Topic 1: Early Childhood PDF

Topic 1: Early Childhood Preoperational stage: In Piaget’s theory, the second major stage of cognitive development, in which symbolic thought expands but children cannot yet use logic effectively. ○ Lasting from approximately ages 2 to 7, it is characterized by an expansion in the...

Topic 1: Early Childhood Preoperational stage: In Piaget’s theory, the second major stage of cognitive development, in which symbolic thought expands but children cannot yet use logic effectively. ○ Lasting from approximately ages 2 to 7, it is characterized by an expansion in the use of symbolic thought. However, children are not yet fully ready to engage in logical mental operations. Table 3 Cognitive Advances during Early Childhood Advance Significance Examples Use of symbols Children do not need to be in Simon asks his mother about the elephants sensorimotor contact with an they saw on their trip to the circus several object, person, or event in months earlier. order to think about it. Understanding of identities Children are aware that Antonio knows that his teacher is dressed up superficial alterations do not as a pirate but is still his teacher underneath change the nature of things. the costume. Understanding of cause and Children realize that events Seeing a ball roll from behind a wall, Aneko effect have causes looks behind the wall for the person who kicked the ball Ability to classify Children organize objects, Rosa sorts the pinecones she collected on a people, and events into nature walk into two piles: “big” and “little.” meaningful categories. Understanding of number Children can count and deal Lindsay shares some candy with her friends, with quantities counting to make sure that each gets the same amount. Empathy Children become more able to Emilio tries to comfort his friend when he imagine how others might sees that his friend is upset. feel. Theory of mind Children become more aware Blanca wants to save some cookies for of mental activity and the herself, so she hides them in a pasta box functioning of the mind. because she knows her brother will not look in a place where he doesn’t expect to find cookies.  TABLE 4. Immature Aspects of Preoperational Thought (According to Piaget) Limitation Description Example Centration: inability to decenter Children focus on one aspect of a Jacob teases his younger sister that situation and neglect others. he has more juice because his juice is in a tall, skinny glass while hers is in a short, wide glass. Irreversibility Children fail to understand that Jacob does not realize that the some operations or actions can be juice in each glass can be poured reversed, restoring the original back into the juice box from which situation. it came, which means the amounts must be the same. Focus on states rather than Children fail to understand the In the conservation task, Jacob transformations significance of the transformation does not understand that between states. transforming the shape of a liquid (pouring it from one container into another) does not change the amount. Transductive reasoning Children do not use deductive or Luis was mean to his sister. Then inductive reasoning; instead, they she got sick. Luis concludes that see cause where none exists. he made his sister sick. Egocentrism Children assume everyone else Kara holds a book so only she can thinks, perceives, and feels as they see the picture she is asking her do. father to explain to her Animism Children attribute life to objects Amanda says the car is hungry and not alive. wants some gas to eat. Inability to distinguish Children confuse what is real with Courtney believes that if she wears appearance from reality outward appearance. blue-tinted glasses, then everything she sees really did turn blue. Symbolic Function - Piaget’s term for ability to use mental representations (words, numbers, or images) to which a child has attached meaning. ○ Example: A child uses a banana as a pretend phone. Banana (the real object) is used symbolically to represent a phone (the imagined object). The action of holding the banana to their ear represents talking on the phone, even though the banana is not a phone.  Pretend Play - Play involving imaginary people and situations; also called fantasy play, dramatic play, or imaginative play. ○ Example: A child pretends to be a doctor, using toys or household items as tools. The child imagines they are treating a patient. They might use a toy stethoscope to "listen" to a stuffed animal's heartbeat. give it "medicine" using a spoon, and write a "prescription" on a piece of paper. The stethoscope symbolizes a real doctor's tool, and the stuffed animal symbolizes a patient. Theory of Mind - Awareness and understanding of mental processes. This ability typically develops around age 4–5 and is crucial for social interaction, empathy, and understanding others' behaviors. ○ Theory of mind is the understanding that others have their own thoughts, beliefs, desires, and intentions. Having a theory of mind allows us to understand and predict others’ behavior and makes the social world understandable. Theory of mind includes knowledge of thinking about mental states, false beliefs, and distinguishing between fantasy and reality. ○ Knowledge about Thinking and Mental States: 18 months: Children can infer intentions by observing adults’ failed attempts at tasks. 