Chapter 1 What IS human development? Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development

Defining human development Human development can be defined as a process of progressive changes in people’s lives over time that enables them to adapt more effectively to their environments. Points to note about this definition: People always have many forms of connections with one another What counts as progress is not unproblematic Change is always happening We are interested in the conditions that enhance people’s lives, so that we can live well in the situations in which we find ourselves Place shapes and locates the conditions of our lives Invite students to think about the many forms of connection or relationship they have with other people. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development

A social constructionist approach Ideas about developmental progress: Change over time Are different at different times in history Foreground different assumptions from time to time Developmental progress is not one-directional: It is not a single line, marching towards a single goal It is complex and is made up of many strands There is no single truth about ‘right’ development Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development

Development: a broader picture Evolutionary theory encouraged those interested in social progress to think that: Some developmental changes help the species survive Developmental change follows a pattern from primitive to more highly evolved, in stages Speedy development through stages is an advantage The history of child development began with attempts to chart predictable stages, or ‘normal’ development Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development

The power of norms A norm can be defined as a statistically average tendency, but it is often also seen as an expected appearance or behaviour We derive norms by tracing patterns of development by individuals, finding the average, then generalising them This approach is seen as scientific: It allows prediction, and Offers criteria for measuring developmental progress A norm is sometimes seen as an ideal What are the pluses and minuses of this kind of approach? Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-5

However Following the norm does not guarantee successful development Developing faster than the norm may not always be useful Different cultures value different developmental outcomes Adaptability is generally thought of as preferable for the success of a species Plasticity refers to flexibility in the way an individual develops Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-6

Big debates: stages of development Jean Piaget: Cognitive Development Children develop new ways of thinking as their brains develop Cognitive development is also a response to environmental stimulation All children’s cognition goes through the same stages The ultimate cognitive ability is logical thinking Sigmund Freud: Sexual-Emotional Development Sexuality is the energising force of personality Internal conflict is caused by aspects of personality: id, ego, superego Unconscious forces play a large part in how a person behaves How a person is treated as a child is important to how they turn out as an adult Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-7

Jean Piaget: stages of cognitive development Sensori-motor Reflexes are the beginning of interaction and cognition Primary and secondary circular reactions are practice for beginning to control self and the world Pre-operational The child begins to use logical rules, but in an experimental way Concrete operational The child can use logic to manipulate things in the world Formal operational The child is able to think logically about abstract issues Progression from reflexes to intentional interaction with the world. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-8

Jean Piaget: how children learn Children adapt to their environment by: Assimilation: using a familiar schema to work on the world Accommodation: adapting a familiar schema to the new situation Development proceeds through both assimilation and accommodation Humans aim for a balance between old and new Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-9

Critiques of Piaget’s theory As a biologist he was seeking universal principles Can be interpreted as a prescription for development of individuals Does not allow for diverse outcomes Suggests even development across all areas of cognition Invites a stage approach to the presentation of new learning opportunities Reflects a particular Euro-Western view of education and preferred learning goals Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-10

Sigmund Freud: theory of sexual-emotional development Much of development is about learning to fit in with notions of manhood and womanhood appropriate to one’s culture Same-gender parent-child relationships provide the child with a model of emotional life The partner/spouse of that parent provide a model of the child’s future love relationships Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-11

Freud’s stage theory Oral: the infant’s emotional energies are involved in coping with issues related to the oral – feeding, weaning and cutting teeth Anal: the importance of controlling personal expressions as the very young child becomes an acceptable member of society Phallic: the child develops a sense of its sexuality, learning to desire the parent of the opposite sex Latency: children’s sexual awareness is latent during the primary school years Genital: the child moves towards a heterosexual relationship and integration of the emotional battles of the earlier stages Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-12

Critiques of Freud’s theory Focus on sexuality is better understood as about the ‘life force’ Explanatory power of this theory continues to capture the minds of many theorists Some critics have thought he generalised too much from his therapeutic work, particularly with women who had been abused The theory assumes hetero-sexual relationships are the dominant form of human relationship Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-13

Big debates: development in cultural context Lev Vygotsky: thought about how children’s learning – their ‘mind’ – is achieved within cultural and historical contexts Urie Bronfenbrenner: drew attention to the broader range of systems within which a child’s development proceeds Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-14

Lev Vygotsky Different cultures provide different settings and different learning outcomes Each culture has its own ‘cultural curriculum’ Development occurs in interactions with people Thus, development is co-constructed Language is a central tool in this process Children learn in interaction with adults, working within the zone of proximal development (ZPD) Scaffolding is the process of supporting learning within the child’s ZPD Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-15

Urie Bronfenbrenner Developmental processes increase in complexity over time in people’s lives Used ideas about interlinking social ‘systems’ to talk about five kinds of contexts that surround the individual child. Development is always grounded in a particular society at a particular time in history Drew attention to the interaction between different aspects of a person’s ‘ecology’ Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-16

Bronfenbrenner’s nested systems The microsystem refers to interactions with people in the child’s immediate environment, such as members of the family or classroom. For example, if a child is to learn how to work cooperatively with others, there is much to be learned about cooperationfrom their interactions with people with whom they spend the most time: family members andclassmates. The mesosystem refers to a system of connections that links microsystems together. In the case of learning about cooperation, the kinds of relationships between home and school could be key areas in which cooperative learning could be enhanced if it is considered important in both settings. The exosystem refers to larger social systems, such as public media, communities and neighbourhoods. The messages about cooperation on television and in children’s books provide a context for the child’s understanding, as do community projects such as school and neighbourhood fundraising events. The macrosystem of large cultural patterns includes social class and the political system of the country. It might be relevant to consider how cooperatively our parliamentary system works, both in terms of the way parties are created under mixed member proportional voting (called MMP in New Zealand) and the level of cooperative debate at the Beehive (one of New Zealand’s parliament buildings). The chronosystem refers to the way that all these processes emerge over time. This includes each child’s progress towards adulthood as well as social changes in a country’s history; for example, in terms of social legislation. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-17

Complex constructionist ecology Developmental outcomes are the result of complex interactions Complexity: there is almost never a single cause for a developmental outcome To think ecologically is to consider the person in a complex situation or set of situations The quality of the interactions and the environment produce developmental outcomes Development is constructed. That is, it is a product of multiple interactions; it is not inevitable or ‘natural’ Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Claiborne & Drewery, Human Development 1-18