Jean Piaget Cognitive Development Theory & Criticism CDP Concepts English Explanation

Описание: Jean Piaget

He was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on Child Development
He theorized how learners interact with their environment & develop reasoning & knowledge
He categorized cognitive development into four stages of which correlate with the age of the person

Jean Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development - The four stages.

Sensorimotor Stage - Birth to 2 years
Reflex actions of Infants
Learning physical or motor skills & senses
Beginning of Cognitive understanding

Pre-operational Stage - 2 to 7 years
Ego-centric, illogical thinkers, Animism
Difficulty in understanding 'Conservation'
Develop Symbolism & Moral realism

Concrete Operational Stage - 7 to 12 (or 11) years
Usage of Concrete objects & Situations for logical thinking
Understanding of Conservation, Grouping, Ordering

Formal Operational Stage - 12+ (or 11+) years
Development of Abstract thought
Able to deal with Complex situations


Criticism of Jean Piaget's Theory

Piaget's research methodology was relatively unstructured - making it difficult for others to replicate his results
A major source of inspiration for the theory was Piaget's observations of his own three children
The other children in Piaget's small research sample were all from well-educated families of high socio-economic status
Most researchers agree that children possess many of the abilities at an earlier age than Piaget suspected

Vygotsky asserted that:
development is complex and is affected by social & cultural influences
Biological & Cultural development are intrinsically linked, and do not develop on their own