Paper contained a describe section
that contained who, what, when, where, and how. The focus for EDAT 6115 this
week was on cognitive, language, and literacy development and its implications
for daily classroom practice. In Chapter 2 Slavin discussed Piaget’s theory of
human development with his four stages of development, Vygotsky and
Bronfenbrenner’s theories of development, stages of language and literacy development,
and knowledge of how cognitive, language, and literacy development can inform
intentional teaching. Slavin relates how each of these theories and
developments can have an impact on teaching and classroom practices. One theme
that ran through the chapter repeatedly is to plan and develop lessons based on
the knowledge of these developmental stages.
Analysis
Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky have had
major influences on teaching and education practices. Both developed theories
of cognitive learning that are used to influence how the teacher teaches at the
various grade levels.
In the classroom environment teachers
play a key role in the development and influence on the child. Parents also
play a key role in the development of children within the home environment. No
mater the natural or inborn abilities a child has through their genes, the
adults and others in their inner circle have a great deal of influence. In
fact, at this point in our history, most believe that a combination of nature
and nurture influence the development of a child and their successes. (Slavin,
2020)
Jean Piaget, who was born in 1896, based
many of his findings and theories on his observations of his own children
rather than a larger sample size of children. Piaget felt that there were four
stages of cognitive development. Piaget believed that “young children
demonstrate patterns of behavior or thinking called schemes” (Slavin, 2020,
p.24) Piaget also felt that as development happens children adapt, assimilate,
or accommodate according to the new information from trying out old schemes on
new objects. Piaget also believed that the testing of schemes can create a
state of disequilibrium, imbalance, and that as most people tend to not like
being unbalanced, they will seek to create a state of equilibrium, balance.
(Slavin, 2020) Piaget would be considered a constructivist, where the cognitive
development is viewed as a process and as the stages develop the child will actively
build systems that help them understand meaning of their world. (Slavin, 2020)
Piaget believed there were four stages of cognitive development. Sensorimotor,
birth to age 2, is where babies and toddlers use their hands and mouths to
explore their world. By the end of this stage, they are planning more than just
accidentally discovering. Preoperational, 2 to 7 years old, is where the child
can use more symbols to represent objects in their world. They are still more
egocentric and self-centered in their thinking since they believe everyone
thinks as they do. Concrete operational, 7 to 11 years old, is where children
begin to think more logically. Their thinking becomes less centered as they
realize that everyone does not view things the same way they think. Formal
operational, 11 years to adulthood, is where children can think more
abstractly. Children at this stage begin to think more like adults and can use
more systematic experimentation to solve problems. (Slavin, 2020)
In today’s time, many of Piaget’s principals
have been challenged. Research is ongoing, and this research shows some contradictions
in Piaget’s key ideas. Slavin pointed out several examples of research that contradict
Piaget with regards to tasks can be taught earlier than the established stages,
children can consider points of view, infants can demonstrate object permanence,
children are more competent, and there is doubt about the broad stages set
forth by Piaget. (Slavin, 2020)
Slavin points out that Piaget’s
theory has had a great influence on education. Developmentally appropriate
education, “an education with environments, curriculum, materials, and
instruction that are suitable for students in terms of their physical and cognitive
abilities and their social and emotional needs” (Slavin, 2020, p. 32), is a
term that one hears often in the world of teaching. Piaget has also been influential
in education where “constructivist models of learning” are concerned. (Slavin,
2020)
Lev Vygotsky and Piaget were working
in the same time period; however, they may not have ever met one another. Vygotsky
believed that “intellectual development can be understood only in terms of the
historical and cultural contexts children experience” (Slavin, 2020, p. 33) He
also believed that childhood development was influenced by the sign systems that
the child would group up with in their own environment and culture. (Slavin,
2020) Vygotsky was different than Piaget. While Piaget thought children developed
at predetermined stages, Vygotsky believed that children would learn and then develop
based on that learning. Vygotsky believed in private speech, the sone of
proximal development, mediation, scaffolding, and cooperative learning. Each of
these principals of development are heavy influencers of education today.
(Slavin, 2020)
Urie Bronfenbrenner, 1917-2005, believed
in a multi-system type of development. The figure on page 37 can be described
as follows. In the center, microsystem – child only, inner ring, mesosystem –
includes family, school, church, neighborhood, peers, and doctor, middle ring, exosystem
– extended family, friends of family, media, neighbors, legal services,
schoolboard, community services, and workplace, and the outer ring, Macrosystem
– Broad ideology, laws, customs of culture, subculture, or social class. This
theory can be considered as building on Vygotsky’s views of sociocultural factors.
(Slavin, 2020) In education, the implication is that we can have an influence
on the child’s development as part of their sociocultural factors.
Language and literacy development are
also key factors that will heavily influence educators in the teaching of their
students. Oral language is one the first areas of language development. Reading
early in elementary is important. Students will develop reading skills in five
key areas: phonemic awareness, phonics, comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency.
(Slavin, 2020) Writing and mathematics also follow key developmental stages as
the children are learning in school. An intentional teacher will “use what they
know about predictable patterns of cognitive, literacy, and language development
to make instructional decisions” (Slavin, 2020, p. 41)
Reflection
I feel that Piaget and Vygotsky have
had a key influence on education. As I have planned out my lessons this year, I
have tried to keep in mind the ages of my first graders as I teach the
standards. I have tried to be a more intentional teacher as I have planned the
lessons. In the context of my classroom, these theorists and the ideas of developmental
stages have heavily influenced my planning. My students were learning phonics
in first grade. I had to keep in mind that at the beginning of the school year,
many of them could not read at all. Now, all of them are reading at a level based
on their own assessment scores. I have planned small group and individual conferences
with that in mind.
I will use what I learned to become a
better teacher as I intentionally plan more opportunities for my students to
collaborate with one another. I got frustrated the first few times I tried to
use “turn and talk” so I didn’t do it as much. Now, I know that I need to plan
that better from the start. I need to include my students in the development of
the rules surrounding “turn and talk.”
Reference
Slavin,
R. E. (2020). Educational psychology: Theory and practice (13th ed.).
Pearson Education. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088HBVY4X/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title
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