Forum 4:
Based on what you’ve learned and your own experience, how does pretend play contribute to a child’s development?
What qualities and skills do you think are important for academic and vocational success? How many of those qualities and skill are assessed by traditional intelligence tests? What advice would you give to parents and teachers who want to nurture creativity and special talents with children?
Cognitive Development (Piaget) and Intelligence
The topic for this week is cognitive development and intelligence from the perspective of Piaget and Vygotsky. Additionally, we will learn definitions of intelligence, the predictive value of intelligence tests, variations in IQ, the role of early intervention in intellectual development, and the development of creativity.
Topics to be covered include:
· Cognitive Development: Piagetian, Core Knowledge, and Vygotskian Perspectives
· Role of Intelligence Testing in the Development of Educational Programs
· Case Studies Related to Intelligence
Cognitive Development
We will begin to examine cognitive development, or how the intellectual capabilities of infants transform into those of the child, adolescent, and adult. First, let us define cognition. Cognition refers to the inner processes and products of the mind that lead to “knowing.” In other words, how do we acquire, comprehend, and apply knowledge? What transformations must occur for individuals to develop increasingly sophisticated mental capacities?
JEAN PIAGET
You have likely heard the name of Swiss cognitive theorist, Jean Piaget. According to Piaget, people are not cognitive beings at birth; instead, they discover, or construct, all knowledge of the world through their own experiences. As they begin to construct knowledge, they refine and organize the information in order to effectively adapt to their environments. This theory of active construction of knowledge is known as the constructivist approach to cognitive development. This approach follows children through four invariant (fixed order) and universal (assumed to characterize all children) stages: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Throughout these stages, infants’ investigative behaviors gradually transform into the abstract, rational intelligence of more mature individuals.
PIAGET’S STAGES OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
SENSORIMOTOR
PREOPERATIONAL
CONCRETE OPERATIONAL
FORMAL OPERATIONAL
Piaget identified specific psychological structures called schemes (organized ways of making sense of experiences) that change with age. Initially, schemes are patterns of action involving the senses and motor functions. For example, a baby may simply grab and release an object. As the baby gets older, this scheme becomes more deliberate, and she may begin to throw the object down the stairs, up in the air, or against walls. In other words, she is thinking before she acts. When there evidence of this, Piaget says the child has moved from a sensorimotor approach to a cognitive approach, which uses mental representations (images and concepts) to develop efficient thinking habits. This advancement in thinking relies on adaptation and organization. Adaptation involves building schemes through direct interaction with the environment, while organization is an internal process that connects schemes to create a powerfully interrelated cognitive system.
Piaget’s Impact
Although follow-up research has changed the way we look at some aspects of Piaget’s theory, it is important to note the major impact his theory had on educational practices. Teacher training and learning procedures have reflected three educational principles derived from his view: discovery learning (providing exploration experiences to guide learning rather than verbally offering facts), sensitivity to children’s readiness to learn (introducing new activities when children are ready, not to speed up development), and acceptance of individual differences (using knowledge of each child’s specific rate of development to plan small group activities).
CHALLENGES AND EXTENSIONS TO PIAGET’S THEORIES
At present, most experts agree that cognition is less stage-like than Piaget suggested. They instead embrace the understanding that children are continuously modifying their thinking and obtaining new skills. Moreover, researchers typically disagree on whether cognitive development is general or specific. These challenges have led researchers to extend or modify Piaget’s work. Those who believe differently than Piaget regarding the limited cognitive capabilities of infants have proposed the core knowledge perspective.
CORE KNOWLEDGE PERSPECTIVE
The core knowledge perspective is a second set of theories related to cognitive development. Unlike Piaget, who believed infants come into the world only with sensorimotor reflexes, those who embrace this perspective believe that infants are innately equipped with core domains of thought that support rapid cognitive development. In other words, infants are prewired to make sense of certain stimuli. Each core domain is essential for survival and develops independently, resulting in uneven, domain-specific changes.
