CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

Bronfenbrenner, Urie (1979), Ecological Systems Also called “development in

context” or “human ecology“ theory, ecological systems theory, originally
formulated by Urie Bronfenbrenner specifies four types of nested
environmental systems, with bi-directional influences within and between the
systems. The four systems are microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, and
macrosystem. Each system contains roles, norms and rules that can powerfully
shape development. Since its publication in 1979, Bronfenbrenner’s major
statement of this theory, “The Ecology of Human Development”, has had
widespread influence on the way psychologists and others approach the study of
human beings and their environments. As a result of this influential
conceptualization of development, these environments from the family to
economic and political structures have come to be viewed as part of the life
course from childhood through adulthood. (Blades, et al., 2011).

Child development involves the biological, psychological and emotional

changes that occur in human beings between birth and the conclusion of
adolescence. Childhood is divided into 3 stages of life include early childhood,
middle childhood, and adolescence.

Collins, W. Andrew (1984), early childhood typically ranges from infancy to

the age of 6 years old. During this period, development is significant, as many
of life’s milestones happen during this time period such as first words, learning
to crawl, and learning to walk. There is speculation that middle childhood, or
ages 6–13 are the most crucial years of a child’s life, ranging from the starts of
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some sorts of formal schooling to the beginning of puberty, and this is also the
period where many children start to gain a more sense of self. Adolescence, is
the stage of life that typically starts around the time puberty hits, all the way up
until legal adulthood. In the course of development, the individual human
progresses from dependency to increasing autonomy. It is a continuous process
with a predictable sequence, yet has a unique course for every child. It does not
progress at the same rate and each stage is affected by the preceding
developmental experiences. Because genetic factors and events during prenatal
life may strongly influence developmental changes, genetics and prenatal
development usually form a part of the study of child development. Related
terms include developmental psychology, referring to development throughout
the lifespan, and pediatrics, the branch of medicine relating to the care of
children.

Developmental change may occur as a result of genetically-controlled processes

known as maturation, or as a result of environmental factors and learning, but
most commonly involves an interaction between the two. (Toga A. W,
Thompson P. M, Sowell E. R 2006). It may also occur as a result of human
nature and of human ability to learn from the environment.

There are various definitions of periods in a child’s development, since each

period is a continuum with individual differences regarding starting and ending.
Some age-related development periods and examples of defined intervals
include: newborn (ages 0–4 weeks); infant (ages 4 weeks – 1 year); toddler
(ages 12 months-24 months); preschooler (ages 2–5 years); school-aged child
(ages 6–13 years); adolescent (ages 14–19). Promoting child development
through parental training, among other factors, promotes excellent rates of child
development. Vilaça, S. (2012). Parents play a large role in a child’s activities,
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socialization, and development. Having multiple parents can add stability to a
child’s life and therefore encourage healthy development. Another influential
factor in children’s development is the quality of their care. Child-care
programs may be beneficial for childhood development such as learning
capabilities and social skills.

The optimal development of children is considered vital to society and it is

important to understand the social, cognitive, emotional, and educational
development of children. Increased research and interest in this field has
resulted in new theories and strategies, with specific regard to practice that
promotes development within the school system. Some theories seek to describe
a sequence of states that compose child development.

1.2 Scope of the study

The scope of this study focuses only on the principles of child development
from Birth to a year old.

1.3 Objectives of the study

Child Development focuses on the emotional, intellectual, social, and physical

development of children from birth to age 12, with the primary emphasis on
early childhood. A study of birth, pre-natal, and neo-natal development will be
included. “Nurturing” skills will be included and viewed as a means of meeting
physical needs, as well as the education and moral training which maximizes
individual growth and development. The following are objectives of this study:

i. To evaluate the reciprocal relationship among individuals, the family and

society.

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 ii. To analyze principles of human growth and development across the life
span.

iii. To analyze factors that impact child growth and development.

iv. To analyze strategies that promote growth and development across the
life span

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 CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1 General principles of development

The process of development is wide, complex and continuous. Therefore, one

has to follow some of its principles in order to understand it (development).
Some of the principles are the following:

 Principle of Continuity: Development follows continuity. It goes from

womb to tomb and never ceases. An individual starting his life from a tiny
cell develops his body, mind and other aspects of his personality though a
continuous stream of development.

