ROHANIFA D.

MACAAYAO BEED 3
ECE 3

Written Report in

Jean Piaget (1896 - 1980)

Jean Piaget (August 9, 1896 - September 16, 1980), a professor
of psychology at the University of Geneva from 1929 to 1954

was a French Swiss developmental psychologist who is most

well-known for organizing cognitive development into a series of
stages

is famous for constructing a highly influential model of child

development and learning
Piaget explored the implications of his theory to all aspects of
cognition, intelligence and moral development
Many of Piaget's experiments were focused on the development
of mathematical and logical concepts
His theory has been applied extensively to teaching practice and
curriculum design in elementary education

Philosophy
Intellectual development the result of the interaction of heredity
and environmental factors
Believe that children think and the reason differently at
differently periods in their lives.
It is learning by doing, playing and experimenting with objects
rather than by being taught about them.

Goals
Knowledge is not merely transmitted verbally but must be
constructed by the learner
Virtual reality has the potential to move education from its
reliance on books to experiential learning in naturalistic setting

Objectives
How does childrens intelligence and thinking abilities emerge
through distinct stages
How the children learn and develop them through processes

Cognitive Development Theory

Children "construct" their understanding of the world through
their active involvement and interactions.
Studied his 3 children to focus not on what they knew but how
they knew it.
Described children's understanding as their "schemas and how
they use:

assimilation

Accommodation

Assimilation
The process by which a person takes material into their mind
from the environment, which may mean changing the evidence
of their senses to make it fit.
Accommodation
The difference made to one's mind or concepts by the process of
assimilation.

Note

that ASSIMILATION AND ACCOMMODATION go together: you

can't have one without the other.

Theories
Piaget's theory is based on the idea that the developing child
builds cognitive structures
Used mental "maps" or schemas for
responding to physical their environment

understanding

and

Showed that a child's cognitive structure increases in

sophistication with development, moving from a few natural
reflexes such as crying and sucking to highly complex mental
activities
Piaget's theory supposes that people develop schemas
(conceptual models) by either assimilating or accommodating
new information

PIAGETS STAGES
Piaget's theory identifies four developmental stages and the processes
by which children progress through them. The four stages are:
1. Sensorimotor stage (birth - 2 years)
The child builds a set of concepts about reality and how it works
through physical interaction with their environment. This is the stage
where a child does not know that physical objects remain in existence
even when out of sight
2. Preoperational stage (ages 2-7)
The child is not yet able to think abstractly and needs concrete
physical situations.
3. Concrete operations (ages 7-11)
As physical experience accumulate, the child starts to
conceptualize, creating logical structures that explain their physical
experiences. Abstract problem solving is also possible at this stage. For
example, arithmetic equations can be solved with numbers, not just
with objects.
4. Formal operations (beginning at ages 11-15)
By this point, the child's cognitive structures are like those of an
adult and include conceptual reasoning.

How does knowledge grow?

An essential element of Piaget's developmental theory of
learning and thinking is that both involve the participation of the
learner

Knowledge is not merely transmitted verbally but must be

constructed and reconstructed by the learner

 Piaget asserted that for a child to know and construct knowledge

of the world, the child must act on objects and it is this action
which provides knowledge of those object
The learner must be active; he is not a vessel to be filled with
facts

Piagets Readiness Theory

Piaget's approach to learning is a readiness approach
Readiness approaches in developmental psychology emphasize
that children cannot learn something until maturation gives them
certain prerequisites
The ability to learn any cognitive content is always related to
their stage of intellectual development
Children who are at a certain stage cannot be taught the
concepts of a higher stage

INTELLECTUAL GROWTH

Intellectual growth involves three fundamental

assimilation, accommodation, and equilibration

processes:

Assimilation: involves the incorporation of new events into preexisting cognitive structures
Accommodation: existing structures change to accommodate to
the new information. This dual process, assimilationaccommodation, enables the child to form schema.
Equilibration: involves the person striking a balance between
them self and the environment, between assimilation and
accommodation.

