COURSE MODULE Don Carlos Polytechnic College

Module week 4

Poblacion Norte, Don Carlos, Bukidnon

College of Education
EDUC 1: The Child and Adolescent Learners and Learning Principles
Semester of A.Y. 2021-2022

Introduction

This module will explore Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.

Intended Learning Outcomes

A. Discuss Piaget’s stages of development.

Activity

Brief Lecture: with the aid of a powerpoint with narration

Panel discussion via zoom on the topics

Discussion

PIAGET’S STAGES OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

 Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that children move through four different
stages of mental development. His theory focuses not only on understanding how children acquire
knowledge, but also on understanding the nature of intelligence.1 Piaget's stages are:

 Sensorimotor stage: birth to 2 years

 Preoperational stage: ages 2 to 7
 Concrete operational stage: ages 7 to 11
 Formal operational stage: ages 12 and up

Piaget believed that children take an active role in the learning process, acting much like little
scientists as they perform experiments, make observations, and learn about the world. As kids
interact with the world around them, they continually add new knowledge, build upon existing
knowledge, and adapt previously held ideas to accommodate new information.

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COURSE MODULE How Piaget Developed the Theory
Module week 4

Piaget was born in Switzerland in the late 1800s and was a precocious student, publishing his first
scientific paper when he was just 11 years old. His early exposure to the intellectual development of
children came when he worked as an assistant to Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon as they worked
to standardize their famous IQ test.

Much of Piaget's interest in the cognitive development of children was inspired by his observations
of his own nephew and daughter. These observations reinforced his budding hypothesis that
children's minds were not merely smaller versions of adult minds.

Up until this point in history, children were largely treated simply as smaller versions of adults.
Piaget was one of the first to identify that the way that children think is different from the way adults
think.

Instead, he proposed, intelligence is something that grows and develops through a series of stages.
Older children do not just think more quickly than younger children, he suggested. Instead, there are
both qualitative and quantitative differences between the thinking of young children versus older
children.

Based on his observations, he concluded that children were not less intelligent than adults, they
simply think differently. Albert Einstein called Piaget's discovery "so simple only a genius could
have thought of it."

Piaget's stage theory describes the cognitive development of children. Cognitive development

involves changes in cognitive process and abilities. 2 In Piaget's view, early cognitive development
involves processes based upon actions and later progresses to changes in mental operations.
The Stages

Through his observations of his children, Piaget developed a stage theory of intellectual development
that included four distinct stages:

The Sensorimotor Stage

Ages: Birth to 2 Years

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 The infant knows the world through their movements and sensations
 Children learn about the world through basic actions such as sucking, grasping, looking, and
listening
 Infants learn that things continue to exist even though they cannot be seen (object
permanence)
 They are separate beings from the people and objects around them
 They realize that their actions can cause things to happen in the world around them

During this earliest stage of cognitive development, infants and toddlers acquire knowledge through
sensory experiences and manipulating objects. A child's entire experience at the earliest period of this
stage occurs through basic reflexes, senses, and motor responses.

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COURSE MODULE Module week 4

It is during the sensorimotor stage that children go through a period of dramatic growth and learning.
As kids interact with their environment, they are continually making new discoveries about how the
world works.

The cognitive development that occurs during this period takes place over a relatively short period of
time and involves a great deal of growth. Children not only learn how to perform physical actions
such as crawling and walking; they also learn a great deal about language from the people with
whom they interact. Piaget also broke this stage down into a number of different substages. It is
during the final part of the sensorimotor stage that early representational thought emerges.

Piaget believed that developing object permanence or object constancy, the understanding that
objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen, was an important element at this point of
development.

By learning that objects are separate and distinct entities and that they have an existence of their own
outside of individual perception, children are then able to begin to attach names and words to objects.

The Sensorimotor Stage of Cognitive Development

The Preoperational Stage
Ages: 2 to 7 Years

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 Children begin to think symbolically and learn to use words and pictures to represent objects.
 Children at this stage tend to be egocentric and struggle to see things from the perspective of
others.
 While they are getting better with language and thinking, they still tend to think about things
in very concrete terms.

