+ Theories, Theorists and Research EDUC August

+ eCollege What’s there How to use it

+ 3 Areas of Development Physical Cognitive Social and Emotional

+ Periods of Development Prenatal: Conception to birth Infancy and Toddlerhood: Birth to 2 years Early Childhood: 2 – 6 years Middle Childhood: 6 – 11 years Adolescence: 11 – 18 years Emerging Adulthood: 18 – 25 years Adulthood: 25+

+ Categories of Theories Continuous vs. Discontinuous Development One Course of Development vs. Many Genetic Influences vs. Environmental Influences

+ Theories: What we think we know How do we know we know what we know? A theory is an orderly, integrated set of statements that describes, explains and predicts behavior. Describes: Under normal conditions, what do humans do in certain circumstances? Explains: How and Why does the human do this? Predicts: How does this affect future circumstances? What happens under different, or similar, circumstances?

+ Research: How we “prove” what we think we know There certain METHODS of researching human subjects which are accepted as … Rigorous Reliable and Replicable Research Methods: How are data gathered to “prove” what we think we know? Research Design: How do you structure the collection of data so you can do it again?

+ Research Methods Systematic Observations Naturalistic: observe human subjects in the natural environment in which the behavior occurs Classroom Child Care Playground Structured: observe humans in a laboratory situation that evokes the behavior of interest so that every subject as equal opportunity to respond Marshmallow Experiment Child-Parent interactions

+ Research Methods Self-Reports Clinical Interview Structured Interview Surveys Questionnaires

+ Research Methods Cinical (Case Study) Method Developmental delays Learning Disabilities Gifted/Talented Ethnography Immersion in a specific culture for an extended period in order to understand a culture

+ Research Designs Correlational Gather information from natural life circumstances and don’t alter their experiences The goal is to measure how to two (or more) factors are related to each other. The closer the correlation to 1.0, the stronger the correlation. Example 1: There is a strong correlation between student engagement and achievement. Example 2: There is a strong correlation between parents who read to their children at a young age and reading ability later in life.

+ Research Designs Experimental Design: Test the effect of an INDEPENDENT VARIABLE on a DEPENDENT VARIABLE. Requirements: Random assignment Treatment group Control group Example: What is the effect of spelling lessons on a child’s ability to spell correctly? Treatment: Receives spelling lessons Control: Receives no spelling lessons Compare performance on spelling test

+ Research Designs Quasi-Experimental Design: Test the effect of an INDEPENDENT VARIABLE on a DEPENDENT VARIABLE, but in a natural or field setting. Requirements: Control group Treatment group Example: What is the affect of playing Mozart on a child’s cognitive development? Treatment group: Listens to Mozart Control group: No Mozart Compare performance on a cognitive task (e.g., word recognition)

+ Research Designs Longitudinal: study an individual or group of people over time Example: Determine if personality characteristics at a young age persist into adulthood Cross-Sectional: Observe or measure people at different developmental stages using the same instrument OR measure people in different groups at the same time.

+ Research Designs Sequential Design: mix of cross-sectional and sequential Year bornYear 1Year 2Year th grade7 th grade8 th grade th grade8 th grade9 th grade th grade9 th grade10 th grade

+ Famous Theorists John Locke ( ): Blank slate Jean-Jacques Rousseau ( ): Novble Savages Charles Darwin ( ): Child development followed the same path as the development of the human species.

+ Famous Theorists G. Stanley Hall ( ) and Arnold Gesell ( ): Normative approach to development Large numbers of age-related averages are computed to represent typical development Alfred Binet ( ): constructed the first successful intelligence test, which is still used today (Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale).

+ Famous Theorists Sigmund Freud ( ): Developed the psychosexual theory. How parents manage their child’s sexual and aggressive drives in the first few years is crucial for healthy personality development. Erik Erikson ( ): Developed psychosocial theory. Similar to Freud’s stages, but focused on social, not sexual, stages

+ Freud and Erikson

+ Famous Theorists Ivan Pavlov: the famous dog experiment John Watson ( ): Little Albert B.F. Skinner ( ): Operant Conditioning Theory Behavior can be modified by how it is rewarded and punished Albert Bandura (1925-Present): Social Learning Theory Children develop and learn by modeling after, or imitating, a care-giver Over time, children develop personal standards and self-efficacy

+ Famous Theorists Jean Piaget ( ): Cognitive-Developmental Theory Children actively construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore the world

+ Famous Theorists Lev Vygotsky ( ): Sociocultural Theory Knowledge, Skills, Values and Beliefs are socially transmitted, or passed down, to each generation. Learning is socially mediated because children rely on adults of more knowledgeable peers to learn new concepts and skills. Zone of Proximal Development: The difference between what children can accomplish independently and with the help of an adult of expert peer.