Three Big Ideas about Child Development that all Teachers and Parents Should Know

Understanding child development means that we as carers and parents can understand skills and typical behaviours of children within our care, providing an environment which is nurturing and one that will foster growth. Laura Berk (2000) provides a simple definition of child development; “a field of study devoted to understanding all aspects of human growth and change from conception through adolescence.” (Berk: 2000, p4). This paper will look at three important theories of child development that you as a teacher or parent should know in order to understand the changes that take place from birth to adulthood.
When we talk about child development we refer to three stages called development areas;
Physical development involves the growth and change in a person’s body and body functions. In this domain we look at the physiological and motor development as well as the influences of health, illness and nutrition.
Cognitive development refers to the growth and change of a person’s ability to process information, solve problems and gain knowledge. In this area we consider the study of brain development, memory, learning, thinking, language and creativity.
Social-emotional development involves the growth and change of our interactions with others and our feelings. Included in this area is the study of relationships, emotions, personality and moral development. Whilst we discuss each area of development separately it is important to realise that they do overlap. One domain can influence the other.
Interest in the field of child development began early in the 20th-century. (ref) Many theories have been put forward to explain why and how children develop. Theorist Jean Piaget played a major influence on the way we understand children. He explained children’s development in terms of their cognitive development in a theory known as Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. Piaget believed that children think differently from adults, arguing that it’s not that children know less than adults but their thinking skills are qualitatively different. (ref) Many of his ideas came from observing his own children.
Piaget was convinced that intellect grows through processes he termed assimilation and accommodation. Assimilation refers to using existing mental patterns in new situations. (ref) In accommodation, existing ideas are modified to fit new requirements. Thus, new situations are assimilated to existing ideas, and new ideas are created to accommodate new experiences. In his theory children mature through a series of distinct stages in intellectual development.
Sensorimotor (0-2years): Piaget believed that an infant is born with no way of making sense of the world. Infants use reflexes which act on the world in specific ways so that the child gradually adapts to the world. Motor movements are seen as the basis for the eventual development of intelligence. These slowly become separated from motor activity as the child learns to represent objects, actions and thoughts through play and language. According to Piaget, object permanence emerges during infancy. This relates to the understanding that objects continue to exist even though they are out of sight.
Preoperational (2-7 years): Piaget describes toddler’s thinking as illogical. This is due to two main characteristics of their thinking processes; egocentricism and centation. Piaget sees young children’s thinking as egocentric; meaning they can only see things from their point of view. They cannot take into account the ideas or needs of others. Due to their stage of cognitive development their thinking is not yet flexible enough to consider more than one aspect of a given situation. They are now in a stage of self-centred thinking. (ref). Centration is the term Piaget uses to describe young children’s tendency to focus their attention on a single aspect of a situation or object. This is where Piaget’s experiment for the conservation of volume. This stage of development also describes toddlers having improved memory skills, problem solving skills and begin to understand concepts; for example, words such as ‘big’ and ‘small’, colours and the ability to recite numbers. (ref) As children progress into pre-school, children practise mental representations by using mental imagery and language symbols. (Ref)
Concreter Operational (7-12years): The typical school aged child is entering this stage of development. Children begin to think logically however, they tend to need concrete objects to help them solve problems rather than being able to use abstract ideas. (ref). Piaget would describe the school age child as less egocentric. According to his theory a child is now able to view the world and themselves from other perspectives. (ref) Children at this stage have a longer attention span, a better concept of time and distance and their ability to remember improves.
Formal Operational (12-15years): Children at this stage break away from concrete objects and thinking is based more on abstract principles, such as ‘honour’ or ‘democracy’. (ref). Full adult intellectual ability is attained during this stage. For Piaget, the development of scientific reasoning is the pinnacle of development. (Vialle, Lysaght, and Verenikina: 2008, p55). At this stage older adolescents can comprehend math, physics and other abstract systems. (ref).

Some critics have faulted Piaget’s theory on several grounds but mostly for its vagueness. Some would say that Piaget’s theory has limited our perception of children’s capabilities- particularly in the pre-school years. (ref). Others may say there has been too much focus on what children can’t do rather than what they can. According to Siegler (2004) children continuously gain specific knowledge; they do not undergo stage like leaps in general mental ability. (more)
However, Piaget’s work has encouraged us to see children’s cognitive skills as being different from those of adults. His theory is valuable for understanding how children think. If we understand how children think and learn we can provide a stimulating environment that will support their learning. Using Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, a teacher or parent’s role is to provide the stimulation and observe carefully to see when to step in and interact or change experiences (ref). (125 more)

While Piaget stressed the role of maturation in cognitive development, Lev Vygotsky focused on the impact of socio-cultural factors. His Socio-cultural theory of cognitive development saw that social interaction and language has a major influence on the development of children’s thinking. Vygotsky places great importance on the tole of significant adults such as teachers, parents and also peers.
The zone of proximal development: Like Piaget, Vygotsky believed that children actively seek to discover new principles. However there is em