Ch. 9 PSY 330 – Infant and Child Development – Flashcards
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preoperational intelligence
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cognitive development between the ages of about 2 and 6. "Pre-logical" • Symbolic thought/language • Magical imagination
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four characteristics of thinking in early childhood which make logic difficult:
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• centration • focus on appearance • static reasoning • irreversibility
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centration
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characteristic of preoperational thought in which a young child focuses on one idea
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egocentrism
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children's tendency to think about the world entirely from their own personal perspective • literally means self-centered
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focus on appearance
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characteristic of preoperational thought where young child ignores all attributes that are not apparent
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static reasoning
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thinking that nothing changes • whatever is now has always been and always will be
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irreversibility
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idea that nothing can be undone • inability to recognize that something can be restored
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animism
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belief that natural objects are alive.
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conservation
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idea that amount of a substance remains the same when appearance changes
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Volume - Type of conservation
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initial presentation - 2 equal glasses of liquid transformation - pour 1 into a taller narrower glass Question - which glass contains more? Preoperational child's answer - the taller one
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Number - Type of conservation
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initial presentation - 2 equal lines of checkers transformation - increase spacing of checkers in 1 line Question - which line has more checkers? Preoperational child's answer - the longer line
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matter - Type of conservation
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initial presentation - 2 equal balls of clay transformation - squeeze 1 ball into a long, think shape Question - which piece has more clay? Preoperational child's answer - the long one
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length - Type of conservation
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initial presentation - 2 sticks of equal length transformation - move one stick Question - which stick is longer? Preoperational child's answer - the one that is farther to the right
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Vygotsky: Social Learning
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• First leading developmentalist to emphasize the other side of early cognition. • young children not always egocentric • can be very sensitive to the wishes and emotions of others • Emphasizes social aspect of young children's cognition in contrast to Piaget's emphasis on the individual.
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zone of proximal development (ZPD)
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skills a person can exercise only with assistance • ideas or cognitive skills a person is close to mastering as well as to more apparent skills.
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scaffolding
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temporary support tailored to a learner's needs and abilities • aimed at helping master next task
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private speech
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internal dialogue that occurs when people talk to themselves • silent or out loud
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social mediation
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function of speech where person's cognitive skills are refined and extended • both formal instruction and casual conversation
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Children's Theories
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• Both Piaget and Vygotsky realized that children actively work to understand their world. • seek to explain what they experience • why and how people behave as they do
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theory-theory
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idea that children attempt to explain everything they see and hear by constructing theories
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theory of mind
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person's theory of what other people might be thinking • must realize other people are not thinking the same thoughts that they are • Scientific American "A Change of Mind"
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Sensitive (not Critical) period for language learning due to
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• brain maturation • myelination • social interaction
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Early childhood is a sensitive period for rapidly and easily mastering
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• vocabulary • grammar • pronunciation
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Grammar
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• Scientific American "Born to Talk" • Grammar of language includes structures, techniques, and rules that are used to communicate meaning. • word order • word repetition • prefixes and suffixes • intonation • emphasis
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Constant Change
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• Basics of language learning apply to every language a young child learns. • Naming • vocabulary explosions • fast-mapping • overregularization • extensive practice • Established languages continually change as each new generation revises it to meet current needs.
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Learning Two Languages
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• Bilingualism is an asset. • Important to speak the majority language as well as the minority one.
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Bilingualism, Cognition, and Culture
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• These subjective factors get in the way of objective developmental research. • Bilingualism has both advantages and disadvantages for early cognition and literacy. Debate over bilingual education inseparable from issues of: • ethnic pride • identity • prejudice • fear Children who speak two languages by age 5 are: • less egocentric. • more advanced in their theory of mind.
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Early educational institutions
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• preschool • nursery school • day care • pre-primary
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Each early-childhood educational program emphasizes somewhat different
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• skills • goals • methods
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Early-Childhood Education
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• Child Centered: • Montessori Schools • The Reggio Emilia Approach • Teacher-Directed • Head Start and Intervention Programs
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Child-Centered Programs
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• Programs that stress children's development and growth. • Child-centered programs that use a Piaget-inspired model allows children to discover ideas at their own pace. • physical space and materials • puzzles • blocks of many sizes • toys • Child-centered programs also encourage artistic expression. • Costs and benefits of the different approaches: • "How long has each staff member worked at the center?" • adequate space & equipment • low adult/child ratio • trained staff & educated parents • continuity helps • positive social interaction among children & adults • Safety
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focus on appearance
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A characteristic of preoperational thought in which a young child ignores all attributes that are not apparent.
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egocentrism
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Piaget's term for children's tendency to think about the world entirely from their own personal perspective.
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animism
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The belief that natural objects and phenomena are alive.
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centration
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A characteristic of preoperational thought in which a young child focuses (centers) on one idea, excluding all others
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conservation
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The principle that the amount of a substance remains the same (i.e., is conserved) even when its appearance changes.
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balanced bilingual
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A person who is fluent in two languages, not favoring one over the other.
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guided participation
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The process by which people learn from others who guide their experiences and explorations.
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fast-mapping
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The speedy and sometimes imprecise way in which children learn new words by tentatively placing them in mental categories according to their perceived meaning.
