Category: Cognitive Development

Cognitive development is concerned with how thinking processes flow from childhood through adolescence to adulthood by involving mental processes such as remembrance, problem solving, and decision-making. It therefore focuses on how people perceive, think, and evaluate their world by invoking the integration of genetic and learned factors.

Hence, cognitive development mainly concentrates on “areas of information processing, intelligence, reasoning, language development, and memory” (Kendler, 1995, p.164). In essence, cognitive development theory reveals how people think and how thinking changes over time.

The basic premises of cognitive development theory

The premises of cognitive development theory largely allow future investigation to amplify, specify, and modify them according to data trends. These premises frame the theory in a way that it addresses the structure, working, and progress of the system that governs discrimination learning.

Primarily, the theory is based on observable behaviors and indirectly defined theoretical constructs. These constructs assume that psychological and neurological theorizing about cognitive development will gradually coalesce (Kendler, 1995). The premises take form of two different approaches that have been developed over the years.

The first approach postulates that thinking is a universal sequence of stages, while the second approach postulates that people process information in a similar manner computers do (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008, p.13). One of the best-known examples of the first approach is Piaget’s theory of development that explains how children construct their knowledge, and how the format of their knowledge changes over time.

The second approach is exemplified by Information processing theory that focuses on how computers work to explain thinking and its development through childhood and adolescence.

The cognitive development theory has application in various areas such as works of Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), both being very popular quick assessments of an individual’s functioning (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008).

Discussion of Piaget Theory and Vygotsky Theory on Intelligence Development

The next part of this paper will be a discussion of the works of Piaget and Vygotsky, including comparison and contrast of their views on various aspects of cognitive development theory.

Jean Piaget was one of the most influential developmental psychologists of the 20^th century, who believed that children naturally make sense of their world.

Lev Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, was one of the first theorists to emphasize that children’s thinking develops through influence of the socio-cultural context in which children grow up rather than developing in a void. Piaget observed children’s past and potential interaction with their environment as being determined by their schemas, which are modified by the processes of assimilation and accommodation.

According to Kail & Cavanaugh (2008), assimilation may be described as a process that allows a child to add “new information by incorporating it into an existing schema.” For Piaget, enhancing a balance or truce between assimilation and accommodation in the schemas definitely leads to cognitive development.

This unlike Vygotsky, whose view is that cognitive growth occurs in a socio-cultural context that influences the form it takes, for instance, a child’s most remarkable cognitive skills are shaped by social interactions with parents, teachers, and other competent partners (Shaffer & Kipp, 2009).

Thus, cognitive development is more of an apprenticeship in which children develop through working with skilled adult assistants. Both Piaget and Vygotsky held the view that children’s thinking becomes more complex as they develop, highlighting that this change is influenced by the more complex knowledge that children construct from the more complex thinking.

Stages of development in both theories

Both theorists explain cognitive development in four distinct stages, but each of them explains these stages in different aspects and perspectives. According to Piaget, cognitive development takes place in “four distinct, universal stages, each characterized by increasingly sophisticated and abstract levels of thought” (Kendler, 1995).

These stages include sensorimotor stage (infancy) that begins from birth to 2 years and is characterized infant’s knowledge being demonstrated in six sub-stages through sensory and motor skills. The second stage is pre-operational stage (2 to 6 years) during which a child learns how to use symbols such as words and numbers to represent various aspects of the world but relates to the world only through his or her perspective.

Additionally, “concrete operational stage is characterized by seven types of conservation,” with “intelligence being demonstrated through logical and systematical manipulation of symbols related to concrete objects” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008).

In this third stage, operational thinking develops while the egocentric thinking diminishes. Lastly, formal operational stage, which occurs in late stages of human development or old age, involves “logical use of symbols related to abstract concepts” signifying a more complex and mature way of thinking (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008).

A departure from Piaget, Vygotsky proposed that we should evaluate development from perspective of four interrelated levels in interaction with children’s environment. These stages include ontogenetic development, which refers to development of the individual over his or her lifetime.

Secondly, Microgenetic development refers to changes that occur over brief periods such as minutes, a few days, or seconds. In addition, Phylogenetic development refers to changes over evolutionally time. Lastly, sociohistorical development refers to changes that have occurred in one’s culture and the values, norms, and technology, such as a history has generated (Shaffer & Kipp, 2009).

Classroom Application of Both Theorists’ Views

Both theorists’ views can find classroom application in trying to explain educational process. For Piaget, children learn because naturally, all children want to understand their world. According to Piaget, early children’s life up to adolescence stage presents them with an urge to explore and try to “understand the workings of both the physical and the social world” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008).

Whereas, Vygotsky would explain education as being shaped by cultural transmission, since the fundamental aim of all societies is to impart on their children, the basic cultural values, and skills. For example, most parents in western nations want their children to do well in their studies and obtain a college degree, as this may lead to a good job.

However, parents in African countries such as Mali want their children to learn activities such as farming, herding animals, hunting, and gathering of food, as these skills may enhance their survival in their environment. Thus, each culture provides its children with tools of intellectual adaptation that permit them to use their basic mental functions more adaptively (Shaffer & Kipp, 2009).

Piaget theory would be limited in explaining academic excellence, since it views education as a natural process, while Vygotsky would explains that as a product of cultural environment that influences a student to excel. Educationally, Piaget provided an accurate overview of how children of different ages think and asked crucial questions that drew literally, thousands of scholars to the study of cognitive development.

According to Vygotsky, children are active participants in their education, with teachers in Vygotsky’s classroom favoring a guided participation, in which they structure learning activity, as well as guiding, monitoring, and promoting cooperative learning process.

Conclusion

Piaget’s theory would be limited in explaining academic excellence, since it views education as a natural process, while Vygotsky would explain that as a product of cultural environment that influences a student to excel.

Educationally, Piaget provided an accurate overview of how children of different ages think, and asked crucial questions that drew literally, thousands of scholars to the study of cognitive development. In essence, these theories laid grounds for other developmental theorists to further their views or critique them, leading to other cognitive development theories.

References

Kail, R.V. & Cavanaugh, J.C. (2008). Human Development: A Life-Span View. OH: Cengage Learning.

Kendler, T.S. (1995). Levels of cognitive development. NJ: Routledge.

Shaffer, D.R. & Kipp, K. (2009). Developmental Psychology: Childhood and Adolescence. Eighth edition. OH: Cengage Learning.

People’s cognitive, physical, and social development is characterized by certain milestones that have been well-researched. The cognitive development of infants and toddlers is associated with the acquisition of basic knowledge and skills that enables the child to become comparatively independent during the first two years of their life. Some of the central concepts related to this matter include classical and operant conditioning, memory, attention, learning, language development, and the sensorimotor stage.

Diverse theories and approaches to the subject matter have been suggested. For instance, according to Piaget’s theory, the child develops in certain stages acquiring fundamental skills and knowledge (Paris et al., 2019).

During the first two years, the child mainly develops sensory-motor skills. This newly acquired knowledge includes reflexes, circular reactions, and scheme internalization, as well as early representational thought. Reflexes are automatic reactions to some stimuli, and the child’s active learning starts with these automatic movements and reactions. During the first four months, primary circular reactions occur, which encompasses reflexes turning into voluntary reactions, and the child is becoming more eager to engage with the body and different objects. Secondary circular reactions (8 to 12 months) involve diverse movements and interactions with objects as the child can grab things and manipulate them at a basic level. Tertiary circular reactions include more complex behavioral and cognitive patterns. For example, the child learns about gravity through throwing, pushing objects, and pouring substances.

