Skip to main content

Piaget’s Developmental Psychology


Piaget’s Developmental Psychology
Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was one of the most influential researchers in the area of developmental psychology during the 20th century.  Piaget was the first psychologist to make a systematic study of cognitive development. Piaget originally trained in the areas of biology and philosophy and considered himself a "genetic epistemologist." (genetic= development, epistemology = study of knowledge).
He was mainly interested in the biological influences on "how we come to know." He believed that what distinguishes human beings from other animals is our ability to do "abstract symbolic reasoning.“
According to Piaget, children are born with a very basic mental structure (genetically inherited and evolved) on which all subsequent learning and knowledge is based. Piaget designed a proper framework to understand the structure , functioning and development of the cognitive network of the human mind. He pointed that there are two aspects of human mind : cognitive structure and cognitive functioning
The development of human intellectual abilities take place as a result of the organization and reorganization of certain pattern of behaviour called schema . Schemas constitute the structural units of human mind i.e., cognitive structure .The process of organisation of theses structural units take place by three different activities –assimilation , accommodation and equilibration. These activities constitute the functional aspects of human mind.
      Piaget studied cognitive development by observing children in particular, to examine how their thought processes change with age.
      He pioneered a way of thinking about how children grow psychologically.
      It is the growing apprehension and adaptation to the physical and social environment.
      Piaget rejected the idea that learning was the passive assimilation of the knowledge.
      He proposed that learning is dynamic process comprising successive stages of adaptation to reality.
The essential development of cognition is the establishment of new schemes. Assimilation and accommodation are both processing of the ways of cognitive development. The equilibration is the symbol of a new stage of the cognitive development.
Basic assumptions of Development
      A person has hereditary organic reactions
      He is naturally active
      He is born without mind
      He Needs to adapt to environment
      To adapt, he  organizes thinking into Structures (schemas)
Constructivist Approach
Jean Piaget’s theory remains the standard against which all other theories are judged and often labeled constructivist because it depicts children as constructing knowledge for themselves .
 Piaget’s theory is often described as a constructivist view. According to constructivists, people interpret their environments and experiences in light of the knowledge and experiences they already have. People do not simply take in an external reality and develop an unchanged, exact mental copy of objects or events. Instead, they build (or “construct”) their own individual understandings and knowledge.
Individuals construct their own knowledge during the course of interaction with the environment. Thinking is an active process whereby people organize their perceptions of the world
Children are seen as
      Active
      Learning many important lessons on their own
      Intrinsically motivated to learn
      Generating hypotheses, performing experiments, drawing conclusions
Schemas
Schemas are the basic structural units of human mind . They constitute patterns of behaviour that an individual use in dealing with objects in his environment . Piaget called the schema the basic building block of intelligent behavior – a way of organizing knowledge.
A schema can be defined as a set of linked mental representations of the world, which we use both to understand and to respond to situations. Schemas are mental or cognitive structures which enables a person to adapt and to organise the environment. Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world.
For example, at birth the schema of a baby is reflexive in nature such as sucking and grasping. The sucking reflex is a schema and the infant will suck on whatever is put in its mouth such as a nipple or a finger. The infant is unable to differentiate because it has only a single sucking schema. Slowly, the infant learns to differentiate where milk-producing objects are accepted while non-milk objects are rejected. At this point, the infant has two sucking schemas, one for milk-producing objects and one for non-milk producing objects.
Assimilation
Assimilation is using an existing schema to deal with a new object or situation. The process of taking in new information into our previously existing schema’s is known as assimilation. Assimilation which is using an existing schema to deal with a new object or situation. It is the process of taking in new information into our already existing schemas is known as assimilation. The process is somewhat subjective because we tend to modify experiences and information slightly to fit in with our preexisting beliefs.  It’s a kind of matching between the already existing cognitive structure and the environmental needs as they arise.  Eg: A child sees a Donkey for the first time and  immediately calls it a Horse. Thus, the child has assimilated into his schema that this animal is a Horse. Another  example of assimilation would be when an infant uses a sucking schema that was developed by sucking on a small bottle when attempting to suck on a larger bottle.
Accommodation
Accommodation involves modifying existing schemas, or ideas, as a result of new information or new experiences. New schemas may also be developed during this process. The boy who had assimilated the Donkey as a Horse will eventually accommodate more information and thus realize the different characteristics between a Horse and a Donkey. The child will learn that the Donkey is not a Donkey but a Horse, an accommodated ability.
Equilibration
According to Piaget’s theory , optimal level of intellectual functioning take s place when there is a balance between assimilation and accommodation. This process of maintaining    this balance is termed as Equilibration. The cognitive structure change from one stage to another by the process of equilibration, maintaining child and his changing environment. As children progress through the stages of cognitive development, it is important to maintain a balance between applying previous knowledge (assimilation) and changing behavior to account for new knowledge (accommodation). Equilibration helps explain how children can move from one stage of thought into the next.
Adaptation:
Assimilation and accommodation are the two sides of adaptation. It is the ability of the person to adjust to the environment and to interact with it. It’s a process that takes place through direct interaction with the environment. Adaptation occurs as a result of two complementary processes, Assimilation and Accommodation. In the cycle of adaptation and equilibration, a new experience is first assimilated into an existing scheme. If it doesn’t fit properly, cognitive disequilibrium results. Accommodating (adjusting) the scheme brings the child to cognitive equilibrium, until a new assimilation challenges the scheme again.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Edgar Dale's Cone of Experience

Edgar Dale's Cone of Experience Edgar Dale (1900-1985) served on The Ohio State University faculty from 1929 until 1970. He was an internationally renowned pioneer in the utilization of audio-visual materials in instruction. He also made major research contributions in the teaching of vocabulary and testing readability of texts. Jeanne S. Chall, an OSU Ph.D. graduate who went on to become a leading innovator in reading research. Perhaps Professor Dale's most famous concept was called the "cone of experience," a graphic depiction of the relationship between how information is presented in instruction and the outcomes for learners. Dale’s Cone first appeared in his 1946 textbook titled “Audio-Visual Methods in Teaching. This text is the grail for any educator wanting to successfully integrate AV materials into instruction. Dale intentions were not for the Cone to represent all ways of learning but instead to create a visual with which to categorize the progression

Blended learning

Blended learning Blended learning refers to the planned implementation of a learning model that integrates student-centred, traditional in-class learning with other flexible learning methodologies using mobile and web-based online ,especially collaborative approaches in order to realise strategic advantages for the education system. “ Blended learning should be viewed as a pedagogical approach that combines the effectiveness and socialisation opportunities of the classroom with the technologically enhanced active learning possibilities of the online environment, rather than a ratio of delivery modalities.” Dziuban, Hartman and Moskal (2004) Blended learning strategies vary according to the discipline, the year level, student characteristics and learning outcomes, and have a student-centred approach to the learning design.   Blended learning can increase access and flexibility for learners, increase level of active learning, and achieve better student experiences and outcomes.   F

Commerce Education

Commerce Education As a branch of knowledge, Commerce imparts experience of business world at large in all its manifestations. It prepares its learners for personally fruitful and socially desirable careers in the field of business.  The role of education is changing very rapidly due to changes in society. Education is in great demand and technology is changing and so is curriculum. The subject of commerce is skill oriented and life centric in nature.  Commerce curriculum is more relevant because business provides maximum employment opportunities; hence maximum exposure and emphasis must be given for skill acquisition in students The role of education is changing very rapidly due to changes in society. Education is in great demand and technology is changing and so is curriculum. The subject of commerce is skill oriented and life centric in nature. The use of ICT and internet in particular has opened new vistas for making education process effective. Commerce curriculum is m