PHYSICAL KNOWLEDGE AND NUMERICAL KNOWLEDGE
Two core domains have been studied at length in infancy: physical knowledge and numerical knowledge. Physical knowledge is the understanding of objects and their effects on one another. Numerical knowledge is the capacity to keep track of multiple objects and to add and subtract small quantities. Observation of infants has shown understanding in these areas occurring quite early, supporting the idea that some knowledge must be innate. Children gradually build on that knowledge and it becomes more intricate as through exploration, play, and social interaction. They are viewed as naïve theorists, who create explanations of events based on innate knowledge. Their explanations, or theories, are tested with experience and revised if needed. These revisions lead to increased reasoning about cause and effect situations. While this is an intriguing idea about how cognitive skills are able to emerge early and rapidly develop, this theory has not offered clarity on how children make the necessary revisions that prompt cognitive change.
Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory
The sociocultural theory is the third set of theories related to cognitive development and is founded in the work of Lev Vygotsky. Vygotsky believed that infants are born with elementary perceptual, attention, and memory capacities, which develop in the first two years through interaction with others. Vygotsky did not view cognitive development as individualistic, but placed a significant emphasis on culture or community. Unlike Piaget, who favored independent discovery leading to construction of knowledge, Vygotsky asserted that acquisition of knowledge is a consequence of social interactions. Specifically, learning takes place within the zone of proximal development, which is a range of tasks too difficult for the child to do alone but possible with the help of adults and more skilled peers. When these more knowledgeable individuals question, prompt, and suggest strategies for mastering a specific task within the zone of proximal development, the child is drawn into more mature thinking processes. Support during learning can gradually be adjusted, based on the child’s needs, a concept known as scaffolding. Also, due to his emphasis on social experience and language, Vygotsky saw make-believe play as a major zone of proximal development for preschoolers.
VYGOTSKY’S IMPACT
When applied in the classroom, Vygotsky’s theory teaches us to highlight collaboration. While we again see that children should be active participants in learning, we now go beyond individual discovery (Piaget) to discovery through teacher guidance and peer partnerships. In preschool, there should be many opportunities for make-believe play. In all grades, there should be opportunities for talk, as this dialogue prompts reflection on thought processes, which, in turn leads to increased cognitive awareness.
Knowledge Check
1
Question 1
Which theory on cognitive development places a large emphasis on language and social interaction as the foundation for learning?
Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory
Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
Core Knowledge Perspective
I don’t know
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Case Study
‹ 1/2 ›
· STUDY 1
To highlight how children’s drawings can help identify adjustment difficulties at school.
As noted in the text, a variety of factors—the realization that pictures can serve as symbols, improved planning and spatial understanding, and the emphasis the child’s culture places on artistic expression—influence the development of children’s artful representations.
According to Harrison, Clarke, and Ungerer (2007), drawings can also provide insight into relationships with adults, as well as children’s overall adjustment. In one study, researchers recruited 125 six-year-olds and collected the following information:
o Participants completed a 30-minute interview that addressed general perceptions of themselves, their school, and their teachers.
o Participants completed the School Liking and Avoidance Scale. Using a three-point scale (yes=3, no=2, sometimes=1), children were asked such questions as, “Is school fun?” “Do you enjoy school?” “Do you ask your parents to let you stay home from school?” “Does school make you feel like crying?” To assess participants’ feelings about their teacher, they were asked: “Do you like to see your teacher when you get to school?” “Is your teacher nice to you?” “Does your teacher smile at you?” “Does your teacher play or read with you?”
o Participants were asked to draw a picture of themselves and their teacher at school. Drawing materials were provided but no further instructions were given. Researchers recorded any spontaneous comments, and once participants completed their drawings, they were asked to identify the people and objects in the picture. Pictures were scored on the following dimensions, which are commonly used to assess child/family drawings:
§ Creativity—going beyond the instructions and adding lively, colorful, or imaginative features.
§ Pride/happiness—showing an emotional connectedness to the teacher, such as holding hands or doing something fun with the teacher.
§ Vulnerability—using overwhelming, exaggerated, distorted, or displaced body images.
§ Emotional distance/isolation—using expressions of anger, negative affect, physical distance from the teacher, or physical barriers between the child and teacher.
§ Tension/anger—showing rigid and constricted features or scribbling out the teacher’s face.
§ Role reversal—representing the child as larger, more powerful, or more potent than the teacher.
§ Bizarreness/dissociation—including unusual signs or symbols, angry facial features, or morbid fantasy themes.
o Teachers rated their relationship quality with each child on five dimensions: conflict/anger, warmth/positive emotions, open communication, dependency, and troubled feelings.
o Teachers rated participants’ overall school adjustment by identifying the prevalence of problem behaviors (for example, acting out, aggression, learning problems) and strengths/competencies (for example, leadership, frustration tolerance, social skills).
