Piaget
He wasa SwissPsychologist
who deviseda model
describinghow humansgo
about making senseof their
world.
Four stagesof cognitive
development:
1) sensorimotorl
2) preoperationall
3) concreteoperational;
4) formal operation
Piagetbelievedthat all peopt"-purredpassthe same4
stagesin exactlythe sameorder.
" Piagetnotedthat individualsmay go through long
periodsof transition betweenstagesand that a person
may showcharacteristics
of a higher or lower stagein
other situations.Thereforeknowinga child's ageis
nevera guaranteethat you know how a child will
think."
1) Infancy: The SensorimotorStage.During this period
the
the infant developsobjectpermanence,
understandingthat objectsin the environmentexist
whetherthe baby perceivesthem or not.
2) Early Childhoodto the Early Elementary Years:
The PreoperationalStage.Piagetsaidthat childrento
masteroperations,which are actionsthat are carried
out and reversedmentallyrather than physically.It is
calledpreoperationalbecausethe child hasnot
masteredthesementaloperationsbut is movingtoward
mastery.The ability to form and usesymbols-words,
of
gestures,signs,images-is a major accomplishment
the preoperationalstage.
Preoperationalchildrenare very egocentric.This does
not meansselfishonly that childrenoften assumethat
everyoneelsesharestheir feelingsreactionsand
perspectives.
3) Later Elementaryto the Middle School
Yearsl The Concrete-Operational
Stage.The
basiccharacteristicsof this stageare the
recognitionof the logicalstability of the
physicalworld ,the realizationthat elements
can be changedor transformedand still
conservemany of their original characteristics,
and the understandingthat thesecan be
reversed.
Somestudentsremain at the concreteoperationalstagethroughouttheir school
years,eventhroughoutlife.
4) Middle and high School-Formal
Operations.The focusof thinking shiftsfrom
what is to what might be. Situationsdo not
haveto be experiencedto be understood.
Piagetsuggested
that mostadultsmay be able
to useformal -operationalthought only in a
few areaswherethey havethe greatest
experienceor interest.So do not expectevery
studentin the middle or high schoolto be able
to think hypothetically.
.|
Implications
As a teacher,how do you determinewhether
studentsare having trouble becausethey lack
the necessarythinking abilitiesor becausethey
simply havenot learnedthe basicfacts?
RobbieCasehas suggested
that you:
1) determinewhat kind of logic the usel
2) look to seeif they only focuson only one
aspectof the situationl
3) are they fooledby appearances?;
4) do they suggestsolutionssystematically
or by guessing?:
Piagetbelievedthat individuals construct their
own understandingthereforeschoolingmust
give studentsa chanceto experiencethe world.
5
Challenges
to Piaget'sTheory
Somepsychologists
have
questioned
the existence
of four
separatestagesof thinking, even
thoughthey agreethat children
do go throughthe changesthat
Piagetdescribes.Canlearningbe
accelerated?
Resultsshowthat
certaincognitiveabilitiesare
influencedby the environment
and education.(Geneexpression).
Piagetianpsychologists
say
speedingup the processcanhurt
the child.
(t
Duckworth
The agesthat Piagetmentionsare only norms,not
universals.Children developat a variety of speeds,
somemore slowlyand somemore quickly.
Tailoring to an averagelevelof developmentis
sureto missa large proportion of children.
We needto learn to ask the right questionat the
right time or createthe right settingfor the
childrento ask the questions.
66You
don't want to covera subjectyou want to
uncover it.tt
"The having of wonderfulideas,which I consider
the essence
of intellectualdevelopment,would
dependinsteadto an overwhelmingextenton the
for havingthem."
occasions
" I believethat the toolscannothelp developing
oncechildrenhavesomethingreal to think about;
and if they don't haveanythingreal to think about,
they won't be applyingtoolsanyway"
)
Text Information
Bronfenbrenner'sEcologicalTheory-Primarily
focuseson the socialcontextsin which studentslive
and the peoplewho influencetheir development.
"No societycan sustainitself unlessits members
motivationsand
havelearnedthe sensitivities,
skills involvedin assistingand caring for other
humanbeings"
Urie Bronfenbrenner
Criticism of his theory is that it givestoo little
attentionto biologicaland cognitivefactorsand
stages.
doesnot addressthe developmental
Erik Erikson's Life SpanDevelopmentTheoryPeoplehave8 stagesof developmentand they go
beyondchildhoodand is lifelong.
Criticism is that the stagesare too rigid and that
they are not scientificallyproven.
r
Parenting/Teachingstyles;
1)authoritarian-restrictiveand punishing;
child to be independentbut
2)authoritative-encourages
still placeslimits and controls, talks to the child;
3)neglectful4)indulgentPeerIssues-neglectedchildren are infrequently nominated
as bestfriend but not dislikedby peers
Rejectedchildren are infrequently nominatedas bestfriend
but are alsodislikedby their peers
Controversialchildren- are frequently nominatedas best
friend but are alsodisliked
Popularchildren-frequentlynominatedassbestfriend and
rarely disliked
Direct bullying- open and overt like fighting
Indirect bullying-secretand covertlike spreadingrumours
Reactivebullying- high degreeof emotionin responseto
perceivedthreats
Proactivebullying-calculated,planned,predatory
Self concept-representsindividual's generaldefinition of the
self,that is, their perceptions,beliefs,and feelingsabout who
they are.
is the global evaluativedimension of the self.It
Self-esteemis the individual's overall confidenceand satisfactionwith the
self.
7
Moral Development
Ruthie and the (not so)TeenyTiny Lie
A Walk in the Rain with a Brain
LawrenceKohlberg 's 3 stages
1) preconventionalreasoning-moralreasoning
is controlledby externalrewardsand
punishments
2) conventionalreasoning-internalizationof
moralsis intermediate,but standardsare
imposedby others;
3) postconventionalreasoning-moral
reasoningis basedon internal standards
Criticisms-his theory placestoo much emphasison
moral thinking and not enoughon moral behavior
-it is too individualistic
Hidden Curriculum- the moral atmosphereof the
school
Do vou believethat studentswith
shouldbe in the same
exceptionalities
classroomwith "regulartt students?Why?
What are the problemswith full inclusion?
What are the benefitsto society?
How would you definea gifted program?
Who shouldbe in it?
What hasbeenyour training to work with
para- professionals?
What would you like to
learnaboutworking with them?
If you werea parent of a child with an
emotionalbehavioraldisorderwhat would
you expectfrom your child's teacher.Do you
think that most children receivethis
standardof carefrom mostteachers?