Question

where does Piaget think come the basis of progressing from stage to stage. Why do children move cognitively from stage to stage? What system/prepare from moving to stage to stage? What is are the basic blocks of knowledge in Piaget theory? What is their name?

Answer 1

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary.

(Answer) Jean Piaget’s Stages of Development: Piaget’s stages of cognitive development –

Sensorimotor (0-2 years) Infant develops learning based on what is absorbed through the senses.

Preoperational (2-6 years) Child uses images to understand objects but does not understand them logically.

Concrete operational (7-12) Child can think logically about concrete objects. They can add, subtract and observe.

Formal operational (12 and up) The child understands abstract terms and is able to hypothesize.

In order to understand why these stages occur in a child’s cognitive development, one needs to understand the connotations of ‘Social Learning Theory’ and ‘Bronfenbrenner’s biological model’.

Social Learning Theory: Suggests that people learn from observing people in social settings. Ergo, people who do not socialise often don’t learn much. In other words, heuristics or information absorbed by the senses through experience is what causes a person’s cognitive development to progress.

Bronfenbrenner’s biological model is in the form of concentric circles or levels that influence a child. This model categorises how the child is able to build their cognitive abilities from different levels of the environment.

The first level – The Microsystem which is the child itself.

The second level – The Mesosystem which comprise of the family, school, playground, peers, religious institutions and healthcare systems.

The third level – The Ecosystem which contains the extended family, neighbours, friends of the family, legal services, social welfare services and the mass media.

The fourth level – The Macrosystem is formed by the attitudes and ideologies of the society.

The fifth level – The Chronosystem is formed by all of the events and transitions that occur within a child’s life.

Therefore, absorbing information from different levels of the environment leads to the different stages of development that Piaget has outlined in his theory. These progressive stages are brought about by the cerebral cortex and particularly the frontal lobe of one’s brain. These areas are responsible for cognitive functions, problem-solving skills, logic and understanding. Children develop from stage to stage because of the development of these neural functions.