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--- learning_theories:stage_theory_of_cognitive_development [2011/04/11 14:19]
jpetrovic [Criticism]
+++ learning_theories:stage_theory_of_cognitive_development [2011/04/12 10:46]
jpetrovic [What is the practical meaning of stage theory of cognitive development?]
@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 In 1947((Piaget, J. The Psychology of Intelligence. 1947.)) Piaget has first introduced his **four stages** of human cognitive development: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete, and formal, as they are described below. Ages describing when which stage occurs are the average values.
-  * **Sensorimotor period** (birth to 2 years): In this stage cognitive system of an infant is limited to **motor reflexes**, but also some more complex procedures built on those reflexes. Infant interacts with the environment, **learns to understand the world** and is acquiring the capacity for internalized thinking. Learning takes place through **absorbing into the existing schema** and accommodating when schema change is required.
+  * **Sensorimotor period** (birth to 2 years): In this stage cognitive system of an infant is limited to **motor reflexes**, but also some more complex procedures built on those reflexes. Infant interacts with the environment, **learns to understand the world** and is acquiring the capacity for internalized thinking. Learning takes place through absorbing into the existing schema and accommodating when schema change is required.((Piaget also uses concepts of schema and schemata, later expanded by Anderson. See: [[learning_theories:Schema theory]]))
-  * **Preoperational period** (2 to 7 years): Children now **develop language** and **mental imagery skills**, but still cannot conceptualize abstractly and don't have sense of time. Intelligence becomes less egocentric and more socialized. A child can now think about events and things that aren't present in the moment of speaking. He can **see the world** only from **his perspective** and assumes other do so as well. Teaching a child in this stage must take into account his not fully understand concepts of time phenomenon.
+  * **Preoperational period** (2 to 7 years): Children now **develop language** and **mental imagery skills**, but still cannot conceptualize abstractly and don't have sense of time. Intelligence becomes less egocentric and more socialized. A child can now think about events and things that aren't present in the moment of speaking. He can see the world only from his perspective and assumes other do so as well. Teaching a child in this stage must take into account his not fully understand concepts of time phenomenon.
-  * **Concrete-operational period** (7 to 11 years): Children in this stage of development are able to analyze more perspectives simultaneously. Much of learning if performed through assimilation. Although they can **understand concrete problems** and develop reasoning skills, according to Piaget they still **cannot analyze abstract problems** and all of their logical consequences.
+  * **Concrete-operational period** (7 to 11 years): Children in this stage of development are able to analyze more perspectives simultaneously. Much of learning if performed through assimilation. Although they can **understand concrete problems** and develop reasoning skills, according to Piaget they still cannot analyze abstract problems and all of their logical consequences.
-  * **Formal-operational period** (11 to adolescence) : Piaget claims that the **final form of cognition** is reached in this stage. Abstract thinking capabilities in this stage are very similar to ones of adults. Individual at this stage is also capable of **hypothetical and deductive** but also **reflective and analytical reasoning skills**. This is supposed to be the final stage of cognitive development and although the knowledge base of an individual is still to be expanded, his thinking capabilities are now as strong as they would get.
+  * **Formal-operational period** (11 to adolescence) : Piaget claims that the final form of cognition is reached in this stage. Abstract thinking capabilities in this stage are very similar to ones of adults. Individual at this stage is also capable of **hypothetical and deductive** but also **reflective and analytical reasoning skills**. This is supposed to be the final stage of cognitive development and although the knowledge base of an individual is still to be expanded, his thinking capabilities are now as strong as they would get.
+The importance of the Piaget's stage model are the **constrains** that stage of cognitive development sets **on learning**. These constrains mean that what can be learned depends on the current developmental stage. One should be taught to apply developed cognitive structures to new material, but to learn new strategies first the related cognitive structure has to evolve.
-((Piaget also uses concepts of schema and schemata, later expanded by Anderson. See: [[learning_theories:Schema theory]]))
+Piaget was also concerned with the instructional methodology for children where he was a proponent of:
+  * **Naturalism** - a belief that **natural learning is always the best learning**. Origins of this idea can be traced back to as far back as [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Jacques_Rousseau|Jean Jacques Rousseau]] and it means that the best learning occurs through **everyday processes** and **spontaneous acquisition** of operations or concepts through normal experience. This idea seemed intuitively it was at the time accepted even without experimental validation.
+  * **Constructivism** - Piaget was a constructivist theorist suggesting children **construct** their knowledge through **interaction of their biological predispositions with their experience**. **Active self-discovery** of rules underlying current concepts and outcomes is the key to learning.
 ===== What is the practical meaning of stage theory of cognitive development? =====
-The importance of the Piaget's stage model are the constrains that stage of cognitive development sets on learning. These constrains mean that what can be learned depends on the current developmental stage. One should be taught to apply developed cognitive structures to new material, but to learn new strategies first the related cognitive structure has to evolve.
+Piaget's theory suggests that in order to make learning effective, learner's stage of the cognitive development needs to be taken into account or it all be just a waste of time. Aside from that, Piaget was mostly orientated on learning in
-Piaget's theory suggests that in order to make learning effective, learner's stage of the cognitive development needs to be taken into account. General suggestions for adopting teaching methods to the four stages of development are following:
+  * preoperational stage - when children should and can **actively** engage in **learning and exploring**, and
+  * preoperational stage - learning in this stage is facilitated through an opportunity to ask **questions** and get **explanations** which allow learner to mentally manipulate information.
-  * **Sensorimotor stage** - teaching an infant in this stage should be orientated on its **sensorimotor system**.
-  * **Preoperational stage** - children can now **actively** engage in **learning and exploring**.
-  * **Preoperational stage** - learning in this stage is facilitated through an opportunity to ask **questions** and get **explanations** which allow learner to mentally manipulate information.
   * **Formal operations** - teaching the adolescent expands in its dimensions as he is able to consider many possibilities from **several perspectives**.

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