2 years: Pretend play becomes common. 3 years: Children use deception in simple games and predict actions based on others' desires. 3–5 years: They realize thinking occurs in the mind, involves both real and imaginary concepts, and differs from actions like seeing or knowing. 5 years: They grasp emotion regulation, such as thinking about something else to feel better. Later childhood: They understand the potential for incorrect beliefs about others' thoughts and recognize that the mind is continuously active. False Beliefs and Deception - Understanding false beliefs develops in stages, reflecting the complexity of mental representation and social interaction. ○ False belief understanding: At 3 months, infants show some awareness of others' mental states in nonverbal tasks. By 4 years, children pass false belief tasks, understanding that others can hold incorrect beliefs. By 5–6 years, children grasp second-order false beliefs, recognizing that they can hold false beliefs about others’ beliefs. ○ Deception and lying: Deception, an effort to induce false beliefs, correlates with false belief task performance. Preschoolers with advanced theory of mind are better liars. At 3 years, children begin telling simple lies but struggle with follow-up questions revealing their deception. By 8 years, they conceal transgressions more effectively, thinking about what they should or shouldn't know. With age, children lie out of politeness, such as pretending to like an unattractive gift to avoid hurting feelings.  Between 18 months and 3 years, children develop the ability to distinguish between reality and imagination: ○ Early understanding of real vs. imagined: By 3 years, children differentiate real objects (e.g., a dog) from imagined ones (e.g., a dream dog) and invisible from imaginary entities (e.g., air vs. ghosts). They recognize that pretense is intentional, knowing the difference between trying to do something and pretending to do it. ○ Fantasy skepticism and influences: 3-year-olds show skepticism about storybook characters' reality, especially in fantastical stories. By 4 years, children often prefer realistic story outcomes over magical ones. Religious upbringing affects beliefs, with children from religious households more likely to see fantastical story elements as real, especially when labeled as religious. ○ Magical thinking: Magical thinking after age 3 helps explain events without obvious causes or serves as a form of imaginative play. While children entertain the possibility of fantasy figures being real, they typically understand their magical nature. ○ Developmental benefits of imagination: Children with imaginary companions demonstrate richer storytelling abilities. Watching magical-themed content can boost creativity, encouraging imaginative thinking without altering beliefs about magic. Information-processing theory explains cognition through processes that affect memory: encoding, storage, and retrieval. ○ Memory processes: Encoding: Assigns labels to information for easier retrieval (e.g., associating apples with "red"). Storage: Maintains information over time, like filing it in a cabinet. Retrieval: Accesses stored information when needed. ○ Types of memory storage: Sensory memory: A brief store for sensory input (e.g., seeing a sparkler's light trail). Working memory: A short-term store for active information processing. Controlled by the central executive, which manages encoding to and retrieval from long-term memory. Supported by two subsystems: ○ Phonological loop: Processes verbal information (located in the left hemisphere). ○ Visuospatial sketchpad: Manages visual information (located in the right hemisphere). Long-term memory: Stores information indefinitely with virtually unlimited capacity. ○ Development and capacity:  Working memory capacity grows with age, increasing from two digits at age 4 to six digits at age 12. Efficiency develops linearly until ages 14–15. ○ Types of retrieval: Recognition: Identifying previously encountered information (e.g., finding a lost mitten). Recall: Reproducing information from memory (e.g., describing a mitten). Brain imaging studies link working memory functions to specific brain regions, including the prefrontal cortex, parietal areas, and temporal regions. Metamemory, a component of metacognition, refers to knowledge and reflection about memory processes. Children's understanding of memory improves steadily from kindergarten through adolescence: Early understanding (Kindergarten–1st Grade): ○ Children recognize that studying longer aids memory, forgetting occurs over time, and relearning is easier than initial learning. ○ Younger children rarely use organizational memory strategies (e.g., grouping by categories) and tend to overestimate their memory capacity. ○ They struggle to