The foundations of language development may have been laid during the previous stage, but it is the
emergence of language that is one of the major hallmarks of the preoperational stage of
development.3
Children become much more skilled at pretend play during this stage of development, yet continue to
think very concretely about the world around them. 
At this stage, kids learn through pretend play but still struggle with logic and taking the point of view
of other people. They also often struggle with understanding the idea of constancy.
For example, a researcher might take a lump of clay, divide it into two equal pieces, and then give a
child the choice between two pieces of clay to play with. One piece of clay is rolled into a compact
ball while the other is smashed into a flat pancake shape. Since the flat shape looks larger, the
preoperational child will likely choose that piece even though the two pieces are exactly the same
size.
Preoperational Stage of Cognitive Development in Young Children
The Concrete Operational Stage
Ages: 7 to 11 Years

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes

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COURSE MODULE Module week 4

 During this stage, children begin to thinking logically about concrete events
 They begin to understand the concept of conservation; that the amount of liquid in a short,
wide cup is equal to that in a tall, skinny glass, for example
 Their thinking becomes more logical and organized, but still very concrete
 Children begin using inductive logic, or reasoning from specific information to a general
principle

While children are still very concrete and literal in their thinking at this point in development, they
become much more adept at using logic.2 The egocentrism of the previous stage begins to disappear
as kids become better at thinking about how other people might view a situation.
While thinking becomes much more logical during the concrete operational state, it can also be very
rigid. Kids at this point in development tend to struggle with abstract and hypothetical concepts.

During this stage, children also become less egocentric and begin to think about how other people
might think and feel. Kids in the concrete operational stage also begin to understand that their
thoughts are unique to them and that not everyone else necessarily shares their thoughts, feelings,
and opinions.

The Concrete Operational Stage in Cognitive Development

The Formal Operational Stage
Ages: 12 and Up

Major Characteristics and Developmental Changes:

 At this stage, the adolescent or young adult begins to think abstractly and reason about
hypothetical problems
 Abstract thought emerges
 Teens begin to think more about moral, philosophical, ethical, social, and political issues that
require theoretical and abstract reasoning
 Begin to use deductive logic, or reasoning from a general principle to specific information

The final stage of Piaget's theory involves an increase in logic, the ability to use deductive reasoning,
and an understanding of abstract ideas.3 At this point, people become capable of seeing multiple
potential solutions to problems and think more scientifically about the world around them.
The ability to thinking about abstract ideas and situations is the key hallmark of the formal
operational stage of cognitive development. The ability to systematically plan for the future and
reason about hypothetical situations are also critical abilities that emerge during this stage. 
It is important to note that Piaget did not view children's intellectual development as a quantitative
process; that is, kids do not just add more information and knowledge to their existing knowledge as
they get older. Instead, Piaget suggested that there is a qualitative change in how children think as
they gradually process through these four stages.4 A child at age 7 doesn't just have more information
about the world than he did at age 2; there is a fundamental change in how he thinks about the world.
Formal Operational Stage of Cognitive Development
Important Concepts

To better understand some of the things that happen during cognitive development, it is important

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COURSE MODULE Module week 4

first to examine a few of the important ideas and concepts introduced by Piaget.

The following are some of the factors that influence how children learn and grow:

Schemas

A schema describes both the mental and physical actions involved in understanding and knowing.
Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world.

In Piaget's view, a schema includes both a category of knowledge and the process of obtaining that
knowledge.3 As experiences happen, this new information is used to modify, add to, or change
previously existing schemas.

For example, a child may have a schema about a type of animal, such as a dog. If the child's sole
experience has been with small dogs, a child might believe that all dogs are small, furry, and have
four legs. Suppose then that the child encounters an enormous dog. The child will take in this new
information, modifying the previously existing schema to include these new observations.

Exercise

Create a reflection employing CERA.

Assessment

Reflection employing Content, Experience, Reaction and Application ( CERA) with rubrics

Critical essay ( Rubrics will be provided in

the Platform- Google Classroom)

Reflection
What are the significant experiences that you went through in every stage of your life?

Resources and Additional Resources

https://www.verywellmind.com/piagets-stages-of-cognitive-development-2795457
Additional Resources

Attachment 1

Rubrics for Essay writing

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 Fair Good Excellent
(N/A) (N/A) (N/A)
COURSE MODULE Module week 4

Opening Statement Fair Good Excellent

0-19 20-24 25-30

30 points maximum Opening Good Strong opening statement.
statement opening
lacked in statement. Topical and substantive
substance. arguments.
Some strong
Opening arguments Well organized and presented
statement presented. arguments.
lacked in
clarity. Needed High level of analytical rigor.
more
Opening organization.
statement
needed Needed a
significant higher level
increase in of analysis.
analytical
rigor. Needed
more
substance.
Clarity Fair Good Excellent

0-5 6-7 8-10

10 points Maximum Arguments Could have Excellent job in this area.
lacked better
clarity. clarified Clear and intelligible arguments.
your
Many points arguments Excellent clarification of your
were for the points within the discussion.
inconsistent. group.