During the second year of their life, children learn to apply different mental strategies to continue their learning and solve problems. Language development starts at this stage when children actively learn how to express certain ideas. As an illustration of this development, children learn new words and use them, participate in pretend games, learn how to take things from shelves, open doors, or even use devices. By the age of two, children are able to speak using phrases and sentences, complete rhymes, build towers, follow instructions, and so on. Vygotsky stressed that interactions with peers and adults were instrumental in helping children to go through all developmental milestones.

All these skills are acquired in the course of learning that involves children’s exposure to conditioned (sounds or instructions) and unconditioned (pin or food) stimuli that result in conditioned (learned behavior) or unconditioned (reflexes) responses. Operant conditioning is the process of learning behaviors as a response to certain consequences (Paris et al., 2019). Researchers identify two types of conditioning, reinforcement and punishment, and both types can be positive and negative. Reinforcement increases behavior, while punishment decreases certain behavioral patterns.

Memory and attention are other important concepts associated with child development. Explicit memory is linked to facts, events, concepts, and encompasses the active mental activity of a person who wants to recall something (Paris et al., 2019). Episodic memory relates to events and moments in a person’s life. A person often experiences the functioning of episodic memory when going to a place they once visited. Implicit memory is unconscious and acquired through multiple repetitions. Short-term memory refers to the ability to remember information for a short period of time, and long-term memory is the ability to hold data for a prolonged period of time. Attention is the ability to concentrate on a stimulus, and it is instrumental in transferring information from short- to long-term memory along with practice and repetition. The concepts mentioned above can help in understanding the major peculiarities of child cognitive development during the first two years of life.

Reference

Paris, J., Ricardo, A., & Rymond, D. (2019). Child growth and development. College of the Canyons.

Introduction

The domain of physical development in early childhood is especially important because children do not grow at a steady pace. Additionally, it is essential to understand the importance of the neurological system and the changes that occur with it.

According to Hoffnung et al. (2010) and Papalia Wendkos Olds, and Duskin Feldman, (2009), the domain consists of aspects that relate to biological changes. The authors point out that this aspect involves changes in the body, including improvement of motor skills, development of brain functions, and alterations in the state of health. Milestones that should be pointed out for children aged two to six years are stairs climbing, throwing a ball, ability to create simple drawings, primary writing skills, and the ability to put on clothes with the help of a care provider.

The cognitive domain consists of approaches to thinking and processing information, memory functions, and language skills (Hoffnung et al., 2010; Papalia et al., 2009). The last component is crucial for developing creativity, reasoning, and ability to pay attention to. The milestones that are crucial for children within the domain are enlargement of vocabulary, understanding of symbols and fractional qualities, and ability to enjoy dramatic play (Hudson, 2013). Thus, the cognitive skills that are learned in early childhood affect literacy and mathematical capabilities.

The final two domains, social and emotional are connected due to similarities of factors that influence them. According to Hoffung et al. (2010), the changes within the social component consist of feelings and emotions towards other people. The milestones at this stage include identifying preferred playmates, understanding gender roles, and racial awareness (Hudson, 2013). At the early childhood age, kids develop an ability to communicate and distinguish the emotions of others.

The Urban Child Institute (n.d.) argues that social and emotional domains are difficult to differentiate because both imply interaction with the external environment. The milestones for early childhood involve developing the notion of themselves and the ability to showcase feelings and emotions to the outside world (The Urban Child Institute, n.d.). Additionally, children should learn to interact with peers and share toys at this stage.

The emotional domain is connected to feelings that a child has and can display to interact with others. The Department of Social Services (n.d.) distinguishes the ability to show attachment to a caregiver, showcase distress in particular situations, understand guilt and remorse for actions and seek attention from a parent as milestones. It is essential to understand the connection between social and emotional components because it is crucial to develop the ability to share feelings with peers or caregivers.

Implications for Teachers and Students

It can be argued that by understanding these domains and the essential milestones a teacher can enhance the process of gaining knowledge and skills for his or her students. The primary implication for a teacher is the ability to recognize that a particular student has not reached full learning potential by comparing the child’s achievement to that of an average person within the age group (Duchesne & McMaugh, 2016).

The physical domain implies the need to promote particular activities such as throwing a ball or climbing the stairs to enable children’s ability to perform certain activities. Proper acquisition of these skills will enable kids to function adequately and carry out daily tasks, which is a necessity. The implication of the physical domain for children is in the ability to understand their physical capabilities and be aware of their health.

Therefore, students should develop the skills mentioned above and understand the process of acquiring particular physical capabilities. Thus, educators should plan activities that would target the essential motor skills, by focusing on one milestone at a time. This may require introducing new types of events and ensuring that the teaching strategy fits the purpose. However, teachers must provide that children do not strive for perfection with actions such as throwing the ball or climbing the stairs to avoid discouragement.

The development of skills associated with the cognitive domain is necessary because it enables future learning. Within the ages of two to six individuals learn to recognize symbols and acquire a vocabulary that they will use in their further studies. The implication for teachers is in the necessity to provide knowledge of symbols and a sufficient amount of words for kids. For children, the importance of these domains is in their connection to their future development. It is because without adequately developed cognitive skills individuals would struggle in further years because they would fall behind in their understanding of basic numerical and linguistic concepts.

According to Swaybay (2013), the domain implies that “behavior is processed both internally and externally, and can be explained regarding how the mind operates” (p. 3). Furthermore, the author argued that the preoperational stage, which occurs between the ages of 2 and six, is centered on language skills and logical thinking. Therefore, the focus of an educator should be on choosing or creating activities that would help students enhance their vocabulary knowledge and begin to understand simple mathematical problems. Teachers should ensure that their educational programs enable the understanding of the real world, by connecting exercises to a specific context, to promote social development.

In early childhood, the emotional domain consists of several crucial skills that individuals would need in their future life. Vanzandt-Travis (2016) states that for pre-schoolers the primary implication for educators is in ensuring that children can build social relationships, which will aid their future development. Also, self-awareness, which is displayed in emotional attachment to caregivers or playmates serves as a foundation for proper physiological growth.

Therefore, teachers should encourage activities that involve teamwork and cooperation to promote the necessary skills. Additionally, it is crucial to explain social roles and concepts, for instance, gender differences, while engaging students in these tasks to help them achieve the social milestone. For children, the implication for development within the emotional domain is in the necessity to learn how to interact with peers and adults and understand and control emotions. By working in groups, children will be able to learn how to interact with others and communicate properly, which will enable the improvement in social skills.

Within the social domain, the implications for both teachers and children are similar to those that are crucial for emotional development. It is because both require an understanding of communication and understanding of interactions with other people. However, teachers should understand that the emotional component is centered on a child’s perception of himself or herself while the social requires a need to build relationships with others.

This factor is the primary implication for educators because students should become more self-aware while understanding social concepts such as interaction with peers or gender roles. For children, the implication of the social domain is in the ability to distinguish their preferences of playmates and caregivers. Therefore, they should begin to understand their emotions, causes, and consequences that follow and learn how to manage them to interact with the world.

Teaching Strategies

For the physical domain of children, teachers should apply an outdoor learning strategy that can help enhance the required skills. For instance, children should be able to throw a ball within the ages of two and six which can be taught outside. Swaybay (2013) states that the approach can be utilized together with other strategies, which enables an improvement in several domains. Movement can affect many aspects of development, including health and acquisition of necessary skills.