Results
Findings revealed significant relationships among children’s reports, children’s drawings, teacher-rated relationship quality, and teacher-rated school adjustment. That is, children who reported negative feelings about their teacher also included negative themes in their drawings, such as scribbling out the teacher’s face. Their teachers, in turn, were likely to report strained teacher–child relationships and problematic classroom behavior. Taken together, these findings suggest that children’s artistic representations of relationships with teachers are an important tool for identifying adjustment difficulties at school.
Definitions of Intelligence
How do you view intelligence? When you consider a highly intelligent person, what behaviors stand out to you? It is probably not surprising to learn that experts disagree on the attributes that make up intelligence and that the definition of intelligence has evolved over time. You may recall that the first intelligence test was created by Alfred Binet and his colleague, Theodore Simon, in 1905 in response to educators’ needs to identify students who were unlikely to benefit from standard classroom instruction. Binet was asked to develop an impartial means of assigning students to classes, one which focused on mental aptitude and not disruptive behavior. Factors such as memory and reasoning skills were considered and compared to children of the same ages.
PSYCHOMETRIC APPROACH
FACTOR ANALYSIS
OTHER APPROACHES
Louis Thurstone, in contrast, viewed intelligence as less of a single, general ability and more of a set of distinct abilities. His factor analysis on more than 50 intelligence tests suggested that independent, individual factors of intelligence exist. He called these factors primary mental abilities, and categorized these abilities as follows: verbal comprehension, reasoning, perceptual speed, numerical ability, word fluency, associative memory, and spatial visualization.
Eventually, both Spearman and Thurstone recognized each other’s perspectives, and current theorists combine both approaches when designing tests. Subtest scores are used to determine an individual’s specific strengths and weaknesses (Thurstone’s original theory), but can also be combined into an overall general intelligence score (Spearman’s original theory). However, many researchers believe that merely combining these two perspectives is not enough, as factors on intelligence tests have only partial value if we cannot recognize the cognitive processes accountable for those factors. If we are able to do that, we will better understand what skills must be reinforced to improve a particular child’s performance. To facilitate this, psychometric and information-processing approaches were combined and componential analyses conducted, looking for relationships involving components of information processing and children’s intelligence test performance. While this helps to detect cognitive skills that contribute to intelligence, this approach does not include cultural and situational factors that may affect intelligence.
STERNBERG
GARDNER
Measuring Intelligence
Although we have discussed some limitations to intelligence testing, they are often helpful in identifying highly gifted children and diagnosing learning problems. Standardized intelligence tests utilize the scores of a large, representative sample of individuals as a standard for interpreting individual scores. Scores produce an intelligence quotient, or IQ, which indicates the extent to which the number of items passed (raw score) deviates from the average performance of individuals of the same age. Group-administered standardized tests are useful for instructional planning, while individually administered tests consider both the child’s answers and behaviors, which paints a more accurate picture of the child’s abilities. Two of these individual tests – the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales, Fifth Edition, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–IV (WISC–IV) – are used most often.
APTITUDE AND ACHIEVEMENT TESTS
Aptitude and achievement tests are similar to intelligence tests. Aptitude tests assess a child’s propensity for excelling in a specific type of activity, such as music or language. On the other hand, achievement tests measure the attainment of particular knowledge and skills, such as reading comprehension or concepts covered within a particular class. Achievement test are often given by teachers to assess their students’ understanding of a particular subject area. There are even tests to measure the intelligence of infants, although these present unique challenges, as babies are unable to answer questions or follow directions. Tests performed with infants typically measure perceptual and motor responses; however, more recent tests also attempt to determine early language, cognition, and social behavior.
Ethnic and Socioeconomic Impact on IQ scores
We know that many factors affect child development and that both heredity and environment shape a child’s unique qualities. What are the roles of nature versus nurture in regards to determining IQ? You will not be surprised to learn that there has been much debate regarding this question, as researchers are concerned with locating the cause of IQ disparities between and among certain ethnicities. Either heredity or environmental factors must be responsible for the variations in test performance.
