Lecture 7 - Piaget Flashcards
What is cognition?
Cognition refers to the mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge and understanding, including attention, memory, language, reasoning, problem-solving, and decision-making.
What is the focus of Cognitive Developmental Theory?
It focuses on how cognitive abilities such as memory, attention, problem-solving, and concept formation develop over time.
What are cognitive structures?
Cognitive structures are mental frameworks that help us understand and organize our experiences. They include mental schemata (action-based representations) and concepts (rules for categorizing objects).
What is the process of assimilation?
Assimilation is when new information is incorporated into existing cognitive schemas without changing them.
What is accommodation in cognitive development?
Accommodation is the process of changing existing cognitive schemas or creating new ones to adapt to new information.
What is equilibration in cognitive development?
Equilibration is the process of balancing assimilation and accommodation to maintain cognitive harmony.
How does Piaget’s theory describe cognitive development?
Piaget’s theory suggests that cognitive development occurs in four stages: Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete Operational, and Formal Operational, each building upon the previous one.
What is object permanence?
Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are not visible or perceivable.
What are the key characteristics of the Preoperational stage (2-7 years)?
In this stage, children develop symbolic thinking, but they are egocentric, cannot grasp the concept of conservation, and focus on one aspect of a problem (centration).
What is conservation in cognitive development?
Conservation is the understanding that certain properties of objects, like quantity or volume, remain unchanged even when their appearance changes.
What major cognitive development occurs during the Concrete Operational stage (7-11 years)?
In this stage, children develop logical thinking, master the concept of conservation, and can understand cause and effect.
What is abstract thinking, and in which stage of Piaget’s theory does it develop?
Abstract thinking is the ability to think about hypothetical and complex concepts. It develops in the Formal Operational stage (11 years and older).
What are some criticisms of Piaget’s theory?
Criticisms include underestimating the abilities of children, especially in terms of object permanence and conservation, and the theory’s stage-based approach may not account for individual differences or cultural variations.
How did Baillargeon, Spelke, and Wasserman (1985) challenge Piaget’s view on object permanence?
They found that infants as young as 5 months old can understand object permanence, contradicting Piaget’s view that it develops around 8-9 months.
What is the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) according to Vygotsky?
The ZPD refers to the difference between what a child can do independently and what they can do with help from a more knowledgeable person, like a teacher or peer.
How do Piaget and Vygotsky differ in their views on cognitive development?
Piaget emphasizes stages of cognitive development and the individual’s role in constructing knowledge, while Vygotsky emphasizes the social context of learning, with instruction and cultural interactions playing a crucial role.
What is scaffolding in Vygotsky’s theory?
Scaffolding refers to the support provided by a more knowledgeable individual (like a teacher) to help a child complete tasks they cannot yet do independently.
How did Vygotsky view the role of language in cognitive development?
Vygotsky believed that language is central to cognitive development because it facilitates social interaction and allows children to internalize cultural norms and cognitive tools.
What does Vygotsky mean by “internalization” in cognitive development?
Internalization is the process through which social interactions and external symbols (like language) become internalized as mental functions.
How does Vygotsky’s concept of guided participation differ from Piaget’s view?
Vygotsky emphasized that children learn best when actively collaborating with others (e.g., parents, teachers), while Piaget focused on individual discovery and construction of knowledge.
What is the impact of cultural context in Vygotsky’s theory?
Vygotsky stressed that culture shapes cognitive development through social interactions and learning processes that vary across different cultural environments.
What is the main criticism of Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)?
One criticism is that the concept of ZPD is not fully clear in terms of whether the distance between what a child can do independently and with help is quantitative or qualitative.
How did Rogoff’s (1990) work influence our understanding of learning in Vygotsky’s framework?
Rogoff introduced the concept of guided participation, where a more knowledgeable person (like a parent) helps a child engage in tasks by providing support, leading to gradual independence.
What is one significant difference between Piaget and Vygotsky regarding formal instruction?
Piaget believed that children construct their knowledge independently, while Vygotsky emphasized that formal instruction plays a crucial role in cognitive development.