Proper structure of activities can enable students to develop their physical capabilities, in this case, it is important to bring children outside and ensure the repetition of learning activities. Nel, Joubert, and Hartell (2017) conducted a study to evaluate the effect of outdoor activities and strategies that can help enhance the motor skills of the student within the ages of five and six. The authors emphasize that the development of these physical factors is more effective when children are engaged in activities outside a classroom.

According to Nel, Joubert, and Hartell (2017), outdoor activities “increased deficiency of sensory and motor development among Grade R learners” (p. 10). The skills that are kids should master involve throwing a ball, which can be done outside to improve the engagement of students and ensure that students are not afraid to damage objects in a room.

Teachers can employ emerging technology to help children learn the basics of gender roles and other social concepts the knowledge of which is necessary for ages two to six. The approach that can help enhance the social domain is described by Swaybay (2013) as “authentic assessment, real-life contexts and contemporary approaches such as using information and communications technologies OCT) to enhance learning” (p. 10). It is because considering the skills that children need to acquire within their early year’s educators need to focus on presenting a connecting between exercises and life. Specifically, this should focus on helping kids distinguish between genders and races as those are among the primary milestones by using specific real-life examples.

According to Norris (2017), children display a preference for gender-consistent toys by age one, therefore in early childhood students should be aware of particular differences and toys that they choose. This information can serve as a real-life context for developing the social domain. Additionally, authentic assessments are designed to encouraged students to learn from tasks that have a practical application, which can be helpful in this case as well.

For instance, the Line (n.d.), recommends using song lyrics and magazines to demonstrate particular social concepts to children. Furthermore, resources available on the Internet such as social media, video games, or video streaming services can be incorporated to illustrate people and their gender roles to children.

Reggio Emilia is a strategy that focuses on the interaction between students to facilitate their learning. Since the focus of the methods is on the students, it can be used to improve the emotional domain and help children gain an understanding of their emotions. The educational process has “strong potentials for development and as a subject of rights who learns and grows in the relationships with others” (“Reggio children identity,” para. 1). The method, however, is complicated and requires preparation as essential components include coordination between educators and additional facilities such as kitchen and atelier. These components are needed to explain various aspects of life o kids and engage them in activities that would enable them to explore the world.

In regards to the emotional domain, Reggio Emilia can be useful in the early childhood stage because at the age of two to six children should be able to display attachment, preference for playmates, and an understanding of guilt for improper actions. This requires both cooperation with others to identify preferences and a focus on a child and his or her feelings. The method is suitable since Reggio Emilia is centered around children as the primary facilitators of the learning process and their ability to pursue their interests.

To ensure proper cognitive development teachers should employ visual aids. For instance, Goswami (2015) states that multisensory approaches are more effective when compared to using one method; thus, teachers should use images together with other procedures, such as audio or kinesthetic. It is because the process of gaining new knowledge and skills is facilitated through several neural networks that are responsible for various functions.

To develop an understanding of symbols an educator can use pictures and voice to both showcase and talk about it. To improve the vocabulary a teacher can employ photos of objects, which would serve as a visual reference. Glyde (2018) states that visual aids help children develop as well-rounded individuals. Overall, by connecting these teaching strategies with the development of milestones, an educator can ensure that students learn the necessary skills and gain new knowledge.

References

Department of Social Services. (n.d.). Development milestones. Web.

Duchesne, S., & McMaugh, A. (2016). Educational psychology for learning and teaching (5th ed.). Melbourne, Australia: Cengage.

Goswami, U. (2015). Children’s cognitive development. York, United Kingdom: Cambridge Primary Review Trust.

Glyde, I. (2018). Research shows love of visual arts essential to raising well-rounded children. Web.

Hoffnung, H., Hoffnung, R. J., Seifert, K. L., Burton Smith, R., Hine, A., Ward, L., & Quinn, A. (2010). Lifespan development. Milton, Australia: Wiley.

Hudson, P. (Ed.). (2013). Learning to teach in the primary school. Melbourne, Australia: Cambridge University Press.

Nel, A., Joubert, I., & Hartell, C. (2017). Teachers’ perceptions of the design and use of an outdoor learning environment for sensory and motor stimulation. South African Journal of Childhood Education, 7(1), 1-11. Web.

Norris, K. (2017). At what age are children aware of gender differences? Web.

Papalia, D. E., Wendkos Olds, S., Duskin Feldman, R. (2009). Human development. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Reggio children identity. (n.d.). Web.

Swaybay, K. (2013). Child development: Approaches to learning. In Hudson, P. (Ed.), Learning to teach in the primary school (pp. 1-18). Melbourne, Australia: Cambridge University Press.

The Line. (n.d.). Talking to young kids about gender stereotypes. Web.

The Urban Child Institute. (n.d.). What do we know about social and emotional development in early childhood? Web.

Vanzandt-Travis, T. (2016). Importance of social-emotional development for pre-schoolers. Web.

Introduction

Bjorklund has categorized adult development into young adulthood (18-25 years), early adulthood (25-40 years), middle adulthood (40-65 years), late adulthood (65-75 years), and late, late adulthood (over 75 years) (2010). She further contends that each category of adulthood exhibits different signs of aging. The author of this paper will interview Edward who is turning 73 in two months and Conrad, a college student who has just celebrated his 20^th birthday to compare the adult development between the two lives.

Tell me about yourself?

Edward: I am married with five children and several grandchildren. I have just retired as a football manager in a local club. I now have a chance of spending quality time with my wife and even tend to our small garden together. We are more than happy to host immediate family members and close friends in our humble home.

Conrad: I go to school in a nearby college where I am undertaking a course in Fine Arts. I love going to parties and hanging out with my friends. I am an active football player but my coach has suspended me from the team until my class grades improve. I am currently dating two girlfriends.

Both interviewees seem to be governed by normative age-graded events. This is evident in the fact that they relate more with friends in their cohorts. This relation bears changes in behavior that is deemed to be normal and the behavior is influenced by either biological or environmental factors. William’s retirement is also a normative event as most of his cohorts retire at about his age. The cohort effects also explain his hearing and eyesight impairments. It is noteworthy that the contexts can be said to have varying effects in development. The cohort effects depend on the correct timing of normative events that is significant in adult development.

Are you experiencing any physical changes in your body?

Edward: I am not as strong as I used to be. I have also lost a lot of weight probably because of a lack of appetite. I am also concerned because I cannot hear well without the aid of these hearing devices. I nowadays ask my wife or other members of my family to drive me around as my eyesight is slowly deteriorating and can hardly see clearly. I have also developed a very low sex drive.

Conrad: I have gained a little weight. I also notice that I have grown muscles that seem to attract girls. I constantly attend parties with my friends without feeling worn out and my parents are concerned that I should slow down with my parting activities. I am also sexually active.

There is a notable decrease in physical strength in the course of development. This is attributed to the level of response in the body organs. This explains the reason why Edward seems to be feeling weak on the one hand, and Conrad seems to have discovered a rejuvenated sense of energy on the other. The physical changes are a result of hormonal changes of both the testosterone and estrogen in the brains of the interviewees. The levels of testosterone produced to play a significant role in the change of behaviors. This explains the reason why Edward has developed a low sex drive while Conrad is experiencing a high sex drive.

It is not in doubt that physical changes are governed by brain structures that are greatly controlled by hormones such as testosterone and estrogen. The cohorts in late adulthood, such as William, develop a gradual decline in testosterone discharge hence causing a reduction in their physical strength and stamina leading to imbalance. On the other hand, the hormonal production during early adulthood is very high hence explaining the energy possessed by Conrad.

Do you have any health problems or disorders?

