Can we make learning as fun as it was when you were a child? We can. Listen to Dr. Eugene Geist as he explains the cognitive development theories of Jean Piaget and you’ll understand why we are all geared to learn. We actively seek out learning experiences. How can we keep that excitement alive? Find out in this episode and in the episodes to follow as we examine ideas such as constructivism, problem-based Learning, inquiry-based learning and democratic schools. This episode will also be helpful if you need to learn the different stages of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development.

The principle goal of education is to create men who are capable of doing new things, not simply of repeating what other generations have done. — Jean Piaget (1896-1980) Swiss cognitive psychologist.

Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development

Sensorimotor

• Approximate ages: 0-2
• An understanding of object permanence is achieved at the conclusion of this stage
• When a child’s expectations of what is supposed to happen are not met, confusion disequalibrium results.
• Confusion disequalibrtum can be resolved through assimilation in which you try to fit the new information into with what you already know
• Confusion disequalibrium can also be resolved through accommodation in which you create a new “folder””, a new category in your brain’s understanding of the world.
• Learning is an active process. Our understanding of the world becomes more complex – a :building process: (thus the term constructivism).

Pre-operational

• Approximate ages: 2-6
• Pre-logical thinking – children think intuitively
• Children can use symbols
• Ego-centrism lessons at the end of this phase
• Still believe in Santa Claus
• conservation tasks are difficult to solve

Concrete Operations

• Approximate ages: 7-12
• Children like to have more logical explanations at this age
• Manipulatives are helpful in the learning process
• Can think logically and a little bit abstractly, but not well with hypothetical situations

Formal Operations

• Approximate ages: 7-12
• Characterized by a more free flowing logic
• Can deal with hypothetical situations

Key point of Piaget: children are not empty vessels as the behaviorists might say. Instead, they interact with their world because they want to learn.