Question

read the Lecture on Ch 12 and then post a comment about 2 things you learned and then respond to another students post.

chapter 12 : Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood

During Piaget’s concrete operational stage, from about age 7 to 11, thought becomes more logical, flexible, and organized than in early childhood. This is evident in children’s grasp of concepts like conservation, classification, and seriation, as well as in improvements in spatial reasoning. However, concrete operational children think logically only when dealing with concrete, tangible information, and mastery of concrete operational tasks occurs gradually. Specific cultural practices, especially those associated with schooling, promote mastery of Piagetian tasks.

Some information-processing theorists argue that the development of operational thinking can best be understood in terms of gains in information-processing speed rather than a sudden shift to a new stage. Brain development contributes to gains in processing speed and capacity, as well as in inhibition, which facilitate diverse aspects of thinking. During middle childhood, attention becomes more sustained, selective, and adaptable, and the use of memory strategies becomes more effective. Children learn much about planning by collaborating with more expert planners. Memory strategies are promoted by learning activities in school and are not used by children in non-Western cultures who have no formal schooling.

Children’s theory of mind, or metacognition, becomes much more elaborate and refined in middle childhood, increasing children’s ability to reflect on their own mental life. School-age children, unlike preschoolers, regard the mind as an active, constructive agent and are conscious of mental inferences and mental strategies. Cognitive self-regulation—the ability to monitor progress toward a goal and redirect unsuccessful efforts—develops gradually. In both reading and mathematics, academic instruction that combines an emphasis on meaning and understanding with training in basic skills may be most effective.

How we measure Cognitive Development.

Intelligence tests for children measure overall IQ, as well as separate intellectual factors. Sternberg’s triarchic theory of intelligence defines three broad, interacting intelligences (analytical, creative, and practical); intelligent behavior involves balancing all three. Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences identifies at least eight mental abilities. It has been helpful in understanding and nurturing children’s talents and in stimulating efforts to define, measure, and foster emotional intelligence, a set of capacities for dealing with people and understanding oneself.

Heritability estimates and adoption research show that both genetic and environmental factors contribute to individual differences in intelligence. Because of different communication styles and lack of familiarity with test content, IQ scores of low-SES ethnic minority children often do not reflect their true abilities. Stereotype threat also has a negative effect. Supplementing IQ tests with measures of adaptive behavior and adjusting testing procedures to account for cultural differences—for example, through dynamic assessment—can reduce test bias.

At School.

Language development continues during the school years. At this age, children develop metalinguistic awareness—the ability to think about language as a system. Vocabulary increases rapidly, and pragmatic skills are refined. Bilingual children are advanced in cognitive development and metalinguistic awareness.

Schools are powerful forces in children’s development. Class size, the school’s educational philosophy, teacher–pupil interaction, grouping practices, and the way computers are used in classrooms all affect motivation and achievement in middle childhood. Teachers face special challenges in meeting the needs of children who have learning difficulties as well as those with special intellectual strengths. In international studies, U.S. students typically display average or below-average performance. Efforts are currently underway to upgrade the quality of American education

Answer 1

#. Around age 6 children begin to change the way they think about the world.

They leave behind the preschooler's egocentric thinking and begin developing more mature ways of understanding.

Typical first graders can:

Perform simple addition and subtraction.

Usually begins to read and write sentences.

With these new cognitive skills, kids humor and desire for word games increases.

Board games are a great way to enhance cognitive development.

Good thinking involves:

- considering evidence

- planning ahead

- thinking logically

- formulating hypotheses

- being consistent

Information Processing Theory:

Piaget's Stages: Concrete Operational Thought. Here they can reason logically about the things that are "concrete" - those things that are in front of them, the things they see.

The characteristics of the Pre-operational stage of Piaget's stages of cognitive development :-

Continued development of language as the use of language and the use of symbols

Imagination is shown in play and stories

Egocentric view - a child is shown in believing that what the child sees is what everyone else sees.

The characteristics of the Concrete operational stage of Piaget's stages of cognitive development :-

Child understands the concept of conservation - changes in shape doesn't mean there is always a change in mass or size.

Can think beyond what can actually be seen and begins to lose its egocentric view

To understand concrete operational thought there are 4 logical principles:

- Classification

- Identity

- Reversibility

- Reciprocity

Classification:

organizing things into groups: family, animals, food, flowers, etc

- kids like collecting things

Identity:

certain characteristics of an object can remain the same even if other characteristics shift; they understand that if a popsicle starts to melt that it is still a popsicle

Reversibility:

the idea that sometimes a thing that's been changed can return to the original state.

Reciprocity:

when 2 things change in opposite ways and balance out; subtraction can 'undo' addition.

Intelligence

the capacity to acquire and apply knowledg

Mental Abilities

typically this age group is the one kids are most likely to have an IQ (Intelligence Quotient) test.

Memory strategies developed in school :-

- rehearsal

the first memory strategy is rehearsal. it is common in the early grade school years. when a child has a list of things to learn, the child uses rehearsal by repeating the list to herself.

- organization

organization is the second memory strategy. using organization, a child groups related items together. organization improves recall dramatically. the more strategies children apply simultaneously and consistently, the better they remember.

- elaboration

elaboration is the third memory strategy. children start to use this, creating a relationship or shared meaning, between two or more pieces of information that do not belong in the same category. elaboration requires considerable effort and space in working memory.