Child Development III

Child Development

III

Session 3

Cindy Kwan

Mothercraft College

AGENDA

• Cognitive

development in

middle childhood

and adolescence

• Assign: Interview

Assignment

® Registered trade-mark of the Canadian Mothercraft Society

Cognitive Development in

Middle Childhood


• School age children (7 – 11y) are in the Concrete

Operational Stage

• Within this stage, children are able to reason

logically about concrete events and objects; able to

do mental actions related to real, concrete

experiences

• The mental actions are reversible

• Children able to consider more than

one characteristic of one object and can coordinate

the information

Piaget: Concrete Operational Stage


Concrete Operational Stage (7–11y) cont’d

Can classify / divide

things into different

sets or subsets and

consider their

interrelationships

(e.g. Venn Diagrams)

Image from: http://slideplayer.com/slide/6137135/


Concrete Operational Stage (7–11y) cont’d

• Able to seriate

Image from:

http://www.drjean.org/html/monthly_act/act_2011/03_Mar_cs

s/pg05.html

• Transitivity:

understand

relationships among

concrete elements in

a series

(e.g. If Anna is taller

than Jake and Jake

is taller than Miko,

who is tallest?)


Middle Childhood: Information

Processing

Recall: Session 2 (brain)

• Memory

• Thinking

• Metacognition


Middle Childhood: Memory

• Greatly improved ability to sustain and

control attention

• Short term memory increases greatly

during early childhood but less so after 7y

• Long term memory increases with age

(due to increased knowledge and ability to

use strategies to remember information)

• Working memory continues to improve*


Middle Childhood: Memory cont’d

• Working Memory*: – Children with better working memory are more advanced

in reading comprehension, math skills, problem solving

vs. children with less effective working memory (Kroesbergen, van’t Noordende, & Kolkman, 2014; Nevo & Breznitz,

2013)*

– Children with learning difficulties in reading and math

have working memory deficits (Peng & Fuchs, 2014)*

– Assessment of working memory in kindergarten helped to

predict math achievement at end of grade 1 (Monette,

Bigras, & Guay, 2011)* *from: Santrock, Children, p. 346 – 347)


Middle Childhood: Memory cont’d • Children have improved expertise/knowledge

and memory on specific subjects/topics vs. younger children

• This is largely because older children, adolescents, and adults are able to use strategies (aka control processes) to improve memory and learning – Eg. Elaboration; creating mental images

– E.g. Use of ‘gist/fuzzy trace’ by older children vs. dominant use of ‘verbatim traces’ by younger children

– E.g. Autobiographical memories become more elaborate in middle and late childhood, adolescence

From: Santrock, Children, p. 347


Consider external impact/influence on:

• Executive functions

• Calm, alert, focused

• Critical thinking

• Creative thinking

• Scientific thinking

e.g. Your role as RECE, School system (convergent vs divergent thinking), family, exposure, opportunities

Middle Childhood: Thinking


Middle Childhood: Thinking cont’d

• Executive functions (self-control/inhibition;

working memory; cognitive flexibility):

continue to develop (prefrontal cortex)

• Calm, Alert, Focused (mindfulness)

• Critical thinking: requires reflection, analysis,

evaluation, inference, synthesis, evaluation

(higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy! – focus

within Ontario school boards)



Middle Childhood: Thinking cont’d • Creative thinking: also needs to be emphasized

(remember: divergent thinking!)

– Study: 300,000 U.S. Children and adults, creativity scores rose until 1990; steadily declining (Kim, 2010)

– Within this timeframe: increased TV, video games, lack of emphasis on creative thinking skills in schools (Gregorson, Kaufman, & Snyder, 2013; Kaufman & Sternberg, 2013)

• Scientific thinking: needs to be strengthened by educators who will scaffold learning and scientific skills (e.g inquiry!)



Middle Childhood: Metacognition

• Children are building metacognitive

knowledge (they can think about

thinking) and can think about when/how

to use certain strategies to learn or solve

problems

• Study: by grade 5, children understand

gist recall is easier than verbatim recall*

*From: Santrock, Children, p. 352


Intelligence • There are different definitions of intelligence

• 1st standardized intelligence test was developed in

France by Alfred Binet in 1905

• Binet developed concept of mental age (MA):

individual’s level of mental development relative to

others

• 1912: William Stern created concept of intelligence

quotient (IQ)

• IQ = mental age (MA)/chronological age (CA) x 100

• Average intelligence = 100 (MA = CA) *From: Santrock, Children, p. 353


Types of Intelligence

• Robert Sternberg’s

Triarchic Theory*

• Howard Gardner’s Theory

of Multiple Intelligences


Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory of

Intelligence Intelligence comes in 3 forms:

• Analytical intelligence – ability to analyze, judge, evaluate, compare, and contrast (analytical thinking; abstract reasoning)

• Creative intelligence – ability to create, design, invent, originate, and imagine (creative, divergent thinking)

• Practical intelligence – ability to use, apply, implement, and put ideas into practice (contextual, street smarts)

Q: Conventional education? *From: Santrock, Children, p. 354 - 355



Intelligence cont’d

According to Sternberg:

• Children with different triarchic patterns ‘look

different’ in school

• Those with high analytical intelligence do

better in conventional education where there

is direct instruction (I teach, you listen). They

do better in traditional IQ tests, standardized

tests, higher education *From: Santrock, Children, p. 354 - 355



Intelligence cont’d

• Those with high creative intelligence don’t do as

well in school where tests and assignments require

convergent thinking with required ‘one right way’.

Unique answers would not be accepted/graded

poorly.

• Those with high practical intelligence do better

outside the classroom as they have excellent social

skills, common sense. Many become successful

managers, entrepreneurs, politicians (decent

grades in school) *From: Santrock, Children, p. 354 - 355


Sternberg and Wisdom To build well

rounded, wise

individuals, all

types of

intelligences

should be valued

and nurtured Image from: https://biblemesh.com

*From: Santrock, Children, p. 354 - 355


Howard Gardner’s Theory of

Multiple Intelligences

• Verbal and linguistic intelligence

• Logical mathematical intelligence

• Musical and rhythmic intelligence

• Body and kinesthetic intelligence

• Visual and spatial intelligence

• Intrapersonal intelligence

• Interpersonal intelligence

• Naturalist intelligence



Howard Gardner’s Theory of

Multiple Intelligences

• Everyone has all of the 8 intelligences

but in varying degrees/strengths; we’re

all ‘intelligent’ but in different ways;

processing information is best when we

use our dominant intelligences (e.g. Are

you more visual or kinesthetic?)



About Achievement:

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation • Extrinsic motivation: external incentives (“you

make me”)

• Intrinsic motivation: internal incentives (e.g.

Self-determination, curiosity, challenge, effort

“I want to”)

• Both forms of motivation are valid however,

extrinsic motivation by itself is not enough

• Encourage children to become intrinsically

motivated *From: Santrock, Children, p. 368


How do children respond to

difficulty/challenges Mastery motivation:

• Children are task-oriented and focus on learning strategies and the process of achievement; not on their ability or intended outcome

• They are willing to try, are enthusiastic about learning, are excited by difficult tasks, and are intrinsically motivated

• “Winning is great if it happens but it’s not everything”




difficulty/challenges cont’d

Helpless orientation:

• Children feel trapped by experience of difficulty and attribute the difficulty to their lack of ability (“I can’t do it” “I’m not good at it.”) even if ability was demonstrated with previous successes

• As a result, they often feel anxious which further negatively impacts them

• There is no motivation to try to do the task and will require prompting, extrinsic motivation




difficulty/challenges cont’d

Performance orientation:

• Children are focused on the outcome, that

winning matters and happiness comes from

winning

• Although intrinsic motivation may be present,

extrinsic motivation dominates: “Winning is

everything”




What is Self-Efficacy?

• “I believe I can do this.”

• Self-efficacy: “belief one can master a

situation and produce favourable outcomes”

(Santrock, Children, p. 370)

Q: as an RECE, how would you

enhance self-efficacy in a student

who says, “I can’t do this.”


Cognitive Development in

Adolescence

Image from: mhmrcv.org


• 11y – 15 y, no longer limited to

actual experiences, adolescents can

think more abstractly and logically

about hypothetical possibilities

E.g. A B C no longer requires

concrete objects

Piaget: Formal Operational Stage


• Because of the abstract nature of this stage,

adolescents are also very idealistic

• e.g. “I wish I was…it would be so great if I was…”

• This can lead to unhealthy comparisons of self to

others/frustrations (consider: puberty, self-image)

• At the same time, there is increased ability to

develop hypotheses and deduce its implications

to solve problems (hypothetical-deductive

reasoning)

Piaget: Formal Operational Stage cont’d


Criticisms: Formal Operational Stage • Formal operational thinking is not universal:

some adolescents and adults never reach this

stage!

