CHILD AND

ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT
Looking at Learners at Different Life Stages

MA. ROCHELLE F. CABRALES

 PREFACE

This is a module on child and adolescent development. It consists of two

main parts. Each part is subdivided into Units which are in turn subdivided into
Modules.

Part I serves as an Introduction to the whole of child and adolescent. It

has two Units, the first of which introduces the Basic Concepts and Issues on
Human Development while the second discusses selected Developmental
Theories namely: Freud’s Psychoanalytic theory, Erikson’s Psychosocial theory,
Piaget’s Cognitive theory, Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development, Vygotsky’s
Socio-cultural theory and Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological theory.

Part II dwells on the Development of the Learners at Various Stages. It is

likewise subdivided into six units that correspond to six developmental stages
namely: Pre-natal period, Infancy and Toddlerhood, Early Childhood, Middle
Childhood, Late Childhood and Adolescence.

The inclusion of the development in the pre-natal and Infancy periods was
deemed necessary for a better understanding of the preschooler, the primary,
elementary and the high schoolers. After all, much of who they are physically,
cognitively and socio emotionally as learners may have its roots in their
beginnings and in their infancy.
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the people who have

helped me as I write this module: for the support, inspiration, encouragement,
and patience in dealing with me.

I would like to thank the College of Teacher Education for trusting me to

write this module; Dr. Christopher F. Bueno for believing in my capacity; and Dr.
Efren U. Galapon, Dr. Jeanina B. Batin for being very patient and understanding.

Special thanks to my husband, Jensen C. Cabrales, and my loving child

Zymon Niccolo F. Cabrales, for their inspiration throughout the writing of this
module, for patiently assisting with words of assurance and endured unending
love to me.

Last but not the least, I thank God for the gift of life, health, and talent he
has showered me. Truly, with God there is nothing impossible.

MA. ROCHELLE F. CABRALES

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface ………………………………………………………………………………… iii

Acknowledgment …………………………………………………………………… iv

Part I- Introduction ………………………………………………………………… 1

Unit 1- Basic Concepts and Issues on Human Development ……………1

Module 1 – Human Development: Meaning, Concepts

and Approaches ………………………………………………………2
Module 2 – The Stages of Development and
Developmental Tasks ………………………………………………14
Module 3- Issues on Human Development ……………………………………30
Module 4- Research in Child and Adolescent Development……….…... 36
Unit 2- Developmental Theories and other Relevant Theories ………. 53

Module 5 -Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory ……………………………………53

Module 6- Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development …………………….64
Module 7- Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory of Development ……………..76
Module 8- Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development ………………………99
Module 9- Vygotsky’s Socio-cultural Theory ……………………………….106
Module 10- Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Theory ………………………….113
Part II- Development of the Learners at Various Stages …………………120
Unit 1- Pre-natal Period…………………………………………………………….120
Module 11 – Pre-natal Development …………………………………………..120
Unit 2- Infancy and Toddlerhood ………………………………………………136
Module 12- Physical Development of Infants and Toddlers ……………137
 OVERVIEW

Vision of the University

A globally recognized university in a heritage city by 2030.

Mission of the University

To produced globally skilled and morally upright professionals instilled with rich cultural
values.
Core Values

Selfless Service. We put the welfare of our stakeholders and the university before our own by
placing loyalty to the values of the university before personal gain.

Excellence. We are committed to deliver the level of expectations of our stakeholders based on global
standards of academic and service. We strive to develop competence and skills among the students,
faculty, and staff so that they can help in the growth and development of the country.

Respect and Righteousness. A manifestation of how we treat other people and situation. We are doing
what is right in the eyes of God.

Innovation. We continuously improve and be responsive to the changing times.

Altruism. We value people. We set ourselves as model of sincerity and unselfishness to others.

Integrity. We are honest, fair and we will do right to everybody at all times

Transparency and Teamwork. We build a culture of transparency by creating a clear communication

channels, a visible action and by building a team of engaged employees.

Goal of the College

To prepare globally competent teachers and librarians imbued with the deals of Philippine Education

Objectives of the College

The College aims to produce teachers who are:
1. Equipped with concepts, technical, pedagogical, and leadership skills;
2. Capable of conducting relevant researches aimed at improving the teaching-learning process in
coordination with research agencies within and outside the country on the UNP Research Agenda;
3. Able to undertake research-based extension activities aimed at improving the quality of instruction at
different levels; and
4.Self-reliant.
Program Outcomes

To produce globally competent and competitive graduates who can:

1. demonstrate the competencies required of the Philippine TVET Trainers- Assessors Qualifications
Framework (PTTQF);
2. display extensive and comprehensive knowledge and skills in technology and livelihood education
with minimal supervision;
3. exhibit higher level literacy, communication, numeracy, ICT, critical thinking, learning skills needed
for higher learning;
4. manifest a deep and principled understanding on the role of the teacher in facilitating the teaching and
learning process;
5. show a profound and principled understanding of how educational processes relate to larger historical,
social, cultural and political processes;
6. established a wide range of teaching process skills (including curriculum development, lesson
planning, material development, educational assessment and teaching approaches);
7. reflect on relationships among the teaching process skill, the learning processing in the students, the
nature of the content/subject matter, and other factors affecting educational processes in order to
constantly improve their teaching knowledge, skills and practices;
8. demonstrate a service orientation in one’s profession;
9. participate in various types of employment, development activities, and public discourses, particularly
in response to the needs of communities one serves; and
10. generate new knowledge in research and latest development projects in specific field of practice in
Technology and Livelihood Education.
 UNIT 1 Basic Concepts and Issues on Human Development

Introduction

Every living creature is called to become what it is meant to be. The caterpillar is
meant to become a butterfly; a seed into a full-grown herb, bush or tree; and a human baby into
a mature person, the person “who is fully alive, the glory of God” in the words of St. Irenaeus.
A number of researches on human development have been conducted. A lot of
theories on human development have been forwarded. Researchers on human development
continue as existing theories get corrected, complemented or replaced. Up to the present
several issues on human development are unresolved and so the search for explanations
continue.
In this unit, you will be acquainted with human development as a process, the
developmental tasks that come along with each developmental stage and relevant issues that
are raised about human development.

MODULE 1 Human Development: Meaning, Concepts and Approaches

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
define human development in your own words.
draw some principles of human development,
distinguish two approaches to human development.

Introduction
As you read this module and do the activity in your small groups, you are undergoing the
process of development. What principles govern this development proven? What do experts say about
development? These are the concerns of this module.

Activity
Here are pictures of Niza and Niccolò. Each one is a bundle of possibilities. Describe what they were
before birth (their point of origin) and who they will possibly be after birth unto childhood. What will
they possibly become? Expound your answers.

Analysis

After listening to the predictions given by each member of the group, answer the
following questions:
1. When you gave your own predictions as to the kind of child, adolescent and
adult Niza and Niccolo may become and hypothesized on who they once were,
you were referring to human development. What then is development?
2. Will there be anything common in the pattern of development of Niza and
Niccolo? If yes, what?
3. Will there be differences in their development, e.g. pace or rate of development?
What and Why?
4. Will the process of development take place very fast or gradually? Expound on
your answer.
5. Do you believe that Niza and Niccolo will continue to develop even in adulthood?
Or will they stop developing in adulthood?

Abstraction

Meaning of Human Development

 Human development is the pattern of movement or change that begins at
conception and continues through the life span. Development includes growth and
decline. This means that development can be positive or negative (Santrock, 2002).
Some major principles of human development
Here are some major principles of human development
1. Development is relatively orderly.
Niza and Niccolo will learn to sit, crawl then walk before they can run.
The muscular control of the trunk and the arms comes earlier as
compared to the hands and fingers. This is the proximodistal pattern.
During infancy, the greatest growth always occurs at the top- the head-
with physical growth in size, weight and future differentiation gradually
working its way down from top to bottom (for example, neck, shoulders,
middle trunk and so on). This is the cephalo-caudal pattern.
By understanding how characteristics develop, we can make relatively
accurate and useful predictions about learners and design effective
instructional strategies based on our knowledge of development
(Santrock,2002).

2. While the pattern of development is likely to be similar, the outcomes of

developmental process and the rate of development are likely to vary
among individuals.
What we shared in the small group discussion on what Niza and Niccolo
may become were premised on many “ifs”. Meaning if they come from a
good home with loving and caring parents they may develop into warm
and responsible children, adolescents and adults. If they come from a
deprived environment, they may develop into carefree and irresponsible
adolescents and adults.
Niza may develop faster and more favorably that Niccolo due to
differences in heredity and environment. Since heredity and environment
are different for different people, it seems obvious that individuals will
encounter factors that make them different from other individuals. As a
result, we can expect individual differences in developmental
characteristics and variation in the ages when people will experience
events that will influence their development.
3. Development takes place gradually.
Niza and Niccolo won’t develop into simply teenagers overnight. It takes
years before they become one. In fact, that’s the way of nature. The bud
does not bloom suddenly. The seed does not germinate overnight. While
some changes occur in a flash of insight, more often it takes weeks,
months, or years for a person to undergo changes that result in the
display of developmental characteristics.
4. Development as a process is complex because it is the product of
biological, cognitive and socioemotional processes.
Biological processes involve changes in the individual’s physical nature.
The brains of Niza and Niccolo develop. They will gain height and weight.
They will experience hormonal changes when they reach the period of
 puberty, and cardiovascular decline as they approach late adulthood. All
these show the biological processes in development.
Cognitive processes involve changes in the individual’s thought,
intelligence and language. Niza and Niccolo develop from mere sounds to
a word becoming two words, the two words becoming a sentence. They
would move on to memorizing their first prayer, singing Lupang Hinirang
in every flag ceremony to imagining what it would be like to be a teacher
or a pilot, playing chess and solving a complex math problem. All these
reflect the role of cognitive processes in development.
Socioemotional process includes changes in the individual’s relationships
with other people, changes in emotions, and changes in personality. As
babies, Niza and Niccolo responded with a sweet smile when affectionately
touched and frowned when displeased and even showed temper tantrum
when they could not get or do what they wanted. From aggressive
children, they may develop into a fine lady and a gentleman or otherwise,
depending on a myriad of factors. They may fall in love and get inspired
for life or may end up betrayed, deserted and desperate afterwards. All
these reflect the role of socioemotional processes in development.
These biological, cognitive and socioemotional processes are inextricably
intertwined. While these processes are studied separately, the effect of one
process are studied separately, the effect of one process or factor on a
person’s development is not isolated from the other processes. If Niccolo
and Niza were undernourished and troubled by the thought of father and
mother about to separate, they could not concentrate on their studies and
consequently would fail and repeat. As consequence, they may lose face
and drop out of school, revert to illiteracy, become unskilled, unemployed
and so on and so forth. See how a biological process, affects the cognitive
process which in turn, affects the socioemotional process.

Two approaches to human development

If you believe that Niza and Niccolo will show extensive change from
birth to adolescence, little or no change in adulthood and decline in late old age,
your approach to development is traditional. In contrast, if you believe that even
in adulthood developmental change takes place as it does during childhood,
your approach is termed life-span approach.
What are the characteristics of the life span perspective? Paul Baltes (Satrock,
2002), an expert in life-span development, gives the following characteristics:
1. Development is lifelong. It does not end in adulthood. No developmental
stage dominates development.
2. Development is multidimensional. Development consists of biological,
cognitive, and socio-emotional dimensions.
3. Development is plastic. Development is possible throughout the life-span.
4. Development is contextual. Individuals are changing begins in a changing
world.
5. Development involves growth, maintenance and regulation. Growth,
maintenance and regulation are three goals of human development. The
 goals of individuals vary among developmental stages. For instance, as
individuals reach middle and late adulthood, concern with growth gets into
the back stage while maintenance and regulation take the center stage.

Principles of child development and learning that inform practice

Below are the principles of child development and learning which are the bases of
developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) in early childhood program for children
from birth through age 8, which were stated in the position paper of the National
Association for the Education of Young Children (2009). They affirm the principles of
human development and characteristics of life-span development approach we just
discuss. Find out which one is a re-statement of the principles of human development.
1. All the domains of development and learning-physical, social and emotional,
and cognitive are important, and they are closely interrelated. Children’s
development and learning in one domain influence and are influenced by what
takes place in other domains.
2. Many aspects of children’s learning and development follow well documented
sequences, with later abilities, skills and knowledge building on those already
acquired.
3. Development and learning proceed at varying rates from child to child, as well
as at uneven rates across different areas of a child’s individual functioning.
4. Development and learning result from a dynamic and continuous interaction of
biological maturation and experience.
5. Early experiences have profound effects, both cumulative and delayed, on a
child’s development and learning; and optimal periods exist for certain types of
development and learning to occur.
6. Development proceeds toward greater complexity, self-regulation, and symbolic
or representational capacities.
7. Children develop best when they have secure, consistent relationships with
responsive adults and opportunities for positive relationships with peers.
8. Develop and learning occur in and are influenced by multiple social and
cultural contexts.
9. Always mentally active in seeking to understand the world around them,
children learn in a variety of ways; a wide range of teaching strategies and
interactions are effective in supporting all these kinds of learning.
10. Play is an important vehicle for developing self-regulation as well as for
promoting language cognition, and social competence.
11. Development and learning advance when children are challenged to
achieve at a level just beyond their current mastery, and also when they have
many opportunities to practice newly acquired skills.
12. Children’s experiences shape their motivation and approaches to learning,
such as persistence, initiative, and flexibility; in turn, these dispositions and
behaviors affect their learning and development.

Application
 Put a check before a correct statement and a before a wrong one. If you put,
explain why.
_______1. Development is a pattern of change.
________ 2. Development is either growth or decline.
________ 3. From both traditional and life-span perspectives development is
lifelong.
________ 4. In the development process, there are things that hold true to all
people.
________ 5. Individuals develop uniformly.
________ 6. Development is predictable because it follows an orderly process.
________ 7. Development is unidimensional.
________ 8. Development takes place in a vacuum.
________ 9. The effect of biological process on development is isolated from the
effect of cognitive and socioemotional process.
________ 10. The direction of growth following the cephalocaudal pattern is from
top to the bottom.

Corpuz, B. B., Lucas, M.R.D., Borabo, H.G.L., Lucido, P. I., (2015) Child and Adolescent
Development. Lorimar Publishing Inc.
References
https://www.scribd.com/ presentation /425236442/ Module-1-Human-Development-Meaning-
Concepts-and-Approaches-pptx