Samantha Wardell

FHS 2600
3/24/15
Theory Comparison
We learned about 6 different theorists in this class. Erikson, Maslow, Piaget, Vygotsky,
Skinner, and the Reggio Emilia Approach. My favorite of the theorist would have to be between
Erikson, Piaget, Vygotsky, and Skinner because I see myself doing things from each of their
theories all the time. I do have to agree with all of these theorist, theories for the most part
though. They all have well thought out, and different ideas concerning childrens cognitive,
biological, and social/emotional development and I can take something away from all of these
theories.
The first theorist Id like to talk about is Erik Erikson. Eriksons psychological Therory of
Human Development consisted of eight different stages. The stages include:
Stage One: Trust vs. Mistrust- (Infants 0-1) This is where the infant gains a feeling of security
and positive attachment with an adult and the infant is learning to trust people to meet their
needs.
Stage Two: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt- (Toddler, 1-3) This stage is where the child wants to
do everything themselves and grow a sense of self as an individual.
Stage Three: Initiative vs. Guilt- (Preschoolers, 3-5) In this stage the child begins to interact and
play with other children and toys.
Stage Four: Industry vs. inferiority- (Elementary School Age, 6-12) The child seems to gain a
sense of confidence in this stage in school, in mastering tasks, and being able to act responsibly.
Stage Five: Identity vs Role Confusion- (Adolescence 10-20) This is the stage where your teen
starts to find themselves and have close relationships with friends.
Stage Six: Intimacy vs Isolation- (Young Adulthood) In this stage they will start to build strong
relationships with friends and sexual partners and they will begin a career.
Stage Seven: Generativity vs Self Assumption- (Middle Adulthood) You gain satisfaction from
life and work in this stage and start to be come an outstanding citizen by helping others and our
next generation to come.
Stage Eight: Integrity vs Despair- (Late Adulthood) This stage is where you start to reflect on life
and be content with it and begin to engage yourself in rewarding activities (like traveling) and
except the losses and challenges of life.
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 107)
I like Eriksons theory in the way that he proposes each of these stages for the different
age groups. A lot of the theorist dont break down the age groups this extensively and I like the
fact that Erikson does because I think there are way more than just 4 stages or age groups like
Piaget does. I also would have to agree with all of Eriksons stages from observing children from
all of these age groups and seeing lots of similarities.
Maslow had an idea of self-actualization. Self-actualization was Maslows view that
behavior and learning were both motivated by a hierarchy of needs (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 109).
Self-actualization was at the top of Maslows Hierarchy of Needs and it meant that you had
personal growth and fulfillment. You couldnt get any better than that. Maslow didnt think that
everyone would ever get to self-actualization, and if you got there, you could get moved all the
way back down to the bottom step of the hierarchy of needs which is physical needs, if an event
were to occur to make you need those basic needs still. There are 5 steps in Maslows Hierarchy

of Needs which include (starting at the bottom, up) physical needs (air, water, food, shelter, sex,
etc.), psychological safety and security, sense of belonging and love, self-esteem and respect for
others, and last, at the very top, self-actualization (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 109).
I think that Maslow had some good points because you do need to meet your physical
needs before having that love and a sense of belonging, but I think there are times when you
need both at the exact same time and they dont always move in order like this. I know that you
can feed a baby and give him shelter and clothing, but if they dont feel love because they are
never touches or talked to, they will die, regardless of having their physical needs met.
Piaget had a cognitive theory about children. It was also a stage based theory like
Eriksons was but his stages were different. They included:
Sensorimotor (birth-2) In this stage the child is learning by using their 5 senses and by using
physical movement. They are slowly moving from reflexes to conscious activity.
Preoperational (2-7 years old) Child develop an ability to learn through symbols in this stage
Such as using a stick to symbolize a sword when playing and through language. Having that
mental representation of thoughts and words and learning to recognize shapes, numbers, letters,
etc.
Concrete Operational (7-11 years old) By this age, the child should be able to think through and
solve problems on their own more logically through concrete experience. They are not able to
think very abstract in this stage.
Formal Operational (11-adulthood) They can think abstractly in this stage and solve problems
abstractly using symbolic thought and experimentation.
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 113)
I would have to agree with all of Piagets stages, as I have observed children from each of
these age groups, they seem to follow this same pattern of thinking and learning. They have the
same sort of cognitive process. He also had an idea about adaption, which is pretty much where
you have a box with everything that you learned as a child and there will be times when life
throws something at you that doesnt seem to fit into any of your boxes so you have to
accommodate and assimilate your thoughts you had before to help adopt this new thought. For
example, your whole life everyone was so nice to you and loved you like crazy, but then you go
to school and someone is mean to you. You arent sure how to react to this at first because it
doesnt fit into your box in thinking that everyone is so nice and the world is such a nice place,
so you have to adapt yourself to dealing with that mean person and saying to yourself, okay,
there are some mean people out there but there are still nice people too.
Vygotsky had his own theory on how development occurs. He had a Sociocultural
Theory. One of the biggest things I learned about him and what I liked the most was his theory
about the zone of proximal development. This is the distance between the actual developmental
level that a child has achieved and the level of potential development of what the child could
achieve (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 117). Scaffolding goes hand in hand with this and thats what I
love so much about Vygotsky. Scaffolding is where you help to assist a childs learning that they
couldnt do on their own, to give them the right building blocks needs so they eventually can do
it on their own (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 117). Just like when you help a child ride a bike, you hold
it for them for a while, then eventually let go so they can do it on their own. I love this idea and
do it all the time with the children I work with. Vygotsky also believed in children constructing