generalize memory strategies beyond the context in which they are taught. Advancements by 3rd Grade: ○ Children understand individual differences in memory abilities and recognize that some information is easier to remember. ○ They start using multiple strategies, choosing them based on the task, and are better at assessing progress toward memory goals. Metamemory development: ○ It helps learners evaluate if their subjective sense of accuracy aligns with reality by monitoring failures. ○ Brain development supports these abilities, with cortical thinning in the anterior insula and thickening in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex from childhood through adolescence. ○ Metamemory continues to develop during adolescence and potentially into adulthood. Metacognition refers to the awareness and regulation of one's own thought processes. It involves thinking about thinking and encompasses both knowledge of cognitive processes and the ability to monitor and control them. Metacognition plays a key role in learning and problem-solving by enabling individuals to plan, assess, and adapt their strategies for understanding and remembering information. Components of Metacognition: 1. Metacognitive Knowledge: Understanding how cognitive processes work, including: ○ Knowledge of oneself as a learner (e.g., "I learn better when I take notes"). ○ Knowledge of tasks (e.g., "This problem is complex and will take more time"). ○ Knowledge of strategies (e.g., "Using mnemonics helps me remember"). 2. Metacognitive Regulation: Actively managing one’s thinking, including: ○ Planning: Deciding how to approach a task (e.g., setting goals, selecting strategies). ○ Monitoring: Assessing progress and understanding during a task (e.g., checking comprehension).  ○ Evaluating: Reflecting on the effectiveness of strategies and outcomes after completing a task. Examples of Metacognition in Action: Deciding to reread a confusing paragraph for better comprehension. Adjusting study strategies when realizing current methods are ineffective. Evaluating whether a completed task meets desired standards. Importance: Metacognition is crucial for effective learning as it helps individuals become self-directed learners, improve problem-solving skills, and adapt strategies to different situations. It develops gradually, with significant progress occurring during childhood and adolescence. Executive function is the conscious control of thoughts, emotions, and actions to achieve goals and solve problems, developing as working memory grows. It allows children to plan, focus attention, and regulate responses, such as waiting in line for a turn. Development of executive function: ○ Emerges by the end of the 1st year and improves in spurts as children age, particularly between ages 2–5, enabling complex problem-solving and rule application. ○ Executive function is more strongly linked to academic performance than IQ, impacting literacy and numeracy skills across various groups, including children from low-income families and those with attentional problems. Working memory and academic performance: ○ Working memory is positively associated with academic success, and training to improve working memory has shown varying results. ○ Some programs successfully improve working memory and lead to brain activity changes, particularly in literacy, while others have had limited or no effects on academic achievement or even negative outcomes. Early childhood memories are often not deliberate and tend to focus on events that leave a strong impression. These memories are generally short-lived and can be classified into three types: 1. Generic memory: ○ Begins around age 2 and involves "scripts" or general outlines of repeated events (e.g., riding the bus to preschool). ○ Helps children anticipate and navigate familiar situations. 2. Episodic memory: ○ Refers to specific memories of events at particular times and places. ○ Due to limited memory capacity, these memories are often short-term and fade unless repeated. ○ For example, a child's memory of a vaccination may evolve into a more general memory of the doctor’s office as a place for shots after multiple visits. 3. Autobiographical memory: ○ A type of episodic memory that involves distinctive, personally meaningful experiences. ○ It typically emerges between ages 3 and 4. ○ The development of autobiographical memory depends on the child’s concept of self and language skills, which allow them to organize and share personal memories. Memory retention in children is influenced by several factors: 1. Unusual or Rare Events: Children tend to remember rare or unusual events better than routine ones (e.g., unusual experiences are more memorable). 2. Emotional Impact: Events with emotional significance are remembered more vividly, though children often focus on central aspects of the event rather than peripheral details. For example, a frightening film may leave a child remembering the scary parts but forgetting who they watched it with or what they did afterward. 