PIAGET THEORY Cognitive Development in Children Jean Piaget

Jean Piaget ( ) Born: August 9, 1896, Neuchâtel, Switzerland Died: September 17, 1980 Geneva, Switzerland Piaget created the International Center for Genetic Epistemology in Geneva in In 1923, he married Valentine Châtenay; the couple had three children, whom Piaget studied from infancy. From 1925 to 1929 Piaget was professor of psychology, sociology, and the philosophy of science at the University of Neuchatel.

Jean Piaget ( ) Jean Piaget ( ) observed his children (and their process of making sense of the world around them) and eventually developed a four- stage model of how the mind processes new information encountered. The goal of the theory is to explain the mechanisms and processes by which the infant, and then the child, develops into an individual who can reason and think using hypotheses.

Cognitive development was a progressive reorganization of mental processes as a result of biological maturation and environmental experience. Children construct an understanding of the world around them, then experience discrepancies between what they already know and what they discover in their environment.

Cognitive Process Core Concept of Cognitive Development 1.SCHEMA A schema describes both the mental and physical actions involved in understanding and knowing. Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world. In Piaget's view, a schema includes both a category of knowledge and the process of obtaining that knowledge. As experiences happen, this new information is used to modify, add to, or change previously existing schemas.

COGNITION SCHEMA ENVIRONMENT BIRD COGNITIVE EQUILIBRIUM

Boy saw an airplane and from existing schema he called it “BIRD”, this is called ASSIMILATION

2. ASSIMILATION using an existing schema to deal with a new object or situation. The process of taking in new information into our previously existing schemas is called Assimilation.

Boy saw an airplane and from existing schema he called it “BIRD”, this is called ASSIMILATION Mother told him It’s an airplane and people travel in it and it’s a Non-living thing. With the help of new schema, now boy came to know the difference of bird and airplane and now he can correctly recognize it. This called ACCOMMODATION

3. ACCOMODATION Another part of adaptation involves changing and altering our existing schemas in light of new information, a process known as accommodation. Accommodation involves altering existing schemas, or ideas, as a result of new information or new experiences. New schemas may also be developed during this process.

EQUILIBRATIO N ASSIMILATIONACCOMMODATION INTEGRATING REALITY INTO ONE’S OWN VIEW CHANGING ONE’S VIEW TO BETTER MATCH REALITY EQUILIBRATION MAKES BALANCE IN ASSIMILATION AND ACCOMMODATION

4. EQUILIBRATION Piaget believed that all children try to strike a balance between assimilation and accommodation, which is achieved through a mechanism Piaget called equilibration. As children progress through the stages of cognitive development, it is important to maintain a balance between applying previous knowledge (assimilation) and changing behavior to account for new knowledge (accommodation). Equilibration helps explain how children can move from one stage of thought into the next.

Key Words COGNITION: Mental Process SCHEMA: Pocket of information about anything. ASSIMILATION: Fitting new thing into existing schema ACCOMMODATION: altering or improving existing schema with new schema

Boy has learned schema of cat Boy saw a cub and called it “cat”. Sister said “no, it’s a cub”. He Accommodate new schema of cub. SCHEMAASSIMILATIONACCOMMODATION

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