The cognitive approach

Question 1

Piaget (1896-1980)

Answer 1

argued that a child’s acquisition of linguistic structure depends upon his understanding of the concepts behind it. (thought becomes before language)

Question 2

Egocentrism

Answer 2

children begin by viewing themselves as the centre of the universe and other objects only in relation to themselves.
At around 18 months, children begin to realise that things have an existence.

Question 3

Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years)

Answer 3

child begins to interact with their environment and an understanding of object permanence appears

Question 4

Pre-operational stage (2-6/7 years)

Answer 4

Child learning to speak, struggles to understand things from other points of view other than their own. They begin to question frequently.

Question 5

Concrete operational stage (6/7-11/12 years)

Answer 5

egocentrism is stopped and become more capable of logical thought

Question 6

Formal operational stage (11-16+ years)

Answer 6

thinking becomes increasingly abstract.

Question 7

Evaluation strength:

Answer 7

children produce utterances which increase in complexity as they word towards mastering a rule. (Brown’s morphemes and Bellugi’s stages for pronouns & question formation)

Question 8

Evaluation weakness:

Answer 8

children with cognitive difficulties can still manage to use language beyond their understanding

Question 9

Evaluation weakness:

Answer 9

‘fis’ phenomenon suggests children’s cognitive understanding can be present but their physical development still impacts their ability to use language