Development Flashcards
What are the three main parts of the brain that develop early?
The forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain.
What does the forebrain do?
Controls higher thinking, emotions, and voluntary actions.
What does the midbrain do?
Connects the forebrain and hindbrain, and controls sensory processing and movement.
What does the hindbrain do?
Regulates basic life functions like breathing, heart rate, and coordination.
What is the role of the cerebellum?
It controls balance, coordination, and fine motor skills.
What does the medulla control?
Involuntary functions such as breathing, digestion, and heart rate.
What are Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development?
- Sensorimotor (0-2 years)
- Pre-operational (2-7 years)
- Concrete operational (7-11 years)
- Formal operational (11+ years)
What happens in the sensorimotor stage?
Infants learn through senses and movement, and develop object permanence.
What happens in the pre-operational stage?
Children are egocentric, struggle with conservation, and use symbolic thinking.
What happens in the concrete operational stage?
Children develop logical thinking and understand conservation but struggle with abstract ideas.
What happens in the formal operational stage?
Children develop abstract thinking and problem-solving skills.
What is a schema in Piaget’s theory?
A mental framework that helps interpret and understand the world.
What is assimilation?
Adding new experiences to existing schemas without changing them.
What is accommodation?
Modifying or creating new schemas when new information doesn’t fit existing ones.
What is equilibrium?
The balance between assimilation and accommodation, leading to learning.
What is a strength of Piaget’s theory?
It was influential in education and helped develop child-centered learning.
What is a weakness of Piaget’s theory?
It underestimates children’s abilities—some develop faster than he suggested.
What is a fixed mindset?
The belief that intelligence and ability are unchangeable.
What is a growth mindset?
The belief that intelligence and ability can improve with effort.
What is the role of effort in learning, according to Dweck?
Students who believe effort leads to success are more likely to improve.
What is a strength of Dweck’s theory?
It helps encourage persistence and motivation in students.
What is a weakness of Dweck’s theory?
It oversimplifies learning and ignores other factors like environment.
What is Willingham’s main idea about learning?
Factual knowledge precedes skill—you need knowledge before applying skills.
Why is practice and effort important in learning?
It helps strengthen neural connections and improves memory.
Give one strategy to support cognitive development.
Teachers should help students understand key facts before solving problems.
Give one strategy to support physical development.
Practice motor skills gradually and in small steps.
Give one strategy to support social development.
Encourage role models and teach appropriate behavior.
What is a strength of Willingham’s theory?
It is based on scientific evidence about how memory works.
What is a weakness of Willingham’s theory?
It ignores individual learning differences, like learning styles.
What was the aim of the Three Mountains Task?
To test whether children were egocentric.
What was the result of Three Mountains Task study?
Younger children (pre-operational stage) were egocentric, while older children could see other perspectives.
What was a weakness of the Three Mountains Task study?
It was too abstract, and Hughes’ Policeman Task showed children could take perspectives earlier.
What was the aim of Gunderson et al.’s (2013) study?
To investigate if parental praise given to children aged 1-3 years old affects their motivation and mindset later in life.
What were the two types of praise studied in Gunderson et al.’s (2013) study?
- Process praise – Focuses on effort and strategies (e.g., “You worked really hard!”)
- Person praise – Focuses on fixed traits (e.g., “You’re so smart!”)
What did the Gunderson et al.’s (2013) study find?
Children who received process praise were more likely to develop a growth mindset.
What is a strength of Gunderson et al.’s study?
It was a longitudinal study, meaning it observed real changes over time.
What was a weakness of the Gunderson et al.’s (2013) study?
The sample size was small, making it harder to generalize findings.
How does Gunderson et al.’s (2013) study relate to Dweck’s Mindset Theory?
It supports the idea that praise affects mindset—children develop either a fixed or growth mindset based on feedback.
What is morality?
A system of beliefs about what is right and wrong.
What are Kohlberg’s three levels of moral development?
- Pre-conventional – Morality based on punishment/reward.
- Conventional – Morality based on societal rules.
- Post-conventional – Morality based on personal ethics.
How does Piaget’s cognitive development theory relate to morality?
As children’s thinking skills improve, they can consider different moral viewpoints.
What happens in pre-conventional morality?
Children make moral decisions based on punishment and reward.
What happens in conventional morality?
People follow society’s rules and expectations to gain approval.
What happens in post-conventional morality?
Moral reasoning is based on personal principles and justice rather than laws.
What is the relationship between morality and development?
As cognitive development progresses, children develop more sophisticated moral reasoning.
What is an alternative explanation for moral development besides Kohlberg’s theory?
Social Learning Theory (Bandura) suggests morality develops through observing role models.
