Back to: Early Childhood Care and Education B.ed Notes, IGNOU Notes, M.A Notes, Graduation Notes
Explain the Concrete Operational stage of Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
Introduction
The cognitive development theory was first put out by Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget. He is credited with founding cognitive development. He declared,
“Cognitive development is a progressive reorganization of mental processes as a result of biological maturation and environmental experience.”
He saw as kids grew intellectually during their formative years. The sensorimotor stage, the preoperational stage, the concrete operational stage, and the formal operational stage are the four fundamental phases of cognitive development, according to Piaget. Beginning at age 7, the concrete operational stage lasts until age 11 or 12.
Characteristics of Concrete Operational stage of Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
- In this stage, the kid begins learning about conservation, which states that even when you modify the shape or size of an object, its amount stays the same.
- During this period, children also begin to exhibit decentration, which is the capacity to pay attention to several facets of a situation or object.
- Reversibility, the concept that anything can be changed back to its original condition, is another concept taught to kids.
- Children begin to get the capacity for mental processes and begin resolving issues in their heads.
- Children’s operations are restricted to actual occurrences and material things when they are in the concrete operational stage.
- The kid learns how to think logically, but they can only apply it to tangible things.
- Children also acquire problem-solving abilities at this period, along with other abilities like transitivity, seriation, and class inclusion.
The concrete operational stage, according to Piaget, was a crucial stage since it marked a turning point in a child’s cognitive development. It is the period where a youngster begins to acquire logical or practical cognition.