HEREDITY
Heritability estimates, or measures which researchers use to correlate the IQs of family members who share genes, reveal that heredity does play a role in IQ test performance. Adoption studies have also supported these findings, as children in the study eventually became more similar in IQ to their biological mothers and less similar to their adoptive parents. However, within the same studies, it was noted that the IQ of children were adopted into privileged homes benefited from a rise in IQ in comparison with non-adopted children who remained in disadvantaged homes.
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
This reminds us that environmental factors also contribute to individual differences in intelligence, as do family beliefs about intellectual success and expectations for children’s educational attainment. Other factors, such as communication styles, lack of familiarity with test content, reactions to testing conditions, and fear of being judged on the basis of negative stereotypes can lead test scores to underestimate minority children’s intelligence. An approach to testing, known as dynamic assessment, seems to discover what a child can attain with social support, thus reducing bias in testing.
USE OF TESTING‹ 1/2 ›
· Intervention Programs for Lower Achieving Students
Because research shows a correlation between socioeconomic status and performance in intelligence tests, intervention programs for economically disadvantaged students have been implemented. The majority of these programs begin as early as preschool, with the hopes of offsetting learning challenges before formal schooling begins. You may have heard of Project Head Start, which is one of the largest federal programs, offering academic support, as well as nutritional and health service and promoting parental involvement. Research on early intervention programs indicates that, although instantaneous gains in IQ tend to rapidly dissipate, enduring benefits are noted in school adjustment, attitudes, and motivation. A program in which high-quality intervention starts early, is intensive, emphasizes parent involvement, and focuses on the whole child is likely to have a more far-reaching impact in all areas, including IQ.
Knowledge Check
1
Question 1
Which type of standardized test provides us with knowledge about a child’s potential proficiency with a particular talent?
Aptitude tests
Achievement tests
Intelligence tests
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Case Study
Research studies provide examples various types of intelligence testing and the use of testing results. The first case study examines the relationship of emotional intelligence and successful intelligence to leadership skills in gifted students. The second case study inspects the relationship among low birth weight, social disadvantage, and children’s IQ scores at ages six, 11, and 17.
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· STUDY 1
Emotional Intelligence, Successful Intelligence, and Leadership Skills
Emotional intelligence is positively associated with self-esteem, empathy, prosocial behavior, cooperation, leadership skills, and life satisfaction. In addition, Sternberg’s theory underscores the importance of analytical, creative, and practical skills—skills that are often overlooked on intelligence tests—for life success. To examine the relationship among emotional intelligence, successful intelligence, and leadership skills, Chan (2007) recruited 498 gifted students in grades 4 through 12 and collected the following information:
(1) Participants completed a leadership rating scale, which measures leadership self-efficacy, leadership flexibility, and goal orientation (related to leadership and achievement). (2) Participants completed an emotional intelligence scale that assesses social skills, empathy, management of emotions, and utilization of emotions. (3) Participants completed Sternberg’s Successful Intelligence Questionnaire, which measures analytical, creative, and practical abilities.
Results
Results indicated that both emotional intelligence and successful intelligence predicted leadership skills. That is, participants who scored high in emotional and successful intelligence scored higher in overall leadership skills than participants who scored low in these areas. When looking at specific aspects of emotional and successful intelligence, practical abilities and management of emotions were especially strong predictors of leadership skills. These findings suggest that the abilities to apply intellectual skills in everyday situations and to manage and regulate emotions are important leadership qualities. No significant age or gender differences were found.
Overview
During the first two decades of life, the human body continuously and dramatically changes, a process regulated and controlled by a number of biological and environmental factors. Heredity, nutrition, infectious disease, and parental affection all contribute to physical growth and overall health. Stimulation of the brain is vital during periods in which it is growing most rapidly in order to enhance cognitive development. Both Piaget and Vygotsky have created theories centered around cognitive development that have impacted our view of the way children acquire, comprehend, and apply knowledge. As children grow older, puberty causes their bodies to drastically change, which is also accompanied by psychological changes, as teenagers strive to adjust to what is happening in their bodies.
