Welcome to ED 300 Human Growth and Learning

“One learns by doing the thing, for though you think you know it, you have no certainty until you

try.”Sophocles (495 – 406 BC) Greek Dramatist

Opening Prayer

ED 300Human Growth and Learning

Syllabus– Objectives– Calendar– Due Dates and Expectations– Textbook Assignments

Personal Introductions1. Think of an incident, challenge, or event in your

life that was really difficult for you.2. What skills or knowledge did you have that you

used to help you overcome this situation?3. Take a few notes. You will use this situation to

complete the ticket out the door later in the class. 4. If you feel comfortable, turn and talk to your

neighbor about the challenge and how you overcame it.

5. Listen and ask questions.6. We will share later with the class – only if you are

comfortable with it.

Cognitive and Linguistic Development

Content Objectives1. I will identify and discuss the four principles of human development

2. I will identify and discuss the layers of environmental influence.

3. I will identify the progression in language development in children.

Language Objectives:4. Using Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, I will describe a

challenging situation in my life and how I overcame it.

5. Using Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, I will describe the best instructional strategy to use in a high school science lesson.

Vocabulary Activity

1. Working with your neighbor2. Use the textbook3. Match the vocabulary terms with

the definitions

General Principles of Human Development

1. The sequence of development is somewhat predictable.

2. Children develop at different rates.

3. Development is often marked by periods of relatively rapid growth (spurts) between periods of slower growth (plateaus).

4. Heredity and environment interact in their effects on development. (nature versus nurture)

Turn and talk: Think of an example you have seen of one of the four principles of human development and share with your neighbor.

Multiple Layers of Environmental Influence

1. Family

2. Neighborhood, Communitya) Schoolsb) Wards

3. State, Province, Country

How does the family, school, ward, country influence the development of a child.?Turn and Talk

Role of the Brain in Learning Development– Most learning probably involves changes in neurons and

synapses. (see diagram pg. 23)• Neurons continue to form throughout life.• Neuron formation appears to be stimulated by new learning

experiences.

– Developmental changes in the brain enable increasingly complex and efficient thought.

– Many parts of the brain work in harmony to enable complex thinking and behavior.• There is no such thing as “left brain” or “right brain” thinking.

– The brain remains adaptable throughout life.• The ability to learn continues throughout the life span.• For most topics or skills there is not a ‘single best’ or ‘only’ time to

learn.

Over the years, psychologists have offered numerous explanations of how and why children’s thinking processes develop and change with time. Two early theories – those of Jean Piaget (Swiss) and Lev Vygotsky (Russian)– have been especially influential in guiding contemporary theorists’ views of how children develop and learn.

What is a theory?

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Piaget’s Basic Assumptions1. Children are active and motivated

learners.

2. Children construct rather than absorb knowledge

a. Constructivismb. Schemes

3. Children learn through a combination of assimilation and accommodation.

Piaget’s Basic Assumptions

4. Interactions with one’s physical and social environments are essential for cognitive development.

5. The process of equilibration promotes progression toward increasingly complex thought.

6. In part as a result of maturational changes in the brain, children think in qualitatively different ways at different ages.

Ticket Out the Door

In your journal26 Sept. 2013Ch. 1 Cognitive Development

Ticket Out (20 points – 5 points for each vocabulary word used correctly)Using vocabulary from Piaget (disequilibrium, scheme/s, assimilation, accommodation) describe the challenge you shared at the beginning of the class and how you overcame it.

Sister Rasmussen26 Sept 2013Ch. 1 Cognitive Development

When I first arrived in Kiribati, I was in a state of disequilibrium. The climate, living conditions, and language was much different from what I was used to. Because I had been born and raised in southern USA, I had a scheme for hot, humid weather. I also had a scheme for living in a small apartment, since our first apartment in Hawaii was much smaller than what we have now. Because of these schemes I was able to assimilate into the climate and our living conditions of Kiribati quickly. The Kiribati language is different from anything I have ever heard or been exposed to and it has been difficult for me to accommodate to communicate with the people. I have used my scheme of phonetics to help me accommodate to the pronunciation of the Kiribati language. I can now say most people’s names and sing the hymns at church.

