Cognitive Development Flashcards
Schemes
organised patterns of functioning (thinking) that adapt and change with mental development
assimilation
the process by which someone understands an experience, as interpreted or “Fitting” with their schemes/cognitive development.
accomodation
When changes are made in thinking as new experiences or knowledge is encountered. Schemes are modified.
Piaget stages and substages of Cognitive Development
STAGES
.Sensorimotor; birth to 2 years. Achieve object permanence. Emergence of symbolic thought.
substage 1;simple reflexes eg sucking reflex. First month.
substage 2; 1-4 months.First habits and primary circular reactions eg grasp object whilst sucking it.
substage 3;Secondary circular reactions.4-8 months.eg repeatedly picks up and shakes rattle to see how sound changes.
substage 4:Coordination of secondary circular reactions. 8-12 months. eg.push 1 toy out of way to reach another.
substage 5;Tertiary circular reactions. 12-18months.eg drop a toy repeatedly, slightly varying position, to see where it falls.
substage 6;Beginnings of thought.18months-2 years.eg when ball rolls under couch can predict where will end up on other side.
. Pre-Operational; age 2-7 years. Symbolic thinking allows pretend play. thinking is egocentric.
Concrete Operational; 7-12 years. Can think logically re concrete events. Understand conservation and serial ordering.
Formal Operational; 12+. Can think more logically, flexibly and abstractly. Can form and test hypotheses.
mental representation
an internal image of a past event or object
deferred imitation
a person who is no longer present, is imitated later
operations
organized, formal, logical, mental processes.
symbolic function
the ability to use a mental symbol, word or image to represent something not physically present
centration
process of concentrating on one limited aspect of an event or stimulus, and ignoring others.
conservation
understanding that quantity or mass is not the same as arrangement or physical appearance.
egocentrism
inability to see another’s perspective. Preschoolers are incapable of understanding that someone’s view may differ from their own.
intuitive thought
preschoolers use of primative reasoning. avid acquisition of knowledge but little understanding of explanations and how they know things or why something is as it is. No logic to their knowledge.
circular reactions (primary, secondary and tertiary).
Primary circular reaction-a scheme where repeat act for pure enjoyment.Action is based on infant’s own body.
Secondary circular reactions-schemes re actions repeated because bring about a desired consequence. Actions based on other objects..
Tertiary circular reactions-schemes regarding deliberate variations in repeated actions to bring about interesting/desirable consequences. according to Piaget.
decentering
ability to take multiple aspects of something into account.
reversibility
the understanding that a process which transforms a substance, can be reversed. achieved once into Concrete Operational thinking.
propositional thought
Achieved in adolescence. Ability to reason with abstract logic, in the absence of concrete examples. eg Premise (A), premise (B), therefore conclusion….
zone of Proximal development
according to Vygotsky, the ideal loevel for learning. This level is where child can almost, but not fully comprehend without assistance, but with assistance can master. The greater improvement gained with help, the larger the ZPD.
scaffolding
the assistance or support provided by others, to enable learning.
object permanence
The understanding that an object still exists when out of sight.
goal directed behaviour
behaviour where several schemes or understandings, are employed and coordinated, to achieve a goal.
transformation
process by which 1 state is changed into another.eg. understands falling pencil occupies different positions in space as falling (ie running man flipbook). Not understood until concrete operational stage.
functionality
notion that actions, events and outcomes are related in fixed patterns. Understood at end of Pre-Operational stage.
identity
understanding that certain things stay the same, regardless of changes in shape, size and appearance.
cultural tools
physical items, as well as intellectual and conceptual frameworks within a culture, which are used to solve problems