changing conceptions of childhood. changing conceptions of childhood historical background ...
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Changing Conceptions of Childhood
Changing conceptions of childhood
Historical Background Poverty; high mortality rates
Child abuse common Norms:
Child labor; child abandonment among poor
17th & 18th centuries: philosophers’ visions John Locke
Humans born a “tabula rasa” Jean Jacques Rousseau
Infants are innocent We should lovingly nurture babies
These practices not instituted until early 20th century
Changing Conceptions of Childhood
Late 19th Century: kinder, gentler view of children Childhood protected, dependent life stage Universal education: primary school mandatory
20th Century: Adolescence: identified by G. Stanley Hall Stage of “Storm and Stress” between childhood and adulthood In the 1930s, President Franklin Roosevelt ordered high school
attendance as mandatory.
Emerging Adulthood: newest life stage Age 18 to late 20s Time for personal exploration
JEAN PIAGET1896 – 1980 ‘GENETIC EPISTEMOLOGY’
COGNITIVE STAGES
Through observation noticed that children make similar errors in cognitive tasks
Mental structures;Cognitive systems that organize thinking into
coherent patterns so that all thinking takes place on the same level of cognitive functioning.
Maturation: Innate biologically based program is the driving force behind development.
In contrast to behaviorists, believed that children also construct their learning.
Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
Piagetian key terms: Schemes-cognitive structure for processing,
organizing and interpreting information
Assimilation-new information is altered to fit an existing scheme
Accommodation-changing a scheme to adapt to the new information
Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage Sensorimotor stage
Composed of 4 substages
Object Permanence
Object permanence -objects continue to exist even when not aware of them Under 4 months no understanding 4-8 months-some uncertain about existence 8-12 months-Developing awareness
Will still make A not B error
Evaluating Piaget’s Sensorimotor Theory
Criticisms include Underestimating infants ability especially regarding
object permanence Renee Baillargeon and researchers tested infant
abilities using the violation of expectations method. Children look longer in the spot, even though don’t grab for the object there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2ovHFt5YXc
Object permanence may reflect memory development Cultural limitations as well