COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN: THEORIES IN A
SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT
*************************************************************************************
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. INTRODUCTION: 2
2. AN OVERVIEW OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT`: 2
2.1. Importance of Cognitive Development in Children: 2
2.2. Factors Influencing Cognitive Development: 3
2.3. Cognitive Development in South Africa: 3
3. VYGOTSKY’S ZONE OF PROXIMAL DEVELOPMENT: 4
3.1. The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): 4
3.2. Scaffolding: 5
4. PIAGET’S THEORY OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT: 5
4.1. Piaget’s Perspective of the Child: 5
4.2. Piaget’s Stages of Development: 6
4.3. Key Concepts: 7
5. COMPARISON BETWEEN VYGOTSKY AND
PIAGET’S THEORIES: 8
6. CONCLUSION: 9
REFERENCES: 9
, COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN: THEORIES IN A SOUTH
AFRICAN CONTEXT
INTRODUCTION:
Children learn from very early in life. Babies rely on basic senses to recognise their
mothers’ voices and smells. They first learn to crawl and then how to walk. The
acquirement of knowledge and skills is a process. Early childhood development
focusses on the development of different areas; cognitive, socio-emotional, physical,
and language. Cognitive development is the development of the child’s ability to
acquire, process and apply knowledge. The skills developed in this area include
problem solving, critical and creative thinking. Studies have provided evidence that the
child’s ability is dependent on different time periods in his life which are affected by
physical and neuropsychological growth, which refers to developmental milestones. The
importance of cognitive development is researched by outlining the key concepts of
cognitive development noted by Vygotsky and Piaget’s prominent work on childhood
development. Cognitive development within a South-African context is explored and the
factors influencing its development also outlined.
AN OVERVIEW OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT:
The Importance of Cognitive Development in Children
Cognitive development in children are essential for children to acquire the skills
necessary to process thoughts, gain knowledge, remember knowledge acquired and
apply the knowledge to solving problems, and thinking critically and creatively. These
skills are necessary to function in the world as we know it today. From earlier years
children learn to recognise colours and remember them, to link different colours to
different objects; for example bananas are yellow. They learn how to count, thus
mathematical skills enable them to make calculations about the world around them;
being able to determine whether or not the correct amount of change has been given at
SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT
*************************************************************************************
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. INTRODUCTION: 2
2. AN OVERVIEW OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT`: 2
2.1. Importance of Cognitive Development in Children: 2
2.2. Factors Influencing Cognitive Development: 3
2.3. Cognitive Development in South Africa: 3
3. VYGOTSKY’S ZONE OF PROXIMAL DEVELOPMENT: 4
3.1. The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): 4
3.2. Scaffolding: 5
4. PIAGET’S THEORY OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT: 5
4.1. Piaget’s Perspective of the Child: 5
4.2. Piaget’s Stages of Development: 6
4.3. Key Concepts: 7
5. COMPARISON BETWEEN VYGOTSKY AND
PIAGET’S THEORIES: 8
6. CONCLUSION: 9
REFERENCES: 9
, COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT IN CHILDREN: THEORIES IN A SOUTH
AFRICAN CONTEXT
INTRODUCTION:
Children learn from very early in life. Babies rely on basic senses to recognise their
mothers’ voices and smells. They first learn to crawl and then how to walk. The
acquirement of knowledge and skills is a process. Early childhood development
focusses on the development of different areas; cognitive, socio-emotional, physical,
and language. Cognitive development is the development of the child’s ability to
acquire, process and apply knowledge. The skills developed in this area include
problem solving, critical and creative thinking. Studies have provided evidence that the
child’s ability is dependent on different time periods in his life which are affected by
physical and neuropsychological growth, which refers to developmental milestones. The
importance of cognitive development is researched by outlining the key concepts of
cognitive development noted by Vygotsky and Piaget’s prominent work on childhood
development. Cognitive development within a South-African context is explored and the
factors influencing its development also outlined.
AN OVERVIEW OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT:
The Importance of Cognitive Development in Children
Cognitive development in children are essential for children to acquire the skills
necessary to process thoughts, gain knowledge, remember knowledge acquired and
apply the knowledge to solving problems, and thinking critically and creatively. These
skills are necessary to function in the world as we know it today. From earlier years
children learn to recognise colours and remember them, to link different colours to
different objects; for example bananas are yellow. They learn how to count, thus
mathematical skills enable them to make calculations about the world around them;
being able to determine whether or not the correct amount of change has been given at
