Cognitive and Language Development C H A P T E R 2 Cognitive and Language Development

Learning Goals Define development and explain the main processes, periods, and issues in development as well as links between development and education. Discuss the development of the brain and compare the cognitive developmental theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. Identify the key features of language, biological and environmental influences on language, and the typical growth of a child’s language.

Cognitive and Language Development An Overview of Child Development Development and Education Exploring What Development Is Processes and Periods Developmental Issues

An Overview of Child Development Development: The pattern of biological, cognitive, and socioemotional changes that begins at conception and continues through the life span.

Developmental Processes Biological processes and genetic inheritance Development of the brain Gains in height and weight Changes in motor skills Puberty’s hormonal changes Cognitive processes Changes in the child’s thinking Intelligence Language acquisition

Developmental Processes Socioemotional processes Changes in the child’s relationships with other people Changes in personality

Developmental Issues Nature-Nurture Issue Continuity-Discontinuity Issue Early-Later Experience Issue

Development and Education Developmentally appropriate teaching practices Splintered development

Cognitive and Language Development The Brain Vygotsky’s Theory Piaget’s Theory

Synaptic Density in the Human Brain

Myelination Myelination increases the speed at which information travels through the nervous system.

in the right hemisphere. Brain Lateralization …the specialization of functions in each hemisphere of the brain. Verbal Processing In most individuals, speech and grammar are localized in the left hemisphere. Nonverbal Processing Spatial perception, visual recognition, and emotion are localized in the right hemisphere.

Brain and Children’s Education Role of early and later experiences Dramatic changes in synaptic connections Prefrontal cortex development into adolescence Cognitive control challenges in adolescence Brain functioning along specific pathways and integrated

Piaget’s Cognitive Processes Actions or mental representations that organize knowledge Incorporating new information into existing schemas Adjusting existing schemas to fit new information and experiences Grouping isolated behaviors and thoughts into a higher-order system A shift, a resolution of conflict to reach a balance Schemas Assimilation Accommodation Organization Equilibration

Piaget’s Four Stages Cognition unfolds in a sequence of four stages. Each stage is age-related and distinctive. Each stage is discontinuous from and more advanced than the previous.

Piaget’s Four Stages

Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage Coordination of sensory experiences with motor actions. Object permanence involves the realization that objects continue to exist over time.

Piaget’s Preoperational Stage Symbolic Function Substage Symbolic Thought: Ability to represent mentally an object that is not present. Limitations: Egocentrism: The inability to distinguish between one’s own perspective and someone else’s perspective. Animism: The belief that inanimate objects have “lifelike” qualities and are capable of action.

The Three Mountain Tasks

Piaget’s Preoperational Stage Intuitive Thought Substage Intuitive Thought rather than logical thinking Centration: Focuses on one characteristic to the exclusion of others. Lack of Conservation Classification: Ability to classify objects according to only one characteristic at a time.

Conservation of Liquid

Piaget’s Concrete Operational Stage Logical reasoning replaces intuitive reasoning, but only in concrete situations. Conservation The idea that some characteristics of an object stay the same even though the object might change in appearance. Classification Coordinate several characteristics rather than focus on a single property of an object. Seriation Order stimuli along some quantitative dimension. Transitivity Combine relations to understand certain conclusions. If A>B, and B>C, then A>C.

Hierarchical Classification When shown a family tree of four generations, the concrete operational child can classify the members vertically, horizontally, and obliquely.

Piaget’s Formal Operational Stage Abstract reasoning: Think in abstract, idealistic, and logical ways. Hypothetical-deductive reasoning: Ability to develop hypotheses about ways to solve problems and systematically reach a conclusion. Adolescent egocentrism: Heightened self-consciousness and a sense of personal uniqueness.

Piaget’s Theory Teaching Strategies Preoperational Thinkers Manipulate groups of objects Reduce egocentrism Draw conclusions and explain why Concrete Operations Encourage children to discover concepts and principles Assign operational tasks Propose problems and encourage hypothesis formation Suggest alternative approaches to problems Develop projects and investigations Formal Operations

Enter the Debate Should teachers allow preschool, kindergarten, and first-grade students to play for the bulk of their day? YES NO During a slideshow, text may be written on the slides in the yes/no boxes, and then saved for later reference.

Piaget’s Cognitive Constructivism Theory into Practice Jennifer, James, and several of their classmates are playing hide-and-go-seek during indoor recess one rainy day. Jennifer carefully conceals her entire body behind Mrs. Johnson’s long smock. In contrast, James hides only his upper body behind a jacket hanging on a hook. He giggles, sure that his classmates will never see him. A: Pre-operational. He is suffering from pre-operational egocentrism. He believes that if he cannot see his classmates, they cannot see him either. Q: Based on the information given above, at which of Piaget’s stages of cognitive development is James most likely operating? Explain.

Piaget’s Cognitive Constructivism Theory into Practice Mr. Jackson has a sand table in his kindergarten classroom. He provides his students with many containers of different sizes and shapes to play with in the sand. He watches as his students carefully pour sand from one container to another. One little girl, Michelle, seems amazed when she pours sand back and forth between two containers. The sand always fills up one container and only half-fills the other, yet the containers are the same height. A: Conservation. She is learning that height and width of the container both contribute to how full the container becomes with the same amount of sand. Q: Based on the information given above, what skill is Michelle most likely developing? Explain.

