Chapter 12: Cognitive Development

Question 1

What is the most important cognitive achievement of middle childhood?

Answer 1

Concrete Operational Thought

Question 2

What is Concrete Operational Thought?

Answer 2

It is the ability to reason logically about direct experiences and perceptions

Question 3

What is Classification?

Answer 3

Organization of things into groups or categories according to common characteristics

Question 4

Explain Piaget’s Flower Experiment.

Answer 4

Piaget shows 9 flowers to children (7 daisies and 2 roses)
He asks the children if there are more daisies or more flowers.

The children under 8 answered that there are more daisies.
The children 8 and older answered that there are more flowers.

Question 5

What is Transitive Inference?

Answer 5

Logic

Question 6

Explain Logic in middle childhood.

Answer 6

The ability to figure out the transfer between one fact and another

Question 7

What is Seriation?

Answer 7

The ability to understand that things can be arranged in logical series
i.e.: alphabet and numbers

Question 8

What is Reversibility?

Answer 8

It is the concept that 6 x 6 = 36 and 36/6 = 6

Children now understand this

Question 9

What is memory?

Answer 9

Memory is a process affected by maturation and experience

Question 10

What is another term for short term memory?

Answer 10

Working memory

Question 11

Explain short term/working memory.

Answer 11

Is it the processing system of current, conscious mental activity

It improves significantly from 4 to 15 years old

Question 12

What is sensory memory?

Answer 12

It is the processing system from stimulus information which is stored for a split second

Question 13

Explain long term memory.

Answer 13

It is the processing system of limitless amounts of information that can be stored indefinitely

Question 14

What did Vygotsky say about cognitive development?

Answer 14

Classroom construction is crucial and education occurs at school, during play and at eating times

Question 15

Vygotsky said that peers and teachers are the bridge between developmental potential, skills and knowledge. What 3 things contributes to this?

Answer 15

Guided participation, scaffolding and zone of proximal development

Question 16

Vygotsky emphasized what?

Answer 16

A sociocultural context

Question 17

Piaget emphasized what?

Answer 17

Maturational self discovery

Question 18

What do children know about language by age 6?

Answer 18

• Basic vocabulary and grammar of their first language
• May speak another language

Question 19

What do children know about language at school age?

Answer 19

• 20 new words a day
• Grammar rules
• Flexibility and logic thinking
• They understand metaphors, phrases and figures of speech
• Use of adjectives, adverbes, hounds and verbes
• Name 1000 objects +

Question 20

Explain children understanding metaphors.

Answer 20

They understand and enjoy puns and unexpected answers

Question 21

What is pragmatics?

Answer 21

It is the ability to change formal and informal codes to fit the audience
i.e.: They use different vocabulary when on the playground rather than when talking to their parents

Question 22

Who understands how to use pragmatics?

Answer 22

School age children

Question 23

What is Code of Recognition?

Answer 23

It is the tone of voice and speech
i.e.: Children understand when one raises their voice, that they are angry

Question 24

Explain family poverty in language development.

Answer 24

There is a strong correlation between academic success and low socioeconomic status
i.e.: Children in low ses families have a smaller vocabulary and simpler grammar

Question 25

What are the two factors of low achievement in middle childhood?

Answer 25

1. Limited early exposure to words
2. Teachers and parents expectations