Edward: In addition to my eye condition and lack of good hearing, I have recently started losing memory. My speech ability is also slurred leading to miscommunication. I was also diagnosed with diabetes five years ago but my specialist assured me that it was controllable.

Conrad: I do not have any health problem or disorder. I can however point out that I only experience mild headaches or stomachaches once in a while but they do disappear when I take pain killers.

Normal changes inherent in development are often intensified by the presence of health problems and disorders. This is due to the declining functionality of body organs in the course of development. It should be noted that some chronic illnesses such as diabetes may be said to be long-lasting. Aging is likely to bring out dementia. Dementia is a health disorder that results in memory loss, sound reasoning, and lack of clear communication. Dementia can be progressive hence resulting in the person suffering from the symptom becoming entirely dependent on others. The main cause of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease which is a result of the destruction of cell brains hence tampering with the normal restructuring of the brain. Though dementia is rampant among the older generation, there are a few instances in which it has affected the early generation as well.

Do you have any signs of cognitive changes?

Edward: I have no problem with paying attention but tend to forget easily what I have been told.

Conrad: I have a very sharp memory and hardly forget anything that I am told. However, I am not so keen on paying attention especially in school and at home.

Cognitive changes are at their highest peak in the cohorts under early adulthood. They seem not to care about their safety and such decisions are left to their parents. They also react very fast and are highly skilled. It is not in doubt that older people out-do the early adults in some cognitive functions. The cognitive loss is high in late adulthood which is likely to affect their decision making. Further, they have declined safety measures in driving. Cognitive changes are a result of transformation in the brain structure. Cognitive functions vary depending on age. The basic functions that have been recognized are memory and attention.

The functions may be affected by age-decline which is a result of decreasing sensory organs. The older generation is likely to develop long term ability to pay attention and short term ability to remember what was said a while ago. The long-term and short-term abilities of cognitive functions are dependent on an individual. Though the young adult has a higher capability of paying attention, his functionality is short-lived due to various circumstances such as divided or switched attention.

What are your social roles?

Edward: I pass on my wisdom to my younger generation and in return get some form of comfort from them.

Conrad: I play for the football club in college and participate in various activities in our neighborhood.

Social roles are shaped by age-graded events and identities. The roles are likely to constantly change in the course of adult development. The social roles evident in early adulthood bring to the fore a combination of both childhood and adult roles. This particular role is constantly changing with the young adult moving in and out of them. The late adulthood males’ cohort assumes the role of volunteering as opposed to young adults who feel that society owes them for any societal role they perform. However, their role is said to be less dominant than gender roles.

How can you describe your social relationships?

Edward: I am very close with my wife. I occasionally spend time with my immediate family and friends in my humble home.

Conrad: I always hang out with my friends. I prefer spending time with friends to my family.

Cohorts in late adulthood develop a stronger attachment to their family as opposed to adults in early development. Attachment theory in adults can be defined in various styles that differ in each age group. This means that the level of attachment is governed by the security or insecurity of the adult. The cohorts in early adulthood are characterized by the insecure style hence affecting their social relationships. In most instances, they seem not to trust anyone and are more or less governed by peer pressure. They feel that everyone is against them including their parents or teachers. The late adults, on the other hand, feel the need to create a close relationship with those people who are close to them.

Do you work and what is your attitude towards what you do?

Edward: I am a retired football manager where I spent most of my life. I loved what I did but I thought it was time to give it a rest.

Conrad: I work during my school holidays but I find myself drained after work and would prefer to spend time with my friends instead.

Retirement is often not anticipated by the cohorts in late adulthood. During this stage, the adult is forced to leave what he likes doing hence resulting in a lifestyle change. Though retirement is inevitable, the adult is compelled to relinquish his social status and sense of authority. The fear of retirement is therefore imminent. On the other hand, the cohorts in early adulthood suffer from job burnout as a result of lack of enthusiasm and exhaustion.

How can you describe your personality?

Edward: I am calm, caring, and loving.

Conrad: I am very outgoing and friendly.

Personality seems to vary in adulthood development. It is not in doubt that early adults find themselves to be more outgoing due to the high level of energy they possess. This is in a bid to acquire an identity. They do not seem to care about those close to them or if their actions may be consequential. The cohorts in late adulthood, on the other hand, develop some level of intimacy with their loved ones hence developing a sense of a caring nature.

What is your quest for meaning in life?

Edward: I have accomplished enough in my life and I do not regret the decisions I have made in my past. I am surrounded by my loved ones.

Conrad: I want to complete school and pursue my dreams of becoming one of the best football players.

Both cohorts in early and late adulthood seem to have different quests in how they perceive life. The adults in late adulthood seem to find a purpose from human relationships and past events that have led them to where they are. The early generation is crowded with a level of ‘individualism’ whereby they think of individual success. However, most of the decision regarding their quest for meaning is influenced by peer pressure or their parents.

How do you cope and resist stress?

Edward: I surround myself with family.

Conrad: I go partying with friends.

Coping with stress is a very important aspect of development. The cohorts in late adulthood are faced with more stress as compared to the early adults. This is because they live in constant fear of dying, losing a loved one, becoming entirely dependent, and so on. This fear seems to draw them closer to their loved ones as they feel somehow secure in their presence. The early adults are faced with avoidable stress levels and this explains the reason why they turn to their peers to cope with their stress.

How do you cope with the aspects of loss, grief, and bereavement?

Edward: I have gained self-acceptance to take any bad news that is likely to come my way positively.

Conrad: I drain my sorrows in alcohol to forget what has happened.

Experience has taught the cohorts in late adulthood to positively accept any kind of loss. They know that grieving is very important as it takes the pain away. However, the younger generation may try to block out their emotions hence being in denial of the particular loss. The reception is therefore different in the two cohorts.

Describe your successive journey of life

Edward: I have lived my life to the fullest. I have no regrets.

Conrad: I want to live my life without any regrets.

Conclusive Summary

Aging is a very important process in each individual’s life. This is because every person has to undergo the aging process without any exception (Bjourklund and Blasi, 2011). The process of aging affects the physical, social and psychological aspects of an individual. The process is characterized by growth and maturation, which are essential in adult development. It is not in doubt that people tend to age differently from each other. Further, the rate of aging also differs from one person to another hence explaining the reason why people who share the same birth date may exhibit different aging signs.

This is attributed to the gradual loss as a result of various changes that lead to aging. The changes begin to be experienced in early childhood, but it is not until later that the actual loss becomes visible. The balance of gradual losses between early adulthood and late adulthood is a result of the functional organs that regulate and preserve the health of an individual. A study conducted has indicated that organs seem to lose a certain percentage of their ability to function every year. However, the effects of deteriorating organ functionality are not experienced until late adulthood.

The interview is important as it sets out the process of aging and the evident changes that characterize the process.

Reference List

Bjorklund, B. (2010). The Journey of Adulthood. New York: Prentice Hall Publishers.

Bjourklund, D., & Blasi, C. (2011). Child and Adolescent Development: an integrated approach. London: Woodsworth, Cengage Learning.

Introduction

There exist several approaches toward developing a curriculum, and some of the most common ones are developmental and developmental-cognitive. Within the first approach, it is assumed that children’s development is predetermined by biological factors. Hence, a curriculum based on the developmental perspective would take the specifics of each age group into consideration to moderate the contents of lessons and the difficulty of proposed tasks (Gargiulo and Kilgo 163).

The developmental-cognitive approach is centered on behavior patterns in children. Hence, it is seen as more individualized and dynamic as it prescribes ongoing observation and continuous data collection to make amendments to the curriculum (Gargiulo and Kilgo 164). This essay will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of both perspectives for children with disabilities and delays.

