Psychology Question

Paper: Choose an issue in Developmental Psychology. Use your text book and at least two outside references.

Physical and Cognitive
Development in Early Childhood
CHAPTER FIVE
VISUALIZING THE LIFESPAN
TANNER, WARREN, & BELLACK
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Chapter Outline
1.
Physical Development
 Exploring the nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems in
childhood
2. Cognitive Development
 Understanding Piaget, Vygotsky, and information-processing
theory as well as language development
3. All the Systems Working Together
 Looking at play, early childhood education, and common
health concerns
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Physical Development
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Identify how the brain develops during the earlychildhood period.
Describe the key processes of skeletal growth.
Explain how gross-motor and fine-motor skills become
more refined during the preschool years.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Growth in Early Childhood
 Between age 2 and 6, the
average American child
gains ~6 pounds and 2-3
inches each year.
 Individual variability
based on:
 heredity
 socioeconomic status
 nutrition
 ethnicity
 culture
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Nervous System
 Neuronal pruning takes place more slowly.
 The brain gains 20–25% of adult weight.
 Increased brain weight and size due to more connections and
continued myelination
 More connections → more complex thinking and movements
 Myelination → neurons communicate more quickly
 Preschoolers react more quickly and have improved
hand–eye coordination.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Nervous System
 Corpus callosum
connects the two
hemispheres of the brain.
 Myelination of the
corpus callosum allows
the hemispheres to
communicate and work
together better.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Nervous System
 Lateralization: the process by which the right and
left hemispheres of the brain take on specific
functions
 Right hemisphere
 Controls the left side of the body
 Involved in perception of emotion
 Left hemisphere
 Controls the right side of the body
 Plays a dominant role in language
 Handedness: the preference for using one hand
over the other for basic activities such as eating,
throwing, and writing
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Skeletal System
 Most obvious changes in the skeletal system involve
the length, width, and hardness of bones.
 Ossification: process through which cartilage becomes bone
 Occurs from infancy through adolescence
 Variation in length and width of bones and sequence
of ossification
 Affected by genetic and environmental influences
 Environment: nutrition, physical stimulation, overeating, food
choices
 Deficiencies can negatively affect bone growth.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Skeletal System
 World Health Organization (WHO) recommends
 adequate calcium intake.
 exposure to sunshine (Vitamin D).
 consumption of various fruits and vegetables.
 Diets deficient in key nutrients can lead to skeletal
disorders.
 Stunting: linked to delayed cognitive development, poor
educational attainment, physical problems later in life
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Muscular System
 As bones change, muscles
become stronger, thicker,
and more complex.
 Evidenced through
improvements in gross
motor and fine motor
skills
 Small muscles control
fine motor skills.
 Ex) muscles of the hands
and fingers
 Large muscles power
gross motor skills.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Motor Skill Milestones
 Motor changes
result from
✓ improved stability.
✓ enhanced muscle
complexity and
growth.
✓ myelination of the
CNS.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Cognitive Development
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Explain the features of children’s thinking during Piaget’s
preoperational period.
Summarize Vygotsky’s ideas about children’s cognitive
development.
Describe the areas of focus of the information-processing
theory in early childhood.
List key changes in language development that occur
during early childhood.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget’s Preoperational Stage
 Piaget’s second stage of cognitive development
 Occurs from age 2 to 7
 Stage of preoperational thought
 Child begins to think symbolically.
 Preschoolers begin to use language to make sense of the world.
 Perception of the world is still centered on immediate events.
 Child tends to overlook sequential steps in getting from point
A to point B.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget’s Preoperational Stage
 Piaget separated the preoperational stage into two
substages:
Symbolic function, about age 2 to age 4
1.


The ability to use language gives children a new way of thinking
about the world.
Thinking symbolically = to understand that one object can stand
for another.
Intuitive thought, about age 4 to age 7
2.

Children want to know how and why.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget: Symbolic Function Substage
 Children actively demonstrate their ability to think
symbolically.
 Form of symbolic substitution = language
 Words are used to refer to objects, feelings, beliefs, and
intentions.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget: Symbolic Function Substage
Features of preoperational thinking:
 Centration: a quality
of thinking in which a
person focuses on one
aspect or dimension of
an object while
disregarding any other
dimension
 Conservation: the
understanding that key
physical properties of
an object remain
constant even if the
appearance of the
object changes
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget: Symbolic Function Substage
Features of preoperational thinking:
 Egocentrism: a
cognitive quality in
which one is centered
in one’s own frame of
reference
 Animism: an egocentric
belief that all inanimate
objects have qualities
associated with humans
 Irreversibility: the
belief of preoperational
thinkers that objects
and events, once
changed, can never
return to their original
form
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Piaget: Intuitive Thought Substage
 Characterized by a desire to know how things work
and where things come from
 Tendency of 4- to 7-year-olds to ask a lot of “why” questions.
