influences directly affect the active human being development.
Development is defined as the orderly and sequential changes that occur with the passage of time as an organism moves from conception to death. Developmental psychology is defined as the branch of psychology that deals with how individuals change with time while remaining in some respects the same (Zanden et al., 2007). Developmental psychologists have been seeking ways to determine how we change and the changes that take place during our lives as we develop. Urie Bronfenbrenner develops a theory that involves how a person and their ecological environment interact and the influence that a person’s environment plays in their development. Bronfenbrenner is most famous for his views on ecological psychology.
COPYRIGHT MICHAEL P M MHLANGA THE NATURE NURTURE DEBATE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF INDIVIDUALS. MICHAEL P M MHLANGA GREAT ZIMBABWE UNIVERSITY The concepts of nature and nurture shape the development of human beings. This write up sets out to assess the nature nurture debate, pinpointing the effects each has on the development of children. Terms that will be defined are nature nurture debate, nature and nurture. Feldman (2009) defines the nature nurture debate as the issue of the degree to which environment and hereditary factors influence the behaviour.
Erikson for his theory of psychosocial development, who believed that personality develops in a series of stages. However, each author has their own view regarding the educational implication of the various processes, as well as, the role of various environmental components. The following articles (Horn 2009), will attempt to support and the educational implications of each theory. The articles highlight the major theories, research and opinions of Piaget, Vygotsky, and Erik Erikson’ on how children develop and learn. 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.
These settings include the child’s own home, child care centers and family child care. The quality of the care they receive, whatever the setting, is a primary concern here. The kind of relationships and experiences infants and toddlers have can either nurture of interfere with their development. An infant's capacity to learn and thrive depends on the interplay between nature and nurture. Infants come into this world with an inherited genetic
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory shows that a variety of environmental influences contribute towards the social and emotional development of people, for example, a child’s family, community, and their school will all contribute to the development of a child. Keeping this in mind it makes you wonder what things have influenced my life. Using the Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory to show how I developed my emotional and social skills is interesting. Thinking on my past I can see where certain aspects in my childhood led me to where I am today. For example, I did not receive much