Developmental Approach: Advantages and Disadvantages

Inclusive education hinges on the premise that differently-abled children share a classroom and are put into age-appropriate groups, which is based on the developmental theory. Many studies have shown that inclusive education benefits children with delays and disabilities as it challenges them in a positive way (Hehir et al. 15). In an attempt to keep up with their peers, they stay in school for longer hours and prioritize their academic achievements. On the other hand, a standardized curriculum might not quite meet the needs of a child with disabilities. If a child has language or other delays, they might require more time to adapt and complete tasks. It is easy to imagine how such a child could be left behind while his or her able peers do not have difficulties following the curriculum.

Developmental-Cognitive Approach: Advantages and Disadvantages

As compared to the purely developmental approach, the developmental-cognitive perspective offers “customized” solutions. It is difficult to predict how well children with special needs would complete tasks and how quickly they would make progress. Hence, a curriculum based on the chosen approach would address the emerging issues and challenges promptly. In alignment with the developmental-cognitive approach, teachers are to moderate children’s behaviors by giving them instructions. However, in the case of children with disabilities, the situation might be much more nuanced. A better approach would include tackling other underlying factors such as psychological problems.

Conclusion

Both described approaches are fairly reasonable and applicable but have certain flaws. It is possible to predict the age of the onset of specific skills and faculties: emotional, cognitive, and adaptive. Taking a developmental perspective when elaborating a curriculum may be advantageous for children with disabilities as it motivates them. However, the specifics of some disorders require heightened attention and specialized curriculum not based on universally recognized developmental stages.

A curriculum based on the developmental-cognitive perspective does not only consider formal developmental stages but also prescribes paying attention to children’s current behavior patterns and challenges. For children with disabilities, such an approach may be beneficial since it would heed their needs and difficulties. Nevertheless, this approach is result-oriented, and merely instructing children to change the way they act may not be enough.

Works Cited

Gargiulo, Richard, and Jennifer L. Kilgo. An Introduction to Young Children with Special Needs: Birth through Age Eight. Nelson Education, 2010.

Hehir, Thomas, et al. A Summary of the Evidence on Inclusive Education. 2016. Web.

The importance of play in cognitive development of children cannot be ignored. It has been established that children learn the various uses of objects when they are allowed to play with them than when other means of teaching are used. This indicates that play plays an important role in the process of learning among children where the children are given platforms to try the various ways that an object can be put into use.

This paper seeks to examine the relationship that exists between playing among the children and how play helps develop their imaginative skills. The paper also examines the relationship that exits between psychological coping and resiliency, and how this relationship may help a child when confronted with a dangerous situation. Lastly, the paper examines whether the strategies adopted at childhood are still useful in adulthood or at advanced stages of childhood or adolescence stage.

As noted by Hardman, Drew & Egan (2010), the extent to which a child is classified as playful or otherwise has a high significance to the child’s level of creativity. Playful children tend to be more creative as they get higher chances to interact with the phenomenon hence expanding their cognitive development.

When children are subjected to a test to determine the possible alternative uses of an object, it has been observed that children marked as more playful always have the tendency to score higher in the alternative use tests. This is an indication that playful children may have better chances of developing their cognitive abilities as opposed to the less playful children.

It is important to note that some children who may not be externally playful may indicate tendencies of being internally playful. Children who are classified as internally playful also exhibit higher levels of creativity than the children who are neither physically nor internally playful.

Internal playfulness is normally measured by examining the levels of feelings of happiness, the sense of humor, joy and lastly, active involvement (Hardman, Drew & Egan, 2010). Internally playful children have higher rates of internal imagination than other children, which indicates that play has an immense contribution to the level of imagination as well as other forms of cognitive development among children.

As far as psychological coping and resiliency is concerned, play among the children has invaluable roles. Among the leading role of play in enhancing psychological coping and resiliency among children is the fact that play induces a sense of relaxation, which helps improve the state of a child to cope with various aspects and to bounce back to the normal psychological state before being disturbed by a specified stressor.

As children play with one another, they tend to learn important interpersonal skills that comes in handy should coping skills be needed. Besides this, playing allows children to come face-to-face with various aspects of real life experiences such as winning and loosing. As children learn how it feels to lose and learn to look forward for a win in the future, their ability to keep their “cool” in times of a loss is increased. This improves their resilience not only in times of playing, but also when confronted with various real life experiences.

Another aspect that makes play to be an important aspect for the development of coping and resilience traits is the fact that play forces the children to always be in a situation where they are either faced with a win or a loss. Since the main aim of any player is to win a game, the playful children are always cognitively forced to devise new methods to ensure that they win the game even when they are trailing their opponents.

On the other hand, those who are leading have no choice, but to ensure that they are not overturned by their opponents to become the losers. The psychological feelings of the need to win even where there is little hope of winning a game makes children to develop resilience skills that are useful not only while they are playing, but also in many other facets of life. In a sharp contrast, children who are not playful may end up not developing these skills which make them have poor resilience skills when confronted with real life experiences.

As already noted, play has a significant role in improving the creativity and the coping as well as resilience traits among the children. These traits can prove to be valuable if a child who possesses them is faced with a dangerous situation. First, since the child is already creative due to the benefits accrued from play, such child can device various avenues to come out of the risky scenario successfully.

The developed imaginative skills can prove helpful in risky scenarios in that a child can devise various alternatives depending on the nature of risk as opposed to a child who has less developed imaginative skills. For instance, a child playful child who is inquisitive of what can be done with various objects can device new uses for the object at hand to act as a weapon to mitigate the risk.

As far as resilience is concerned, a child presented with a risky situation is able to cope effectively as he or she can make informed choices due to the ability to remain calm, despite the risk. Unlike a child who has no coping and resilience skills, a child who has gained these traits from play is most likely going to make informed choices as the chances of panicking are minimal than for those children who are less playful.

As people age, the relationship between play and imagination as well as resilience also changes. This means that people must remain adaptive so that the strategies adopted meets the potential dangers that may present themselves. This means that strategies that are useful at childhood cannot remain useful throughout one’s life.

There is a need to have newer strategies to ensure that the challenges that are presented to people are successfully solved. Therefore, it is evident that as people age, they need to be presented with more complex play scenarios that can motivate their brain activity to make more advanced choices as well as to develop more coping skills which can prove useful in case of a risky situation.

In conclusion, it is evident that play leads to more creative children, which enhances their normal coping skills. Play enhances cognitive development in children that in turn enhance their ability to devise meaningful relationships with the situations that are presented to them.

It is also important to note that play enhances one’s ability to cope with strenuous situations, a trait that is normally transferred to the real life situations. Also, play leads to feelings of relaxation that are vital in decision making process. Therefore, it is important that the role of play in cognitive development is not undermined especially in children as play has proved to be a resourceful activity as far as acquiring of necessary traits is concerned.

Reference

Hardman, M., L. Drew, C., J. & Egan M., W. (2010). Human Exceptionality: School, Community, and Family. 10^th Ed. Upper Saddle River: Cengage Learning, 2010.

People are not born as smart as they become when they reach their adolescence. At the same time, every infant has to be put in a specific environment to have an opportunity to acquire knowledge and develop his or her intelligence.

The basic premises of cognitive development theory lie in the development of a person as he or she grows in terms of intellectual, analytical, learning, and other skills. Many outstanding researchers contributed to the analysis and application of cognitive theories to educational domains and development of an individual. As such, cognition of the world is developed while a person grows while it can be clearly seen only when a person passes through the stages outlined by researchers.