3. Active Participation: Preschoolers remember activities they actively participated in better than those they merely observed (e.g., they are more likely to remember doing something than seeing someone else do it). 4. Social Interaction and Adult Reminiscing: The way adults discuss past experiences with children plays a crucial role in shaping autobiographical memory. Children collaboratively construct memories with adults, especially when reminiscing about past events. Parents who engage in detailed, elaborative reminiscing help their children form more coherent memories. ○ In Western cultures, mothers tend to elaborate more during reminiscing, while in non-Western cultures, like Chinese mothers, the questions tend to be more leading and less open-ended, limiting the child’s contributions. Psychometric measures of intelligence for preschoolers commonly include the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale and the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI-IV). 1. Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales: ○ Used for children ages 2 and up. ○ Takes 45 to 60 minutes to complete. ○ Assesses cognitive abilities like fluid reasoning, knowledge, quantitative reasoning, visual-spatial processing, and working memory. ○ Includes both verbal and nonverbal testing methods, allowing comparisons of verbal and nonverbal performance. ○ Provides a full-scale IQ and separate scores for verbal and nonverbal IQ, along with composite scores for the five cognitive dimensions. 2. Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI-IV): ○ Administered to children ages 2½ to 7. ○ It takes 30 to 60 minutes to complete. ○ Includes subtests for verbal and nonverbal fluid reasoning, receptive and expressive vocabulary, and processing speed. ○ Provides separate verbal and performance scores, as well as a combined score. ○ Validated for special populations, including children with intellectual disabilities, developmental delays, language disorders, and autism. Fast Mapping Between ages 3 and 6, children experience significant language development, particularly in vocabulary, grammar, and syntax. By age 3, children typically know 900 to 1,000 words, and by age 6, their expressive vocabulary expands to about 2,600 words, with an understanding of over 20,000 words. With formal schooling, their receptive vocabulary can grow to 80,000 words by high school.  Socioeconomic status influences vocabulary development, with children from lower-income families often having smaller vocabularies due to fewer opportunities to hear complex language. Children’s vocabulary expands rapidly through fast mapping, a process where they learn the meaning of a word after hearing it only once or twice in context. Nouns are generally easier to fast map than verbs. Pragmatics Language development is closely tied to social interaction, with children improving in both communication skills and pragmatics as they grow. Pragmatics refers to the practical knowledge of using language to effectively communicate. As children age, they become more aware of how their speech affects others and adjust accordingly. For example, a 3-year-old might demand a cookie, while by age 5, they understand the value of polite requests. By age 4, children simplify language when speaking to younger children, and by age 5, they can adapt their speech to the listener's level of knowledge, using more polite language with adults. Five-year-olds can also engage in extended conversations on familiar topics. Language development, including vocabulary, grammar, and theory of mind, is linked to pragmatic skills. Gender differences also emerge, with boys using more controlling language and girls more cooperative, polite speech. Private Speech Private speech, which involves talking aloud to oneself without any intent to communicate with others, is a common behavior in young children. While Piaget viewed it as egocentric and a sign of cognitive immaturity, Vygotsky saw it as a vital part of the learning process, a form of self-directed communication. Research supports Vygotsky's view, showing that private speech helps with self-regulation, especially during problem-solving or difficult tasks. It has also been linked to improved autobiographical memory, creativity, and academic skills, such as spelling. This suggests that private speech plays an important role in cognitive and social development. Emergent literacy Emergent literacy refers to the development of the skills necessary for reading and writing. While language is a foundation for literacy, it is not sufficient on its own. Social interaction plays a significant role in fostering emergent literacy. Children who experience rich vocabulary, discussions about books, and engaging conversations with parents and teachers are more likely to become skilled readers and writers. Reading to children, particularly from an early age, is one of the most effective ways to support literacy development. It helps children understand the mechanics of reading (like directionality and word separation) and fosters motivation to learn, which positively influences their reading skills as they grow.