The Developmental Nature of Cognition Essay

Cognitive development is the term used to describe the construction of thought process, including remembering, problem solving and decision-making, from childhood through adolescence to adulthood. In this essay I will compare and contrast the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky, both of which were enormously significant contributors to the cognitive development component to/in psychology. In addition to this I will also weigh up the strengths and weaknesses of each theory and outline how they can be applied to an educational setting.

There are multiple theories explaining how cognitive development occurs. Piaget’s stage theory, for example, focuses on whether children progress qualitatively through stages of development (Diener 2017). A theory based in nature vs. nurture, Piaget believed a child’s cognition develops biologically as they grow, based on their interactions with the environment. Sociocultural theory, on the other hand, believes children are influenced by the beliefs, values, perceptions, and opinions of those around them. Finally, information processing theories suggest that children process the information they receive and do not merely react to stimulus.

Infant learning and brain development is fragile and contingent upon numerous intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The most critical time frame for infant brain development is from the second trimester to the first three months of life (Marshall, 2011). During this time, neural pathways are forming, areas of the brain are maturing, and brain development is rapid. From infancy until the age of 3 years, neural pathways are still being formed in response to stimulation and for this reason, it is extremely important for caregivers and parents to be aware of the many factors that can influence brain development in infants (Marshall, 2011).

This was my third field assignment. I elected to sit in the third grade, gifted class of Mrs. Alexis Martin at Hynes Elementary School. I chose to observe a public school for this assignment since my first two schools were parochial schools. Although these were all different grades and age levels, I thought I would have a richer experience by diversifying my subjects. I have not been disappointed in my decision.

In this paper you will read about what is cognitive learning and how does a child learn to think and develop through their early years. What are Jean Piaget’s stages

This paper is a report of experiment and observation conducted by this writer Shelly Harryman. The date and time of observation was November 9, 2017, between the hours of 4:00 pm and 5:00 pm. The subject 's name is in the experiment are Deegan Harryman, who is a 6-year-old and Jay Harris, who is is a 10-year-old. The following information will provide a detailed analysis of the what cognitive developmental stage each child is in and why those levels determine the response each child gives. The information in this paper will reflect my personal observation and refer to the text Development Through the Lifespan by Laura Berk 2014.

Advancement made in regard to cognitive neuroscience has enabled a better understanding of the cognitive processes in infants. Studies have indicated that cognitive development in infants starts before they are born. In the eighth week of pregnancy, fetuses have the ability to hear. They become accustomed to their

preoperational stage age 2 to 4, concrete operations age 7 to 11, and finally formal operations age

The idea of epigenesis has become well known as an integral part of the constructivist theory which states that neural activity within the brain is largely spontaneous, driven by genetic and molecular instances (Mareschal, D., Johnson, M.H., & Grayson, A., 2004). However, after birth, the neural activity is influenced by sensory and motor experience and the outside environment (Mareschal et al, 2004). Epigenesis is what the constructivist theory is about, the interaction between genes and the environment. A study done by Petersen et al used PET, or positron emission tomography, to understand the responses of native English adult speakers to written stimuli in the form of English words, pseudowords or words that had no meaning but could

Cognition refers to the mental actions or processes of acquiring, elaborating, storing and retrieving knowledge (Pound, 2013). Gillibrand et al., (2011) argue that these processes go beyond sensory-perceptual encoding and incorporates abilities such as attention, memory, problem solving and reasoning. Newman and Newman (2015) state that the term ‘development’ implies change over time. This is emphasised by Catherwood and Gillibrand (2004) and Pound (2013), who claim that cognitive development is concerned with learning and understanding, where children’s knowledge of the world increases with experience. This is supported by the idea that events which occur in childhood have long lasting effects, potentially hindering development in later adulthood.

Developmental psychology is “a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan” (Myers 2014), and human goes through development by series of continuity and stages. With humans, the processes starts with conception, where male sperm fuses with female egg, and then the newly formed cell goes through prenatal development, where rapid cell division occurs to form the embryo. After 9 months, the embryo developed into the fetus, where it has a physical form of a human.

In support of my perspective, I synthesized the ideas of the following theorists who were able to help me understand on how does a child’s thinking develops and how can we address to them the ways in order to fully understand their condition: Erik Erikson’s Industry vs. Inferiority which is under the psychosocial theory, Jean Piaget’s concrete operational and formal operational under cognitive development, Lawrence Kohlberg’s Preconventional and Conventional under moral development theory, Lev Vgotsky’s zone of proximal development and B.F Skinner’s Social Learning Theory. It is quite surprising that all the theorists mentioned above have different explanations with regards to Middle Childhood years but they all agree at a certain point, that is having the child being exposed to various activities, events and circumstances would guarantee a development on child’s thinking as it tries to condition the mind of the child on a particular aspect which is the environment that in turn will dictate to him/her to think and ponder

     Information processing is a perspective (approach) to the study of cognition and cognitive development in which the mind is likened to a computer. However, rather than focusing on mere input and output, psychologists who adhere to this approach place specific emphasis on the processes of cognitive development. Cognitive perspectives examine development in terms of mental processing. The two major views within this subject are cognitive developmental theory and information processing theory.

The three adaptive processes for cognitive development are assimilation, accommodation, and equilibrium. These are three agents

Developmental psychology is the point of view that occurs in learners over the course of a period of time. The developmental perspective includes theories that are continuous and discontinuous. Discontinuous theories are stage-like. The processes of learning and development involve distinct stages, which are characterized by qualitative differences in behavior. Theorists who use discontinuous theories use a specific beginning and end period for each stage. Continuous theories explain that learning and development generally happen in incremental processes. Learning involves changes throughout the lifespan. “Contemporary views on the nature of cognitive development have been vastly influenced by the work of one man. This was Jean Piaget (1896-1980), once a biologist, who turned his