As suggested in the study by Taylor (2005), “it is obvious that newborn infants are not capable of complex thought patterns but also that they are born with the capacity to develop the ability for complex thought” (p. 8). As such, the cognition of the world is closely related to the development of skills and complex thought in infants while it also progresses with aging. Cognitive development can be clearly understood from theories presented by such outstanding researchers as Lev Vygotsky and Jean Piaget.

Development of intelligence is one of the aspects that can be seen from the theory of cognitive development. Intelligence is believed to be an integral part of human nature by both theorists under discussion. For instance, Vygotsky thought game an important component of learning because he understood that developing intelligence it is necessary to take into account the preferences and behavioral peculiarities of the age. As such, children should be approached in a different way than adolescents.

At the same time, Piaget believed that children could alter their knowledge with regard to the new knowledge they acquire. For example, “children begin to construct knowledge in new ways at a few critical points in development. When this happens, they revise their theories radically” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008, p. 14). In other words, when a child comes to know that some features can be applied to more than one object or even to a group of objects, this would reshape the understanding of certain properties of objects or a group of objects.

Development of intelligence is seen similarly by Vygotsky and Piaget though we still can notice some differences in their interpretation of cognitive development theory. One of the reasons for such controversies is that the theory promoted by Piaget was widely acclaimed opposed to the theory by Vygotsky.

In other words, stages of development presented by Vygotsky and Piaget coincide in some way though Piaget labeled those as stages of cognitive development while Vygotsky introduced those as stages of language development where speech is classified as the one spoken aloud and inner speech a person has inside to guide some actions in the age of seven years and older (Oakley, 2004, pp. 39-40).

On the other hand, Vygotsky introduced a classification he labeled ‘stage model of concept formation’ (Oakley, 2004, p. 43) where certain intelligence development is presented on the example of the way children treat wooden blocks when they are assigned to use them for building in their games.

Conceptualization can be treated as one of the integral parts of the intelligence development while analysis of theories shows that a concept is a small component compared to the stages of development of an individual with regard to certain achievements and skills.

Stages of development can concern a period of time and the progress a child makes in acquiring certain knowledge. At the same time, cognitive development theorists Vygotsky and Piaget introduce stages of development when an individual is analyzed and assessed in terms of skills, preferences, and capabilities with regard to the different periods of his or her life.

In other words, an individual is developing his or her skills and gains more knowledge on different concepts with regard to the experience and information received from outside including environment, cultural setting, and people.

There is the main thing in common between theories by Vygotsky and Piaget: Piaget calls it stages of development applied more to learning capabilities while Vygotsky applies more to language development and refers to language and inner speech.

For instance, infants of the age 0-2 and 0-3 have social speech according to Vygotsky (Oakley, 2004, p. 39) and find themselves in sensorimotor stage of development according to the theory by Piaget (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008, p. 14). When infants grow, their language patterns change as well when they pass through another stage of development. Language and other skills as well as intelligence of an individual are closely connected and should be analyzed in complex.

Differences between cognitive development theories by Vygotsky and Piaget concerning stages of development from birth through adolescence consist in different application of theories in practice.

Though Vygotsky suggested that children can talk to themselves (Taylor, 2005, p. 131), it only shows that he focused more on language and it functions in development of intelligence in other words, language development can be considered as a factor or visualization aimed at pointing out when an individual starts to perceive the world in a different way and when the next stage of development starts.

Piaget’s perspective includes a more complex approach as he analyzes senses and motor functions of the human organism with regard to the stages of development not focusing only on language as a pointer of changes. As such, Piaget also has divided the stages of development for infants when language cannot be used as a pointer per se. For instance, when a newborn infant starts to use some patterns, it can be understood and seen only from observation and analysis rather than from assessment of speech patterns.

Each theorist’s views are interesting for classroom application on cognitive development while it is easier to implement Piaget’s theory as it is wider known and has more practical value rather than the one introduced by Vygotsky. At the same time, Vygotsky has presented such concept as game that is called to facilitate the learning process for children.

For instance, it is possible to introduce a few games (they should be short enough to involve many children and manageable at the same time so that an educator can cease the game for the purpose of learning) in order to make the process of learning more interesting for children in certain age.

When we talk about games, this means that theory of Vygotsky is in action while Piaget’s theory is more important for educators that need to focus on analytical and logical operations performed by students. At the same time, certain language patterns used by students can be assessed to identify if they face certain problems in intelligence development.

Piaget’s theory is interesting from the perspective of a student who does not know what he or she can do and what skills can be developed. In this respect, an educator can introduce analytical tasks or those aimed at classifying objects. Every age group has certain skills that can be developed effectively in a specific period of time.

For instance, Piaget insists that in the stage of concrete operational though that lasts from seven years through the adolescence “child understands and applies logical operations to experiences provided they are focus on the here and now” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 2008, p. 14).

On the other hand, it can be considered as a recommendation that children in such age should not be assigned to make plans and build hypothetic situations but rather to focus on the actual problems. In this respect, it is easier to plan the lesson with regard to the needs of students and peculiarities of behavior and development in particular age.

To conclude, cognitive development theory can be easily applied to the classroom while different interpretations and perspectives of cognitive development theorists on the same concepts can be presented in a complex approach in order to show that they all can be implemented effectively. For instance, Piaget’s classification of stages of development coincides partially with Vygotsky’s analysis of language development patterns with regard to development of intelligence.

References

Kail, R. V., & Cavanaugh, J. C. (2008). Human development: A life-span view (5^th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.

Oakley, L. (2004). Cognitive development. Hove, East Sussex: Routledge.

Taylor, L. M. (2005). Introducing cognitive development. Hove, East Sussex: Psychology Press.

Being naturally curious and willing to get new knowledge regularly, young children can learn in a variety of ways and require professional educators’ assistance to develop properly and transform knowledge into helpful skills. A very common mode of learning demonstrated by children is knowledge acquisition through observing the external world and individuals in it and imitating other people’s behaviors and the ways to interact with the environment (Eggen & Kauchak, 2016). This aspect of children’s perspective on the world finds reflection in the so-called teacher modeling instructional strategy that involves modeling a specific learnable skill simply and explicitly to enable young learners to repeat it independently. If broadly defined, modeling is understood as “behavioral, cognitive, and affective changes resulting from observing the actions of others” (Eggen & Kauchak, 2016, p. 243). Modeling is specifically important and valuable in early childhood education since this practice helps to gradually prepare young learners to perform specific tasks. Without modeling, young learners would be placed in situations of uncertainty when they would be supposed to hit upon the ideas behind the required skills without necessary help.

Continuing on the importance of modeling, even though there are intellectually precocious children that outperform their peers in terms of finding links between the sequences of actions and results, the absence of modeling during instruction would deprive the majority of learners of an easy-to-follow point of reference. The use of modeling during instruction leads to some valuable outcomes, including learning new behaviors, helping learners to use abilities that they already possess, altering individuals’ self-imposed restrictions on behavior, and arousing specific emotions (Eggen & Kauchak, 2016). Additionally, teacher modeling is extremely valuable since many techniques involve dividing the skill into a set of simple and easy-to-understand segments, which makes it much easier for learners to understand the internal logic of an activity that they are to complete.

