Describe and contrast the stages of cognitive development and intelligence from the perspective of more than one theorist (e.g., Piaget, Vygotsky) for children and adolescents - Essay Example

Both have developed theories that have been adopted by educators and psychologists in understanding child development. Piaget has been instrumental in eliciting interest in the phenomenon of how children think. He emphasized the use of questioning that lead children to think philosophically and designed tasks that call upon high-level cognition; problem solving, reasoning, and understanding of complex concepts (Siegler & Ellis, 1996). His “assimilation-accommodation” model of cognitive growth explains how children think actively.

Simply put, when the child notices something in his environment (accommodation), it is interpreted or given meaning (assimilation). This model helps one understand that cognitive development is a step-by-step process of acquiring information and change through the continuous operation of assimilation and accommodation (Flaveli, 1996) Piaget believed that intelligence develops from interaction with the environment. They are not mere passive learners, but make it a point to actively engage in learning and developing many mental structures that grow more and more complicated as they grow up (Brewer, 2001).

Piaget’s theories were designed to form minds which can be critical, can verify, and not accept everything they are offered. Such beliefs reflect his respect for children’s thinking. Vygotsky (1978) children’s intellectual development is influenced more by social context than by individual experiences. He proposed that adults help promote children’s cognitive development by transmitting to them the meanings that their culture assigns to certain things and aiding them in tasks that are yet challenging to them.

Children value input from their environment and from others. Piaget did not place much importance on the input of others, as for him, children develop from within, as they pass through different cognitive stages. The initial stage is the Sensorimotor Stage