 Principle of Uniform Pattern: The process of development has uniformity

and few individual differences. But uniformity is in functions like
development of language in children. The physical development is also in a
uniform manner. This development starts from head. Thus, milk teeth fall
first. Thus, the development of similar species has a definite uniformity.

 Principle of Individual Differences: Psychologists give due importance to

the principle of individual differences. The process of development has been
divided into different age-groups and as every age group has its specific
features and have different behavior; these differences cannot be ignored.
Even twin-children have differences. Thus, every individual has individual
differences.

 Principle of Integration: Development involves a movement from the

whole to the parts and from the parts to the whole. It is the integration of
whole and its parts as well as of the specific and general responses that make

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 a child develop satisfactorily in various dimensions of his growth and
development.

 Principle of Inter-relation: The growth and development in various

dimensions like physical, mental, social, etc. are inter-related and inter-
dependent. Growth and development in any one dimension affects the
growth and development of the child in other dimensions. For example,
children with above average intelligence are generally found to possess
above average physical and social development. The lack of growth in one
dimension diminishes the bright possibility in other dimensions. That is
why, the child having poor physical development tend to regress in
emotional, social and intellectual development.

 Principle of Maturation and Learning: In the process of growth and

development, maturation and learning plays an important role. In maturity,
growth and development get effected towards learning. Any child needs to
be mature to do a work. Maturity also has different levels. These levels
affect his learning process. For instance, if a child is keen to learn something
and lacks maturity then he will not be able to learn it.

 Principle of Joint product of Heredity and Environment: Child growth and

development is the joint product of heredity and environment. The effect of
both of these cannot be separated. Heredity is the foundation of the
personality of a child.

 Principle of Total Development: The physical development in human

beings takes place simultaneously with the development of various aspects
of human personality such as social, physical, emotional, mental, etc. All
these aspects are dependent on each other and affect each other.

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 Principle of Development Direction: Growth and development have their
own definite direction. In human body, first of all, head becomes of adult
size and legs in the end. In the development of embryo, this principle is very
clear. Thus, development has different direction:

i. Cephalo Caudal Sequence:  Human child growth from head to legs

and not vice versa.

ii. Proximo-distal Sequence: This development starts from back and

then external promixo-distal sequence starts. Thus, we can say that at
embryo stage, firstly head develops, then lower portion of the body.
Similarly, spinal cord develops first, then heart, chest, etc.

iii. Structure Precedes Function: Firstly, all the body parts develop, and
then they are used; but before that their muscles should develop.

 Development Proceeds from General to Specific Response: In all phases of

child’s development, general activity precedes specific activity. His
responses are of a general type before they become specific. For example,
the boy waves his arms in general, random movements before he is capable
of so specific a response as reaching.

 Principle of Predictability of Development: It is possible to predict

development. For example, the interests, disliking, growth of a child.

 Principle of Outer Control to Inner Control: Small children depend on

others for values and principles. When they grow up, they develop their own
value system, conscious, inner control and outer control.

Source: www.edugyan.in/2017/02/principles-of-child-development.html?m=1

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2.2 Development of the child

Child development refers to the sequence of physical, language, thought and

emotional changes that occur in a child from birth to the beginning of
adulthood. During this process a child progresses from dependency on their
parents/guardians to increasing independence. Child development is strongly
influenced by genetic factors (genes passed on from their parents) and events
during prenatal life. It is also influenced by environmental facts and the child’s
learning capacity. In the first few years of life, the growth of a child is very
rapid, and then it slows down later. Development is often interpreted by the
attainment developmental milestones. Developmental milestones are a set of
behaviors, skills, or abilities that are demonstrated by specified ages during
infancy and early childhood in typical development (Beighley & Matson 2013).
Child development covers the full scope of skills that a child masters over their
life span including the following:

 Physical development: The physical development includes growth in

size and in proportion along with muscle coordination and control. For
example a five months old child learning to roll over, lift head, etc.
 Cognitive development: This is the child’s ability to learn and solve
problems. For example, this includes a two-month-old baby learning to
explore the environment with hands or eyes or a three year old learning
how to memorize poem.
 Speech and language development: This is the child’s ability to both
understand and use language. For example, this includes a 12-month-old
baby saying his first words, a two-year-old naming part of her body.