Modeling can be used to instruct and teach diverse learners, and young children are not an exception. The arts and artistic activities are known to contribute to children’s timely and healthy cognitive development (Baker, 2013). Such activities are widely used in early childhood centers, and it is possible to apply instructional modeling to enable young learners to produce simple artworks. For instance, the teacher may use modeling to explain how to create a greeting card with handprint flowers. To do it, the teacher may use a series of steps, including presenting the completed work as a reference and explaining the steps taken to produce the work (one by one). Then, the teacher may show how to complete each step and verbalize any meaningful actions to make sure that all students understand the purpose of actions being demonstrated. Finally, the students will understand the sequence of steps needed to transform an empty piece of paper into a colorful greeting card and engage in the process of art.

Concepts that young learners are expected to understand and put into practice may vary in terms of the extent to which their acquisition depends on children’s ability to engage in complex cognitive processes. In my opinion, behaviorism can be successfully used to teach abstract values and social norms, such as respect for peers, to young children. Behaviorism is a theory of learning that focuses on the interactions between external stimuli and behaviors and the way of how the former can be manipulated to cause intended and positive changes in learners’ responses to situations (Eggen & Kauchak, 2016). Behaviorism takes its roots in Pavlov’s studies of classical conditioning in laboratory dogs, but its applications to education are more specifically discussed in Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning (Eggen & Kauchak, 2016). The theory is based on the idea that people quickly learn to associate some behaviors with its desirable or unwanted consequences. It means that positive and negative reinforcements can be introduced to motivate learners to engage in particular behaviors or prevent them from doing something that is regarded as unacceptable.

Using behaviorism, it would be possible to teach preschoolers in kindergartens (3-5 years old) to follow social norms that are critical to subsequent socialization. The examples of such concepts that refer to universally recognized norms is respecting peers and communicating with them in a polite way. Children in kindergartens spend a lot of time playing, and such activities often involve the elements of collaboration and interpersonal communication (Welchons & McIntyre, 2017). To motivate young learners to be respectful toward peers, it would be possible to resort to a set of positive reinforcements that would make politeness and respectfulness attractive and advantageous. For instance, it could be helpful to reward children for being patient when waiting for their turn to play games, asking for permission prior to using their peers’ toys, expressing gratitude, and so on. Some ways to reward students would include giving verbal praises or letting kids play with their favorite toys or engage in activities that they like most of all. Also, positive and negative stimuli can be effectively used by introducing behavior charts and rewarding or removing stickers depending on children’s attitudes to others.

References

Baker, D. (2013). Art integration and cognitive development. Journal for Learning through the Arts, 9(1), 1-15.

Eggen, P. D., & Kauchak, D. P. (2016). Education psychology: Windows on classrooms (10th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.

Welchons, L. W., & McIntyre, L. L. (2017). The transition to kindergarten: Predicting socio-behavioral outcomes for children with and without disabilities. Early Childhood Education Journal, 45(1), 83-93.

Introduction

Understanding the peculiarities of the children’s perception and interpretation of facts, collecting information and acquiring knowledge is important for guiding them in their cognitive development. In 1920s the Swiss biologist Jean Piaget was the first theoretician who pointed at the differences between amount and structure of knowledge in children and adults. The purpose of this project is to examine Piaget’s concepts by applying them in practice, collecting and interpreting data from an empirical research.

Focusing on the peculiarities of the child’s knowledge and the processes of acquiring it, Piaget observed everyday actions of children and infants and offered them various problem-solving situations for examining the reasoning patterns they were using.

Deriving numerous concepts and principles from his findings, the researcher concluded that children are active learners who constantly conduct experiments and manipulate the objects from the surrounding word for observing the results of their experiments. Children not only absorb knowledge, but also try to organize it for explaining new phenomena with available knowledge in future. “Children think in qualitatively different ways at different age levels” (McDevitt and Ormrod, 2010, p. 143).

Linking cognitive development with children’s biological development, Piaget used the idea of a staircase for his theory of cognitive development, claiming that each step in physiological development represents the improved cognitive ability. Piaget’s model of cognitive development includes four main periods, including a sensorimotor (0-2 years), pre-operational (2-7 years), concrete operational (7-12 years) and formal operational (older than 12 years) stages (Oakley, 2004, p. 16).

The empirical research would be valuable for evaluating Piaget’s main concepts and exploring the ways for implementing them in professional practice.

Method

A five-year-old Jessica and a thirteen-year-old Miranda gave their consent for participating in the study by signing the consent forms. A large discrepancy in the participants’ age enhances the effectiveness of the experiment, clearly representing the differences in their reasoning modes and corresponding differences in their cognitive development.

Jessica and Miranda were offered to sort sixteen pictures of animals, including a tiger, a frog, a spider, a parrot, a whale, a snake, an octopus, a goldfish, a crocodile, a newt, a butterfly, a ladybird, a scorpion, a snail, an owl, and a shark, into different subgroups, explain what their reasoning for sorting the pictures in this or that way was and sort them again, using other principles.

Both girls had enough time for thinking their decisions over and doing the assignment. The experiments were conducted in a comfortable atmosphere in a place free from distractions which allowed establishing interpersonal contact with both participants and enabled Jessica and Miranda to express their opinions freely.

The level of the participants’ cognitive ability was taken into consideration for formulating their task and the questions for discussing the reasoning mode they have used for sorting the pictures. “As a learning expectation, each product needs to be clearly described in some detail so that there is no misunderstanding about what students are required to do” (Macmillan, 2011, p. 227).

Still, the formulation of the assignment for Jessica was exempt of any hints as to how the animals could be sorted. During the discussion of their choices, the answers to the participants’ reasoning were neutral and did not express any attitude or opinion as to the way in which the assignment was done.

The choice of methods, formulation of the task and the overall atmosphere of the experiment were favorable for retrieving reliable data on the differences in Jessica and Miranda’s cognitive ability and examining Piaget’s concepts.

Results

The results of the empirical research have demonstrated significant differences in quantity and quality of knowledge in Jessica and Miranda.

Jessica used the criteria of personal attitude to the animals for sorting the pictures into two large subgroups. Thus, explaining her reasoning for classifying the objects, the girl admitted that the animals in the first subgroup she liked, while the animals in the second subgroup she disliked.

It should be noted that Jessica’s personal negative attitude depended upon dangerousness of a certain animal (a snake, a shark, a crocodile, a scorpion) and its appearance (a butterfly is pleasant-looking, while a snail is not). When Jessica was asked if she can create new groups of the same animals, the girl was confused and answered that she could not do it.

Miranda, the second participant of the study first sorted the pictures into subgroups, labeling them as mammals, reptiles, fish, birds and insects. When the girl was offered to do the same assignment using other criteria for classification, she easily provided several variants for this problem-solving situation.

Thus, Miranda suggested the possible subgroups of warm-blooded and cold-blooded animals, animals with body hair and without it, animals breathing with lungs and animals breathing with gills. In general, the girl has demonstrated not only her knowledge of peculiar features of representatives of the animal world, but also her ability to provide arguments for supporting her position.

Doing the same assignment of classifying the pictures with animals, Jessica and Miranda have shown the differences in their knowledge and reasoning modes for solving the same problem.

Discussion

The findings of this empirical research revealed a wide gap in cognitive abilities of five- and thirteen-year-old participants. Piaget’s concepts can become a theoretical basis for explaining the differences in Jessica and Miranda’s reasoning modes used for explaining the classification criteria.

According to Piaget’s classification of various cognitive stages, a five-year-old Jessica is at the preoperational stage. Eggan (2010) noted that “In the preoperational stage, perception dominates children’s thinking” (p. 38). In other words, at the age between two and seven, children are expected to confuse physical and psychological events and give preference to their perception rather than logic for explaining their reasoning.