Information-processing research seeks to understand how children develop the attention, memory, and self-management skills to succeed with complex tasks. Those who study this approach compare the human mind to a computer, or an intricate, symbol-manipulating system through which information flows. Attention to task is essential to thinking because it helps an individual determine which information needs to be considered. Development of attentional strategies occurs in phases and, over time, children gain an increased capacity for planning. As the ability to sustain attention grows, memory also improves, and the implementation of memory strategies increases a child’s likelihood of transferring information from the working memory to the long-term memory. Children also develop metacognition, which is another form of knowledge that influences how well children remember and solve problems. Fundamental discoveries about information processing have been applied to children’s mastery of academic skills, particularly in the areas of reading and mathematics. Identifying differences in cognitive skills between weak and strong learners can lead to strategies and interventions to increase performance. In addition, intelligence tests are helpful in identifying highly gifted children and diagnosing learning problems. The use of various types of intelligence testing has led to specific educational programs for diverse groups of students.
Key Terms
ADAPTATION
COGNITION
COGNITIVE-DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY
CONSTRUCTIVIST APPROACH
CORE KNOWLEDGE PERSPECTIVE
DEFERRED IMITATION
EGOCENTRISM
MENTAL REPRESENTATION
INTENTIONAL (GOAL DIRECTED) BEHAVIOR
OPERATIONS
ORGANIZATION
SCAFFOLDING
SCHEMES
ZONE OF PROXIMAL DEVELOPMENT
ACHIEVEMENT TEST
APTITUDE TEST
COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS
CREATIVITY
DYNAMIC ASSESSMENT
FACTOR ANALYSIS
GIFTED
INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ)
THEORY OF MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
Sources
Brainerd, C.J., Forrest, T.J., Karibian, D., & Reyna, V. F. (2006). Development of the false-memory illusion. Developmental Psychology, 42, 962–979.
Breslau, N., Dickens, W. T., Flynn, J. R., Peterson, E. L., & Lucia, V.C. (2006). Low birth weight and social disadvantage: Tracking their relationship with children’s IQ during the period of school attendance. Intelligence, 34, 351–362.
Chan, D. W. (2007). Leadership and intelligence. Roeper Review, 29, 183–189.
Friedman, N. P., Haberstick, B. C., Willcutt, E. G., Miyake, A., Young, S. E., Corley, R. P., & Hewitt, J. K. (2007). Greater attention problems during childhood predict poorer executive functioning in late adolescence. Psychological Science, 18, 893–900.
All graphics are public domain images or stock images from 123RF.
Play
from Cambridge Encyclopedia of Child Development
Introduction
This entry reviews the main different types of play, and the kinds of developmental benefits they may bring to children. The ubiquity of play in childhood (and in most species of mammals when young) strongly suggests its benefits for development, but what these benefits are, and how important or essential they are, are still debated. Classic perspectives on the development and function of play can be found in the writings of Piaget and Vygotsky. Let us begin by tackling the issue of what constitutes play, and then turn to how it undergoes age-related changes.
Defining play
Play is often defined as activity that is both done for its own sake, and characterized by ‘ means rather than ends’ (i.e., the process of the play is more important than any end point or goal). These criteria contrast play with, for example, exploration (which may lead into play as a child gets more familiar with a new toy or environment), with work (which has a definite goal), and fighting (different from play fighting as discussed later). Additional characteristics of play are flexibility (objects being put in new combinations, roles acted out in new ways), positive affect (children often smile and laugh in play, and say they enjoy it), and pretence (use of objects and actions in non-literal ways).
Main types of play
Although classifications differ, the following main types of play are well recognized: object play, pretend play and sociodramatic play, and physical activity play (exercise play; rough-and-tumble play). Of these, object play and physical activity play are seen widely in other species of mammals. Pretend and sociodramatic play are only seen in humans, apart from some possibly very elementary forms of pretence in great apes. Besides play, there is the related concept of games. Games with rules are more organized forms of play in which there is some goal (e.g., winning the game) and are not reviewed further.
Object play
This starts in infancy and may help children develop creative problem-solving skills. Researchers such as Jerome Bruner and Kathy Sylva have reported experiments with children in which they are given a chance to play with objects, then solve a task. Those with the play experience solved the task better. However, subsequent research has suggested that instruction can often be equally effective (Johnson, Christie, & Yawkey, 1999). The benefits of play need to be balanced against those of instruction, bearing in mind the ages of the children, the nature of the task, and the specificity of the learning expected – whether for specific skills or a more generally inquisitive and creative attitude.
