EDUC 1101 Child and Adolescent Learning MODULE IV

Republic of the Philippines

Southern Leyte State University -Hinunangan Campus
Hinunangan, Southern Leyte

MODULE IV: Cognitive Development of

Children and Adolescents

OVERVIEW:

Cognition is the process of learning in the broadest sense that includes perception,
memory, judgment, and thinking. It is both a mental activity and behavior that provides and
understanding of the world arising from biological, experiential, motivational, and social
influences.

This module covers the following lessons:

Lesson 1: Theories of Cognitive Development

Lesson 2: Individual Differences
Lesson 3: Factors Affecting Development

MODULE OUTCOME:
At the end of this module, you’re expected to:
a. Identify the theories of cognition.
b. Explain the various theories of intelligence and learning styles.
c. Describe the factors affecting development.
d. Categorize exceptional development.

Lesson 1: Theories of Cognitive Development

Intended Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

• Discuss and differentiate the theories of cognitive development.

• Provide situations that explain the theories of cognition.

LET’S STUDY
There are variety of theories that attempt to explain the pattern of cognitive
development in children. To name a few, we have:

a. Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

b. Lev Vygotsky’s Social Cultural Theory of Cognitive Development
c. Information- Processing Theories
d. Bio-Cultural Theories (Nativism, Ethology, and Sociobiology)

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a. Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development suggests that children move through four
different stages of mental development. His theory focuses not only on understanding how
children acquire knowledge, but also on understanding the nature of intelligence. He mainly
believed that children take an active role in the learning process, acting much like little
scientists as they perform experiments, make observations, and learn about the world. As
kids interact with the world around them, they continually add new knowledge, build upon
existing knowledge, and adapt previously held ideas to accommodate new information.

The Stages:

Formal Operational Stage

12 years and up

Concrete Stage
7 to 11 years

Preoperational Stage
2 to 7 years

Sensorimotor Stage
Birth to 2 years

Stage Major Characteristics and Developmental

Changes
• The infant knows the world through their movements
and sensations (reflexes).
• Children learn about the world through basic actions
such as sucking, grasping, looking, and listening.
• Infants learn that things continue to exist even though
Sensorimotor Stage they cannot be seen (object permanence).
Birth to 2 years • They are separate beings from the people and objects
around them.
• They realize that their actions can use things to
happen in world around them.

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• Children begin to think symbolically and learn to use

words and pictures to represent objects.
• Children at this stage tend to be egocentric and
Preoperational Stage struggle to see things from the perspective of others.
2 to 7 years
While they are getting better with language and thinking,
they still tend to think about things in very concrete
terms.
The emergence of language is one of the major hallmarks
of this stage.
• Children begin to think logically on concrete events.
They begin to understand the concept of conservation, etc.
• Their thinking becomes more logical and organized, but
Concrete Stage still very concrete.
7 to 11 years •

Children begin using inductive logic or reasoning from

specific information to general principle.
Kids at this point in development tend to struggle with
abstract and hypothetical concepts.
• At this stage, the adolescent or young adult begins to
think abstractly and reason about hypothetical problems.
Abstract thought emerges.
• Teens begin to think more about moral, philosophical,
• ethical, social, and political issues that require theoretical
Formal Operational Stage and abstract reasoning.
12 years and up
Begin to use deductive logic or reasoning from general
principle to specific information.
People become capable of seeing multiple potential
solutions to problems and think scientifically about
the world around them.

Important Concepts:

• Schema- is an organized unit of knowledge. The child uses this to be able to

understand a situation or an experience and which will serve as basis for organizing
actions to respond to the environment.
• Organization- the predisposition to combine simple physical or psychological
structures into more complex systems.
• Adaptation- adjusting one’s thinking according to environmental demands.
• Assimilation- making use of an existing schema to a new experience.
• Accommodation- modifying an existing schema to make it work in a new experience.

b. Lev Vygotsky’s Social Cultural Theory of Cognitive Development

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Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory asserts that complex forms of thinking have their origins in
social interactions rather than in the child’s private exploration, as Piaget thought. According
to Vygotsky children’s learning of new cognitive skills is guided by an adult for more skilled
child, such as older sibling, who structures the child’s learning experiences, a process
Vygotsky called scaffolding. To create an appropriate scaffold, the adult must gain and keep
the child’s attention, model the best strategy, and adapts the whole process to the child’s
developmental level or zone of proximal development.

Sociocultural theory focuses not only how adults and peers influence individual learning, but
also on how cultural beliefs and attitudes affect how learning takes place.
The Zone of Proximal Development

According to Vygotsky, the zone of proximal development is the distance between the actual
development level as determined by independent problem solving under adult guidance or
in collaboration with more capable peers.

Essentially, it includes all of the knowledge and skills that a person cannot yet understand
or perform on their own, but is capable of learning with guidance. As children are allowed to
stretch their skills and knowledge, often by observing someone who is slightly more
advanced than they are, they are able to progressively extend this zone of proximal
development.