 Come up with their own explanations of events based on
purely intuitive ideas
 Artificialism: belief that all objects and events are
affected by human influences
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Criticisms of Piaget
 Piaget may have underestimated children’s cognitive
abilities.
 Studies show that 3-year-olds can distinguish between animate
and inanimate objects.
 Studies lack cultural comparisons.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Vygotsky’s
Theory of
Cognitive
Development
Social world influences
cognitive development
 Zone of proximal development
(ZPD): Vygotsky’s term for the
range of tasks that a person cannot
accomplish independently but that
can be done with the assistance of a
person with more experience or
more advanced cognitive ability
 Range of optimal learning for children
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Vygotsky’s
Theory of
Cognitive
Development
Social world influences
cognitive development
 Guided participation: a
process in which a more
experienced teacher becomes an
interactive guide, helping a
younger or less experienced
person do tasks that he or she
could not complete independently
 Scaffolding: process of assisting
a less experienced individual
through complex tasks by
providing supports, which may be
verbal or physical
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development
 Emphasized the
importance of language
for cognitive
development
 Language drives the
internalization of
cognitive rules and
thinking.
 Private speech: a
language process in
which children talk to
themselves as they
attempt to perform a task
or solve a problem
 Over time, children learn
to regulate and internalize
private speech.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Information-Processing Perspective
 Views the mind as a computer
 Children develop an understanding of belief, desire,
and emotion.
 Emergence of a theory of mind
 The ability to understand that others have mental states and
that their thoughts and knowledge differ from one’s own
 Develop understanding that others can hold incorrect or false
beliefs
 Lack of a theory of mind in childhood may indicate
developmental problems.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Information-Processing Perspective
Attention
 Improved ability to
direct attention
 Come to recognize
relevant features of
problems
 Improved performance on
problem-solving tasks
Memory
 Memory abilities
improve during early
childhood.
 Ability to recall,
remembering without any
cues
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Criticisms of Information-Processing Perspective
 Criticized for being “too simplistic”
 Reduces human cognitive development down to a few
mechanisms
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language
Development
Early childhood is a
time of significant
language development.
 In early childhood, children learn
✓ what words mean.
✓ how to put words together into
sentences properly.
✓ how to use language for social
purposes.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language
Development
General time frame for
language milestones
Age
Most children this age…
18–30
months
Understand 100–2,000 words
Have difficulty pronouncing sounds
Use telegraphic sentences
30–36
months
Learn new words almost every day
Combine 2 or 3 words
Can use past tense
Observed rules of conversation
3–4 yrs
Pronounce words more clearly
Can say over 1,000 words
Learn conjunctions, adverbs, and articles
Use sentences of 3-5 words
4–5 yrs
Can understand 3,000 to 10,000 words
Use sentences of 5 to 20 words
5–6 yrs
Speak nearly as clearly as most adults
Understand 20,000 words
Use sentences of any length
Begin learning to read
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development
Vocabulary
Grammar
 Rapid vocabulary
 Learning grammar
increases during early
childhood.
 “Vocabulary spurt” or
“naming explosion”
 2-year-olds speak 500
to 600 words.
 Over 12,000 words
when starting school
rules
 Overgeneralization:
applying the rules of
grammar to cases for
which they do not apply
 Ex) “I sitted on the bus.”
 How to put sentences
together properly
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development
 Pragmatics: the social use of communication
 Children understand pragmatics at a young age, speaking
more politely to adults than to peers.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development
 Forming categories serves as the basis of language.
 Categorization: the process of forming a cognitive
compartment, or grouping, based on specific properties
 Drives early language development
 Rapid word learning
 Fast mapping: process by which a child can relate unknown
words to known words, thus rapidly expanding vocabulary
 Language acquisition device: innate mechanism for
processing words
 Brains are biologically “prewired” to internalize the meanings of
novel words.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development
 We live in a social world where we hear words,
produce words, and are forced to create meaning.
 Michael Tomasello asserted a functional language
approach.
 Language acquisition is a “need-based” process in which
children construct meaning out of a need to understand what
others are saying and to be understood.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Language Development: Multilingual Settings
 About 1 in 5 citizens speaks a language other than
English at home (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010).
 Bilingual children
 do better on most cognitive tasks.
 understand words more quickly.
 have larger vocabularies.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
All the Systems Working
Together
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Describe the different types of young children’s play.
