Chapter 4 Flashcards
Piaget’s theory
suggests that children move through four different stages of mental development.
Genetic epistemology
study of the origins (genesis) of knowledge (epistemology).
Constructivist approach
depicts children as constructing knowledge for themselves in response to their experiences.
Three most important of children’s constructive processes
1) generating hypotheses, 2) performing experiments, and 3) drawing conclusions from their observations.
______ and _____ interact to produce cognitive development.
nature; nurture
Nurture
every experience children encounter.
Main Sources of Continuity
- assimilation, accommodation, equilibration
Assimilation
people translate incoming information into a form that fits concepts they already understand.
Accommodation
people adapt current knowledge structures in response to new experiences.
Equilibration
children balance assimilation and accommodation to create stable understanding.
Three phases of equilibration
- ) Equilibrium
- ) Disequilibrium
- ) Advanced equilibrium
Equilibrium
people are satisfied with their understanding of a particular phenomenon.
Disequilibrium
recognize shortcomings in their understanding of the phenomenon, but they cannot generate a superior alternative.
Advanced equilibrium
develop a more sophisticated understanding that eliminates the shortcomings of the old one.
Qualitative change
- children of different ages think in qualitatively
different ways. - Ex: a 5-year-old’s conception of morality = consequences of a person’s behaviour.
- 8-year-old’s conception of morality = intent.
Broad applicability
The type of thinking at each stage influences children’s thinking across diverse topics.
Brief transitions
Before entering a new stage, children pass through a brief period in which they fluctuate between the type of thinking characteristic of the new and the old.
Piaget believed in _______ stages of cognitive development.
discontinuous/distinct
What stage takes place from birth to 2 years old?
sensorimotor
What stage takes place from 2 to 7 years?
preoperational
What stage takes place from 7 to 12 years?
concrete operational
What stage takes place from 12 years and beyond?
formal operational
Sensorimotor stage
- intelligence is expressed through sensory and motor abilities.
Preoperational stage
- children become able to represent their experiences in language, mental imagery, and symbolic thought.
- inability to perform conservation concept.
Concrete operational stage
children become able to reason logically about concrete objects and events.
Formal operational stage
people become able to think about abstractions and hypothetical situations.
At ______ babies lack object permanence, which is __________ .
8 months; the knowledge that objects continue to exist even when they are out of view.
From _______, the A not B error occurs which is
8 - 12 months; the tendency to reach for a hidden object where it was last found rather than in the new location where it was last hidden.
What happens from 18 to 24 months?
infants become able to form enduring mental representations, shown by deferred imitation
deferred imitation
the repetition of other people’s behaviour a substantial time after it originally occurred.
At 1 years old, the child is like a _________.
scientist, they explore the potential ways in which objects can be used.
Symbolic representation
the use of one object to stand for another.
- preoperational stage
Egocentrism
the tendency to perceive the world solely from one’s own point of view.
Limitations of preoperational stage
- egocentricism
- centration
Centration
the tendency to focus on a single feature of something.
Conservation concept
the idea that changing the appearance of objects does not necessarily change the objects’ other key properties.
- Ex of centration.
the formal operational stage is not ________, not all _______ reach it.
universal; adults
Four weaknesses in Piaget’s theory
- ) vague about mechanisms.
- ) infants are more cognitively competent than recognized.
- ) understates contribution of the social world
- ) depicts children’s thinking as being more consistent than it is.
Child centred approach
considering the various stages of cognitive processing to determine when information should be taught.
Sociocultural theories
approaches that emphasize that other people and the surrounding culture contribute greatly to children’s development.
Guided participation
a process in which more knowledgeable individuals organize activities in ways that allow less knowledgeable people to learn.
Cultural tools
products of human creativity that enhance thinking.
Vygotsky
emphasizes the impact of culture on a child’s cognitive development.
________________ arising from the culture contribute to cognitive development.
language, writings, and concepts.
Three phases of internalizing speech
- ) Children’s behaviour is controlled by other people’s statements
- ) Children’s behaviour is controlled by their own private speech.
- ) Behaviour is controlled by thoughts.
Private speech
children develop self-regulation and problem-solving abilities by telling themselves aloud what to do.
Piaget vs Vygostky
Vgostky
- children are social learners
- gradual continuous changes
- language & thoughts integrally related.
Piaget
- children understand world on their own
- qualitative changes
- language & thought are independent.
Intersubjectivity
the mutual understanding that people share during communication.
Ex: language learning.
Joint attention
a process in which social partners intentionally focus on a common object.
Social scaffolding
helps children learn more by working with a more advanced person to achieve their learning goals.
- helps form autobiographical memories.
autobiographical memories
memories of one’s own experiences
Community-of-learners program
- education application of sociocultural theories.
- jigsaw approach
