COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT THEORISTS AND THEORIES
Cognitive theories of development have important implications for childhood educators. Most
theories are based on these principles:
· Adults help children learn.
· Children require a variety of experiences and opportunities to learn.
· Children learn best when their needs are met and they are in a safe and secure
environment.
Let’s start by looking at three cognitive development theorists:
Howard Gardner Jean Piaget Leo Vygotsky
Howard Gardner—Theory of Multiple Intelligences
Gardner, a child psychologist who teaches at Harvard, theorizes that children use a multiple of
intelligences to learn about the world around them. All children have all of the intelligences, but
everyone relies on some more than others.
Use this link find out more about Howard Gardner:
http://psychology.about.com/od/profilesal/p/howard-gardner.htm
This has definite affect in the classroom, because if we can identify children's different strengths
among these intelligences, we can help children be more successful in learning. So far Gardner
has identified nine intelligences and thinks that there may be more yet to be identified.
Take a look at these at http://facultyweb.cortland.edu/andersmd/learning/MI%20Table.htm
1. What two groups of people did Gardner begin his research in cognitive development
on? normal and gifted children and brain-damaged adults
2. What intelligence(s) do you use? Go to this link and take the test.
http://www.bgfl.org/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/
Musical & Interpersonal
What is the way you learn best, according to Gardner’s theory?
Work with others to learn things, visually see/hear things to learn them
Give a real-life example that proves this for you: helpful in school setting to complete group
projects and pick up on new material
Jean Piaget---Theory of Cognitive Development
• Piaget,a Swiss psychologist, studied the similarity between children of different cultures in how
they see and understand the world
Cognitive theories of development have important implications for childhood educators. Most
theories are based on these principles:
· Adults help children learn.
· Children require a variety of experiences and opportunities to learn.
· Children learn best when their needs are met and they are in a safe and secure
environment.
Let’s start by looking at three cognitive development theorists:
Howard Gardner Jean Piaget Leo Vygotsky
Howard Gardner—Theory of Multiple Intelligences
Gardner, a child psychologist who teaches at Harvard, theorizes that children use a multiple of
intelligences to learn about the world around them. All children have all of the intelligences, but
everyone relies on some more than others.
Use this link find out more about Howard Gardner:
http://psychology.about.com/od/profilesal/p/howard-gardner.htm
This has definite affect in the classroom, because if we can identify children's different strengths
among these intelligences, we can help children be more successful in learning. So far Gardner
has identified nine intelligences and thinks that there may be more yet to be identified.
Take a look at these at http://facultyweb.cortland.edu/andersmd/learning/MI%20Table.htm
1. What two groups of people did Gardner begin his research in cognitive development
on? normal and gifted children and brain-damaged adults
2. What intelligence(s) do you use? Go to this link and take the test.
http://www.bgfl.org/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/
Musical & Interpersonal
What is the way you learn best, according to Gardner’s theory?
Work with others to learn things, visually see/hear things to learn them
Give a real-life example that proves this for you: helpful in school setting to complete group
projects and pick up on new material
Jean Piaget---Theory of Cognitive Development
• Piaget,a Swiss psychologist, studied the similarity between children of different cultures in how
they see and understand the world