List several of the best practices of early-childhood
education.
Identify the effects of childhood overweight and obesity.
Describe ways to prevent unintentional injuries of young
children.
Explain how lead poisoning affects children’s cognitive
and physical development.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
All the Systems Together
 Our physical and
cognitive systems are
interdependent and
interact with
socioemotional changes.
 Interactions observable
through
✓ play
✓ education
✓ Early-childhood health
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play
 Play gives children
opportunities to explore,
create, and interact with
the world.
 Age affects the way
children play with others.
 Two major classifications
of play:
 one based on social
functions
 another based on
cognitive functions
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Researcher Mildred Parten
Play: Social
Function
studied and categorized play by
social function.
 Parten believed play develops
sequentially:
1.
2.
3.
4.
nonsocial play
parallel play
associative play
cooperative play
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Nonsocial play: noninteractive
Play: Social
Function
Parten (1932) described
four types of play,
categorized by social
function.
play in which a child either focuses
on an object or toy and appears
unconnected to others, or acts as an
onlooker, watching others play
without joining in
 Between ages 1 and 2
 Solitary versus onlooker play
 Parallel play: a form of play in
which children appear to be together
but are not interacting with one
another
 Start to look at other children; more
comfortable sitting next to them
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Associative play: a form of
Play: Social
Function
Parten (1932) described
four types of play,
categorized by social
function.
play in which children interact
and share materials but do not
work together toward the same
goal
 between ages 4 and 5
 increased interaction between children
but no joint activity
 Cooperative play: a form of
play in which children interact to
work toward a common goal
 from age 5 onward
 Children work together.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play
 Researchers argue that older children engage in all of
Parten’s categories, not just cooperative play.
 Nonsocial Play
 Associative Play
 Parallel Play
 Cooperative Play
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play: Cognitive Function
 Some developmentalists argue that play is better
categorized by its cognitive functions.
 Major cognitive classification of play follows Piaget’s
theory of cognitive development.
 Four types of play: functional play, constructive play,
symbolic play, and games with rules
 These types of play mirror Piaget’s sensorimotor, preoperational,
and concrete operational stages.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play: Cognitive Function
 Functional play: a form of play that involves
repetitive movements and simple exploratory
activity, usually seen during a child’s first two years
 Constructive play: a form of play that involves the
creation of new objects, often by combining alreadyexisting objects
 Symbolic play: a form of play that begins around 3
years of age in which children use objects as symbols
 Games with rules
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play: Cognitive Function
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Benefits of Play
Children practice physical, cognitive, and socioemotional skills
 Releases energy,
mental and physical
 Increases muscle
flexibility, cognitive
abilities, and emotional
maturity
 Allows creativity
 Builds personality
strengths: competence,
confidence, and
resilience
 Rough-and-tumble
play: a form of physical
play, such as wrestling,
tumbling, and running
 May help children develop
physical and socioemotional
skills
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Benefits of Play
“Undirected play” is particularly beneficial
 Gives opportunity to
engage in
 sharing
 negotiation
 leadership
 conflict resolution
 Often mimics observed
adult interactions
 Unscheduled,
imaginative play
supports academic and
social success.
 Self-initiated dramatic
play teaches social
skills (cooperation and
mutual respect).
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Play Trends
 Time for play (especially undirected play) has been
significantly reduced.
 Schools continue to move away from recess time.
 Yet research links physical activity to higher academic
performance.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Early-Childhood Education
 Majority of U.S. children between 3 and 4 attend a
center-based program before entering
kindergarten.
 Center-based programs = preschools or nursery schools
 Operate within a variety of contexts—churches, public schools,
independent nonprofit organizations, for-profits, and Head Start
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Effectiveness
of Early Childhood
Education
Head Start is a
national program that
seeks to promote
school-readiness among
disadvantaged children
through the provision
of educational,
nutritional, and social
services.
Head Start
 Longest-running program of its
kind
 Current enrollment: ~900,000
children per year
 Enhances cognitive abilities and
social competence
 Unclear how long benefits last
 Some studies found long-term
decreases in:
 special education placements.
 grade retention.
 repeating grades in school.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Early-Childhood Education: Best Practices
Research recommends the following steps for program success:
✓ Keep class sizes small
and child–teacher ratios
low
✓ Employ highly qualified
teachers with specialized
training in early
education
✓ Make parents active
partners in their
children’s education
✓ Develop
comprehensive
curricula that address
children’s interrelated
developmental needs—
emotional, social,
cognitive, and physical
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Inclusive Early Childhood Education
 Best practice steps support the learning and
development of all children
 Efforts have been made to merge special education
and early-childhood education
 Widespread support for
inclusive educational
settings
 Educators need to
expand their skill sets to
meet children’s needs.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Inclusive Early-Childhood Education
 Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD): several
related disorders, including autism and Asperger’s
syndrome
 Characterized by:
 limited social interaction
 impaired verbal communication
 repetitive behaviors
 Linked to cognitive difficulties
 delays in language
 low scores on intelligence tests
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Inclusive Early Childhood Education
 Increased awareness of Autism Spectrum
Disorders
 Early intervention can improve cognitive outcomes and
adaptive behavior.
