Research and Application

In your response, state whether you agree or disagree with your peer about the relationship between cognitive and conceptual development they feel is present in the case study. Be sure to support your stance with research and/or personal experiences.

Cognitive and Conceptual Development

Explain which theories of conceptual development are present in the case study. Provide an example to support your thinking.

“Almost everything children learn involves conceptual knowledge, ” and I believe most all theories nature and nurture; continuity and discontinuity; domain general; as well as performance and competence are all present in the case study (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, Ch. 5 Intro). It is natural for children to be curious about things that they do not know. Experience and prior education told the children in the study that they were dealing with a living insect and a nonliving rock. The teacher, Ms. Serrano became excited to nurture and “play an instrumental role in elaborating” on the children’s conceptual knowledge (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, Ch. 5 Intro). The case study was clear to indicate that the children had a foundation containing bits of knowledge yet so much more to learn. The theory of continuity regarding development suggests that conceptual development continues to grow at slow and steady rate whereas discontinuity means that this same development occurs in stages (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015). I believe that there are certain stages in life and development where comprehension of certain topics is more prevalent, however, it is also over a slow and continuous process that people learn and develop. “Performance reflects children’s behavior on a task intended to assess their ability” the children’s performance showed that they were intrigued and inquisitive in response to their peers’ discoveries (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, p. 1.2). The teacher assessed the responses and the knowledge the children had regarding the objects in question. Competence on the other hand “reflects their actual skill level” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, p. 1.2). Ms. Serrano had found that her students had some knowledge as to science and their questions suggested to her that they had much more to learn in order to further develop their skill level (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015). Some children knew the name of the insect while another could not differentiate that the rock was a non-living organism (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015). Therefore, the teacher knows to use differentiation when further elaborating so that all students are accommodated.

Examine the relationships between cognitive and conceptual development that are present in the case study.

Cognition refers to mental processes and includes topics such as problem-solving, memory, language, intelligence, and others while “almost everything children learn involves conceptual knowledge” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, Ch. 5 Intro). The children in the case study are problem-solving and language skills by asking questions to come up with a solution to the information they do not know about or understand regarding the insect and rock. They show the process of memory and intelligence by recollecting the information that they do know about living and non-living organisms. “Cognitive development reflects changes in these different aspects of thinking across the lifespan,” and Ms. Serrano’s assistance in teaching the children more about science will help further evolve the segments of cognitive development (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, p. 1.1). Ms. Serrano’s teaching will also further enhance conceptual development as conceptual knowledge has direct implications for education and “if teachers know how children represent and define particular concepts and the developmental progression of conceptual knowledge, they can create formal and informal learning opportunities” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, Ch. 5 Intro).

Discuss which theory of cognitive development would support Ms. Serrano’s experience with her students. Support your response with evidence from the text.

The cognitive development theories that I believe would support Ms. Serrano’s experience with her students is the Piagetian Theory and the Social Constructivist Theory. I chose both theories instead of narrowing it down to one because the “Social-constructivist theory is similar to Piagetian theory in that both emphasize the importance of interaction with the environment for cognitive development” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, p. 1.3). The children in the case study show that their knowledge is organized, that their mental representations of actions obey logical rules, and that they are trying to seek balance and equilibrium (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015). For example, the children asked pertinent questions that demonstrated their ability to categorize the two objects that were found based upon observation, “knowledge and problems they encountered in their interactions with their environment” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, p. 1.3). “Their questions suggested they understood that as a living thing, bugs had many of the same characteristics of other living things, such as needing food and rest, whereas rocks did not share those same properties” (Farrar & Montgomery, 2015, Ch. 5 Intro). “Social interaction is, in fact, critical for cognitive development” and Ms. Serrano answering questions and further elaborating on the topic of science to these children will not only support the children’s’ development but also aid in helping them flourish.

Consider your current or future work setting. Provide two strategies you can use to support conceptual development in the children with whom you currently work or will work with. Support your response with at least one scholarly source.

Since I currently work with high school students, and my goal is to work with young children, I am going to write about two strategies for my future classroom. First, I want to provide an environment that makes children excited to come to school because they are so intrigued by what we might learn about next and how. I believe it is not only necessary but beneficial to relate concepts taught to an event, something personal like a specific interest, or in other meaningful ways in which children can relate. I also feel that it is imperative that I teach my students by means that their minds learn best. To do this, I plan on integrating Garner’s theory of multiple intelligences to accommodate my student’s various ways of learning. The theory of multiple intelligences recognizes the fact that learning is diverse amongst individuals and that intelligence is more than just verbal skills and mathematics (Estes & Krogh, 2012). Due to this fact, many learning opportunities will be incorporated into my classroom. I will integrate art projects, reading literature, writing, music, rhythmic poetry, small group activities, and large group instruction to name a few. By offering a variety of ways to present the subject and material to be learned, everyone has an opportunity to retain the information the way that they learn best.

References

Estes, L.S., & Krogh, S. L. (2012). Pathways to Teaching Young Children: An Introduction to Early Childhood Education. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Farrar, M. J. & Montgomery, D. (2015). Cognitive development of children: Research and application [Electronic version]