• This form of thinking is strongly influenced by

culture, education, interest, individual strengths

• This makes sense in light of previous

discussions (e.g. puberty/self image, hormone

changes, brain development, self-regulation,

self-efficacy)


David Elkind (1978): Adolescent Egocentrism

Adolescent egocentrism:

• heightened self-consciousness experienced

by adolescents (appear self-centred)

• dictates how adolescents think about social

matters

• is divided into 2 types of social thinking:

– Imaginary audience

– Personal fable

From Santrock, Children p. 449)


Adolescent Egocentrism cont’d

Imaginary audience:

• Others are interested in your actions and all

that you do; you are the centre of attention

e.g. Facebook friends

e.g. “

Image from: http://naturalremedyideas.com/get-rid-of-pimple-in-nose/


Adolescent Egocentrism cont’d Personal Fable: • Adolescent believes he/she is unique and no

one else will understand/know what it’s like to be in his/her situation

• E.g. “MOM, you won’t understand!”

• This personal fable can also be source for over-exaggerated beliefs in ability/future

• E.g. “I am going to be the next SUPERSTAR.”

• Can also help to explain risk taking behaviour

• E.g. “Relax, I’ll be fine. Nothing will happen.” From Santrock, Children p. 449


Next few slides will discuss:

• Executive functions

• Decision making

• Critical thinking

• Metacognition

• Attention

• Memory

Adolescence: Information Processing


Adolescence: Information Processing • By adolescence, significant individual

variations in cognitive functioning***** • Executive functions improve (developing pre-

frontal cortex):

– Working memory

– Inhibitory control/effortful control/cognitive control

– Cognitive flexibility (utilizes self-efficacy)

• Consider: friends vs. exam; stop before

lashing out



Longitudinal study:

• children 3 – 11 years with better inhibitory control

were likely to still be in school, less likely to engage

in risk-taking behaviour, drugs, in adolescence

(Moffitt & others, 2011)

• 30 years after initial assessment, children with

better inhibitory control had better physical and

mental health, had better earnings in their career,

more law abiding, happier (Moffitt, 2012; Moffitt &

others, 2011) From Santrock, Children p. 451



Decision making:

• Decision making skills have certainly improved (e.g.

increased ability to think of different options, to use

different perspectives, anticipate consequences) but

NOT perfect!

• Learning how to make competent decisions requires

ongoing practice/experience

• Capacity to make better decisions: calm vs.

emotionally aroused (remember: calm, alert,

focused!) From Santrock, Children p. 452 - 453



Decision making:

• The same adolescent makes a wise decision when

calm but may make unwise decision when

emotionally charged

• Adolescent emotions overwhelm decision making

ability (Albert, Chein, & Steinberg, 2013)

• Social context also impacts decision making for

adolescents: presence of peers in risk taking

situations increases likelihood that adolescents will

make risky decisions* From Santrock, Children p. 452 – 453

* Albert & Steinberg, 2011a, b; Steinberg, 2015 a,b



Critical Thinking:

• Continues to improve in adolescence but is

dependent on having foundational skills (e.g.

Literacy, math, early years’ experiences and

knowledge) during childhood

• If foundational skills are lacking, critical

thinking is unlikely to mature in adolescence**

From Santrock, Children p. 454



Metacognition:

• With an increased capacity for abstract

thinking, adolescents also demonstrate

improved metacognition (e.g. use of

learning strategies: better at analogy,

intentionally memorizing material)




Attention:

• Improvement in selective attention

(focus on relevant information, tune out

the rest)

• Improvement in divided attention

(able to pay attention to 2 or more tasks

at once) From Santrock, Children p. 454



Other changes in information processing:

• Improvement in working memory

• Improvement in long term memory

• Processing speed: adolescents can think more quickly than children

• Organization: improved metacognition allows adolescents to better use learning strategies



Something to consider... • Social determinants of health: impact

development across all domains • Schools need to focus on divergent thinking as

well as convergent thinking; rote learning alone does not help develop critical thinking skills (ie. 21st century skills)

• Influence of media/social media: across all domains (e.g. cognitive: may discourage critical thinking because content moves too fast to be analyzed and considered; consumer driven)

• Society/culture dictates which cognitive skills are valuable

• Self-regulation (calm, alert, focused), resilience


Assign: Interview assignment

• Value: 30%

• Due: March 7, 2017 at 1:00pm

• Group (max. 4) assignment

• Come up with a game idea for: middle childhood or adolescent age group (actual game not needed)

• Explain how your game can support specific growth for the chosen age group

• Interview 1 child of same age group for product feedback: create feedback form for child to complete

• Complete assignment questions

Documents

Child Development III