Child Development 2 - Essay Example

JEAN PIAGET’S DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY Jean Piaget was a Swiss biologist who was most famous for his theory of cognitive development (also known as the developmental stage theory). According to this theory, humans acquire and use intelligence gradually in stages (Piaget, 1964; Piaget, in his document posted on the website of the Fondation Jean Piaget, 2011). Piaget proposed that as the child matures or grows, so does his thinking. He also proposed that language is central to a child’s development.

Children need to reach a certain age or “transition points” upon which they acquire the capability to perform certain tasks. There are four significant developmental stages that correspond to the ages of 18 months, 7 years, 11 years and above 11 years. The ages correspond to the sensi-motor, pre-operational, concrete operational and formal operational stages of acquiring knowledge and skills (Atherton, 2011). Thus, certain tasks are not achievable until children reach a certain developmental stage regardless of how intelligent a child appears to be.

Of all Piaget’s ideas, assimilation and accommodation are considered most significant (Atherton, 2011). These two processes are complementary and describe how anything in the external world is internalized by an individual. In assimilation, anything that is perceived in the environment is made to fit into stereotypes or preconceived notions. Accommodation is the process of accommodating the mind to what has been assimilated. Piaget’s theory was significant because it gave general ideas of cognitive development and points to the relationship of environment and the child.

Piaget was the first to point out the importance of transformation in cognition (Gelman, 1979). The major criticism is that the theory is very rigid. The capacity of children for logical thinking of abstract events can be achieved earlier than age 11, and some people take longer to achieve the formal operational stage. Thus, a cognitive structure cannot describe a whole range of cognitive abilities that include classification, sense of perspective, conservation etc. The theory of cognitive development is a major force in formal education, and has been the basis for designing school curriculums.

More significant, Piaget’s theory has spawned a lot more studies child development that have negated or modified his ideas. From a psychological viewpoint, Piaget’s theory is very important because it provided the starting point for studying and understanding child and human development. References: Atherton, J. (2011). Piaget's developmental theory. Retrieved April 7, 2011, from Learning and Teaching: http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/piaget.htm Gelman, R. (1979). Why we will continue to read Piaget.

The Genetic Epistemiologist , 8(4):2-3. Piaget, J. (2011). Intellectual evolution from adolescence to adulthood. Retrieved April 6, 2011, from Fondation Jean Piaget: http://www.fondationjeanpiaget.ch/fjp/site/textes/VE/JP70_Evolut_Intellect_Adoles_Adulte.pdf Piaget, J. (1964). Part 1:Cognitive development in children: Piaget development and learning. Journal of Research in Scinece Teaching, 2:176-186 doi: 10.1002/tea.3660020306.