Thinking and problem solving according to Vygotsky have three categories:

1. Some can be performed independently by the child

2. Others cannot be performed even with the help from others

3. Between the 1st two are tasks that can be performed with the help from others.

c. Information- Processing Theories

The information-processing approach takes the human mind as system that processes
information. This is similar to computer programming where the processes involved are
subject to limitations and observe of logical rules.

Several basic assumptions of information-processing approaches are:

1. Thinking is information processing.

2. Mechanisms of change are important to describe.

3. The cognitive system is self-modifying.

4. Careful task analysis is crucial.

Metacognition is the individual’s knowledge and control of cognitive activities. It is

knowledge that develops through time, over childhood and which include knowledge of the
self, his frame of mind, knowledge about the task and the strategies that can be applied.

d. Bio-Cultural Theories (Nativism, Ethology, and Sociobiology)

1. Nativism

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This theory views human as endowed with genetic traits seen in all members of the species,
regardless of differences in their environments.

2. Ethology

It points to genetically survival behaviors assumed to have evolved through natural

selection.

3. Sociobiology

It focuses on the study of society using the methods and concepts of biological science. Like
the ethologists, sociobiology emphasizes genes that aid group survival.

Brofenbrenner’s Ecological Theory

This theory explains development in terms of relationships between people and their
environment and “contexts.” The contexts of developments are like circles within circles.

MACROSYSTEM EXOSYSTEM
SOCIO-ECONOMIC
CONTEXT
CULTURAL CONTEXT
Cultural institutions
Contains the values and
which have indirect
beliefs of the culture in
influence on the child’s
which a child is growing
development.
up.

MESOSYTEM MICROSYTEM
The interconnections IMMEDIATE CONTEXT
between the other
Includes those units that
components/contexts.
have direct influence on
the children.

***

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LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Activity 1.

Direction: Debunk the statements and provide a convincing argument/discussion as your

response. Use any existing theories/principles related to the lesson as framework of your
discussion.

1. A child can only learn by himself with hard work and time management.

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2. Learning is solely cognitive.

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3. If a child wants to know how to dance he should seek help from a professional singer.

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Activity 2:

Direction: Briefly and intelligently, answer the following questions.

1. What are the critical concepts necessary to understand Piaget’s description of cognitive
development? Provide examples.

2. What are the most distinctive characteristics of thinking at each of Piaget’s four major
stages of cognitive development?

3. When are children able to distinguish real from imagined events, and how can we know
this? To what extent is it correct to state that “the belief in fantasy characters represents
immature cognition”?

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Activity 3.

Direction: Provide illustrations/pictures that show scaffolding, at least 5.

Question:

1. Why do you think, children ask more “whys”?

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Lesson 2: Individual Differences

Intended Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this lesson, you’re expected to:

• Discuss the theories of intelligences that influence individual differences.

• Demonstrate some of the known forms of intelligence.

LET’S STUDY
Intelligence is the capacity to think and understand. It includes the combination of various
separate abilities that includes verbal communication, abstract thinking, logical reasoning,
and use of common sense.

Theories of Intelligence
a. Triarchic Theory of Intelligence by Sternberg
b. The Gender Schema Theory
c. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences
d. Achievement Motivation and Intellectual Performance

a. Triarchic Theory of Intelligence by Sternberg

This theory points to three major components of intelligent behavior:
1. Information processing skills
-required to encode, combine, and compare varying kinds of information.

2. Experience with a given task or situation;

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-automize information over repeated experiences in doing task.

3. Ability to adjust one’s behavior to the demands of a context.

-to adapt to the demands of a situation by selecting and shaping other situations as
necessary to meet their own needs.

Sternberg stated that man can mold, shape environment to meet his needs as well as
that of society through analytical, creative, and practical abilities.
• Analytical abilities refer to the power to apply logical reasoning to arrive as the best
answer to a question.
• Creative abilities involve imagining and devising new ways of addressing issues and
concerns including present demands.
• Practical abilities involve the use of tacit knowledge or common sense.

b. The Gender Schema Theory

The Gender Schema Theory of Sandra Bem has evolved from the social learning approach
and is a variation of the cognitive development theory. This theory postulates an
organizational pattern of behavior that enables children to sort out perceived information.
The organized information revolves around what the society defines and classifies in terms
of accepted behavior patterns and individual differences and the principle of gender.

Example:
In a society, boys/men are expected to do the hard work while girls/women tend to perform
the easy ones. Let’s say boys do the heavy lifting while girls do the cooking, washing clothes,
etc.

c. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Howard Gardner, opines that human beings have eight kinds of intelligences. He also claimed
that the number of intelligences can even be greater than eight and possibly be nine which
he called spirituality or existential intelligence.

