JEAN PIAGETCognitive Development Stages

And Problem Solving

Bio of Jean Piaget

1896-1980 SWISS GENETIC EPISTEMOLOGIST,

PSYCHOLOGIST Piaget is credited with foundational

contributions to the emerging disciplines of child psychology, educational psychology, and cognitive development theory.

His theory

The child’s stage of development sets limits on learning and influences the type of learning that should occur.

Intellectual growth is not a quantitative process but rather a qualitative operation in which there are significant differences between the thinking of children and adolescents as well as between preschool and primary school students.

People are born with a tendency to organize their thinking process (schemes).

Cognitive Stages

Sensorimotor (Birth to about age 2)

Infants rely on their senses to understand the world around them.

They begin to: Make use of imitation, memory and

thought. Recognize that objects do not cease to

exist when they are hidden. Move from reflex actions to goal-directed

activity.

Preoperational (About age 2 to age 7)

Pre-school children develop an increased capacity for symbolic thinking and the use of language and images.

They begin to: Gradually develop use of language and

ability to think in symbolic form. Think operations through logically in one

direction. Have difficulty seeing another person’s

point of view.

Concrete Operational (About age 7 to age 11)

Children think logically and begin to see the world from others' perspective.

They begin to: Be able to solve hands-on problems in

logical ways. Understand laws of conservation and is

able to classify and sequence objects. Understand reversibility.

Formal Operations (About age 11 to Adult)

Hypothetical and abstract reasoning with systematic problem solving and abstract thinking.

They begin to: Solve abstract problems in logical ways. Become more scientific in thinking. Develop concern about social issues,

identity.

A video about the stages

A cool video on the stages (made by a teacher).

The video shows different problem solving techniques learned as a person moves through the stages.

The video works in slideshow mode.

Flaws in his theory

Critics argue that Piaget underestimated the intellectual abilities of preschool children and overestimated the formal thinking skills of adolescents and adults.

Research has found that only about 30 percent of adults could be classified in Piaget’s formal operations stage.

Problem Solving What is problem solving?

Problem solving is a higher-order cognitive process that requires the modulation and control of more routine or fundamental skills.

Problem-solving is a mental process that involves discovering, analyzing and solving problems. The ultimate goal of problem-solving is to overcome obstacles and find a solution that best resolves the issue.

Steps in Problem Solving

1. Identifying the Problem: While it may seem like an obvious step, identifying the problem is not always as simple as it sounds. In some cases, people might mistakenly identify the wrong source of a problem, which will make attempts to solve it inefficient or even useless.

Steps in Problem Solving

2. Defining the Problem: After the problem has been identified, it is important to fully define the problem so that it can be solved.

3. Forming a Strategy: The next step is to develop a strategy to solve the problem. The approach used will vary depending upon the situation and the unique preferences of the individual.

Steps in Problem Solving

4. Organizing Information: Before coming up with a solution, we need to first organize the available information. What do we know about the problem? What do we not know? The more information that is available, the better prepared we will be to come up with an accurate solution.

Steps in Problem Solving

5. Allocating Resources: Before you begin to solve a problem, you need to determine how high priority it is. If it is an important problem, it is probably worth allocating more resources to solving it. If, however, it is a fairly unimportant problem, then you do not want to spend too much of your available resources into coming up with a solution.

Steps in Problem Solving

6. Monitoring Progress: Effective problem-solvers tend to monitor their progress as they work towards a solution. If they are not making good progress toward reaching their goal, they will reevaluate their approach or look for new strategies.

7. Evaluating the Results: After a solution has been reached, it is important to evaluate the results to determine if it is the best possible solution to the problem.

Or try this…

Cognitive Development and Problem Solving

Sensorimotor:

-Problem solving through trial and error.

Cognitive Development and Problem Solving

Preoperational:

-Problem solving that includes sorting by shape, size, color, texture.

Cognitive Development and Problem Solving

Concrete Operational

-Problem Solving that involves sorting, by function.

-Math problem solving as concrete word problems. For example, solving the problem "How many cows does a farmer own if he inherited two, bought ten more, and then sold three?"

Cognitive Development and Problem Solving

Formal Operations

-Problem solving that has deductive reasoning.

-Problem solving that engages hypothetical testing.

Connections

With each development stage, the level of problem solving changes.

Problem solving is not grade-centered, but age-centered.

It is important to understand the stages of cognitive development before incorporating higher level problem solving into curriculums.

References Tommie, Dr. Lawrence. "An Examination of Cognitivism: The Psychology

of Knowledge and Strategies." Learning Theories-A Primer Exercise. N.p., 15 Oct 2004. Web. 20 Sept 2011. http://academics.rmu.edu/~tomei/ed711psy/cognitive.htm

"Piaget, Jean - Introduction." Psychologists and Their Theories. Ed. Kristine Krapp. Gale Cengage, 2005. eNotes.com. 2006. 1 Oct, 2011 http://www.enotes.com/psychology-theories/piaget-jean

"Problem Solving." 2011. Web. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem_solving

Cherry, Kendra. "Problem Solving." About.com, Web. 20 Sept 2011. <http://psychology.about.com/od/problemsolving/f/problem-solving-steps.htm>.