Piaget Of The Child : Theories Of Development Essay

Vygotsky proposed that children’s development is affected by their culture and social interaction. He also suggested that children are not born with knowledge but they gain it through their social interactions with peers and adults; he does not rule out the importance of biological processes but proposes an interdependent relationship between biological development alongside social activity and cultural interaction.

Justification of this critique was also provided by Vygotsky theory of development .Vygotsky (1929) believes that adults and child’s peers are involved in shaping cognitive development of the

Piaget’s developmental stages are ways of normal intellectual development. There are four different stages. The stages start at infant age and work all the way up to adulthood. The stages include things like judgment, thought, and knowledge of infants, children, teens, and adults. These four stages were names after Jean Piaget a developmental biologist and psychologist. Piaget recorded intellectual abilities and developments of infants, children, and teens. The four different stages of Piaget’s developmental stages are sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Sensorimotor is from birth up to twenty- four months of age. Preoperational which is toddlerhood includes from eighteen months old all the

Social development "involves learning the values, knowledge and skills that enable children to relate to others effectively and to contribute in positive ways to family, school, and the community" (kidsmatter.edu). While "Piaget emphasized that a child's mind grows through interaction with the physical environment, Lev Vygotsky", a Russian psychologist, "emphasized that a child's mind grows through interaction with the social environment" (Meyers 179). Vygotsky believed that social factors, mainly language, contributes to a child's cognitive development. While both theories may be right, a strong balance of the two would be most influential in a child's development. Children gain a sense of who they are through their relationships with friends and family. As these important factors help them develop socially, children still respond to the influences around them and "play an active part in shaping their relationships" (kidsmatter.edu).

In Vygotsky’s sociocultural development theory, social interaction plays an important role in the process of cognitive development, which is different then Piaget’s understanding of child development. Vygotsky believed children are active knowledge

Lev Vygotsky’s Socio-cultural theory of cognitive development focuses on the social influences surrounding an individual throughout their lifespan, birth through death. It “places a central focus on social interaction as a medium in which children

His thinking was influenced by Piaget, and Vygotsky actively tried to initiate a dialogue with Piaget about certain points of disagreements” (Broderick & Blewitt, 2009, p.101). Vygotsky believed a child’s cognitive development was gained through the interaction of one’s culture, as well as language, which is what prompted his theoretical perception development known as Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory. “Vygotsky’s promising life was cut short in 1934, when he succumbed to an attack of tuberculosis. In Vygotsky, we have another example of a truly great mind whose ideas have inspired the work of many students of cognitive development” (Broderick & Blewitt, 2009, p.101).

Vygotsky emphasizes that growth of child’s cognition is directly correlated to his/her interactions with people around him/her. The aspect of the cognitive development through socio cultural interaction seems to be a theoretical framework of Vygotsky’s perspective. It seems that the relationships such as parents, friends, and people in the community plays an important role in the development of a child. A child learns to think and mediate through language, which seems to be supported by the people in his/her life. Nevertheless, sociocultural context plays a vital role in providing the

Many philosophers have developed theories of how individuals learn over the decades. As an individual progresses through life from childhood to adulthood, the manner in which they take in knowledge, and mature is the basic theory of cognitive development. Cognitive development can be described as how an individual’s thought process develops, and how these thought processes impact how an individual comprehends and interacts in the world. The psychology theorists of the past have shaped the classrooms of the present. There are many theorists that have influenced the teaching styles of today and a theorist that has significantly impacted today’s style of teaching is Lev Vygotsky (1896 – 1934). Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist and philosopher developed the Sociocultural Theory in the 1920s. He believed that children’s mental, language and social development is supported and enhanced through social interaction. Vygotsky believed that beginning at birth, children seek out adults for social interactions and that development occurs through these interactions. He stressed the idea the children learn through what he called guided participation. His theory was that children develop through interactions with parents, teachers, and other knowledgeable members of the culture.

Lev Vygotsky believed that social and cognitive development work simultaneously to build and evolve on one another. He believed that social, cultural and personal experience cannot be detached from each other and many things influence the way children learn and develop, not just their own experiences, thus Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory. Vygotsky’s ideas were and remain controversial as he had no specific training in psychology or children’s development. His preeminent contribution to children’s development is his recognition of the value of progressing knowledge by means of interaction with educators, peers and family (Mooney, 2000, p. 83). The major ideas of Vygotsky’s theory are scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). Scaffolding is a process Vygotsky described as the framework or temporary support for children’s learning. In order for scaffolding to

The environment for the activity would be for one of our facility members to observe the child in their recess or lunch break. They will pose as a staff member for their school with the permissions of the board of education to complete our research.

In researching various development theories, one of those that stand out is cognitive development theory. Cognitive development theory studies “how people think and how thinking changes over time” (Kail & Cavanaugh, 14). One of the leading theorists in this area was Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky. He was one of the first theorists to consider the sociocultural influences on a child’s development. His research allowed the development of key concepts that have been proven useful to educators as they have incorporated them within their teaching methods. Not only have these concepts helped children develop new skills, but also have made teachers more effective in the classroom. In considering the sociocultural influences on development, Vygotsky emphasized the importance of social interaction and imaginative play. He determined that these two factors made sizeable contributions in cognitive development in children.

It is established that there are multiple theories that explain different aspects of development. Three major theorists are Erik Erikson, Jean Piaget, and Sigmund Freud.

Vygotsky was a researcher and theorist in child development. He proposed a social development theory and according to him (1978: 57) “ Every function in the child’s cultural development appears twice, first on the social level and later on the individual level; first, between people ( inter psychological) and then inside the child (intra psychological)”. According to him children do not develop through maturation alone but they develop through participation and involvement with social world and language plays important role for communication. It is developed and improved through social interactions. According to his theory children learn when they interact and communicate with teachers/parents and he referred to this as collaborative dialogue. Instructions are given to the child by parent or teacher; they understand it and regulate their performance. Vygotsky work was based on one of the important principle called Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). It is defined as “The distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more capable peers”. (Vygotsky, 1978:86). In co-operative learning exercises, the task given by the teacher which is

In his theory, Lev Vygotsky has given a central and a key position for a child’s relationships with their parents. He identified human psychological development begins through interpersonal connections and social interactions. Main theme of his theory is social interactions which play the fundamental development of cognition. Cognitive development first happens through interaction with others and then integrated in to individual’s mental structure. He believed that a child effectively learns through interactions with their “knowledgeable partners” (Brooks, 2014, pp. 94-101) Children spend most of times with their parents so