Cognitive Theories Essay

Cognition is the run gnarled in considering and mental activity. Cognitive theories be not centred on the unconscious mind of the nipper unless emphasized the conscious thoughts. In this essay I result discuss the cognitive theories of Piaget and Vygotsky, who were both authoritative in forming a more scientific approach to analysing the cognitive victimisation do of the nestling. I will outline Piagets scheme of the four stages of cognitive culture and Vygotskys theory on the sociocultural cognitive theory. I will also discuss how cognitive theories can be applied to the education of the infant.Jean Piaget (1896-1980) deald that children ar active in the process of their cognitive development. As Bee and Boyd note in The Developing Child the child is an active voxicipant in the development of k straightwayledge (Bee and Boyd, 1939, p.150). Piaget said that children rationality and think differently at different stages in their lives. He believed that children pro cess finished four stages of cognitive development. Each stage is characterised by an general structure and a sequence of development. According to Piagetian theory, these structures consist of schemes or schemas, which are a way of organising experience. These schemes adapt through a nonstop process of assimilation and accommodation, in an attempt to achieve equipoise, which is the balance in the midst of the two. Assimilation is the process of adapting new experiences to fit into existing schemes. Accommodation is the process of adapting existing schemes to fit new experiences. (Piagets Theory, www. sixth February 2012).The first of Piagets stages of cognitive development is the sensorimotor stage. It occurs from birth to more or less two years of age. This stage is divided into six sub stages reflexes, aboriginal aviator reactions, secondary circular reactions, coordination of secondary circular reactions, tertiary circular reactions and first of representational though t. He believed that this stage is a period of applicatory discovery, which happens by interacting with the environment through the senses. Infants discover a relationship between their body and the environment. The infant develops in symbiotic thinking, a sense of self and the beginning of symbolic thought. This stage promotes that thought is based primarily on action. (Bee and Boyd, 1939). As Santrock says in Child phylogenesis their main task is to coordinate their receptive impressions with their motor activity (Santrock, 1982, p.188).The second of Piagets stages is the pre-operational stage. It occurs from two to or so seven years of age. Piaget believed that at this time children fail to conserve. This is the understanding that things stay put constant in terms of number, quantity and volume regardless of changes in appearance. He believed that at this stage children begin to represent the world through symbols e.g. drawing, images and words. This stage is characterized by the development of symbolic thought, representation, egocentrism, centration and intuitive thought. (Bee and Boyd, 1939).The deuce-ace of Piagets theories is the concrete-operations stage. It occurs from seven to about eleven years of age. He believed this stage is characterized by the ability to perform operational tasks such as classification, seriation and reversibility. The child now understands the conservation of mass, length, weight and volume. As it states in Child Development cover operations allow children to coordinate several characteristics preferably than center on on a single property of an object (Santrock, 1982, p.193). Children can use solicit thinking as long as they can relate anchor to concrete examples. In the concrete-operations stage, he believed the child is no longer self-centered they return the ability to de-centre. (Bee and Boyd, 1939).The fourth and last stage of Piagets theories is the conventional operations stage. It occurs between eleven a nd about fifteen years of age, although Piaget says that rough raft may never reach this stage of cognitive development. He believes that in this period individuals are able to think and reason scientifically (Piagets Theory, www. 6th February 2012). Children have the capacity to move beyond expressed experiences and think in more logical ways. This stage is characterized by abstraction thinking, hypothetical deductive reasoning and idealism.(Bee and Boyd, 1939). In contrast to Piaget, Lev Semeonovich Vygotsky (1896-1934) did not believe in distinct stages of development. He saw the development of cognition as a continual process that is determined by the culture and kind influences.He believed children are only as cognitively developed as the culture in which they live and that learning in conjunction with well-disposed interaction leads to cognitive development. As is says in The Developing Child favorable interaction is required for cognitive development (Bee and Boyd, 193 9, p.163). One of the main ideas proposed by Vygotsky is the Zone of Proximal Development. This refers to the distance between the actual development of a child through individual problem solving and the level of development through problem solving under the guidance of an adult. A childs actual development level indicates a childs level of mental development at a particular time. It indicates the functions that have already matured in the child. A childs regulate of proximal development show the functions that have not matured yet, but that are in the process of maturing and developing. (Learning Theories, www. 7th February 2012).Vygotsky also believed that language play an important role in a childs cognitive development. He believed language and thought develop independently and when the child is about two years of age they come together. Vygotsky describes three stages of development in language. The first stage is social speech or external speech. A child uses external speech to express simple thoughts and emotions such as crying or laughing. The second stage is egocentric speech, it is usually constitute in children between the ages of three and seven.The child will talk to him/herself during activities. They think out loud in an attempt to guide their own behaviour. The third stage is versed speech. As the child gets older he/she will begin to supress egocentric speech in the form of inner speech, and it is inner speech that becomes the childs thoughts. Vygotsky proposed that language allows the child a great freedom of thought and leads to cognitive development. (Santrock, 1982). As it states in Child Development Children must use language to communicate with orders before they can focus inward on their own thoughts (Santrock, 1982, p.202).Both Piagets cognitive developmental theory and Vygotskys sociocultural cognitive theory have a profound effect on the educational process and can be applied in many ways. Piaget and Vygotsky agree that the child actively takes part in his/her education and therefore require a style of doctrine that raises opportunities to be active participants in their own learning. Both theories view the child as individual beings. They both agree with a child centred curriculum and percolate the role of the teacher as a guide and facilitator rather than a director. Both theories propose that the teacher has to have good posting skills and to have an understanding of the children in the learning environment. (Santrock, 1982).Vygotsky believed that education held a more important role in the childs cognitive development. He proposed the involvement of the teacher to guide the child through his/her zone of proximal development and that instruction should be based on the childs potential level. Vygotskys theory proposes using peers as tutors in reenforcement and guiding the child. He believed that thinking depended on language skills and is developed and maintain by social interaction. Learning invol ves at least two people therefore the probable scope of Zone of Proximal Development is dependent on the skills of both the child and the teacher. (Santrock, 1982).However, Piaget saw education as a method of refinement for the already developing cognitive skills. He believed cognitive development cannot be accelerated through instruction and concepts should not be taught until the child has reached the right stage. Piaget believed children are able to work best when they are active. He saw the child as a lone venturer discovering things for him/herself. He also believed the role of the teacher is a facilitator and guide to provide the correct materials and environment for the child. As it says in Child Development trenchant teachers listen, watch, and question students, to help them gain better understanding (Santrock, 1982, p.197). Piagets theory suggests that the peers and not the adults in the classroom have a stronger influence on the childs development. (Santrock, 1982).In th is essay I have discussed the cognitive theories of Piaget and Vygotsky and how they can be applied to the education of the child. Piaget and Vygotskys impact on childrens cognitive development has been remarkable. Their cognitive theories have contributed to our understanding of the brilliance of developmental changes in childrens thinking and the cognitive processes. They looked at how children see the world and the influences that impact on the thinking process and saw that the cognitive theories are a positive approach to the child as they are active participants in their own development. For many years teachers have revise their approach in the classroom and applied the cognitive theories to the education of the child.