Chapter 8: Cognitive Development in Early Childhood

Chapter 8: Cognitive Development in Early Childhood

Objectives

• After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

  • Compare and contrast Piaget and Vygotsky’s beliefs about cognitive development.

  • Explain the role of information processing in cognitive development.

  • Discuss how preschool-aged children understand their worlds.

  • Put cognitive and language milestones into the order in which they appear in typically developing children.

  • Discuss how early child education supports development and how our understanding of development influence education.

  • Describe autism spectrum disorder, including characteristics and possible interventions.

Introduction

• Early childhood is characterized by:

  • Pretending, blending fact and fiction, and learning to think using language.

  • Young children transition from experiential learning to understanding basic principles about the world.

  • Example of child’s initial ideas:

  • A 3-year-old worrying about being sucked down the drain while taking a bath.

  • Example of temporal understanding: Protests about an event happening "tomorrow" vs. understanding it will happen "today after we sleep."

  • Challenges understanding concepts like size, time, distance, and the difference between fact and fiction.

Piaget’s Preoperational Intelligence

• Preoperational Stage: This stage coincides with early childhood; marked by:

  • Use of language and symbolic thinking, but with a lack of logical reasoning.

  • Children engage in pretend play, where toys acquire qualities beyond their designed functions.

  • Example: A teddy bear can represent a baby or a queen.

  • Pretend play reflects cognitive development and solidification of new schemes.

Key Concepts

Egocentrism

• Definition: The tendency of young children to assume others see the world as they do.

• Example: In Piaget’s mountain experiment, children describe a doll’s view but only reflect their own perspective.

  • Children’s linguistic variations when addressing different age groups show some awareness of others' views.

Syncretism

• Definition: A tendency to believe that if two events happen together, one must cause the other.

• Example: A child wearing a bathing suit may believe it causes summer.

Animism

• Definition: Attributing lifelike qualities to inanimate objects.

  • Children might say a cup is alive or that a chair is "mean" for hurting them.

  • Such beliefs usually diminish after age 3.

Classification Errors

• Definition: Difficulty in understanding that an object can belong to multiple categories.

• Example: In a scenario with button colors, a child may incorrectly assert that more buttons exist simply based on color rather than total quantity.

Conservation Errors

• Definition: Understanding that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape or arrangement of objects.

• Example: Experiment showing two glasses of equal liquid where a child perceives a taller glass to contain more liquid after pouring.

  • Children focus on one characteristic (height, in this case) and neglect others (width).

Cognitive Schemas

• Piaget’s theory outlines schemas as categories of knowledge.

  • Assimilation: Integrating new experiences into existing schemas.

  • Accommodation: Adjusting schemas to incorporate new experiences.

  • During early childhood, children frequently use accommodation as they expand their understanding of the world.

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory of Cognitive Development

• Background: Lev Vygotsky emphasized cultural influences on cognitive development, stating:

  • Social interactions with adults and knowledgeable peers are essential for cognitive growth.

  • Direct instruction allows for advancement beyond individual discovery.

Key Concepts

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) and Scaffolding

• ZPD: The gap between what children can do independently and what they can do with assistance.

  • Teaching is most effective within a child’s ZPD, enabling them to reach potential with the right support.

• Scaffolding: Temporary support provided to help a child achieve a task which leads to independence over time.

Private Speech

• Vygotsky explained that children talk to themselves during problem-solving, contrasting with Piaget who viewed it as egocentrism.

• This speech evolves into internal dialogue which aids in memory and cognition.

Contrast with Piaget

• Piaget criticized teacher-directed instruction, viewing it as reducing active learning.

• He believed self-discovery is crucial for understanding concepts.

• In contrast, Vygotsky emphasized the necessity of instruction to achieve higher cognitive functions.

Information Processing

• Focus on improvements in various cognitive areas during early childhood:

  • Attention, working memory, and emergence of executive functions.

  • The significance of memory strategies and autobiographical memory emerges during this phase.

Attention

• Attention is categorized into:

  • Divided Attention: Ability to multitask.

  • Selective Attention: Focusing on a single task while ignoring distractions.

  • Sustained Attention: Maintaining focus over longer periods.

Divided Attention

• Young children struggle to divide attention effectively, akin to animal behavior, but improve by age 5.

Selective Attention

• Influenced by temperament, task complexity, and sensory modalities:

  • Visual attention tends to develop faster than auditory attention.

Sustained Attention

• Young children exhibit difficulties in tasks requiring prolonged focus, with varying mastery depending on age.

Memory Stages

Sensory Memory

• Brief storage of sensory input, lasting:

  • 1 second (2-year-olds)

  • 2 seconds (3-year-olds)

  • 3-5 seconds (6-year-olds)

Working Memory

• Engages in conscious mental activity, showing a smaller capacity compared to older children:

  • Typical adult capacity: 7 digits.

  • Typical 5-year-old capacity: 4 digits.

Long-Term Memory

• Declarative Memory (explicit): Memory for facts/events.

  • Semantic Memory: General knowledge not linked to time.

  • Episodic Memory: Specific events tied to timelines.

• Non-declarative Memory (implicit): Automated skills requiring no conscious recollection.

Autobiographical Memory

• Personal narratives develop slowly in children:

  • 2-year-olds recall fragments without coherence.

  • By ages 4-5, memories become more detail-oriented with adult prompts.

Neo-Piagetians

• Critiques of Piaget have led to Neo-Piagetian theories combining Piagetian concepts with information processing.

  • Emphasis on biological maturation's role in cognitive development complexity.

Children’s Understanding of the World

Theory-Theory

• Concept: Children generate theories to explain their observations and interactions.

  • This parallels scientists in refining their theories based on new experiences.

Theory of Mind

• Definition: The ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others, aiding in social interactions.

  • Tested by the false belief task:

  • Classic example: Sally's ball indicating where she believes it is located.

• Children before age 4 struggle with this understanding due to cognitive limitations and egocentrism.

Cultural Differences in Theory of Mind

• Variances in the development of theory of mind have been noted across cultures:

  • Collectivistic cultures (China, Iran) develop knowledge access before diverse beliefs.

• Impact of familial dynamics and cultural emphasis on independence contributes to this discrepancy.

Milestones of Cognitive Development

Language Development

Vocabulary Growth

• Rapid expansion from about 200 words at age 2 to over 10,000 by age 6 through fast-mapping.

Literal Meanings

• Children often misconstrue idioms and expressions:

  • Example: Confusion over “piece of cake.”

Overregularization

• Definition: Misapplying grammatical rules, e.g., using "goed" instead of "went."

Early Childhood Education

Importance of Universal Preschool

• Advocated by policymakers, emphasizing quality in early childhood education.

NAEYC Standards for High-Quality Preschool

• Positive relationships among children and adults, comprehensive curriculum, qualified teachers, health and nutrition focus, and environments that support learning.

Types of Early Childhood Education Programs

Head Start

• Founded to provide education to underprivileged children, skepticism remains regarding its effectiveness due to variability in program quality.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Definition and Characteristics

• ASD encompasses a range of neurodevelopmental disorders defined in the DSM-5 encompassing previous distinct diagnoses into a spectrum.

• Characteristics:

  • Social deficits, communication challenges, repetitive behaviors, sensory issues.

Social Communication Symptoms

• Early signs include reduced eye contact and lack of social responsiveness.

Treatment Approaches

• No cure; focus on symptom management and enhancing quality of life through targeted interventions and therapies.

Conclusion

• Recap of topics covered:

  • Major developmental theories (Piaget, Vygotsky) and cognitive mechanisms (information processing, milestones of growth).