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  Social development: A child learning and discovering the expectations
and rules for interacting with others. Examples: a child smiling at mother,
a child involved in cooperative play.
 Emotional development: The ability to recognize and understand
feelings and how to respond to them appropriately. Example: a child
feeling insecure at the arrival of a new baby in the family, a child being
afraid of the dark.
 Moral development: The growing understanding of right and wrong,
and the change in behavior caused by that understanding.

2.3 Genetic influence on human development

Genes consist of short sections of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) contained in

chromosomes present in the nucleus of a cell and have particular influences on
the workings of a cell. Every human cell holds in its nucleus more than 100,000
different genes, which provide the programming for growth, reproduction,
aging, and death. Variations in an individual's genes account for differences in
gender, skin color, height, eye color, intelligence, talents, and personality as
well as susceptibility to certain diseases and disorders.

Genetic Interactions: Genes can sometimes contain conflicting information,

and in most cases, one gene will win the battle for dominance. Some genes act
in an additive way. For example, if a child has one tall parent and one short
parent, the child may end up splitting the difference by being of average height.
In other cases, some genes follow a dominant-recessive pattern. Eye color is
one example of dominant-recessive genes at work. The gene for brown eyes is
dominant and the gene for blue eyes is recessive. If one parent hands down a

9
dominant brown eye gene while the other parent hands down a recessive blue
eye gene, the dominant gene will win out and the child will have brown eyes.

Genetic factors play a central role in shaping human development and behavior.
As a corollary, substantial individual variability is found in the developmental-
behavioral manifestations of genetic syndromes and other genetic differences.

2.4 Understanding Language

Language development is viewed as a motive to communication, and the

communicative function of language in-turn provides the motive for language
development. Jean Piaget uses the term “acted conversations” to explain a
child’s style of communication that rely more heavily on gestures and body
movements, rather than words. Younger children depend on gestures for a
direct statement of their message. As they begin to acquire more language, body
movements take on a different role and begin to complement the verbal
message. These nonverbal bodily movements allow children to express their
emotions before they can express them verbally. The child’s nonverbal
communication of how they’re feeling is seen in babies 0 to 3 months who use
wild, jerky movements of the body to show excitement or distress. This
develops to more rhythmic movements of the entire body at 3 to 5 months to
demonstrate the child’s anger or delight. Between 9–12 months of age, children
view themselves as joining the communicative world. Before 9–12 months,
babies interact with objects and interact with people, but they do not interact
with people about objects. This developmental change is the change from
primary intersubjectivity (capacity to share oneself with others) to secondary
intersubjectivity (capacity to share one’s experience), which changes the infant
from an unsociable to socially engaging creature. Around 12 months of age a
communicative use of gesture is used. This gesture includes communicative
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pointing. Another gesture of communication is presented around the age of 10
and 11 months where infants start gaze-following; they look where another
person is looking. This joint attention result in changes to their social cognitive
skills between the ages of 9 and 15 months as their time is spent increasingly
with others. Children’s use of non-verbal communicative gestures foretells
future language development. The use of non-verbal communication in the form
of gestures indicate the child’s interest in communication development, and the
meanings they choose to convey that are soon revealed through the
verbalization of language. When children acquire language and learn to use
language for communicative functions (pragmatics), children also gain
knowledge about the participation in conversations and relating to past
experiences/events (discourse knowledge), and how to use language
appropriately in congruence with their social situation or social group
(sociolinguistic knowledge). Ordinarily, the development of communicative
competence and the development of language are positively correlated with one
another; however, the correlation is not flawless. (Wikipedia.org)

2.5 Growth and development of infant from Birth 1 (one) year

Developmental milestones cover a range of behaviors and transformations in a

child’s faculties and personalities. Social norms and institutions, customs, and
laws also influence these stages. There are three broad stages of development:
early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence. They are defined by the
primary tasks of development in each stage.

In the first year, expect some socio-emotional development, when attachment

formation becomes critical, especially with caregivers. Life functioning,
personality, and relationships are shaped by the quality or lack of emotional
attachment formed early in life. For this reason, milestones within each domain
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in the following sections are organized according to the period of birth to six
months and six months to 1 year. To better reflect the sequencing of change
during the infancy and early toddlerhood periods.

Birth to Six Months: From birth to six months, infants’ perceptual acuity
begins to improve, leading to the increased differentiation of external stimuli,
such as patterns, colors or sounds, as well as the recognition of facial
expressions.

