Jean Piaget: Biography and Theory of Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development proposes that the developmental process of a child is the result of their brains maturity, their nervous system, and environmental factors. He believes the foundation of a child's ability to learn is through discovery learning (Gordon & Browne, 2016). Piaget suggests that a child’s logic of thinking is different from that of an adults. Children’s cognitive performance is directly related to the stage of development that they are in currently. Additionally, these stages are divided into sub-stages to provide greater insight into a child’s cognitive growth process. The initial stages of development is considered a difficult point to try to determine a child’s developmental

Psychology is full of theories that explain why we think the way we think. Of those theories, is the popular Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. Jean Piaget introduced a variety of ideas and concepts to the world of psychology describing logical thinking in children and adolescents. To fully comprehend just how valuable his theories are today, it is important to explore the life of Jean Piaget, his educational background, and the stages of cognitive development and how the stages impact the classroom. This will give a further analysis and explanation of how Piaget has helped to shape our viewpoints as teachers today.

The cognitive development theory detailed observational studies of cognition in children by a series of tests, which furthermore revealed different cognitive abilities. Before Piaget’s study, it was assumed that because children are younger, they are less competent thinks than that of adults. However, test results showed that it was actually quite opposite; young children simply think in remarkably different ways than adults.

Jean Piaget, was a trained biologist who was employed at the Binet Institute, where his main job was to develop a French version of an intelligence test. Piaget was very interested in the reason why children would give wrong answers to questions which called for some type of logical thinking. It was believed by Piaget that these wrong answers showed some very drastic differences between the way children and adults both thought ( McLeod, 2015), this is where his theory of Cognitive Development came in, Piaget’s work is described as being the origins of thinking or genetic epistemology (McLeod, 2015), Genetics is where one studies the origins of something. Epistemology discusses the categories of thinking, basically, it shows the properties of structural intelligence. Piaget’s Cognitive Development theory branched off into three different branches, the first one being Schema, the Adaption Process that allow transitions from one stage to another, and finally the four Stages of Development

Jean Piaget is a famous developmental psychologist who was born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland (Presnell, 1999). He was the first psychologist to do an organized study of cognitive development and before his studies, it was commonly thought that children were less capable thinkers than adults. After doing many observations on his own three children and other kids, he has concluded that children think in differing ways than adults (McLeod, 2009). Piaget was seeking to find how children think about the world at different points in their development and how systematic changes occur in their thinking (Santrock, 2015). He developed the theory of cognitive development that states, “children actively construct their understanding of the world and go

Jean Piaget challenged the way children developed he was a front runner in discovering how they thought. He was born on August 9, 1896, in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Piaget was well head of his time at a young age and even once he became older as well. He when on to create children’s cognitive development theory that is still valid now. His contribution for psychology is unmatched a pioneer on the development of children. He has also influence every psychologist from past to present even in the future with his work. Piaget was one of the great to ever study psychologist.

Jean Piaget had one of the greatest impact in the way cognitive, and lifespan development is observed. He believed individuals go through different stages or as he calls it schemes in life. His observations include actions, or organized mental behavior. The more mature an individual gets; the more complicated and detailed behaviors get. This would include an infant sucking due to his need of food, to a child learning how to ride a bike (Person 2018, 2015, 2012). The brief article goes on to say his work on child development is accurate. Accurate as it may be, different countries and parts of the world experience these schemes in different waves. Piaget also believed that assimilation and accommodation played a big role in the way children understand the world as they are growing.

First, Jean Piaget determinated important facts about children’s development. According to Saul McLeod, before Piaget started his research, psychologists thought that children were just not as intelligent as adults. Nevertheless, after observing his own children, Piaget discovered that children do not think like adults, and that they are intelligent in their own manner. Thinking that way, he elaborated a theory in which he said that children develop the ability to learn different things according to their age. This information is crucial, because it explains how children progress. Therefore, Piaget

Jean Piaget was born in Neuchâtel (Switzerland) on August 9, 1896. He was the oldest child of Arthur Piaget and Rebecca Jackson. At age 11, when he was just a mere child at Neuchâtel Latin high school, he wrote a short paper on an albino sparrow. This short notice is usually the start of an intelligent scientific career made of over 60 books

Jean Piaget was born around 1896 in Neuchatel, Switzerland as explained by Wadsworth (1991). When he turned fifteen the decision had already been made to point his goals of work towards scientific explanation of knowledge. A major portion of Piaget’s studying was in Philosophy. After doing very in-depth work in the study of biology he came to a conclusion that development was not only due to growth but also different circumstances in the environment. Convinced that the development of children could be viewed by experimentation he continued to test children for two years. Piaget decided that both Intellectual and biological events are a piece of the big whole process by which the living thing adapts to its surroundings or environment and sorts through its experiences from the events.

Jean Piaget is considered to be very influential in the field of developmental psychology. Piaget had many influences in his life which ultimately led him to create the Theory of Cognitive Development. His theory has multiple stages and components. The research done in the early 1900’s is still used today in many schools and homes. People from various cultures use his theory when it comes to child development. Although there are criticisms and alternatives to his theory, it is still largely used today around the world.

Jean Piaget (1896 - 1980) was a developmental psychologist who introduced the theory of cognitive development in children. Piaget believed that children are born with a basic mental structure from which learning and knowledge is based (Smith, Cowie, Blades, 2003). Piaget believes that a child learns through doing and actively exploring his/her environment. Intellectual development and growth is seen as a process of adaptation or adjustment to the world where the child through the process of accommodation, modifies his/her knowledge when new experiences are gained. These new experiences are incorporated (assimilated) into existing knowledge for a better understanding of the world. This leads to cognitive development

Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development Very briefly describe Piaget’s stages of cognitive development and explain what he meant by saying that young children are egocentric. Use experimental evidence to consider this claim. Cognitive development is what psychologists talk about when discussing a child’s intellectual growth. Jean Piaget (1896 to 1980), a Swiss psychologist developed a theory of cognitive development, which is still much discussed and critiqued today. Providing a firm building block to all work done in the study of child development and the concept that young children are egocentric.

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development involves four stages of cognitive development that a person moves through sequentially from birth until adolescence. As an elementary school teacher, the most useful stage for me to understand would be the third stage: the concrete operational stage. Children in this stage are typically between seven and twelve years old. This is the general age range for children in elementary school, so understanding the typical cognitive processes for children in this age range, as found by Piaget, will be very valuable for me. This understanding will help to cater my teaching to my students. For example, Piaget determined that by the age of seven, children are able to reason logically about concrete features of the world and consider multiple dimensions when problem-solving. However, he also noted that this relatively advanced thinking was limited to only concrete situations. As described in the textbook, children in the concrete operational stage are unable to

Jean Piaget, a cognitivist, believed children progressed through a series of four key stages of cognitive development. These four major stages, sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational, are marked by shifts in how people understand the world. Although the stages correspond with an approximate age, Piaget’s stages are flexible in that if the child is ready they can reach a stage. Jean Piaget developed the Piagetian cognitive development theory. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development proposes that a child’s intellect, or cognitive ability, progresses through four distinct stages. The emergence of new abilities and ways of processing information characterize each stage. Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that children move through four different stages of mental development. His theory focuses not only on understanding how children acquire knowledge, but also on understanding the nature of intelligence.