Did not Some

effectively arguments
clarify were not
points/argum consistent.
ents during
the Good
discussion. clarification
of your
points during
the
discussion.
Argumentation/Style Fair Good Excellent

0-5 6-7 8-10

10
6 |points
P a g emaximum Need more Good job in Excellent job in this area.
engagement this area.
with the Persuasive argumentation.
larger Argumentati
COURSE MODULE Module week 4

Attachment 2

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COURSE MODULE Reflection Evaluation Criteria (the rubric)
Module week 4

Example of one Type of Rubric for a paper

Criteria Superior (54-60 Sufficient (48-53 Minimal (1-47 Unacceptable (0

points) points) points) points)

Depth of Response Response Response Response

Reflection demonstrates an in- demonstrates a demonstrates a demonstrates a
depth reflection on, general reflection on, minimal lack of reflection
and personalization and personalization reflection on, and on, or
of, the theories, of, the theories, personalization personalization of,
(25% of concepts, and/or concepts, and/or of, the theories, the theories,
TTL Points) strategies presented strategies presented in concepts, and/or concepts, and/or
in the course the course materials strategies strategies
materials to date. to date. Viewpoints presented in the presented in the
Viewpoints and and interpretations are course materials course materials to
___/15 interpretations are supported. to date. date. Viewpoints
insightful and well Appropriate examples Viewpoints and and interpretations
supported. Clear, are provided, as interpretations are are missing,
detailed examples applicable. unsupported or inappropriate,
are provided, as supported with and/or
applicable. flawed unsupported.
arguments. Examples, when
Examples, when applicable, are not
applicable, are not provided.
provided or are
irrelevant to the
assignment.
Required Response includes Response includes all Response is Response excludes
Components all components and components and missing some essential
meets or exceeds all meets all components components and/or
requirements requirements and/or does not does not address
indicated in the indicated in the fully meet the the requirements
(25% of instructions. Each instructions. Each requirements indicated in the
TTL Points) question or part of question or part of the indicated in the instructions. Many
the assignment is assignment is instructions. parts of the
addressed addressed. All Some questions assignment are
thoroughly. All attachments and/or or parts of the addressed
___/15 attachments and/or additional documents assignment are minimally,
additional documents are included, as not addressed. inadequately,
are included, as required. Some attachments and/or not at all.
required. and additional
documents, if
required, are
missing or

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COURSE MODULE Module week 4
unsuitable for the
purpose of the
assignment.
Structure Writing is clear, Writing is mostly Writing is unclear Writing is unclear
concise, and well clear, concise, and and/or and disorganized.
organized with well organized with disorganized. Thoughts ramble
excellent good Thoughts are not and make little
(25% of sentence/paragraph sentence/paragraph expressed in a sense. There are
TTL Points) construction. construction. logical manner. numerous spelling,
Thoughts are Thoughts are There are more grammar, or
expressed in a expressed in a than five spelling, syntax errors
coherent and logical coherent and logical grammar, or throughout the
___/15 manner. There are no manner. There are no syntax errors per response.
more than three more than five page of writing.
spelling, grammar, or spelling, grammar, or
syntax errors per syntax errors per page
page of writing. of writing.
Evidence Response shows Response shows Response shows Response shows
and Practice strong evidence of evidence of synthesis little evidence of no evidence of
synthesis of ideas of ideas presented and synthesis of ideas synthesis of ideas
presented and insights gained presented and presented and
insights gained throughout the entire insights gained insights gained
(25% of throughout the entire course. The throughout the throughout the
TTL Points) course. The implications of these entire course. Few entire course. No
implications of these insights for the implications of implications for
insights for the respondent's overall these insights for the respondent's
respondent's overall teaching practice are the respondent's overall teaching
___/15 teaching practice are presented, as overall teaching practice are
thoroughly detailed, applicable. practice are presented, as
as applicable. presented, as applicable.
applicable.

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