Cognitivism Theory Of Learning

What Do You Mean By Cognitivism

Jean Piaget Authored A Theory Based On The Idea That A Developing Child Builds Cognitive Structures, Mental "Maps", For Understanding And Responding To Physical Experiences Within Their Environment.

Piaget Proposed That A Child's Cognitive Structure Increases In Sophistication With Development, Moving From A Few Innate Reflexes Such As Crying And Sucking To Highly Complex Mental Activities.

Four Developmental Stages Of Piaget's Model

The Four Developmental Stages Of Piaget's Model And The Processes By Which Children Progress Through Them Are:

• The Child Is Not Yet Able To Conceptualize Abstractly And Needs Concrete Physical Situations.
• As Physical Experience Accumulates, The Child Starts To Conceptualize, Creating Logical Structures That Explain Their Physical Experiences.
• Abstract Problem Solving Is Possible At This Stage.
• For Example, Arithmetic Equations Can Be Solved With Numbers, Not Just With Objects. By This Point, The Child's Cognitive Structures Are Like Those Of An Adult And Include Conceptual Reasoning.

The Four Developmental Stages Of Piaget's Model Are:

1. Sensorimotor Stage (Birth - 2 Years Old)
2. Preoperational Stage(Ages 2 - 7)
3. Concrete Operational Stage(Ages 7 - 11)
4. Formal Operational Stage (Beginning At Ages 11 - 15)

Piaget Proposed That During All Development Stages, The Child Experiences Their Environment Using Whatever Mental Maps They Have Constructed. If The Experience Is A Repeated One, It Fits Easily - Or Is Assimilated - Into The Child's Cognitive Structure So That They Maintain Mental "Equilibrium".

If The Experience Is Different Or New, The Child Loses Equilibrium, And Alters Their Cognitive Structure To Accommodate The New Conditions.

In This Way, The Child Constructs Increasingly Complex Cognitive Structures.

How Piaget's Theory Impacts Learning: ( Educational Implications of Cognitivism Theory of Learning)

• Curriculum - Educators Must Plan A Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum That Enhances Their Students' Logical And Conceptual Growth.
• Instruction - Teachers Must Emphasize The Critical Role That Experiences, Or Interactions With The Surrounding Environment, Play In Student Learning. For Example, Instructors Have To Take Into Account The Role That Fundamental Concepts, Such As The Permanence Of Objects, Play In Establishing Cognitive Structures.