Cognitive Development
Swiss psychologist who developed a theory that
outlines the cognitive stages of development and
emphasizes the quantity and quality of
information acquired at each level.
 Stressed that cognitive dev’l increases only with
maturation (maturity) and appropriate
environmental conditions are present (e.g.
Having a good breakfast = better focus &
ultimately, better learning)
 As a child gets older, they are able to scan and
recognize more info and to process it better.

 The
improvement in learning can be linked
to metacognition: when children become
aware of their own abilities to reason and
process information.
 Piaget’s
theory was criticized because it
departmentalizes life too strictly; children
are not necessarily tied to these stages.
 Others speculated that children may be able
to understand concepts earlier than Piaget
believed.
Stage
Sensori-motor
(Birth-2 yrs)
Characterised by
Differentiates self from objects Recognises self as agent of
action and begins to act intentionally: e.g. pulls a string to
set mobile in motion or shakes a rattle to make a noise
Achieves object permanence: realises that things continue
to exist even when no longer present to the sense.
Pre-operational
(2-7 years)
Learns to use language and to represent objects by images
and words Thinking is still egocentric: has difficulty taking
the viewpoint of others. Classifies objects by a single
feature: e.g. groups together all the red blocks regardless
of shape or all the square blocks regardless of colour.
Concrete
operational
(7-11 years)
Can think logically about objects and events. Achieves
conservation of number (age 6), mass (age 7), and weight
(age 9). Classifies objects according to several features
and can order them in series along a single dimension such
as size.
Formal operational
(11 years and up)
Can think logically about abstract propositions and test
hypotheses systematically Becomes concerned with the
hypothetical, the future, and ideological problems
 Seriation

The ability to order groups of things by size,
weight, age or any other common property.

E.g. Beads on a bracelet from large to small or
light colours to dark, coins from oldest to
newest.
 Multiple
Classification:

During the preschool years, children classify
objects into single categories e.g. Trucks, red,
circles

During the school-age years, children begin to
classify objects in more complex ways

They understand that an object may fit into
more than one category. E.g. Red circles in with
red squares and red triangles.
 Conservation:

Certain properties remain the same even if they
can change in shape or appearance\

Older children understand conservation whereas
younger children will not realize they are the
same.

E.g. Two rows of eight blocks laid side by side,
when one row is spread out longer young children
will believe the longer row contains more blocks.
 Reversibility:

Is the concept that things can return to their
original condition after they have been changed.

Other children who have mastered conservation
will prove their ideas by reversing the changes.
A
child’s ability to understand that objects
continue to exist even when they are out of
sight; occurs in the sensori-motor stage.
 E.g.
Mom leaves a room but the
understanding that she is still in the house.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRF27F2bn-A&feature=related