Cognitive Development

Goal:
To develop language skills of teachers and integrate what they have read into what they have
understood in discover the problem situation of students.
Objective:
1. By the end of the class, students will be able to identify some keywords about students’
cognitive development.
2. By the end of the class, students will be able to understand cognitive development are
formed.
[Post Task] Warming-Up
The teacher will explain the material that need to be disscussed, the material will be about :
1. The theory of cognitive development;
2. How cognitive development are formed;
3. The situation problem of cognitive development.

[Main Task] Reading Activity

Activity 1 : The Theory of Cognitive Development
The most well-known and influential theory of cognitive development is that of French
psychologist Jean Piaget (1896–1980). According to Piaget, cognitive development involves an
ongoing attempt to achieve a balance between assimilation and accommodation that he termed
equilibration. At the center of Piaget's theory is the principle that cognitive development occurs
in a series of four distinct, universal stages, each characterized by increasingly sophisticated and
abstract levels of thought. These stages always occur in the same order, and each builds on what
was learned in the previous stage. They are as follows:
- Sensorimotor stage (infancy); infants begin learning to use their senses to explore the
world around them. Most newborns can focus on and follow moving objects,
distinguish the pitch and volume of sound, see all colors and distinguish their hue and
brightness, and start anticipating events, such as sucking at the sight of a nipple. By
three months old, infants can recognize faces; imitate the facial expressions of others,
such as smiling and frowning; and respond to familiar sounds.
- Pre-operational stage (toddlerhood and early childhood); toddlers have reached the
"sensorimotor" stage of Piaget's theory of cognitive development that involves
rudimentary thought. For instance, they understand the permanence of objects and
people, visually follow the displacement of objects, and begin to use instruments and
tools. Toddlers start to strive for more independence, which can present challenges to
 parents concerned for their safety. They also understand discipline and what behavior
is appropriate and inappropriate.
- Concrete operational stage (elementary and early adolescence); at this age the ability
to use logical and coherent actions in thinking and solving problems. They understand
the concepts of permanence and conservation by learning that volume, weight, and
numbers may remain constant despite changes in outward appearance. These children
should be able to build on past experiences, using them to explain why some things
happen.
- And, Formal operational stage (adolescence and adulthood); at this age adolescence
able to understand pure abstractions, such as philosophy and higher math concepts.
During this age, children should be able to learn and apply general information
needed to adapt to specific situations. They should also be able to learn specific
information and skills necessary for an occupation. A major component of the
passage through adolescence is a cognitive transition. Compared to children,
adolescents think in ways that are more advanced, more efficient, and generally more
complex.
Cognitive development in adolescencts’ abilities undergo a lot of growth and
development through brain growth. This refers to three ways how brain grows and strengthens a
child:
- Growing new brain cells. Adolescence is one of the few times in which the brain
produces a large number of cells at a very fast rate. In fact, the brain creates many
more cells than will be needed. The extra brain cells give adolescents more places to
store information, which helps them learn new skills.
- Pruning some of the extra growth. The disadvantage of having extra brain cells is that
they also decrease the brain’s efficiency. As adolescents go to school, live, and work,
the brain trims down the extra growth based on the parts of the brain the adolescent
actively uses. This pruning process creates a brain structure than enables adolescents
to easily access the information they use most.
- Strengthening connections. The connections between brain cells are what enable the
information stored in the brain to be used in daily life. The brain strengthens these
connections by wrapping a special fatty tissue around the cells to protect and insulate
them. These changes help adolescents recall information and use it efficiently.

