Educational Psychology
Chapter 2 Cognitive and language development
Development: is the pattern of biological, cognitive and socioemotional changes
that begins at the conception and continues through the life span.
As teacher you can understand at what level it is appropriate to teach your class.
Processes
Biological, produces changes in the child’s body and underlie brain
development, height and
weight gains, motor skills and puberty’s hormonal changes. Genetic
inheritance plays a big role.
Cognitive, involves changes in the child’s thinking, intelligence and
language.
Socioemotional, involves changes in the child’s relationships with other
people, change in emotion and personality.
Two fields are exploring the connection:
1. Developmental cognitive neuroscience: explores the link between
development cognitive processes and the brain.
2. Developmental social neuroscience: explores the link between
development socioemotional processes and the brain.
There are different periods in a life span:
Infancy, 0-24 months, extreme independence on adults, language,
symbolic thought, sensorimotor coordination and social learning
development.
Early childhood, 24m-5y, more self-sufficient, develop school readiness
skills and spend time with peers.
Middle and late childhood, 6-11y, master fundamental skills, achievements
are a central theme and self-control increases, interaction with wider social
world.
Adolescence, 10-18y, physical changes, development of sexual functions,
pursuing independence, own identity, thoughts become more logical,
abstract and idealistic.
Developmental issues
, Nature vs Nurture: Is development influenced by once inheritance,
biological or its environmental experiences?
Epigenetic view: states that development is the result of an ongoing,
bidirectional interchange between heredity and environment.
Continuity vs Discontinuity: development involves gradual cumulative
change (nurture) or involves district stages (nature)
Early-later experience issue: experiences need to happen at certain age
otherwise it will never make up for it later or experience can happen at any
age, it doesn’t matter.
Teacher are aware of developmental differences and seek for developmentally
appropriate teaching.
Splintered development: refers to circumstances in which development is uneven
across domains.
Cognitive development
Neuroconstructivist view: (a) biological processes and environmental experiences
influence the brains development, (b) the brain has plasticity and depence on
experiences and (c) development of the brain is linked with cognitive
development.
Some growth in brain size is due to myelination, the process of encasing many
cells in the brain with a myelin sheath. This increases the speed at which
information travels through the nervous system.
Synapses are tiny gaps between neurons where connections between neurons
are made. The connections that are used become stronger and survive, the
unused ones disappear, pruned. The changing brain and children’s cognitive
development involves activation in some areas, in some areas decreased
activation. This is characterized by synaptic pruning. Experiences influence
pruning.
Prefrontal cortex, higher level thinking and self-regulation takes place.
We also have a parietal occipital and temporal lobe.
Adolescents brain undergo structural changes:
Chapter 2 Cognitive and language development
Development: is the pattern of biological, cognitive and socioemotional changes
that begins at the conception and continues through the life span.
As teacher you can understand at what level it is appropriate to teach your class.
Processes
Biological, produces changes in the child’s body and underlie brain
development, height and
weight gains, motor skills and puberty’s hormonal changes. Genetic
inheritance plays a big role.
Cognitive, involves changes in the child’s thinking, intelligence and
language.
Socioemotional, involves changes in the child’s relationships with other
people, change in emotion and personality.
Two fields are exploring the connection:
1. Developmental cognitive neuroscience: explores the link between
development cognitive processes and the brain.
2. Developmental social neuroscience: explores the link between
development socioemotional processes and the brain.
There are different periods in a life span:
Infancy, 0-24 months, extreme independence on adults, language,
symbolic thought, sensorimotor coordination and social learning
development.
Early childhood, 24m-5y, more self-sufficient, develop school readiness
skills and spend time with peers.
Middle and late childhood, 6-11y, master fundamental skills, achievements
are a central theme and self-control increases, interaction with wider social
world.
Adolescence, 10-18y, physical changes, development of sexual functions,
pursuing independence, own identity, thoughts become more logical,
abstract and idealistic.
Developmental issues
, Nature vs Nurture: Is development influenced by once inheritance,
biological or its environmental experiences?
Epigenetic view: states that development is the result of an ongoing,
bidirectional interchange between heredity and environment.
Continuity vs Discontinuity: development involves gradual cumulative
change (nurture) or involves district stages (nature)
Early-later experience issue: experiences need to happen at certain age
otherwise it will never make up for it later or experience can happen at any
age, it doesn’t matter.
Teacher are aware of developmental differences and seek for developmentally
appropriate teaching.
Splintered development: refers to circumstances in which development is uneven
across domains.
Cognitive development
Neuroconstructivist view: (a) biological processes and environmental experiences
influence the brains development, (b) the brain has plasticity and depence on
experiences and (c) development of the brain is linked with cognitive
development.
Some growth in brain size is due to myelination, the process of encasing many
cells in the brain with a myelin sheath. This increases the speed at which
information travels through the nervous system.
Synapses are tiny gaps between neurons where connections between neurons
are made. The connections that are used become stronger and survive, the
unused ones disappear, pruned. The changing brain and children’s cognitive
development involves activation in some areas, in some areas decreased
activation. This is characterized by synaptic pruning. Experiences influence
pruning.
Prefrontal cortex, higher level thinking and self-regulation takes place.
We also have a parietal occipital and temporal lobe.
Adolescents brain undergo structural changes:
