Piaget In Education

Web Address: http://www.healthline.com/galecontent/piaget-jean-1896

Theorist: Jean Piaget

Annotation/Summary: Jean Piaget was one of the most influential researchers in the area of developmental psychology during the 20th century. Piaget originally trained in the areas of biology and philosophy. He was mainly interested in the biological influences on "how we come to know." He believed that what distinguishes human beings from other animals is our ability to do "abstract symbolic reasoning." Piaget became interested in how children think while working at the Benet IQ labs in Paris, France. Piaget believed that children of younger ages thought qualitatively different than older children suggesting to him that they weren’t dumber but had a completely different thought process than older children.

As a biologist, Piaget was interested in how an organism adapts to its environment (Piaget described as intelligence.) Behavior (adaptation to the environment) is controlled through mental organizations called schemes that the individual uses to represent the world and designate action. This adaptation is driven by a biological drive to obtain balance between schemes and the environment (equilibration).

Piaget described two processes used by the individual in its attempt to adapt: assimilation and accommodation. Both of these processes are used throughout life as the person increasingly adapts to the environment in a more complex manner. As schemes become increasingly more complex (i.e., responsible for more complex behaviors) they are termed structures. As one's structures become more complex, they are organized in a hierarchical manner (i.e., from general to specific).

Piaget termed four different invariant stages of cognitive development in children. The first of Piaget’s theory is the sensorimotor stage in which a child represents intelligence through motor movement without the use of symbols. Next comes the preoperational stage in which child intelligence is demonstrated through the use of symbols, language use matures, and memory and imagination are developed, but thinking is done in a nonlogical, nonreversible manner. Egocentric thinking predominates During the third stage (concrete operational stage), intelligence is demonstrated through logical and systematic manipulation of symbols related to concrete objects. Operational thinking develops (mental actions that are reversible). Egocentric thought diminishes. Last is the formal operational stage in which intelligence is demonstrated through the logical use of symbols related to abstract concepts. Early in the period there is a return to egocentric thought. Only 35% of high school graduates in industrialized countries obtain formal operations; sadly, many people do not think formally during adulthood.

Recommendation/Insights: Even though Piaget is a well respected psychologist and amassed many hours of research into his theory, there are reasons for caution: He overemphasis and attributes most failures and successes of logical structure as explanations for behavior and underemphasis the possibility that our knowledge is also socially constructed and transmitted.

This website gives users a general understanding of Piaget’s theory. Simplistically, the steps to his theory are very well organized and broken down for easy understanding. Good website.

Web Address: //www.learningandteaching.info/learning/piaget.htm

Theorist: Jean Piaget

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