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

• Sensorimotor – Birth through 2 years

• Preoperational – 2 years until 6 or 7 years– Egocentrism– Conservation

• Concrete – 6 or 7 years until age 11-12

• Formal Operation – 11or 12 years through adulthood

Applications of Piaget’s Theory

• Hands-On Experiences are typically more effective when combined with instruction that helps students draw appropriate conclusions.

• Creating Disequilibrium: The Value of Sociocognitive Conflict

• Interactions that involve sociocognitive conflict create disequilibrium may spur children to reevaluate and possibly revise their current understandings.

 

Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Vygotsky’s Basics Assumptions

1. Through both informal conversations and formal schooling, adults convey to children the ways in which their culture interprets the world.

2. Every culture passes along physical and cognitive tools that make daily living more productive and efficient.

3. Thought and language become increasingly interdependent in the first few years of life.a. Self-talkb. Inner speech

Vygotsky’s Basics Assumptions4. Complex mental processes begin as social activities and

gradually evolve into internal mental activities that children can use independently.

a. internalization

5. Children can perform more challenging tasks when assisted by more advanced and competent individuals.

a. Actual developmental levelb. Level of potential development

6. Challenging tasks promote maximum cognitive growth.a. Zone of proximal development

7. Play allows children to stretch themselves cognitively.

Applications of Vygotsky’s Theory

• Social Construction of Meaning– Mediated learning experience is a discussion between an

adult and a child in which the adult helps the child make sense of an event they have mutually experienced.

• Scaffolding– Scaffolding is the assistance given to a child to help him

successfully accomplish challenging tasks.– Fading is the gradual phasing out the scaffolding until the

student can complete the task independently

• Guided participation in Adult Activities:– Guided participation is providing guidance and support of a

child’s performance of an activity in an adult world.

Group AssignmentIn your journalGroup Assignment26 Sept. 2013Ch. 1 Cognitive Development

1. Reader: Read ‘Stones Lesson’ in the text pg. 582. Choose the most appropriate answer to question 23. Using information from the application of Vygotsky’s

theory, write 3-5 sentences explaining why you chose the answer you did.

4. 15 points: 5 points choosing the correct answer, 10 points using Vygotsky’s theory to explain your answer

Language DevelopmentMany contemporary theorists share Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s belief that acquiring language is an important – perhaps the most important – factor in cognitive development.

• Development of Vocabulary– Children learn some words through direct vocabulary instruction

at school, but they probably learn many more by inferring meaning from the contexts in which they hear or read the words.

– Development of Vocabulary – We must correct any misconceptions about word meanings and encourage students to read, read, and read.

• Development of syntax – the set of rules one uses almost unconsciously to put words together into sentences

Language Development• Development of Listening Comprehension– It is not until about the age of 11 that children

realize that good listening also requires understanding what is said.

• Development of Communication Skills– Pragmatics: The social conventions governing

appropriate verbal interactions with others, e.g. taking turns, saying hello and good-bye, changing the subject, arguing effectively, etc.

• Development of Metalinguistic Awareness – the conscious understanding of the nature and function of language

Diversity in Language Development

• Specific language impairment – Difficulty in perceiving and mentally processing particular aspects of spoken language

• Second-Language Learning and English Language Learners – Early exposure to a second language seems to be

most advantageous if the second language is very different from the first.

– Learning a second language facilitates achievement in other academic area such as reading, vocabulary, and grammar.

Big Picture• Children’s development is guided by both heredity and

environment.

• Children actively construct, rather than passively absorb knowledge.

• With age, children become capable of increasingly complex thought.

• Language provides a foundation for many cognitive advancements.

• Challenging situations and tasks promote development.  

Cognitive and Linguistic Development

Content Objectives1. I will identify and discuss the four principles of human development

2. I will identify and discuss the layers of environmental influence.

3. I will identify the progression in language development in children.

Language Objectives:4. Using Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, I will describe a

challenging situation in my life and how I overcame it.

5. Using Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development, I will describe the best instructional strategy to use in a high school science lesson.

Vocabulary AssignmentChapter 3: Personal and Social Development

Complete vocabulary crossword puzzle and turn in at the beginning of next week’s class.