1. Through Childhood and Adolescence
The Developing Person
Agreements for the class:
I will try my best to provide you all with opportunity to learn about human development.
2. I will speak respectfully
3. I will listen respectfully and guide the conversation when needed.
4. I will be on time and ready
5. I will try to be timely returning work to you.
I ask that you do the same. We are a community of learners and I ask for respect for you fellow students at all times. I side conversations go on, I will stop class and ask people to stop talking.
Think back to your childhood memories, from the earliest memories through your teen years. Take a few moments to jot down a very young memory (if this is uncomfortable for some of you, you may decide not to participate) – move forward in time to when you were in elementary school – then to middle school, on at last to high school. Jot down a memory or two from each of those times. Share with your neighbor. Get up and share with someone new.
We share similarities and differences
For some of you this was easy and for others, uncomfortable.
Through Childhood and Adolescence

2. What we will cover? What is child development? What about genetics?
What theories have been developed about the developing human?
What about genetics?
How does it all begin? What happens during
pregnancy and birth?
How does a child grow:
Physically (biosocial)?
Cognitively?
Socially and emotionally (psychosocial)?

3. Chapter One: Introduction
The Science of human development:
To understand how and why people – all kinds of people, everywhere, of every age – change over time.
Developmental study is a science:
Theories
Data
Analysis
Critical thinking
Methodology

4. Multidisciplinary Anthropology BIOLOGY Sociology
Scientists from many disciplines study human development: biology, pychology, sociology, anthropology, economics, etc.
Anthropology
Sociology

5. Nature verses Nurture

6. Nature: from the moment of conception, your genetic inheritance.
Nurture: All the environmental influences that affect your development, beginning the moment of conception.
What’s the issue?
How much influence does either one of these have on you.
Personality
Morals IQ
Aggression

7. PLASTIC
Critical periods of growth and sensitive periods: there are times when something MUST occur – if, inutero hands and feet do not develop during specific growth periods, then that part will never be able to grow. Women in the late 50s took a drug for nausea, which ended up causing malformations of limbs – or no limbs. But it only happened if the drug were taken during the period the limbs were being developed.
Sensitive periods mean that something should happen, and if it doesn’t, it may happen, but in a lesser manner. Thank fully are brains have Plasticity
The younger, the more plasticity our brains have to recover from injury. There have been a number of cases where a young child has lost sections or even half of the brain. These young children’s brains adapt and they learn to walk, talk, eat…and develop “normally.”
In 2005, Eric Edmundson was injured in Iraq – sustaining brain injury from schrapnel. His family was told that he would live in a vegetative state for the rest of his life. His family didn’t accept that – and 1 year later he walked out of the hospital with help. The uninjured parts of his brain were adapting. He still cannot speak, but uses a computer to communicate. It took months for him to learn how to eat.

8. ALL KINDS OF PEOPLE Race: distinguished by how we look
Ethnicity: people whose ancestors come from the same geographic area and share a common language, culture and religion.
Culture: values, customs, clothes, homes, foods, assumptions…
Social Constructs: terms like race that are built by a group of people, ex. Teenagers, yuppies, etc.
Socio-economic status

9. Observing changes over time
Butterfly effect - unpredictable
Linear
Continuity (basically stable over time /discontinuity: a change that occurs, such as quitting an addiction or learning a new language
Growth and decline
Stages of growth
Dynamic Systems

10. Ecological Model: Urie Bronfenbrenner

11. Historical Context History – tell story of Dad – no TV, then radio.
I was born in the 50’s – We had a black and white TV – but no electronics
My son was born in 1971 – color TV and 8 track tapes were normal for him.
My daughter was born in the 77s – Atari, pong were the first computer games, still phones were still attached by a cord.
My next daughter was born in mid-80’s. Cordless phones, more video games, beepers to first cell phones.
My grand daughter does face time with her great grandmother! That’s normal for her!
Consider how many of you have cell phones and use them during class…what are the norms that society generates?
Young children have technology that you sitting here didn’t have when you were young.
Families deal with the issues of technology and are impacted by socioeconomics status. Those who have and those who do not – how is a child’s future impacted by his/her economic status.
Historical Context

12. Study of human development is divided into 3 domains: biosocial development, cognitive development and psychosocial development
Though scientists study humans through these domains, development is a holistic experience.