Educational Psychology: Cognitive & Language Development

Study Notes

Development encompasses biological, cognitive, and socioemotional processes from conception to the end of life, involving both growth and potential decay.
Key developmental issues include nature vs. nurture, continuity vs. discontinuity, and early vs. later experience.
Developmentally appropriate teaching practices must be neither too easy nor too difficult, balancing engagement and challenge.
Splintered development refers to uneven progress across different domains, requiring tailored teaching strategies for individual strengths and weaknesses.

Cognitive development is influenced by brain structure and function, shaped by both biology and environmental experiences.
The brain exhibits plasticity, adapting to experiences throughout an individual's lifetime, linking closely to cognitive growth.
Piaget's theory emphasizes stages of cognitive development such as the sensorimotor and preoperational stages, focusing on the use of schemas, assimilation, accommodation, and equilibration.
Vygotsky's theory highlights the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), underscoring the importance of social interaction and scaffolding in learning.

Schemas are mental frameworks that organize experiences.
Assimilation involves incorporating new information into existing schemas, while accommodation adjusts schemas based on new information.
Organization categorizes information for efficient retrieval.
Equilibration leads to a balanced understanding by resolving cognitive conflicts through transitions between various developmental stages.

Language is a complex system of communication, governed by five sets of rules: phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics.
The interactionist view proposes that language acquisition arises from both biological predispositions and environmental factors, emphasizing the role of social interaction.
Children learn language not just through rewards or imitation but through active engagement with conversation and responsive communication from caregivers and educators.

Piaget’s theory outlines distinct developmental stages with specific cognitive abilities, while Vygotsky focuses on social context and collaborative learning.
Both theories illustrate the critical relationship between cognitive and linguistic development.