piaget's theory of cognitive development Flashcards
how many schema are children born with?
a small number - just enough to interact with the world/other people
true or false?
as children develop, they construct more complex mental representations of the world
true
when do we develop more abstract concepts of the world?
give an example of an abstract concept
later in life - e.g. justice, morality
what does the motivation to learn involve?
disequilibrium + equilibration
what leads to disequilibrium?
when our existing schema don’t allow us to make sense of something new
how do we escape disequilibrium?
we have to adapt to the new situation by exploring + developing our understanding
define ‘equilibration’
it takes place when we have encountered new information + assimilated it into an existing schema or accommodated it by forming a new one - this reaches a balance known as equilibration
how did Piaget view the process of learning?
adapting to a new situation in order to be able to understand it
when does assimilation take place?
when we understand a new experience + equilibrate by adding new information to an existing schema
give an example of assimilation
a child in a family with dogs can adapt to the existence of different dog breeds by assimilating them into their dog schema
when does accommodation take place?
in response to dramatically new experiences
how does the child adjust during ‘accommodation’?
they either radically change their current schema or form a new schema
give an example of accommodation
a child with a pet dog may at first think of cats as dogs (4 legs, fur, tail) but then recognise the existence of a separate category called ‘cats’ - this forms a new ‘cat schema’
what are 2 strengths of this theory?
~ research support
~ real-world application
what was Howe et. al.’s method?
children aged 9-12 were placed in groups of 4 to investigate + discuss the movement of objects down a slope
what did Howe et. al. find?
each child had picked up different facts + reached slightly different conclusions, meaning that each child had formed an individual mental representation of how objects move on slopes (as Piaget would’ve expected)
what did Howe et. al. provide evidence for?
the individual formation of mental representations, even when the children have similar leaning experiences
what is one limitation of this theory, in terms of roles of others?
it may be an incomplete explanation of learning, as it doesn’t put enough emphasis on the roles of others
how did Piaget view learning compared to other theories?
he saw it as an individual process, whereas other theories view learning more as a social process, supported by MKOs (e.g. Vygotsky)
what is one limitation of this theory, in terms of role of motivation?
Piaget overstated the role of motivation in learning - he studied an unrepresentative, intelligent sample of children, who may have been more motivated by most
where does this theory have an application?
teaching
what in his theory has transformed teaching?
his theory of active learning by exploring environment + forming our own mental representations
how did Piaget change teaching in the 1960s?
his ideas transformed ‘copying down notes’ into active tasks to allow children to construct their own understanding of the curriculum
give an example of how children may learn in early years compared to sixth form based on Piaget’s ideas
in early years, children may discover physical properties of water + sand, whereas during A-Level students may read up on a topic before arriving to the lesson - this is discovery learning