8 Multiple Intelligences

1. Linguistic
- The ability to use language effectively.
2. Logical-Mathematical
-Facility with numbers and logical problem solving.
3. Visual-Spatial
-Ability to appreciate works of art.
4. Bodily Kinesthetic
-The ability to move in a coordinated way.
5. Musical
-The ability to appreciate and produce music.

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6. Interpersonal
-Sensitivity to the behavior, moods, and needs of others.
7. Intrapersonal
-The ability to understand oneself.
8. Naturalist
-The ability to be attached to the natural worlds.

d. Achievement Motivation and Intellectual Performance

Achievement motivation come in various manifestations: a tendency to strive for successful
performance, to evaluate performance against specific standards of excellence, and to
experience pleasure out of successful performance. This academic motivation impacts on the
children’s performance along with experiences in the family, school, peers, and community.

Achievement motivation and intellectual performance varies according to the child’s idea or
concept of himself, as a person, or as a learner. This is referred to as self-esteem.

LEARNING ACTIVITES:

Activity 1.

Direction: Provide sample scenarios of the following theories.

1. Triarchic Theory of Intelligence

2. Gender Schema Theory

3. Achievement Motivation and Intelligence Performance

Activity 2.

Direction: Provide an illustration/picture showing your intelligence/s based on Gardner’s

theory.

Example format:

PICTURE
(Kind of Intelligence)

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Description:
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Lesson 3: Factors Affecting Development

Intended Learning Outcomes:

At the end of the lesson, you’re expected to:

• Discuss the different factors affecting the development of a child.

• Describe common intellectual deficits of children.

LET’S STUDY:
There are three factors (age-related changes) which affect the development of
children and these are:

a. Universal Changes
b. Group-Specific Changes
c. Individual Changes

a. Universal Changes
Universal changes are changes all individuals undergo as biological organism. We all go the
process of growth and maturation as we age. Every organism is subject to a genetically
programmed maturing process. In other words, all physical changes that happen from
infancy to adulthood are programmed and are part of the plan for the physical body. Some
changes are universal arising from share experiences that eventually serve as shared
patterns of normal experiences like the right time to marry, right time to enter into a serious
relationship, and the right time to live an independent life. Even the concept of three meals a
day, breakfast, lunch, and dinner is a shared universal experience.

b. Group- Specific Changes

Group-specific changes are changes manifested and observed from members growing up
together in particular group and hence influenced heavily by the dominant culture. This
includes a system of meaning, customs, language, values, beliefs, attitudes, traits, laws, moral
guidelines, and physical artifacts like tools, works of arts, and dwellings. This complex and

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diversified totality of symbols and meanings are handed down from one generation to
another and shape the development of the individual.

c. Individual Changes
These are changes typical of particular individuals and which result from unique, unshared
events. Every individual is unique, a product of a unique combination of genes which sets
him apart from anyone. This is attributed to genetic differences. For example, body build,
body type, skin color, facial contours, represent the category of individual differences. There
are also characteristics unique to persons like intelligence and personality, which constitute
another class of individual differences.

What is atypical development?

This kind of development is harmful to the individual in that it deviates from the typical or
normal development path. Usually, this points to the abnormal or maladaptive behavior. An
alcoholic, drug addict, mentally retarded, even those hyperactivity disorder are examples of
deviants or individuals with atypical development.

Intellectual Deficits

Down syndrome
-Characterized by a distinct physical appearance, and physical and mental retardation. The
most common physical characteristics are almond shaped eyes, folded eyelids, and short
stature.
-Children with Down syndrome are susceptible to respirational infections, heart disorders,
leukemia, and pneumonia. They are also at risk to develop Alzheimer’s disease later in life.

Klinefelter’s syndrome
- A form of chromosome abnormality characterized by feminine physical
characteristics like breast development and rounded broad, hipped figure.

Pervasive Developmental Disorders

- A collection of disorders characterized by gross deficits in many areas of cognitive,
emotional, and social development. These result from severe and pervasive
impairment of social interaction and communication skills.

Autistic Disorder
-Autistic disorder is characterized by the inability of the children to communicate and
interact socially.
a. Extreme autistic aloneness. An autistic is a loner. He expresses lack of interest in other
people.
b. Language abnormalities. Rather than engage in conservation, the autistic tends to
repeat the words rather than reply, answer or engage in conversation.
c. Repetitive behaviors. Autistic extends concentration on something and preserves the
sameness of the environment.

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Asperger’s Syndrome
- It is considered a mild form of autism since people with this syndrome manifest a
higher mental functioning.

LEARNING ACTIVITES:

Activity 1:
Direction: Answer the following questions, briefly.

1. Where do you think is the best place for learning? Why?

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2. What do you think is the role of culture in the learning process?
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3. How will you teach an autistic child?

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Activity 2:
Direction: Complete the table.
Universal Changes Group-Specific Changes Individual Changes
Description: Description: Description:

Sample scenarios: Sample scenarios: Sample scenarios:

1. 1. 1.
2. 2. 2.
3. 3. 3.

END.

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