child development learning how children think

8/3/2019 Child Development Learning How Children Think

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In the study of Child Development learning how children think has become the basis of what

helps teachers decide how children learn through play and their environment on a daily basis.

Two theories have helped pave the way in breaking down the developmental processes required.

Jean Piaget according to Mooney (2000) was really an epistemologist. (p. 59). He studied what

knowledge was and how it begins. Jean Piaget believed that children learned about their world

through stages. He thought that they learned by building steadily upon the knowledge of each

stage. They take what they have learned and use it to reevaluate and relearn things about the

world around them. Lev Vygotsky was also another theorist that made an impact in child study.

He thought that children relied on the adults and peers around them. He felt that children had to

learn through interacting with their social environment. Even though they sometimes seemed

distinctly different they each made valid points that has helped improve child developmental

studies today.

Jean Piaget introduced the clinical method during his later studies. This method focused on the

way children answered questions when presented with a problem. The person in charge of the

test would ask a child a number of questions to see if the child would realize how to solve the

problem. If it seemed the child was having difficulty then the questions were rephrased and

asked again. This let observers see how children processed information in order to learn.

In Piagets view children did not just take in material. He believed that they were excited to learn

and that they themselves played a part in their learning process. He also believed that children

were able to adapt better at their environments. This made learning easier for them. Sometimes

children reached a point where they are not able to make sense of some things until they learn

what is needed before. This situation he called disequilibrium. An example of this would be a

child who has not learned the correct sounds of the alphabet. If the child does know the correct


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sounds of the alphabet they will have difficulty with word recognition. If children are taught

phonics at an early age then they would be able to recognize the words with a little more ease

when they are learning to read. The learning of phonics will help them with sounding out the

words.

Piaget believed that children had a way of organizing what they learned that helped them to

process information. This process of organization called schemes include filtering or

modification of input-assimilation; modification of internal schemes to fit reality is called

accommodation. (Inhelder, 2000, p.6).

When children interact with their peers they learn to think logically about situations. As a young

child children have a form of egocentrism that keeps them from seeing anyones perspective but

their own as they grow up and interact more then they learn how to use the perspective of others.

Also as a childs brain matures they learn more and they are able to learn in different ways.

Piaget theorized four stages that a child must go through in order for them to reach full cognitive

development. Piagets stages of development are sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete and

formal operations. These four stages of Piaget categorize child development.

The Sensorimotor stage starts at birth. He believed that a lot of the behaviors of a newborn were

ingrained to help them live and function outside of the womb. Children responded primarily to

stimuli and most of all they did was by reflexes. In this stage children gained object permanence

where they eventually learned that just because an object disappeared it could still be there. It

was no longer out of sight out of mind. They also learn a lot through trial and error. A child that

cries realizes that he or she will get what they want. As they get older they realize that their cries

no longer have the same effect so they try to learn how to talk in order to ask for what they want.


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Some of the limitations of this stage are that children only think about things in their present

environment. They do not have the capacity or think of what might be happening later.

The preoperational stage is from the ages of two to seven. This is a stage when children do a lot

of pretend play. They mimic adults and situations of how the world works around them i.e.,

doctor or teacher. Children in the preoperational stage also have an increase in their vocabulary

during this time. They are not able to think logically about certain situations. The children may

get answers right during this stage but a lot of time they are just guessing. For example a child

may take play dough out of a container and flatten it. The child does not realize that the same

flattened play dough is actually the full amount that was in the container. They do not have the

thought process of conservation.

The Concrete operations stage is around the age of seven. During this stage children have

become more in tuned to the feelings of others. They are able to classify objects into different

groups and realize that just because an object is in one group does not mean that it cannot be in

another group of similar properties. Children at this stage are able to think more logically but still

are unable to interpret the meaning of some things i.e., algebra and discussions about

astronomical units.

In Piagets last stage known as Formal operations a child is usually around the age twelve.

Children in this stage are able to think about things that are not presently there. They are able to

come up with conclusions to problems and figure out alternative ways to make a decision. A

limitation to this stage is that even though a child can come up with a brilliant answer to a

solution does not mean it will work. Usually children at this age are very idealistic about the way

the world is supposed to work. Piagets stages made understanding the way children learned


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some things easier. You are able to see the definitive qualitative changes over time. One of the

downsides to his description of cognitive development was that he did not take in to account of

the environment and culture of a child. Piaget also failed to account for the working memory of

the brain according to Case (1985), important for cognitive development. (p. 205).

