"Piaget"s Cognitive Development Theory"
The famous Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget (1896-1980) proposed an important theory of cognitive development. Piaget"s theory states that children actively construct their understanding of the world and go through four stages of cognitive development. Two processes underlie this cognitive construction of the world: organization and adaptation. To make sense of our world, we organize our experiences. For example, we separate important ideas from less important ideas. We connect one idea to another. But not only do we organize our observations and experiences, we also adapt our thinking to include new ideas because additional information furthers understanding . Piaget (1954) believed that we adapt in two ways: assimilation and accommodation.
→ Assimilation occurs when individual is incorporate new information into their existing knowledge. Accommodation occurs when individual is adjust to new information. Consider a circumstance in which a 9-year-old girl is given a hammer and nails to hang a picture on the wall. She has never used a hammer, but from observation and vicarious experience she realizes that a hammer is an object to be held, that it is swung by the handle to hit the nail, and that it is usually swung a number of times. Recognizing each of these things, she fits her behavior into the information she already has (assimilation). However, the hammer is heavy, so she holds it near the top. She swings too hard and the nail bends, so she adjusts the pressure of her strikes. These adjustments reveal her ability to alter slightly her conception of the world (accommodation).
Piaget thought that assimilation and accommodation operate even in the very young infant"s life. Newborns reflexively suck everything that touches their lips (assimilation), but, after several months of experience, they construct their understanding of the world differently. Some objects, such as fingers and the mother"s breast, can be sucked, but others such as fuzzy blankets, should not be sucked (accommodation).
Piaget also believed that we go through four stages in understanding the world. Each of the stages is age-related and consists of distinct ways of thinking. Remember, it is the different way of understanding the world that makes one stage more advanced than another; knowing more information does not make the child"s thinking more advanced, in the Piagetian view. This is what Piaget meant when he said the child"s cognition is qualitatively different in one stage compared to another (Vidal, 2000).
What are Piaget"s four stages of cognitive development like?
The sensorimotor stage, which lasts from birth to about 2 years of age, is the first Piagetian stage. In this stage, infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences (such as seeing and hearing) with physical, motoric actions-hence the term sensorimotor.
At the end of the stage, 2-year-olds have
sophisticated
sensorimotor patterns and are beginning to operate with primitive symbols.
The famous Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget (1896-1980) proposed an important theory of cognitive development. Piaget"s theory states that children actively construct their understanding of the world and go through four stages of cognitive development. Two processes underlie this cognitive construction of the world: organization and adaptation. To make sense of our world, we organize our experiences. For example, we separate important ideas from less important ideas. We connect one idea to another. But not only do we organize our observations and experiences, we also adapt our thinking to include new ideas because additional information furthers understanding . Piaget (1954) believed that we adapt in two ways: assimilation and accommodation.
→ Assimilation occurs when individual is incorporate new information into their existing knowledge. Accommodation occurs when individual is adjust to new information. Consider a circumstance in which a 9-year-old girl is given a hammer and nails to hang a picture on the wall. She has never used a hammer, but from observation and vicarious experience she realizes that a hammer is an object to be held, that it is swung by the handle to hit the nail, and that it is usually swung a number of times. Recognizing each of these things, she fits her behavior into the information she already has (assimilation). However, the hammer is heavy, so she holds it near the top. She swings too hard and the nail bends, so she adjusts the pressure of her strikes. These adjustments reveal her ability to alter slightly her conception of the world (accommodation).
Piaget thought that assimilation and accommodation operate even in the very young infant"s life. Newborns reflexively suck everything that touches their lips (assimilation), but, after several months of experience, they construct their understanding of the world differently. Some objects, such as fingers and the mother"s breast, can be sucked, but others such as fuzzy blankets, should not be sucked (accommodation).
Piaget also believed that we go through four stages in understanding the world. Each of the stages is age-related and consists of distinct ways of thinking. Remember, it is the different way of understanding the world that makes one stage more advanced than another; knowing more information does not make the child"s thinking more advanced, in the Piagetian view. This is what Piaget meant when he said the child"s cognition is qualitatively different in one stage compared to another (Vidal, 2000).
What are Piaget"s four stages of cognitive development like?
The sensorimotor stage, which lasts from birth to about 2 years of age, is the first Piagetian stage. In this stage, infants construct an understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences (such as seeing and hearing) with physical, motoric actions-hence the term sensorimotor.
At the end of the stage, 2-year-olds have
sophisticated
sensorimotor patterns and are beginning to operate with primitive symbols.
单选题
Which of the sentences below best expresses the information in the highlighted statement in the passage? The other choices change the meaning or leave out important information.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】We engage in both organization of what we see and experience paraphrases "... we organize our observations and experiences" and adaptation of novel ideas paraphrases "we also adapt our thinking to include new ideas."
