The Study of Human Development The Development of Children (5 th ed.) Cole, Cole & Lightfoot Preface
It’s a Fact! Everyone in this class has already lived through everything we will talk about in this course!
What a Jewel Fish of a Dad! Every parent has a role to fill Parental roles conflict with personal desires Successfully filling your parental role will benefit everyone!
Table Talk - 5 minutes Describe a time when your parents cared for you and you knew it was a sacrifice for them What benefits came out of their decision? Think of a situation when parents’ desires might conflict with caring for a child. What effect(s) might this have on the child?
Intriguing Questions How are parents reinforced for being responsible for their children? What experiences can we offer children so they will learn the value of becoming responsible for others? Give an example of how a culture might reward parents for being responsible for their children Give an example of how a culture might punish parents for being irresponsible for their children
Practice, Theory and Research Practice Discovering practical approaches for raising and educating children Theory Providing interpretations of facts to guide actions Research Designed ways to find out what happens when, and how this affects that, and what should be done Allows us to think critically about growth and development
Culture, Biology and Interaction “Development is best understood as a fusion of biological, social and psychological processes interaction in the unique medium of human culture” pg. xix “Development is best understood as a fusion of biological, social and psychological processes interaction in the unique medium of human culture” pg. xix
What is Culture? Culture is the “way” of a group of people Their language Their dress Their customs Their beliefs Their practices Their laws Culture transmits “who you are” to others
What is Biology? Genetics How you grow and develop that is determined by your ancestors, …. but not accounted for in your environment Hair, eye, skin color Size, height and body shape Predisposition to disease and physical changes All that you genetically inherit from your mother and father
What is Dynamic Interaction? Children grow up over time, and their development is affected by their culture, biology and environment A child’s family structure and parental level of responsibility affects development A child’s cognition and psychological profile determines his/her resilience and frames their choices for responding to life’s experiences
Childhood Essay Assignment What kind of childhood did you have? What did you learn from your parents about people, in general? Where did you grow up? How did this environment affect your childhood? What was your family like when you were a child?