A childs development of reasoning skills can be affected by their culture if in that culture they

value certain things over others. A childs culture may not influence mathematical skills if they

dont see it as important. They may feel that the beauty of arts or music, beauty that can be

brought to the world is more important than something analytical. Also the prior knowledge or

experience that a family member may have can greatly affect the way a child learns. If the child

has a mother who is illiterate then that child may have a problem with reading if they do not get

proper help.

Lev Vygotsky thought that children learned better through their environment. He believed that if

adults would help the kids acquire knowledge, then the child with adult help would soon be able

to answer some things on their own. He also believed that if children were taught to learn in a

nurturing environment they would be more apt to learn. Vygotsky believed that children were

able to learn with the use of a cognitive tool which would help the child make sense of their

environment. An example of cognitive tools are books and computers and for the youth of today

more and more are using iPads which are being used in classrooms to promote learning through

play.

When thought and language merge it creates a chance for the child to talk themselves through a

task that may be very challenging. By internalizing which comes from inner speech kids are able

to talk themselves through a situation and make the best of it. An example of this is when two


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children may have an argument. The child has to decide what the best way to handle the

disagreement is. It depends on how the child talks himself through the situation as to if they will

let a small problem become out of control.

Children that challenge themselves during play allow themselves to go further than what they

normally would. The challenge gives them real experiences and helps them with problem-

solving skills. When they are challenged they have to come up with a solution that can help

them. A child with assistance can challenge themselves and the adult can help them if the child

becomes stuck on how to handle the problem. The zone of proximity is a term for the range of

task that a child can complete independently. (Wikipedia) Vygotsky believed that a child would

not challenge themselves if they are doing something that can be done independently. A teacher

can help children during scaffolding by providing them with tools to assist them. On a math test

the teacher can provide a calculator if she feels that they are unable to complete the work without

it. This is scaffolding, because as the child learns the math problems the teacher will gradually

remove the tools she has given the student until they no longer need them.

Play provides children a chance to act out and learn through things they have seen in their

environment. Children imaginatively take on the roles of different characters, in doing so

children imitate or try to imitate actions they have mentally symbolized from situations observed

days or even weeks earlier. (Hockenbury&Hockenbury, 2010 p. 393.)

In guided participation children get to participate in adult activities while receiving help from the

adults. Some activities such as a home economics class can let children learn life skills such as

cooking or sewing. In apprenticeships children receive more challenging work and the adults


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only assist with learning for a short while and afterwards only when needed. Most

apprenticeships are when children start to think about career decisions.

Where Piaget believed in a child learning from their own skills or things they obtained without

help, Vygotsky believed that children learned with the help of the adults in their environment.

Piaget believed that children were self-motivated and eager to learn whereas Vygotsky thought

that children explored their surroundings to learn. Piaget did not take in to effect that culture

played a difference whereas Vygotsky did. They both had arguable points and even though they

had considerable differences they also centered on main points as well. They both agreed that a

child had to be ready cognitively in order to processes some situations. They also both agreed

that a child must challenge themselves in order to succeed at one level in order to go to the next.

If the child never challenged themselves they were unable to improve their cognitive thinking

skills.

As lab managers at JPL discovered, object play with the hands creates a brain that is better

suited for understanding in solving problems of all sorts. (Brown, 2009, p.86) In order to build

knowledge of the alphabet I would let my students form letters with clay. This will allow them to

not only hear the letters as we say them, but also learn how to manipulate them. This will help

give them a memory of forming the letters when it comes time to write them. Another way that I

will help my students learn through play is when learning about our neighborhood we will

discuss the buildings in our area. The children will have the opportunity to make houses out of

Legos. This will give them a visual description or symbol of what a house is compared to a

skyscraper. In my classroom we would focus a lot of our work using manipulatives and taking

field trips to the museum to see how our city has built up over time. I believe with these

cognitive tools I can help my younger students succeed early in life.

child development learning how children think

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