Activity 2 : How Cognitive Development are Formed

“Cognitive Development of Student Behavior”
Students brain development occurs at a different rate than physical development, which
means that an adolescent’s thinking may not match the adolescent’s appearance. Here are some
other factors that affect how adolescents’ brains develop and how adolescents think:
1. Learning styles and multiple intelligences. Every adolescent learns and processes
information in a different way. Adolescents may find that some academic subjects are
easier for them to learn or are more interesting than others. Education theories suggest
 that presenting information and assessing learning in multiple ways helps young people
with different learning styles.
2. Disabilities. A learning disability such as auditory processing disorder, dyslexia, and
attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)—can affect cognitive development.
Challenges will differ based on the disability, but being aware of the issues can help adult
link adolescents to the proper tools and resources so they can thrive. Furthermore, under
the federal law, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), K-12 public schools
must provide accommodations for students with disabilities, including learning
disabilities. Parents also can support their children’s special learning. College students
with disabilities can obtain supports through the Americans with Disabilities Act.
3. Trauma. For some adolescents, brain development might be more difficult because of
earlier or ongoing trauma. The brain reacts to the environment. Experiencing violence,
neglect, or abuse can stunt brain growth. Being aware of trauma and its potential impact,
whether in early childhood or in adolescence, and helping adolescents cope, can go a long
way in improving young people’s well-being.
4. Mental health disorder. Many mental health disorders first appear during adolescence, in
part because of changes in physical brain development. An adolescent struggling with
mental health challenges may have decreased motivation and have a harder time with
cognitive tasks, such as planning and decision-making. Adults can support adolescents by
watching out for mental health warning signs and providing teens who face mental health
challenges with treatment.
5. Substance use. Substance use can greatly hinder adolescents’ potential by slowing and
stunting brain development. The brain also is especially vulnerable to addiction at this
stage of life. Use of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs in the teen years is associated with
increased risk for adult substance use disorders. In contrast, if teens abstain from certain
substances (such as tobacco), they are less likely to use these substances as adults.

As an adults, helping them in encourage their choice on finding their passion and path.
We can get their problem by using several method, such as ask open-ended questions on
complex issues, provide more learning opportunities that entail healthy risks, help adolescents
consider consequences of actions at multiple time points, encourage healthy sleep habits,
promote injury prevention, seek out opportunities for teens to engage as learners, and support
adolescents with learning disabilities.

Activity 3 : The Situation Problem of Cognitive Development.

I’m Seth, in the first grade, I couldn’t fit in the proverbial box, and it only got worse in
later grades. The same sort of comments appeared: “Lazy. Unmotivated. Not living up to his
potential. Daydreams. Needs to work harder. Doesn’t try his best. Doesn’t pay attention. Needs
to focus. If he would just apply himself, he’d be okay.”
Well, here’s the message I internalized: I’m not okay, I’m somehow broken. Adopted at
the ripe age of 3 days by an incredible family in Columbus, but I never quite felt like I fit in.
There was a sense that I was somehow different. I was creative and my imagination was wild and
vivid. I would draw entire stories on giant rolls of paper, spanning 30 feet or more. I would
collect countless random objects to examine, take things apart, made a cool inventions. Some of
them even worked. I was a lover of the natural world; bugs, plants, animals, rocks, the forest, the
sky. I was intuitive and highly sensitive to what was going on around me. And I was a free-
spirited dreamer, adventuring through my world — but schooling would minimize this.
Year after year, my grades slipped. Instead of developing my strengths, I tried to fit into
the expectations of the school. Square peg, round hole. My frustration and hopelessness grew
and eventually I gave up trying or put in as little effort possible to stay off the radar.
Unconsciously, it came down to this: school wasn’t worth much effort since there was little
reward and I just ended up feeling bad about myself anyhow. I wasn’t able to access learning in
the way it was presented and I felt like a failure.
Somehow, I floundered through high school. I did fine the first two years with minimal
effort because I compensated well. I always was strong out of the gates each semester, but
quickly lost momentum and got behind. I couldn’t manage all the minutiae, so I didn’t do much
homework, and I didn’t know how to “study”. If I did homework, I rushed it and I often forgot to
turn it in or lost it. I didn’t know how to be a student in the system.
My grades really began to suffer in the 11th grade when I couldn’t fake it anymore. D’s
and F’s became the norm as I became more apathetic and as my parents became more concerned.
They watched helplessly as I lied and lied about how I was doing and as I pushed them away
when they tried to help.
(Source : sethperler.com)

Question Box
Write down based on your experience how to solve the problem from
above!

[Post Task]
Finding the Meaning
Please find out the meaning of the vocabulary that you think is unfamiliar!

Vocabulary Meaning
Checking Understanding
Write a summary from the previous text about Social Development it consist 100-150 words!