Developmental Tasks

 Learning to trust others and be secure in the world

 Learning (at an unconscious level) how to get personal needs met
What’s happening in the Brain?

During this stage, the child’s brain is:

 A “work-in-progress” as it’s been impacted in the womb by nutrition and

chemicals (e.g., medication, tobacco, alcohol, other drugs)
 Only 25% of the size of an adult’s brain
 More developed in the lower region, which controls reflexive behaviors
like grasping, crying, sleeping, and feeding
 Ready to be shaped by interactions with caregivers and surroundings
 Very vulnerable—trauma, even in infancy, can affect development of
attention, memory, language, and thinking
Six Months to One Year: At this time, infants’ memory and attention skills
continue to improve, although memory in these early stages is contingent upon
the familiarity of the situation or person or the infant’s motivation, for example,
to interact with others or use a toy. A milestone of this developmental period is
object permanence, an understanding that objects or people still exist when
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these items are not readily seen or heard, that emerges around eight months
(Piaget, 1954).

Developmental Tasks

 Learning to trust others and be secure in the world

 Improving muscle coordination and becoming mobile
 Acquiring increased control of head, hands, fingers, legs, etc., as the
nervous system continues to develop
 Learning spatial concepts (up, down, near, far) and how to manipulate
and move in the surrounding environment
 Learning to adjust to short periods of separation from the primary
caregiver
What’s happening in the Brain?

During this stage, the child’s brain is:

 Rapidly developing, especially the higher level cerebral cortex, which

influences fine motor skills like a pincer grasp, as well as color vision,
attachment, and the motor pathways
 Sensitive to nutrition—when infants do not receive adequate protein and
calories in their diet, their physical and mental health is affected
 “Wired” to learn all the languages in the world; however, babies between
6 and 12 months now prefer the sounds of the language(s) spoken by
their caregivers.

2.6 Positive factors in child growth and development

Nature and nurture both contribute to the growth and development of children.
Although what’s endowed by nature is constant, nurture tends to make a big
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difference too. Here are a few factors affecting children’s growth and
development. (Mahak Arora, 2019).

i. Heredity: Heredity: Heredity and genes certainly play an important role

in the transmission of physical and social characteristics from parents to
off-springs. Different characteristics of growth and development like
intelligence, aptitudes, body structure, height, weight, color of hair and
eyes are highly influenced by heredity. 

ii. Sex: The sex of the child is another major factor affecting the physical
growth and development of a child. Boys and girls grow in different
ways, especially nearing puberty. Boys tend to be taller and physically
stronger than girls. However, girls tend to mature faster during
adolescence, while boys mature over a longer period of time. The
physical structure of their bodies also has differences which make boys
more athletic and suited for activities that require physical rigour. Their
temperaments also vary, making them show interest in different things.

iii. Exercise and Health: The word exercise here does not mean physical
exercise as a discipline or children deliberately engaging in physical
activities knowing it would help them grow. Exercise here refers to the
normal playtime and sports activities which help the body gain an
increase in muscular strength and put on bone mass. Proper exercise
helps children grow well and reach milestones on time or sooner.

iv. Hormones: There are a large number of endocrine glands present inside
our body. These glands secrete one or more hormones directly into the
bloodstream. These hormones are capable of raising or lowering the
activity level of the body or some organs of the body. Hormones are

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 considered to be a growth supporting substance. These hormones play an
important role in regulating the process of growth and development.

v. Nutrition: Nutrition is a critical factor in growth as everything the body

needs to build and repair itself comes from the food we eat. A balanced
diet that is rich in vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates and fats is
essential for the development of the brain and body.

vi. Familial Influence: Families have the most profound impact in nurturing
a child and determining the ways in which they develop psychologically
and socially. Whether they are raised by their parents, grandparents or
foster care, they need basic love, care and courtesy to develop as healthy
functional individuals. The most positive growth is seen when families
invest time, energy and love in the development of the child through
activities, such as reading to them, playing with them and having deep
meaningful conversations.

vii. Geographical Influences: Where you live also has a great influence on
how your children turn out to be. The schools they attend, the
neighborhood they live in, the opportunities offered by the community
and their peer circles are some of the social factors affecting a child’s
development. Living in an enriching community that has parks, libraries
and community centers for group activities and sports all play a role in
developing the child’s skills, talents, and behavior.

viii. Socio-Economic Status: The socio-economic status of a family

determines the quality of the opportunity a child gets. Studying in better
schools that are more expensive definitely has benefits in the long run.