Piaget’s Cognitive Constructivism Theory into Practice Mr. Welby teaches high school English. He always asks his students to find the symbolism in the great works of literature he assigns. Some students do this with relative ease. For others it is a real struggle. Many are only able to parrot back what he has told them in class. A1: Formal operational. They can understand the symbolism in literature due to their ability to think abstractly. A2: Concrete operational. They are able to remember what Mr. Welby tells them, but cannot think abstractly enough to understand the symbolism. Q.1: At which of Piaget’s stages are those who understand the symbolism in literature likely operating? Q.2: At which of Piaget’s stages are those who cannot understand the symbolism in literature likely operating?

Piaget’s Cognitive Constructivism Theory into Practice Marsha refuses to go to school one morning because she is having a “bad hair day” and is certain that everyone will stare at her all day. Her mother assures her that she looks just fine. However, Marsha races back to the bathroom to attempt to fix her “awful hair.” A: Marsha is suffering from adolescent egocentrism. She is very self-conscious and believes that others will be just as interested in, and hence as critical of, her hair as she is. Q: What would Elkind say is happening here?

Criticisms of Piaget’s Theory Estimates of children’s competence Stages Training children to reason at a higher level Culture and education

Crack the Case The Case of the Book Report Drawing on Piaget’s theory, explain why Cindy understood the book. Based on Piaget’s theory, explain why Lucy did not understand the book. What could Mr. Johnson do to help Lucy understand? This case is on page 67 of the text. cont’d

Crack the Case The Case of the Book Report How could Mr. Johnson have presented this assignment differently so that Lucy did not need to rush through a book? At which of Piaget’s stages of cognitive development is Cindy operating? At which of Piaget’s stages of cognitive development is Lucy operating? This case is on page 67 of the text.

Vygotsky’s Theory Zone of Proximal Development Scaffolding: Teacher adjusts the level of support as performance rises. Language and Thought: Develop independently of each other, then merge. Have external or social origins Self-talk

Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) Tasks too difficult for child to master even with assistance Tasks child can master alone

Vygotsky’s Social Constructivism Theory into Practice Peter is having difficulty with his math assignment. His teacher, Ms. Jacobs helps him work through the first problem step-by-step. Peter begins to understand the concepts and begins the other problems. Suzanne also struggles with the assignment. However, even when Ms. Jacobs works through the first problem with her, she still cannot grasp how to do the remaining problems. Meanwhile, Clarice has breezed through the assignment with no difficulty at all. A1: The assignment is within Peter’s ZPD. He can do it with Ms. Jacob’s assistance. A2: The assignment is beyond Suzanne’s ZPD. Even with assistance she cannot complete the assignment. Q.1: What would Vygotsky say about the assignment for Peter? Q.2: What would Vygotsky say about the assignment for Suzanne?

Vygotsky’s Social Constructivism Theory into Practice Peter is having difficulty with his math assignment. His teacher, Ms. Jacobs helps him work through the first problem step-by-step. Peter begins to understand the concepts and begins the other problems. Suzanne also struggles with the assignment. However, even when Ms. Jacobs works through the first problem with her, she still cannot grasp how to do the remaining problems. Meanwhile, Clarice has breezed through the assignment with no difficulty at all. A3: The assignment is below Clarice’s ZPD. She can easily complete the assignment with no assistance because she has already mastered the concepts. Q4: Vygotsky’s term for this assistance is scaffolding. Q.3: What would Vygotsky say about the assignment for Clarice? Q.4: What would Vygotsky call the assistance Ms. Jacobs gives Peter and Suzanne? Explain.

Reflection & Observation Identify an experience in which a more competent person helped you learn something you were unable to do alone. How did this person scaffold your learning? This slide accompanies the video segment, Kindergarten Learning Centers, on the McGraw-Hill DVD Teaching Stories: A Video Collection for Educational Psychology.

Cognitive and Language Development What Is Language? How Language Develops Biological and Environmental Influences

Language is … Phonology Sound system of a language …a form of communication, spoken, written, or signed, that is based on a system of symbols. Phonology Sound system of a language Morphology Units of meaning involved in word formation Syntax Rules for combining words into phrases/sentences Semantics Meaning of words and sentences Pragmatics Appropriate use of language in different contexts

Biological and Environmental Influences Children are neither exclusively biological linguists nor social architects of language. Interactionists emphasize the contribution of both.

How Language Develops Infancy Babbling One  two words

How Language Develops Early Childhood Phonology Sensitive to sounds, rhymes Morphology Overgeneralize rules Syntax Complex rules for ordering words Semantics 6-year-old: 8,000 to 14,000-word vocabulary Pragmatics Talk in different ways to different people

How Language Develops Middle & Late Childhood Phonology Alphabetic principle: letter-sound correspondence Morphology Appropriate application of rules Syntax Complex grammar; metalinguistic awareness Semantics 12-year-old: 50,000-word vocabulary Pragmatics Culturally appropriate language use

How Language Develops Adolescence Increased sophistication in use of words Greater understanding of metaphors, satire, and complex literary works Better writers Dialect includes jargon and slang

Supporting Vocabulary Development Through Technology Computers Relate the new to the known Promote active, in-depth processing Encourage reading Audio Books Educational Television Please Note: The content of this slide is not in the text. If you do not wish to use it in a presentation, you may either delete or hide it.