It explains Jessica’s choice of personal attitude as the main criteria for classification of the animals. Complying with Piaget’s expectations from cognitive abilities of children of her age, she concentrated on her personal perception and did not use the logics for doing the assignment. Other characteristics of this period include egocentrism, lack of conservation, single classification and transductive reasoning (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010, p. 148).

In other words, at the age between two and seven, at the preoperational stage of their development, children may have certain fallacies in their reasoning. The lack of conservation can make these children believe that the volume of liquid can change if it is poured from one contained to another. The transdunctive reasoning implies involvement of irrelevant arguments into explanations.

Analyzing the results of the experiment, it can be stated that doing the assignment, Jessica demonstrated particular cognitive features, namely dominance of perception over logics and single classification at a given period of time which are characteristic of the preoperational stage. Piaget’s concepts are applicable for explaining Jessica’s reasoning mode, choice of classification criteria and refusal of making another attempt to sort the pictures by implementing other criteria.

As to the second participant of this study, a thirteen-year-old Miranda, she belongs to the subgroup of formal operations. Coon and Mitterer (2010) noted that “Full adult intellectual ability is attained during the stage of formal operations…but not everyone reaches this level of thinking” (p. 99).

At this stage the thinking processes become integrated through acquisition and systematization of new knowledge. Adolescents do not concentrate on their personal perception, feelings and emotions for their reasoning and are able to operate abstract notions in their thinking processes. Understanding that other people may not share their views, they can distinguish between manifestation of facts and expression of their personal opinion.

Adolescents recognize that they can be mistaken and often require confirmation of their ideas. “Reasoning logically, formulating and testing hypotheses, and separating and controlling variables – together allow adolescents to use a scientific method” (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010, p. 153). In general, thinking processes in most adolescents at the stage of formal operations are similar to those in adults though their cognitive abilities still depend upon their personal development.

The assignment of sorting the pictures with animals might seem to be primitive to Miranda, but the sophisticated reasoning and criteria she used for classification of objects demonstrated the level of her cognitive development corresponding to Piaget’ stage of formal operations. Offering different versions of sorting the animals, including those of their anatomic peculiarities, the girl used the system of her knowledge on Zoology and her ability to implement her knowledge in a new unfamiliar situation.

The findings of this study have proven the applicability of Piaget’s concepts and cognitive development stages to the realities of modern teaching-learning process. The results which were achieved by Jessica and Miranda in doing the assignment of sorting the pictures with animals complied with Piaget’s expectations as to the cognitive abilities at the preoperational and formal operations stages.

Limitations of the study

Disregarding the fact that measures were imposed for avoiding any distraction in communicating with the participants of the study and enhancing the effectiveness of the experiment, this study has certain limitations, including the small sample for the experiment and the type of assignment.

The level of the participant’s personal cognitive development which could be different in their peers is an influential factor which should be taken into consideration for evaluating the findings. The peculiarities of the assignment in their turn precondition specific responses in the participants, while another task could reveal other peculiarities or not reveal any at all.

Implications

Knowledge of peculiarities of children’s thinking processes is necessary for proper organization of educational environment. Understanding how children of different ages perceive, interpret and systematize new information, parents and educators would be able to select the most appropriate assignments for guiding children and adolescents in their cognitive development for improving their achievements.

“The constructivist teacher, by offering appropriate tasks and opportunities for dialogue, guides the focus of students’ attention, thus unobtrusively directing their learning” (Clements, D. & Battista, 1990, p. 35).

Acknowledging the active participation of students in the learning process at different stages of their cognitive development would allow choosing the right direction for the teaching efforts.

Conclusion

The findings of this empirical study have proven the correspondence between Piaget’s concepts and the cognitive abilities at the preoperational and formal operations stages. Collecting data from the experiment and through a theoretical review of literature, this paper demonstrates the application of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development in practice.

Reference List

Clements, D. & Battista (1990). Constructivist learning and teaching. Arithmetic Teacher, 38(1): 34-35.

Coon, D. & Mitterer, J. (2010). Introduction to psychology: Gateways to mind and behavior. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.

Eggan P. & Kauchak D. (2010). Educational psychology: Windows on classrooms (8th. Ed.). International Edition. New Jersey: Pearson

McDevitt, T., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Child development and education. (4th ed.) New Jersey: Pearson

McMillan, J. H. (2011). Classroom Assessment: Principles and practice for effective standards-based instruction (5th Ed.). Boston: Pearson

Oakley, L. (2004). Cognitive development. New York, NY: Routledge.

Keanu Reeves

Born 1964 in Beirut, Keanu Reeves is a Canadian actor famous for his various roles on the big screen. Other than acting, he engages in philanthropy, writing, and music. His heritage encompasses many cultures, including Chinese, Irish, English, and Portuguese, but he is mainly connected to his Asian Pacific Islander roots, e.g., Native Hawaiian. Some of his latest work is influenced by this cultural aspect; the Asian-dominated casts of Always Be My Maybe, 47 Ronin, and Man of Tai Chi serve as an example.

Physical Development

Exercise, Nutrition & Weight

As an action star (the Matrix, John Wick), Keanu Reeves keeps in admirable shape. Being a master of martial arts and a capable wielder of guns, he also undertook physical training that allowed him to adhere to an upbeat rhythm and reduce pain while performing stunts. This included corrective exercise, balance, endurance, and power training, as well as practices for recovery. He generally prefers a healthy diet consisting of small and well-balanced meals that help combat cravings.

Lifestyle Influences on Physical Health

As it has been stated in the paragraph above, Reeves maintains a reasonably healthy diet and strict physical exercise regime, which are required for his action roles. Due to his profession, Keanu can perform complicated and demanding stunts even at his age (he was 55 when the third John Wick movie was released).

Cognitive Development

Midlife “Crisis”

In media, Reeves has an image of a calm, collected, and positive person. However, even his resolute had been shaken by the milestone which was his 40^th birthday. He reported on feeling his age and struggling with the notion of aging and even buying an expensive car, which goes against his usual down-to-earth and humble approach to living.

Gaining Expertise

Gaining expertise in various aspects is naturally a big part of an actor’s career. For Keanu Reeves, is has been learning martial arts in preparation for The Matrix series and skills of an equestrian for an upcoming John Wick movie. He had to become proficient in Krav Maga, Boxing, Jiu-Jitsu, and Wushi, and years later, he trained to be able to trick ride a horse.

Psychosocial Development

Religion & Spirituality

Keanu Reeves does not appear to be a deeply religious person. However, his spirituality is an ever-present subject in the public eye and among fans. When asked what he believes will happen to people after they die, he simply stated that those who love us would miss us. It proves a lack of a firm religious belief while suggesting that he is open to various possibilities of the afterlife. It might be an implication that focusing on personal connections and leaving an imprint on this world is much more important for him than being concerned with what would happen after death.

Types of Coping

Numerous personal tragedies had marked Reeves’ life. His best friend died of a drug overdose when Reeves was 29; later in life, he lost both his child, who was stillborn, and the child’s mother within 18 months. His relationship with his father was filled with pain and frustration. It is known that losing an object of attraction can lead to higher awareness of how fragile worldly things are, and this detachment, in turn, can force a person to seek solace in self-destructive practices (Laurie & Stark, 2021). Although he had found it very difficult to cope with these hardships, Reeves’s approach to grief does not border on self-harming. Instead of drugs and alcohol, he opts for meditation.

References

Laurie, T., & Stark, H. (2021). The theory of love: ideas, limits, futures. Palgrave Macmillan.