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Head Start
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A federally funded early-childhood intervention program for low-income children of preschool age.
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preoperational intelligence
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Piaget's term for cognitive development between the ages of about 2 and 6; it includes language and imagination (which involve symbolic thought), but logical, operational thinking is not yet possible at this stage.
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static reasoning
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A characteristic of preoperational thought in which a young child thinks that nothing changes. Whatever is now has always been and always will be.
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irreversibility
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A characteristic of preoperational thought in which a young child thinks that nothing can be undone. A thing cannot be restored to the way it was before a change occurred.
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symbolic thought
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A major accomplishment of preoperational intelligence that allows a child to think symbolically, including understanding that words can refer to things not seen and that an item, such as a flag, can symbolize something else (in this case, for instance, a country).
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overimitation
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When a person imitates an action that is not a relevant part of the behavior to be learned. Overimitation is common among 2- to 6-year-olds when they imitate adult actions that are irrelevant and inefficient.
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scaffolding
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Temporary support that is tailored to a learner's needs and abilities and aimed at helping the learner master the next task in a given learning process.
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Montessori schools
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Schools that offer early-childhood education based on the philosophy of Maria Montessori, which emphasizes careful work and tasks that each young child can do.
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zone of proximal development (ZPD)
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Vygotsky's term for the skills--cognitive as well as physical--that a person can exercise only with assistance, not yet independently.
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theory-theory
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The idea that children attempt to explain everything they see and hear by constructing theories.
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private speech
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The internal dialogue that occurs when people talk to themselves (either silently or out loud).
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overregularization
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The application of rules of grammar even when exceptions occur, making the language seem more "regular" than it actually is.
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Reggio Emilia
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A program of early-childhood education that originated in the town of Reggio Emilia, Italy, and that encourages each child's creativity in a carefully designed setting.
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social mediation
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Human interaction that expands and advances understanding, often through words that one person uses to explain something to another.
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theory of mind
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A person's theory of what other people might be thinking. IN order to have a theory of mind, children must realize that other people are not necessarily thinking the same thoughts that they themselves are. That realization seldom occurs before age 4.
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1. What is Piaget's term for cognitive development between the ages of about 2 and 6?
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preoperational intelligence
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2. Which of the following would best explain why a preoperational child would not be able to understand that cats can be both pets and wild animals?
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centration
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3. A 3-year-old who gives his mother a toy car for HER birthday and expects that she will love it is demonstrating:
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egocentrism.
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4. An experimenter who lines up seven pairs of checkers in two rows of equal length and asks a child if the rows have the same number of checkers is likely testing for conservation of:
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number.
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5. After noticing that her 4-year-old brother was having difficulty putting a jigsaw puzzle together, Rose helped him with the task by praising his successes and helping him to recognize progress. From Vygotsky's perspective, this as an example of:
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guided participation.
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6. The idea that children attempt to explain everything they see and hear by constructing theories is called:
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theory-theory.
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7. Theory of mind:
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typically appears rather slowly.
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8. What did a study comparing preschool children from various countries find to be the primary factor in development of theory of mind?
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brain maturation
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9. Early childhood is __________ for language learning.
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a sensitive period
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10. The process by which children develop an interconnected set of categories for words is called:
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fast-mapping.
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11. The tendency of a young child to apply rules of grammar when he or she should not is:
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overregularization
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12. According to your text, it is best that children:
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become equally fluent in two languages.
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13. Child-centered programs stress children's development and growth through:
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self discovery
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14. The results of a 2006 study of 5-year-olds in inner-city Milwaukee revealed that, compared to other children, children exposed to a Montessori program:
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were better at prereading and early math tasks.
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15. The goal of teacher-directed early-education programs is to:
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make all children "ready to learn."
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16. Piaget's second of four stages of cognition is:
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preoperational intelligence.
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17. Which Piagetian term literally means "self-centered"?
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egocentrism
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18. Which characteristic of preoperational thought involves a child assuming that the world is unchanging, always in the state in which the child currently encounters it?
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static reasoning
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19. Piaget has been criticized for:
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underestimating cognition during early childhood.
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20. Which of the following is a term associated with Vygotsky's approach to cognitive development?
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scaffolding
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21. A study of Mexican American children and the questions that they asked found that:
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most questions were about human behavior, such as "Why do people kiss?"
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22. The understanding that other people can have thoughts and ideas unlike one's own describes:
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theory of mind.
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23. Which of the following has been shown to influence when a child exhibits a theory of mind?
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age and siblings
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24. The average child knows about ___________ words at age 2 and more than ___________ at age 6.
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500; 10,000
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25. Instead of saying "feet," 4-year-old Jasper says "foots." This error is best described as an example of:
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overregularization.
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26. The term ________ refers to a person who is fluent in two languages, not favoring one over the other.
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"balanced bilingual"
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27. Child-centered programs that recognize that children learn through play with other children are most consistent with the views of:
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Vygotsky
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28. Which child-centered approach to early-childhood education places the most emphasis on individual differences, neither requiring children to engage in prescribed learning activities nor using any large-group instruction?
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Reggio Emilia
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29. Which of the following statements about Head Start is true?
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Some programs involve parents; others do not.
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30. According to the text, what complicates the evaluation of Head Start programs?
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Programs vary in length, curriculum, and goals.
