children cognitive development in early childhood 9

Children

Cognitive Development

In Early Childhood

9

Piaget’s Preoperational Stage

• Operations: internalized set of actions

• Preoperational stage– Ages 2 to 7 – Stable concepts formed – Mental reasoning, magical beliefs emerge– Cannot reverse mental actions– Contains 2 substages: symbolic function and

intuitive

Three Views of Cognitive Changes in Early Childhood


• Symbolic Function Stage

• First substage of preoperational thought– Occurs in ages 2 to 4, imaginative drawings– Ability to mentally represent object not

present– Thoughts limited by beliefs:

• Egocentrism: inability to distinguish own perspectives from those of others

• Animism: inanimate objects are life-like


The Three Mountains Task

View 1

Child seated here(a)

(b)(d)

(c)

View 2

Child seated here

(a)

(b)

(d)

(c)

The Symbolic Drawings of Young Children

(b) 11-year-old’s drawing, which is more realistic and less inventive

(a) 3½-year-old’s “a pelican kissing a seal”


• Intuitive Thought Substage– Uses primitive reasoning, seeks answers to

all• Occurs about 4 to 7 years of age

– Limits in preoperational thought:• Centration: focusing attention on one characteristic

to the exclusion of all others• Conservation: realizes altering object’s substance

does not change it quantitatively


Piaget’s Conservation Task

(b)(a)

A B CA B C

Vygotsky’s Theory

• Social constructionist approach – Focuses on cognitive development– Children: active construction of knowledge

and understanding by actions and interactions• Depends on tools used by society• Shaped by cultural context


Vygotsky’s Theory

• The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)– Lower limit: what child achieves

independently – Upper limit: what can be achieved with

assistance of able instructor– Cognitive skills in process of maturing

– Scaffolding: changing level of support over course of teaching session to fit child’s current performance level


Vygotsky’s Theory

• Language and Thought– Children’s language uses solving tasks and

social communication• Plans, monitors, guides behavior• Private speech: self-regulation

– All mental functions have external, social origins

– Ages 3-7: external to internal speech transition

• Internalized egocentric speech is thoughts


Vygotsky’s Theory

• Teaching Strategies– Assess and use child’s ZPD in teaching– Use more-skilled peers as teachers– Monitor and encourage private speech use– Place instruction in meaningful context– Transform classroom with Vygotsky’s ideas

• Tools of the Mind– Visitor presentations, field trips, ‘theme’

activities, journal and story writing, reading


Vygotsky’s Theory

• Evaluating the theory:– Inner speech important to development– Social interaction affects learning/knowledge– Extends ‘endpoint’ of cognitive development – Teachers serve as facilitators, Piaget agrees– Criticisms:

• Age-related changes not specific enough• Over-emphasized role of language• Socioemotional-cognitive link needs more


Meegan Thompson

needs more what?

Information Processing

• Explores how child processes information– Limitations and advances on:

• Ability to focus attention• Develop strategies and store memories• Understand mental processes of self, others



• Attention– Focusing of cognitive resources– Visual attention dramatically increases during

preschool years; still has deficits• Executive attention:

– Action planning, focus on goals, detects errors, deals with novel or difficult circumstances

• Sustained attention: – Focused, extended engagement with object, task, event,

etc.


The Planfulness of Attention

In 3 pairs of houses, the windows were different

In 3 pairs of houses, all windows were identical

J

(b)(a)

J

By filming the reflection in children’s eyes, one could determine what they looked at, how long they looked, and the sequence of their eye movements.


• Memory– Retention of information over time– Implicit memory– Explicit memory comes in many forms

• Short-term: retained up to 30 seconds– Greatest increase during early childhood

• Long term: unlimited

– Varies among individuals, affected by age and experiences


Developmental Changes in Memory Span

In one study: memory span

increased from 3 digits at age 2 to 5 digits at age 7

Adults

8

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

62 8 104 12

Age (years)

Dig

it S

pan


• Accuracy of children’s long-term memories– Usually increases with age– Memory improves with cues and prompts– Age differences in suggestion susceptibility – Individual differences in susceptibility– Interviewing techniques can distort reports even

when absence of motivation to falsify (false memories)

– Many factors affect reliability of eyewitness testimony



• Strategies and Problem Solving– Strategies: deliberate mental activities to

improve processing information– Toddlers can learn a strategy– Early childhood: stimulus-driven changes to

goal-directed problem solving– Some cognitive inflexibility in ages 3 to 4 due

to lack of understanding


Young Children’s Literacy

• Re-examining early education in U.S. – Concerns about abilities to read and write– Supportive environment needed earlier– Precursors to literacy and academic success:

• Language skills• Phonological and syntactic knowledge• Letter identification• Conceptual knowledge about print• Conventions and functions of print

How Young Children Develop Language

Variations in Early Childhood Education

• 38 states publicly fund preschool programs– Child-centered Kindergarten

• Educate the whole child• Instruction: interests, needs, learning style• Stress how learned; not what is learned• Play is important, various activities used

Important Features of Young Children’s Education


• Preschool programs– Montessori approach

• Considerable freedom and spontaneity• Encourage decisions, teacher as facilitator• Self-regulated, independent problem solving• Effective time management, responsibility

– Criticisms:• Deemphasizes verbal interaction, neglects social

development, restricts imagination



• Developmentally appropriate education– Children

• Learn best from active, hands-on teaching• Need individual differences considered• Need socioemotional development

• Developmentally inappropriate education• Rely on abstract paper-and-pencil activities• Extensive use of rote drills, seatwork, tests


Literacy and Early Childhood Education

• Reading and Writing– Children should experience feelings of success

and pride in early reading and writing exercises– Early efforts should be encouraged– Children need models to emulate

• Math– Early childhood educators need to introduce

mathematical concepts, methods, and language– Special concerns for low-SES children


Educating Young Children Who Are Disadvantaged

• 1965: U.S. tries to break cycle of poverty– Project Head Start

• To provide opportunity for children from low-income families to acquire experiences, skills important for school success

• Not all programs are created equal• Most provide quality childhood education


Controversies in Early Childhood Education

• Curriculum controversies– What to teach, how to teach it, who needs

it– Is preschool education necessary for all?

• Should there be ‘universal’ preschool quality?

– Does preschool matter?• Home environments and parents vary

– What is required for school readiness?• Reforms continue, inadequacies recognized


Controversies in Early Childhood Education

• Caregiver activities necessary in earliest years to ensure ‘readiness’ for school– Encourage exploration, mentor in basic skills– Celebrate developmental advances– Research and extend new skills– Protect from inappropriate disapproval, testing,

and punishment, guide and limit behavior

• Some parents ‘hold children back’ from entering school for an additional year


children cognitive development in early childhood 9

Documents

early childhood slide

views of cognitive changes

seal slide

b c slide

children cognitive development

cognitive development

early childhood long

agerelated changes