Principles of Education and

TrainingChapter 3: Understanding Human

Development

Understanding Human Development

· Distinguish between growth and development · Identify the main types of human development · Develop examples that illustrate principles of

development· Define a developmental theory· Apply developmental theories to real-life situations· Analyze how developmental theories impact

teaching

Objectives:

· Life is a process of growth and development · Growth refers to physical changes in size, such as

height and weight · Development is the gradual increase in skills and

abilities that occurs over a lifetime· Each person progresses in an individual way

· However, the stages of development are similar for almost everybody

Understanding Human Development

What is human development ?

During each stage of life a person’s physical, cognitive and social-

emotional development can be identified.

Areas of Development There are four types of development:• Physical• Cognitive (or intellectual)

• Social• Emotional

• Social and emotional development are intertwined, and often referred to together as social-emotional development.

· Physical development is advances in physical abilities · Example: a newborn cannot change positions, but a

two-year-old can run.

· Many aspects of development are happening at the same time. Often referred to as motor skills.

· Motor skills include:· Gross-motor skills --the development of large muscles

such arms, legs, back, and shoulders (walking and throwing)

Physical Development Period of rapid growth during the first year of life.

· Fine-motor skills--the development of small muscles such as hands and wrist (eating with a spoon)

· Memorization, organization, knowing are all examples of cognition

· Cognitive Development—(aka intellectual development) is the way people change and improve their ability to think and learn throughout life.· Consider math skills as a first grader, eighth grader and

now.

· The development of connections between nerve cells in the brain is a key component to cognitive development at all stages of life.

Cognitive Development Process involving thought and knowledge are called cognition

· Brain connections grow and strengthen with new experiences and repetition of familiar ones.

Social-Emotional Development Individuals must learn social skills and how to care about others.

· Social- Emotional· Must develop both self-confidence and self-esteem

· Social-emotional challenges increase at each stage development

· New skills must be developed to deal with increasing independence of childhood, adolescence, and adult relationships

· How well one meets these challenges depends on skills they develop earlier in life and how they adapt to new situations

Includes Areas of Relationships and Feelings

· Basic Principles of what is already known:· Development is relatively orderly -a sequence of steps that consistently follow one another · Development is a gradual, continuous process -changes happen gradually and are apparent over time

· Development is interrelated -most development is not solely physical, cognitive, social, or emotional

Principles of Human Development

· Development varies among individuals -each individual’s progress is unique

· Developmental Theories · Why should you as a future teacher learn about

developmental theories?

· They are useful because they help you understand what students are capable of doing and why

· This knowledge can make you a better teacher

· While these are theories, not proven facts, they can be useful

Theories of Development

Researchers analyze behavior and development to better understand how and why behavior occurs.

· The theories mentioned in this book have had a real influence on teachers and teaching

· Think about their potential impact in the classroom.

· Nature (Heredity) vs. Nurture (Environment)· Are a person’s personality traits, abilities, skills,

and tastes a result of genetics?ORtheir environment?

· Most researchers would answer “both”· A challenge for researchers is that heredity and

environment interact in complex waysGenes carry a person’s biological inheritance and impact intellectual

potential and much more

Theories of Development

Heredity Versus Environment

· Heredity - Genes· No single gene determines a particular behavior. · Behaviors, like all complex traits, involve multiple gene’s that

are affected by a variety of environmental factors.· Genes do influence human development .· Just because a person has a genetic make to have a trait does

not mean it will develop.

· Environment · Persons are shaped by his or her individual experiences · All developmental traits can be affected by the environment· The term applies to many aspects of life:

Theories of Development

· Family· Peers· Community

· Media· Health · Nutrition and physical activity

Heredity Versus Environment—Continued

· Behaviorism—a theory based on the belief that individuals’ behavior is determined by forces in the environment that are beyond their control.· One of the earliest theories in development

· Heredity vs. Environment· Behaviorists think environment wins

· “Blank Screens” (aka “Tabula Rasa” or “blank slates”)· Behaviorists think infants come into the world this way

and all of their behaviors are direct results of their life’s experiences

· Ex: If a child bullies another child on the playground, it is assumed he or she learned this behavior

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning· Pavlov was a Russian researcher

· Theory: behaviors can be associated with responses

· One of the earliest behavioral experiments

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

Pavlov noticed that a dog naturally salivated at the sight of food.

He began ringing a bell at feeding time.

Eventually, if the bell was rung, the dog salivated, even if no food

was given to the dog!

Skinner’s Operant Conditioning· B.F. Skinner, researcher, well known

for identifying the basic principle that if you have a pleasant experience, such as receiving a compliment, that you internalize the experience as positive

· Theory: People tend to repeat behaviors that have a positive result or are reinforced

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

· He found that to make these behaviors permanent, they need to be removed gradually, in unpredictable patterns

· This also works to reduce unwanted behaviors as well when used with negative reinforcement, or punishments

1) The Period ofSensori-Motor Intelligence (0-2 years)

3) The Period ofConcrete Operations(8-10 years)

2) The Period ofPreoperational Thought(2-7 years)

4) The Period ofFormal Operations(11-15 years)

· Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory· Albert Bandura argued that people are very different

from Pavlov’s dog· Theory: People of all ages observe and imitate the

behaviors of others, regardless of rewards and punishments involved.

· Piaget’s Cognitive Theory· Jean Piaget, a Swiss researcher, looked for a theory that

would better explain differences in how people think throughout the stages of life

· Four stages of cognitive development

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

Infancy – trust versus mistrustBirth to 1 year

Adolescence – Identity versus role confusion 13 to 18 years

Toddler – Autonomy versus shame and doubt1 to 3 years

Young adulthood – Intimacy versus isolation 18 to 40 years

Early childhood – Initiative versus guilt3 to 6 years

Middle Adulthood – Generativity versus self-absorption40 to 65 years

Middle childhood – Industry versus inferiority6 to 12 years

Older adulthood – Integrity versus despair65 and older

· Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory· Lev Vygotsky, a Russian theorist, challenged Piaget’s

theory, especially his beliefs that humans learn primarily through experimentation with objects

· Theory: Children are social beings and develop their minds through interactions with parents, teachers, and other students.

· Social interaction is critical to cognitive development · Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory

· Focus was on development of personality· Personality development occurs during eight stages of life

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

· Kholberg’s Theory of Moral Development · Three levels of moral development

· Preconventional morality—decisions about what is right or wrong depend on whether you will be punished or rewarded

· Convectional morality —understanding that society depends on people to observe basic rules of behavior

· Postconventional morality—belief that there are universal moral laws related to human rights that are most important to follow

Theories of Development

· Children and teens should be moved to the next level of moral development with the help of adults

· Only men and boys were observed , the findings did not include the way women and girls make moral decisions

Behaviorist Theories

· Many different, often conflicting, theories to explain human development· As a teacher, you can benefit from understanding

several approaches to development and applying them in your classroom

· As knowledge of human development grows, more theories will emerge

· Gaining a greater understanding of the ways in which humans learn will help teachers develop more effective teaching strategies

Theories of Development

Behaviorist Theories

Which Theory Is Correct?

End of Chapter Three

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