Piaget's Development Theory
(Slightly plagiarized and poorly cited.)
Piaget the Man
Jean Piaget (1896 - 1980) began his scientific career in the biological sciences concentrating on mollusks. Although he migrated to the study of the development of children's understanding, his roots in the natural sciences can be seen in his cognitive theory, most notably his main tenet that cognitive growth is an extension of biological growth and governed by the same laws and principles. Piaget described himself as a "genetic epistemologist." He said his interest was "how we come to know" and what differentiated human beings from animals is our ability to perform "abstract symbolic reasoning."
Stages of Intellectual Development
Similar to a tadpole that goes through various physical changes at relatively specific times from its "birth", Piaget believed particular intellectual traits in children occurred in specific time frames. He classified intellectual development into 4 stages, each with it's own time period of occurrence and milestone cognitive abilities. Stages can neither be skipped nor reordered. Advancement from one stage to the next is achieved through accumulation of errors using the child's current view of reality. Biological development forces the said accumulation of errors, so maturity pushes children from one stage to the next.
- Sensorimotor (Birth - 2 years)
- In this period (which has 6 stages), intelligence is demonstrated through motor activity without the use of symbols. Knowledge of the world is limited (but developing) because its based on physical interactions / experiences. Children acquire object permanence at about 7 months of age (memory). Physical development (mobility) allows the child to begin developing new intellectual abilities. Some symbolic (language) abilities are developed at the end of this stage.
- Preoperational (2 years - 7 years)
- In this period (which has two sub stages), intelligence is demonstrated through the use of symbols, language use matures, and memory and imagination are developed, but thinking is done in an illogical, nonreversible manner. Egocentric thinking predominates.
- Concrete Operational (7 years - 11 years)
- In this stage, intelligence is demonstrated through logical and systematic manipulation of symbols related to concrete objects. Operational thinking develops (mental actions that are reversible). Egocentric thought diminishes.
- Ability to classify
- Ability to see and form logical relationships
- Formal Operational (beginning at ages 11-15)
- In this stage, intelligence is demonstrated through the logical use of symbols related to abstract concepts. Early in the period there is a return to egocentric thought.
(Plagiarized heavily from http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/cogsys/piaget.html)
Below is an example dialogue between Piaget and a child that illustrates how a child's schema incorporates what the child understands up until that point.
Piaget: What makes the wind?
Julia: The trees.
P: How do you know?
J: I saw them waving their arms.
P: How does that make the wind?
J (waving her hand in front of his face): Like this. Only they are bigger. And there are lots of trees.
P: What makes the wind on the ocean?
J: It blows there from the land. No. It's the waves...
(Dialogue taken from http://www.time.com/time/time100/scientist/profile/piaget.html)
The little girl in the previous dialogue shows an inadequate approximation of reality from an adult perspective, which is based on more experiences and data than a child's. But the child's explanation is sensible, coherent, and logical within the framework of what she currently knows and understands.
Three Fundamental Processes of Intellectual Growth
Intellectual growth involves 3 fundamental processes: assimilation, accommodation, and equilibration. Children at any point in time have current mental models of reality. Piaget refers to these mental models as schemas. Initial schemas at birth are Piaget refers to as "reflexes." In children, these reflexes are quickly replaced by schemas. In other animals, these reflexes control behavior throughout life. When a child experiences an event or knowledge contrary to his/her current schema, disequilibrium occurs, and the child seeks to reestablish equilibrium.
Equilibrium is regained by the complimentary processes of assimilation and accommodation. Assimilation is the process of incorporating new data into current mental models. Accommodation is the process of adapting current mental models to include the new data. Once the new data is assimilated into a working mental model, equilibrium returns.
Putting the idea of assimilation and accommodation into a context familiar to us (i.e. computer folk), assimilation is similar to adding data to a database. However, sometimes the data one wishes to include does not fit into the current database configuration very well. Under such circumstances, the database structure is modified, presumably by adding new fields or the like, to accommodate for the new type of data.
Participation of the Learner
Piaget believed that learning must involve active participation from the learner. This contrasts with one of the most prevalent styles of instruction for persons of all ages, lecture. According to Piaget, knowledge is not transmitted verbally; the student is not a vessel to fill with facts. Learning takes place by constructing or reconstructing knowledge. "Children have real understanding only of that which they invent themselves, and each time that we try to teach them something too quickly, we keep them from reinventing it themselves." This concept of reinventing aligns well with Piaget's 3 fundamental processes of intellectual growth.
Of course, in keeping in line with Piaget's 4 stages of development, learning can only take place when the child is at or above the stage necessary to assimilate and accommodate the knowledge in question.
Research Validation
Piaget's research methods were primarily qualitative case studies. Subsequent studies have supported and not supported his ideas by using more quantitative analysis.
As previously stated, Piaget saw moving from one stage to the next as a natural and inevitable result of biological maturity. Although studies have supported this view with respect to the initial 3 stages, studies do not indicate children transition into stage 4 automatically through biological development. These findings also correlate with studies in adult populations. In a 1977 study, only 30% to 35% of adults possess the cognitive abilities described in stage 4, Formal Operational. Conventional thought is that maturation forms a foundation necessary for achieving Formal Operational abilities, but a special environment is required for fruition.
Recent studies also imply children are capable of more, and are capable of it earlier, than Piaget's theory predicts
Despite these shortcomings, Piaget's Cognitive Theory still dominates the thinking on intellectual development.
Application
As we have discussed, hypertextbooks offer an advantage in the arena of active learning, and Piaget's theory advocates that deeper understanding comes from an active learning approach. Hypermedia allows choice of direction and the opportunity for experimentation unachievable in regular textbooks. That said, the opportunity must be realized via proper construction of the hypertextbooks. Online drill and memorization practice, for example, does not utilize the potential for active learning from a hypertextbook.
References
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/cogsys/piaget.html
http://www.time.com/time/time100/scientist/profile/piaget.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Piaget
http://www.funderstanding.com/piaget.cfm
http://www.sk.com.br/sk-piage.html
http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/piaget.htm