their own knowledge. He thought that they learned better by experience and by collaborating or
working with peers, teachers, and parents to solve problems.
Behaviorism was B. F. Skinners theory that learning is a change in behavior that is
controlled by the consequences that can be positive or negative following the behavior
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 119). He also proposed the ideas of operant conditioning with children
which is the process of using positive or negative consequences to control the childs behavior
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 119). Positive reinforcement is a reward or positive consequence that
follows the behavior causing the child to repeat the behavior (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 119). For
example, if you see a child sharing with his friend and you go up to him and tell him how happy
you are that he is sharing so nicely, he is more likely to share again because of the positive
reinforcement that was given to him when he did it before. Negative reinforcement is a negative
response to a behavior. For example, when a child isnt sharing nicely, their friends wont want
to play with them anymore, so the child will likely correct this behavior and share with their
friend to keep the friend from leaving. You can also use punishment but the problem with
punishment is that it is only a temporary fix to the problem. If you put your child in time out for
hitting their sibling, it will fix the problem in the heat of the moment, but it is likely to happen
again as it is not as effective because it doesnt teach the child what they should do (Bredekamp,
2011, p. 119).
I really liked Skinners approach on these disciplinary/behavioral reinforces. I was so
used to getting punished or put in timeout when I was younger for doing something wrong, so I
like that Vygotsky has these positive and negative reinforcers to use to handle to problems better.
I find myself using positive reinforcement a lot with the children I nanny.
The theory into practice and the practice driving theory is referred to as the Reggio
Emilia Approach (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 128). The Reggio Emilia Approach are the principles of
early childhood education practice that was developed in Reggio Emilia, Italy. It is said to be the
imiage of the child rich in potential and as a citizen with rights. The Reggio Emilia Approach is
set on 9 principles and values. They include:
The image of the child which is the foundation of the Reggio Emilia Approach, where the image
of the child as rich in potential, strong and powerful with rights as a citizen and contributing
member of the community (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 129)
Childrens relationships and interactions which is an education based on relationship.
The role of parents which says that a school does not exist without children, teachers, and
parents.
The role of space which means that it is a place where adults have thought about the quality and
the instructive power of space. (Bredekamp, 2011, p. 129)
Teachers and children as partners in learning means that the teachers dont refer to themselves
as experts who impact knowledge but as partners with children discovery of learning
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 129)
Curriculum as a process of inviting and sustaining learning means that there isnt a set
curriculum for the children. The curriculum comes from the childrens interests.
The many languages of children. Each class has a teacher who is knowledgeable with visual arts
and helps the other teacher and children.
Learning through projects, Both short and long term projects are used in the Reggio Emilia
schools and have the children work in small groups together.

The power of documentation. The teachers gather pictures, work samples, conversations made
throughout projects, etc. to show how much the child has learned and how their learning is
growing.
(Bredekamp, 2011, p. 128)
The most important thing that the Reggio Emilia Approach contributes is the deeper
understanding on how representation effects children. How it reflects on what the children know
and can do, and changes it. I like that they use representation, but I am not a big fan of the
Reggio Emilia Approach. I think its great that they want to base the curriculum on the childrens
interests, but I think there should be a set curriculum to guarantee that the children are learning
everything they are supposed to and you can change the way you teach the certain things in a
way that is more fun and interesting to children, but for sure have a set curriculum. I also think
that projects are great, but maybe only one or two. As it is good for the children to learn the skills
of working together, I think projects are stressful, especially when not everyone is doing the
work so you have to make up for their loss. I think a better idea would be small group activities
that help the children work together, but not necessarily a project.

Sources

Bredekamp, Sue. Effective Practices in Early Childhood Education: Building a

Foundation. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson, 2011. Print.