 Families advocate for children with ASD to be educated in
regular classroom settings.
 Inclusion linked to significant gains in
 language skills.
 social interaction skills.
 play skills.
 IQ.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Early-Childhood Health Concerns
 Access to healthy foods and exercise allow children
to learn and grow in safe contexts.
 Obesity, unintentional injury, and lead
poisoning affect health throughout the lifespan.
 Concerns are most prevalent during early childhood.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Early Childhood
Health
Concerns
Percentage of children
in the United States
classified as overweight
or obese has been
increasing in recent
decades.
Obesity in Childhood
 A global epidemic
 One-third of American children
are considered overweight or
obese.
 Body mass index (BMI)
 Measure used to determine healthy
body weight; calculated by dividing
person’s weight (in pounds) by the
square of their height (in inches) and
multiplying the result by 703
 BMI at or above 95th percentile
indicates obesity.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Young children are not
experiencing as sharp an
increase as older
children and
adolescents.
Early-childhood years
set the stage for later
eating and exercise
habits.
Obesity Trends Through Childhood
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Factors Affecting Childhood Obesity
Interrelated Causes
Associated Problems
 Physical problems
 Genetics
 Sedentary lifestyle
 Poor nutrition
 Unhealthy foods marketed
directly to children
 heart disease
 osteoporosis
 diabetes
 impaired liver function
 asthma
 Psychological problems
 depression
 low self-esteem
 dysfunctional social skills
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Preventing
Childhood
Obesity
The U.S. Centers for
Disease Control (CDC)
has suggested several
preventive
interventions.
1st Step = Diet
 Food choices are more important
than exercise in losing weight.
 Eating habits of U.S. children are
often well outside the parameters
of a healthy diet.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Preventing
Childhood
Obesity
The U.S. Centers for
Disease Control (CDC)
has suggested several
preventive
interventions.
2nd Step = Activity
 Combo of healthy eating and
physical activity = most powerful
approach
 Minimum of 1 hr of moderate or
vigorous physical activity for
children each day
 Reduce “screen time”
to less than 2 hrs
per day.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Preventing
Childhood
Obesity
The U.S. Centers for
Disease Control (CDC)
has suggested several
preventive
interventions.
3rd Step = Family
 Children learn values from the
family.
 Value (or devalue) certain foods.
 Decide the importance (or lack of
importance) of physical activity.
 Family members must learn and
practice:
 proper nutrition.
 healthy food preparation.
 healthy exercise habits.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Unintentional Injury
 Leading cause of death among young U.S. children
 Most common cause = motor vehicle collisions
 According to the CDC (2012, 2013), young children
are also at risk of:
 drowning.
 falling.
 poisoning.
 unintentional discharges of firearms.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Preventing Unintentional Injury
 Families are vital in preventing and treating injury
and illness.
 Key Issues
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
parental knowledge of what causes injury
potential hazards in the home
presence or absence of safety items, such as smoke detectors,
in the home
number of injuries that have occurred in the home to date
cost-effectiveness of instituting prevention
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Lead Poisoning
 Silent epidemic; major public health concern for over
five decades
 Causes irreversible damage
 Today, severe poisonings are rare.
 Lead to seizures, coma, mental retardation, and death
 Child exposure to lead levels results in:
 cognitive damage.
 learning disabilities.
 attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
 poor gross- and fine-motor coordination.
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Lead Poisoning
 Treatment can successfully lower children’s blood
lead levels.
 But unable to improve the cognitive, behavioral, and
neuropsychological damages
 Limited awareness of the dangers of lead poisoning
 Vital to educate families about the dangers, sources, and
means of absorption, and precautions to prevent exposure
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Chapter Summary
1.
Physical Development
 The Nervous System, Skeletal System, and Muscular System
2. Cognitive Development
 Piaget’s Preoperational Stage
 Vygostky’s Theory of Cognitive Development
 Language Development
3. All the Systems Working Together
 Play
 Early-Childhood Education
 Common Health Concerns
Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

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