Chapter 4

Cognition – all mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

Jean Piaget◦ Theory of Cognitive Development◦ Actually studied children to develop his theory

A child’s mind develop through stages The maturing brain builds schemas – a

framework to organize information

◦Using and adjusting our schemas Assimilate new experiences – child uses

old experiences to deal with new situations Ex. Doggies have four legs, all four legged

creatures are doggies Accommodate our schemas to fit new

experiences – child changes old method to adjust to new situations. Ex. Learning that all four legged creatures are

not doggies and that to tell a doggie from a pig, you should look at its face

VIDEO- Schema, Assimilation, Accommodation Start at :40-3:10

Activity: Complete Piagetan Tasks Go to page 148 Sensorimotor Stage – Birth to Age 2

◦ Discovering the world through senses ◦ (Parents excited about walking for first time..a few days later

they are bumming why?◦ If still have toys from when you were 1 might have bite

marks in them.◦ First schemas begin to form◦ Young infants lack object permanence (until about 8

months old) The awareness that objects continue to exist when not perceived At 8 months old, infants begin to look momentarily for toys that

are hidden Video – Object Permanence

Preoperational Stage – Preschool (About Age 2 to Age 6)◦ Children at this age are too young to perform

mental operations◦ Video – Preoperational Thinking◦ (if babysitting and only 3 crackers left here is a

way to get more)◦ Child lacks the concepts of conservation

Quantity remains the same despite changes in shape. Ex. Milk in a short glass filled to the rim vs. that same

amount of milk poured into a larger glass.

◦ Egocentric – Children fail to see things from another’s point of view. Many parents mistakenly view their child as being very selfish (up till age 4

◦ Ex.- sharing difficulty◦ Ex.- reaction to friend getting very hurt.◦ Ex- unable to lie.◦ Q When was your first lie?◦ theory of mind- change of mind (4:30)

Theory of mind – Children come to realize (about age 4) that people have minds and thus they think, feel and perceive.

Autism – a disorder that appears in children and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and impaired theory of mind.

Personal experiences with Autism

The "False Belief" TestA Child’ world Mind Games: 1/3 0-8:30, 13:30-end 2/3 Beginning to 2:03, 7:30-7:50,

10:10-13:10 2/3 Beginning-8:00 Piaget tasks

refers to the tendency of children to believe that all objects, animals, and things are living and capable of having feelings, intentions, and emotions. Objects are personified. For example, a preoperational child may explain that it is raining because, "the sun is sad and it's crying." When a child accidentally falls into a wall, he or she may hit it afterwards, as if the wall intended to hurt him or her.

Concrete Operational Stage – Age 7 to Age 11◦ Child begins to grasp conservation. (Change in

shape does not mean change in quantity) Volume, Area, and Number. Ex.- cutting a sandwich in half or cutting up a

pizza into more slices Review using video from England

REVIEW- BBC DVD on Preoperational vs. Concrete Operational children

Formal Operation Stage – Age 12 through Adulthood◦ Adolescents and adults develop the ability to

think about and solve abstract problems in a logical manner

◦ Solve hypothetical propositions◦ Q Beginning tomorrow every baby in the world is

born with one leg (doesn’t matter right or left)◦ formal operational child

Develop capacity for moral reasoning NOT necessarily high morals. Re: p. 167

◦ Basically, the sequence of cognitive development unfolds as Piaget suggests

◦ Piaget underestimated children◦ Movement from stage to stage is not abrupt

rather it is a gradual development. ◦ Movement from stage to stage happens faster

than Piaget thought ◦ Theory does not explain how the change occurs

from stage to stage

Describe what a child in each of Piaget’s stages would think about Santa Clause. ◦ Sensorimotor◦ Preoperational◦ Concrete Operational◦ Formal Operational