 When a child experiences a new event, dis-equilibrium sets in

until they are able to assimilate and accommodate the new
information and thus attain equilibrium
There are many types of equilibrium between assimilation and
accommodation that vary with the levels of development and the
problems to be solved
For Piaget, equilibration is the major factor in explaining why
some children advance more quickly in the development of
logical intelligence than do others

Principles
Piaget outlined several principles for building cognitive structures
During all development stages, the child experiences their
environment using whatever mental maps he or she has
constructed so far
Allowing children to build concept actively rather than on
providing those concepts through direct teaching
Children should give the freedom to play, experiment and
participate in guided learning activities
If the experience is a repeated one, it fits easily into the child's
cognitive structure so that he or she maintains mental balance
If the experience is different or new, the child loses balance, and
alters his or her cognitive structure to accommodate the new
conditions
This way, the child establishes more and more sufficient
cognitive structures
Children will offer different explanations of reality at different
stages of cognitive development
Cognitive development is made possible by providing activities
or situations that connect learners and require adaptation (i.e.
assimilation and accommodation).

 Learning materials and activities should involve the appropriate

level of motor or mental operations for a child of given age;
avoid asking students to perform tasks that are beyond their
current cognitive capabilities.
Use teaching methods that actively involve students and present
challenges.

Materials are introduced to children only when they have

attained a particular level of mental ability
Students have prior knowledge and experience to which they can
relate new material
Instruction should be individualized as much as possible and
children should have opportunities to communicate with one
another, to argue and debate issues

Teachers Role
Guide and stimulate children, help them to learn by mistakes and
encourage exploration and experimentation
Assess the child presents cognitive level, their strengths and
weaknesses
Must understand how children mentally construct change in the
course of children development

Gear classroom tasks and assignments to the developmental

level of students

Pupils Role
Children are active in the construction of knowledge and must
have experience(concrete) with the transformation of materials
to make an impact on their thinking
Most of the activities are initiated by the children, who are free to
move from one place to another and they feel motivated

HOW PIAGETS THEORY IMPACTS LEARNING

 Curriculum
Educators must plan a developmentally appropriate
curriculum that enhances their students' logical and
conceptual growth.
Instruction
Teachers must emphasize the critical role that experiences,
or interactions with the environment play in student
learning. For example, instructors have to take into
account the role that fundamental concepts, such as the
permanence of objects, play in establishing cognitive
structures.

Schedule/ daily program

Child daily plan must provide the starting point for
teaching
Through individual, small
group and large group
experiences
Learning through play, through exploring the environment
and through interacting with others and essential
components
The
daily
routine
reinforces
a
consistent
time
sequence(group time, then activity time, next snack and so
forth) as well as intervals of varying lengths (group time is
shorter than activity time

Classroom/ Resources
Should provide a rich variety of objects and experiences that
can be used for sorting and grouping items
Should be structured in such a ways as to encourage active
discovery
Propos for sand and water play, books woodworking , equipment
and nature collections should be provided in a variety of sizes to
prompt spontaneous ordering and comparison
Should provide a rich variety of objects and experiences that
can be used for sorting and grouping items

 Should be structured in such a ways as to encourage active

discovery
Propos for sand and water play, books woodworking , equipment
and nature collections should be provided in a variety of sizes to
prompt spontaneous ordering and comparison
Materials such as Cubes, Dominoes, number bingo and other
specific counting and math games can help children acquire
number concepts. Making play dough, woodworking and cooking
can help children recognize the importance of accurate
measurement and relative proportions

Evaluation
Although Piagets stages focus on evolving cognitive abilities,
their principles are applied much more widely, to social and
moral as well as to physical and mathematical learning.
An understanding of how children learn as well as their
characteristics, abilities and limits is vital to appropriate teaching
(Piaget,1983)

Conclusion
Piaget's work is known all over the world and is still an inspiration
in fields like psychology, sociology, education, epistemology,
economics and law as witnessed in the annual catalogues of the
Jean Piaget Archives
He was awarded numerous prizes and honorary degrees all over
the world