PSYC 2314Lifespan Development

Chapter 12

The School Years:

Cognitive Development

Remembering, Knowing, and Processing

• Information-processing theory– Sensory register– Working memory– Long-term memory– Control processes

Improvements in Memory

• Selective Attention– Screen out distractions and concentrate on

relevant information.

• Memory Skills– Automatization: many mental activities

become routine and automatic.

• Processing Speed– Older children are quicker thinkers.

Improvement in Memory

• Knowledge Base– New knowledge becomes progressively easier

to add.

• Metacognition– Ability to identify appropriate cognitive

strategies for solving particular problems, to monitor problem-solving performance, and to use external problem-solving aids.

Stages of Thinking

• Piaget’s theory of cognitive development– Concrete operational thought: when children

begin to understand certain logical principles when they are applied to concrete operations.

• Identity: the idea that certain characteristics of an object remain the same even when other characteristics are changed.

• Reversibility: the principle that a transformation can be restored to its original state by undoing it.

Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development

• Preconventional– Punishment and Obedient– Fair Play

• Conventional– Social Expectations– Law and Order

• Postconventional– Social contract– Universal Ethical Principles

Criticisms of Kohlberg’s Theory

• Emphasis on justice and reasoning is too narrow and restrictive

• Reflect liberal, Western intellectual values

• Biased toward males

Learning and Schooling

• In the vast majority of developing countries, fewer girls than boys attend primary school.

• Less is generally demanded of girls and poor children, particularly in math and science.

Interactive Teaching

• Worldwide, teachers have become more encouraging of children’s efforts. Although the specific styles of education will vary, depending on teacher personality and cultural assumptions any developmental approach attempts to engage every student in the learning process.

Communication skills

• Code switching– Change from one form of speech to another.

• Formal Code– Elaborated code, characterized by extensive

vocabulary, complex syntax, and lengthy sentences.

• Informal Code– Restricted code, uses fewer words, simpler syntax, and

relies more on gestures and intonation to convey meaning.

A Second Language

• Approach to bilingual education– Total immersion– Reverse immersion

• ESL– Bilingual education– Bilingual-bicultural education

Second-Language Learning

• Crucial differences between success and failure rests with the attitudes of– Parents– Teachers– Community

• Learn best early in life, under age 5. Peers are best teachers, supplemented by a positive attitude at home and in school

Schooling and Cultural Values

• Schoolchildren in the US today spend more time in school, playing sports, studying, doing art, reading and less time being outdoors, playing, watching TV.