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 Well-off families can also offer better learning resources for their
children and they afford special aid if the kids need it.

ix. Learning and Reinforcement: Learning involves much more than

schooling. It is also concerned with building the child up mentally,
intellectually, emotionally, and socially so they operate as healthy
functional individuals in the society. This is where the development of
the mind takes place and the child can gain some maturity.
Reinforcement is a component of learning where an activity or exercise is
repeated and refined to solidify the lessons learned.

2.7 Development of teeth

The development of primary teeth begins while the baby is in the womb. At
about five weeks’ gestation, the first buds of primary teeth appear in the baby’s
jaws. At birth, the baby has a full set of 20 primary teeth (10 in the upper jaw,
10 in the lower jaw) hidden within the gums. Primary teeth are also known as
baby teeth, milk teeth or deciduous teeth. 

Teething: ‘Eruption’ refers to the tooth breaking through the gum line. In
babies, tooth eruption is also called teething. The timing of tooth eruption
differs from child to child. For example, one child may cut their first tooth
when only a few months old, while another may not start teething until they are
12 months old or more. While the timing may vary, the order of tooth eruption
is:

 The two front teeth (central incisors) in the lower jaw are usually the first
to erupt. This occurs somewhere between the ages of six and 10 months. 
 The two front teeth (central incisors) in the upper jaw erupt between the
ages of eight and 13 months.
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  The lateral incisors, which are the teeth on each side of the central
incisors, erupt in both the upper and lower jaws between the ages of eight
and 16 months. The lower set tends to erupt before the upper set.
 The first set of upper and lower molars (flat-surfaced back teeth) erupt
between the ages of 13 and 19 months.
 Canine or ‘eye’ teeth sit beside the lateral incisors and erupt in both the
upper and lower jaws between the ages of 16 and 23 months.
 The second set of upper and lower molars erupts between the ages of 25
and 33 months.
Generally, the average child has their full set of 20 primary teeth by the age of
three years. Shortly after age 4, the jaw and facial bones of the child begin to
grow, creating spaces between the primary teeth. This is a perfectly natural
growth process that provides the necessary space for the larger permanent teeth
to emerge. Between the ages of 6 and 12, a mixture of both primary teeth and
permanent teeth reside in the mouth. (Alkarimi HA, Watt RG, Pikhart H, et al.
2014).

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 CHAPTER THREE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

3.1 Summary

Change has always been the essence of life. The moment a life is conceived, the
process of growth and development begins. It is this process that enables a child
to change from being a highly dependent to an independent one. Right after the
conception, a child goes through a process of rapid growth and development.
This enables the child to acquire certain skills and abilities that later influence
his/her interaction with the environment. As early childhood period is
considered to be one of the most critical developmental phase, an understanding
of how growth and development occurs in early years and what are the various
dimensions of development is of prime importance

3.2 Conclusion

In conclusion, human development is a lifelong process of physical, social,

cognitive and emotional changes. Early years of life are considered very critical
as they serve as the foundation of a healthy development. Hence, the insight
into the fundamentals of child development becomes very necessary because it
helps us to understand how a child develops, why they develop the way they do
and what can be done to help them develop effectively. As parents play a very
instrumental role in the development for their child therefore they must be
equipped with knowledge concerning the basics of child development so that
they become better parents. We as a society must also put efforts to optimize
the early years of children’s lives to ensure their future success.

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3.3 Recommendations

i. Strengthen competency-based qualification requirements for all care and

education professionals working with children from birth through age 8.

ii. Strengthen collaboration and communication among professionals and

systems within the care and education sector and with closely related
sectors, especially health and social services.

iii. Build an interdisciplinary foundation in higher education for child

development.

iv. Develop and enhance programs in higher education for care and
education professionals working with children from birth through age 8.

v. Promote positive social development and behaviors and mitigate

challenging behaviors.

vi. Support workforce development with coherent funding, oversight, and

policies.

vii. Engage effectively in quality interactions with children that foster healthy
child development and learning in routine everyday interactions, specific
learning activities, and educational and other professional settings in a
manner appropriate to the child’s developmental level.

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