单选题
Why does the author mention a hammer in paragraph 2?
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】The concepts are explained by the girl"s new experience with the hammer as she "... fits her behavior into the information she already has (assimilation)" and "adjustments... alter slightly her conception of the world (accommodation)." Choice B is not correct because the concepts, not the demonstration, are the lesson. Choice C is not correct because the girl solves the problem of how to use a new tool. Choice D is not correct because the example demonstrates the ways that people adapt, not the stages of development.
单选题
The word alter in the passage is closest in meaning to
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】In this passage, change is a synonym for "alter." Context comes from the reference to "adjustments" in the same sentence.
单选题
The word
others
in the passage refers to
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】"Some objects such as fingers and the mother"s breast, can be sucked, but others [other objects], such as fuzzy blankets, should not be sucked." The noun "others" does not refer to Choices A, C, and D.
单选题
The word
distinct
in the passage is closest in meaning to
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】In this passage, different is a synonym for "distinct." Context comes from the reference to "different" in the next sentence.
单选题
The word
sophisticated
in the passage is closest in meaning to
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】In this passage, complex is a synonym for "sophisticated."
单选题
Based on the information in paragraph 6, which of the following best explains the term "operations"?
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】"... operations, the Piagetian term for internalized mental actions." Choice A is not correct because symbolic thought occurs in a later stage, after operations. Choice C is not correct because it occurs in an earlier stage, before operations. Choice D is not correct because the reasoning that children can perform in operational stages does not explain the term operations.
单选题
According to paragraph 7, why would a 10-year-old be unable to solve algebra problems?
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】"... concrete operational thinkers cannot imagine the steps necessary to complete an algebraic equation, which is too abstract for thinking at this stage." Choice A is not correct because algebra requires formal, not concrete, operational thinking. Choice C is not correct because a child of 10 has reasoning abilities, if they are applied to concrete examples. Choice D is not correct because it is the abstract nature of the steps, not the number of steps, that makes algebra too difficult for a 10-year old.
单选题
In paragraph 8, the author mentions parents because
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】"They might think about what an ideal parent is like and compare their parents to this ideal standard." Choice A is true, but it is not the reason that the author mentions parents. Choices B and D are not mentioned in the passage.
单选题
What can be inferred from the passage about people who are older than 15 years of age?
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】Because the formal operational stage is the last stage in Piaget"s theory, and the age range is between 11 and 15, it must be concluded that people who are older than 15 have completed all of the stages. Choice B is not correct because the age range for the formal operational stage is between 11 and 15. Choice C is not correct because logical reasoning replaces intuitive thought in the concrete operational stage from 7 to 11 years of age. Choice D is not correct because there is no evidence to support this conclusion in the passage.
单选题
All of the following refer to Piaget"s theory EXCEPT
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】Choice A is mentioned in paragraph 5, sentence 2. Choice B is mentioned in paragraph 1, sentence 8. Choice D is mentioned in paragraph 6, sentence 4.
单选题
Look at the four squares [■] that show where the following sentence could be inserted in the passage.
At the beginning of this stage, newborns have little more than reflexive patterns with which to work.
Where could the sentence best be added?
Click on a square [■] to insert the sentence in the passage.
At the beginning of this stage, newborns have little more than reflexive patterns with which to work.
Where could the sentence best be added?
Click on a square [■] to insert the sentence in the passage.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】Chronological order is a transitional device that connects the insert sentence with the following sentence. "At the beginning" should appear in the sentence before "At the end" in reference to the sensorimotor stage.
填空题
Directions:
Complete the table by matching the phrases on the left with the headings on the right. Select the appropriate answer choices and drag them to the operational stages proposed by Piaget. TWO of the answer choices, which refer to the earlier stages, will NOT be used.
This question is worth 4 points.
To delete an answer choice, click on it. To see the passage, click on View Text .
Answer Choices
A．Intuitive thought in images and drawings
B．Imagination of ideal situations
C．Logical reasoning for specific
D．Applied reasoning that requires little abstract thought
E．Abstract thinking that includes hypotheses
F．Complex coordination of the five senses
G．Successful solution of tangible problems
H．Thinking about potential situations for the future
I．Methodical trials to determine the reason for events
Concrete Operational Stage
· or relationships
· examples
Formal Operational Stage
·
·
To delete an answer choice, click on it. To see the passage, click on View Text .
Answer Choices
A．Intuitive thought in images and drawings
B．Imagination of ideal situations
C．Logical reasoning for specific
D．Applied reasoning that requires little abstract thought
E．Abstract thinking that includes hypotheses
F．Complex coordination of the five senses
G．Successful solution of tangible problems
H．Thinking about potential situations for the future
I．Methodical trials to determine the reason for events
Concrete Operational Stage
· or relationships
· examples
Formal Operational Stage
·
·