DED 101
EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY,
GUIDANCE AND COUNSELING
THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF ZANIZBAR
17th June, 2011
OUTLINE
•
•
•
•
•
Meaning of Child Development
Important Theorists of Child Development
Periods of Child Development
Domains of Child Development
Importance of studying Children
Definition of Development
• (Oxford Concise Dictionary;2009) defines development as a
specified state of growth or advancement
• (Michelle;2000) defines development as the pattern of biological,
cognitive, and socioemotional changes that begins at conception
and continues through the life span.
• (Berk;2007) defines development as the transformation or pattern
of changes that are orderly, cumulative and directional
 Orderly: there is logical sequence to change
 Cumulative: includes all that was there plus something new (value
added)
 Directional: moves toward greater complexity
Child Development vs. Developmental
Psychology
• Child Development – a field devoted to
understanding all aspects of human growth
and change from conception through
adolescence.
• Developmental Psychology – the more
general field of study, that includes child
development, and is devoted to
understanding all aspects of human growth
and change across the entire lifespan.
.
A dependent new born baby develops
•
Language, self-awareness, a
personality, and physical abilities,
among other things
To become a capable independent young
person
How it happens
Certain aspects of development are predictable.
Focus their eyes
Sit up
Learn to walk
Begin to speak
Develop logical reasoning skills
Around the world most infants and children do the
following at about the same time.
Development proceeds through a certain sequence
Periods of Development
Source: Dr. Mandana Ahsani (2009)
Periods of Child
Development
The Prenatal Period – from conception to
birth.
Infancy and Toddlerhood – from birth to 2
years.
Early Childhood – from 2 to 6 years.
Middle Childhood – from 6 to 11 years.
Adolescence – from 11 to 20 years.
How we Study Children
 Mainly through observations
which result into theories
proposed by psychologists.
 Theorists propose explanations
for how children grow and
develop.
 Focus on different aspects of
development (moral, physical,
intellectual, etc.)
The Three Questions
1. Is development continuous or
discontinuous? Or both?
2. Is there a single, universal course of
development, or are there many?
3. Is “nature” or “nurture” more important for
development?
*Theories in development answer these questions
CONTINUITY VERSUS DISCONTINUITY
GRADUAL
DEVELOPMENT
STAGES
NATURE VERSUS NURTURE
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIETY CULTURAL
ENVIRONMENT
HEREDITY
BIOLOGY
GENETICS
STABILITY
REMAIN THE SAME
AT LATER STAGE
K
VERSUS
N
O
W
CHANGE
CHANGES AT LATER
STAGE
THEMES OF DEVELOPMENT
Continuity Vs. Discontinuity
Continuous theory of development:
development follows a smooth progression
from infancy to adulthood, with a single
quantitative dimension
Discontinuous (stage) theory of development:
development occurs in stages, each qualitatively
different from the one before
•
Figure 2.2 The course of development as described by continuity and discontinuity (stage) theorists.
Source; (Huitt;2009)
THEMES OF DEVELOPMENT
Nature vs. Nurture
Nature – inborn biological givens – the hereditary
information children receive from their parents at
the moment of concept that signals the body to grow
and affects all their characteristics and skills.
Nurture – the complex forces of the physical and
social world that influence children’s biological make
up and psychological experiences before and after
birth.
THEMES OF DEVELOPMENT
Stability v. Change
Stability – children who are high or low in
a characteristic will remain so at later
ages.
Change – children who are high or low in
a characteristic can change at later ages,
typically due to changes in the
environment in either a positive or
negative way.
Sigmund Freud
Psychosexual
• Was based on his
therapy with troubled
adults.
• He emphasized that a
child's personality is
formed by the ways
which his parents
managed his sexual and
aggressive drives.
Erik Erikson
Psychosocial
• Personality develops in eight
psychosocial stages through the
life span.
• Social relationships and
conscious thought are important.
• Nurture, but nature also
important
• Stages build on each other
• Child Active in development
Jean Piaget
Cognitive Developmental
• Children "construct" their
understanding of the world through
their active involvement and
interactions.
• Studied his 3 children to focus not
on what they knew but how they
knew it.
• Described children's understanding
as their "schemas” and how they
use:
 assimilation
 accommodation.
Lev Vygotsky
Psychosocial Development
• Agreed that children are active
learners, but their knowledge is
socially constructed.
• Cultural values and customs
dictate what is important to learn.
• Children learn from more expert
members of the society.
• Vygotsky described the "zone of
proximal development", where
learning occurs.
BF Skinner
Operant Conditioning
• Positive Reinforcement (rewards)
increase a desired behavior
• Negative Reinforcement (punishment)
decrease an undesired behavior
• Rewards and punishments shape behavior
when given right after the behavior is
demonstrated
Bandura
Social Learning
• Bandura believed that people learn
behavior by observing and imitating others
– “Monkey see, Monkey do”
• Typical Social Learning Theory comment:
– “You can teach a dog new tricks if you show
him how to do it, and reward him each time he
does a good job.”
Physical Development – changes in body size, proportions, appearances,
and the functioning of various body systems – brain development,
perceptual and motor capabilities, and physical health.
Cognitive Development – development of a wide variety of thought
processes and intellectual abilities, including attention, memory, academic
and everyday knowledge, problem solving, imagination, creativity, and the
uniquely human capacity to represent the world through language.
Emotional and Social Development – development of emotional
communication, self-understanding, ability to manage one’s own feelings,
knowledge about other people, interpersonal skills, friendships, intimate
relationships, and moral reasoning and behavior.
Moral Development – development of personal rules and conventions
regarding one’s interactions with others
Importance of childhood time
• Childhood, a crucial time
• Self-esteem developed in
childhood
• A child who feels good about
themselves is more likely to be
able to overcome problems
later in life.
• Developmental tasks occur in
succession.
Why study child development?
• Guidance for parents and other
care-givers
• Helps society to support healthy
growth.
• Helps identify and help children
with special needs
• Contributes to selfunderstanding
– Understanding the influences
and experiences that shaped
you
Why study Child development?
• It is possible for effective
teaching to take place
when the teacher
understands how students
think and how they view
the world.
• Effective teaching
strategies must take into
account students’ ages and
stages of development.
QUESTIONS?
END OF LECTURE FOUR
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING