CHAPTER 1

''CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE''

 Childhood is the age span ranging from birth to adolescence. According
to Piaget's theory of cognitive development, childhood consists of two
stages: preoperational stage and concrete operational stage. In
developmental psychology, childhood is divided up into the
developmental stages of toddlerhood (learning to walk), early childhood
(play age), middle childhood (school age), and adolescence (puberty
through post-puberty). Various childhood factors could affect a person's
attitude formation.

CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE

 The term childhood is non-specific in its time span and can imply a
varying range of years in human development.[citation needed]
Developmentally and biologically, it refers to the period between
infancy and adulthood. [citation needed]
 In common terms, childhood is considered to start from birth, [citation
needed] and as a concept of play and innocence, which ends at
adolescence. [citation needed]
 In the legal systems of many countries, there is an age of majority
when childhood legally ends and a person legally becomes an adult,
which ranges anywhere from 15 to 21, with 18 being the most common.
[citation needed]
 A global consensus on the terms of childhood is the Convention on the
Rights of the Child (CRC). Childhood expectancy indicates the time
span, which a child has to experience childhood.
 Eight life events ending childhood have been described as death,
extreme malnourishment, extreme violence, conflict forcing
displacement, children being out of school, child labor, children having
children, and child marriage .

EARLY CHILDHOOD

 Early childhood follows the infancy stage and begins with toddler-hood
when the child begins speaking or taking steps independently.

While toddler-hood ends around age three when the child becomes less
dependent on parental assistance for basic needs, early childhood
continues approximately until the age of around eight.
However, according to the National Association for the Education of Young
Children, early childhood also includes infancy, making it age 0-8 instead of
age 3-8. At this stage children are learning through observing, experimenting
and communicating with others. Adults supervise and support the
development process of the child, which
then will lead to the child's autonomy. Also during this stage, a strong
emotional bond is created between the child and the care providers. The
children also start to begin kindergarten at this age to start their social lives.
MIDDLE CHILDHOOD

 Middle childhood begins at around age nine, approximating primary

school age. It ends around puberty, which typically marks the beginning
of adolescence. In this period, children develop socially and mentally.
They are at a stage where they make new friends and gain new skills,
which will enable them to become more independent and enhance their
individuality.

ADOLESCENCE

 is usually determined by the onset of puberty. However, puberty may

also begin in preadolescence.
 Adolescence is biological distinct from childhood, but it is accepted by
some cultures as a part of social childhood,because most of them are
minors.
 The onset of adolescence brings about various physical, psychological
and behavioral changes. The end of adolescence and the beginning of
adulthood varies by country and by function, and even within a single
nation-state or culture there may be different ages at which an
individual is considered to be mature enough to be entrusted by
society with certain tasks.

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS RIGHT

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS RIGHT

1) Every child is endowed with dignity and worth of human being from the
moment of his conception, as generally accepted in medical parlance, and
has therefore, the right to be born well.

2) Every child has the right to a wholesome family life that will provide him
with love, care and understanding, guidance and counseling, moral and
material security.

3) Every child has the right to a well-rounded development of his personality

to the end that he may become a happy, useful, and active member of
society. The gifted child shall be given opportunity and encouragement to
develop his special talents. The emotionally disturbed or socially maladjusted
child shall be treated with sympathy and understanding, and shall be entitled
to treatment and competent care. The physically or mentally handicapped
child shall be given the treatment, education, and care required of his
particular condition.

4) Every child has the right to a balanced diet, adequate clothing, sufficient
shelter, proper medical attention, and all the basic physical requirements of a
healthy and vigorous life.

5) Every child has the right to be brought up in an atmosphere of morality

and rectitude for the enrichment and the strengthening of his character.
6) Every child has the right to an education commensurate with his abilities
and to the development of his skills for the improvement of his capacity for
service to himself and his fellowmen.

7) Every child has the right to full opportunities for safe and wholesome
recreation and activities, individual as well as social, for the wholesome use
of his leisure hours.

8) Every child has the right to protection against exploitation, improper

influences, hazards, and other conditions or circumstances prejudicial to his
physical, mental, emotional, social, and moral development.

9) Every child has the right to live in a community and a society that can offer
him an environment free from pernicious influences and conducive to the
promotion of his health and the cultivation of his desirable traits and
attributes.

10) Every child has the right to the care, assistance, and protection of the
state, particularly when his parents or guardians fail or are unable to provide
him with his fundamental needs for growth, development, and improvement.
11) Every child has the right to an efficient and honest government that will
deepen his faith in democracy and inspire him with the morality of the
constituted authorities both in their public and private lives.

12) Every child has the right to grow up as a free individual, in an atmosphere
of peace, understanding, tolerance, and universal brotherhood and with the
determination to contribute his share in the building of a better world.

Convention on the Rights of the Child

 The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly

abbreviated as the CRC or UNCRC) is a human rights treaty which sets
out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of
children. The Convention defines a child as any human being under the
age of eighteen, unless the age of majority is attained earlier under
national legislation.[4]

 Nations that ratify this convention are bound to it by international law.

Compliance is monitored by the UN Committee on the Rights of the
Child, which is composed of members from countries around the world.
Once a year, the Committee submits a report to the Third Committee of
the United Nations General Assembly, which also hears a statement
from the CRC Chair, and the Assembly adopts a Resolution on the
Rights of the Child.[5]

 Governments of countries that have ratified the Convention are

 required to report to, and appear before, the United Nations Committee
on the Rights of the Child periodically to be examined on their progress
with regards to the advancement of the implementation of the
Convention and the status of child rights in their country. Their reports
and the committee's written views and concerns are available on the
committee's website.

 The UN General Assembly adopted the Convention and opened it for

signature on 20 November 1989 (the 30th anniversary of its
Declaration of the Rights of the Child). It came into force on 2
September 1990, after it was ratified by the required number of
nations. Currently, 196 countries are party to it,[1] including every
member of the United Nations except the United States.
 Two optional protocols were adopted on 25 May 2000. The First Optional
Protocol restricts the involvement of children in military conflicts, and
the Second Optional Protocol prohibits the sale of children, child
prostitution and child pornography. Both protocols have been ratified by
more than 160 states
 A third optional protocol relating to communication of complaints was
adopted in December 2011 and opened for signature on 28 February
2012. It came into effect on 14 April 2014.

OTHER RIGHTS OF THE CHILDREN

 respect and ensure the rights of the child within the jurisdiction
 register the child immediately after birth
 ensure child will not be separated from their parents
 respect the rights of the child’s freedom to thought, conscience and
religion
 recognize the right of the child’s freedom to peaceful assembly
 not subject the child to an arbitrary or unlawful interference other rights
of the children
 recognize the importance of mass media and ensure child has its
freedom to access the information
 ensure parents have common responsibilities of upbrining the child.
 take all appropriate legislative, administrative,social and educational
measures
 provides assistance to temporarily deprived of family environment
 permit a system of adoption that shall ensure best interests of the child
other rights of the children
 recognize the right of the child to education with a view of achieving
the right progressively
 recognize the right of the child to be protected from the economic
exploitation.

THE SITUATION OF THE FILIPINO CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS

 Almost half of the population in the Philippines is children. With a fast

population growth a year, the government has a difficult task in
providing children with enough resources to ensure their rights.
 For many adults and children, a 15-year-old who bears a child willingly
or unwillingly ceases to be a girl-child but a young mother. An 11-year-
 old who takes on the task of tilling the fields ceases to be a boy but a
laboring farmhand. A 16-year-old who spends most of his time at a
wage-factory ceases to be a young adolescent but a breadwinner. A 9-
year-old girl made to peddle her body on the streets becomes a
commodity. An 8-year-old boy on the street stealing someone’s money
for food.

CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS

 Children are products of their environments. Their situation mirrors the

realities of their families, community and society. While the Filipino
family puts much premium on the welfare of its children, families are
increasingly breaking down in the midst of the struggle for survival. In
the process, children are inadvertently sacrificed.

POVERTY AND LUCK OF EDUCATION

 If you have an education, you won’t go hungry and you live with
comforts of a house. You are living a good life. There is Michelle 16 year
olds. She lives in Payatas. Life is hard in a garbage town. At such young
age children collect and sell garbage. Despite the danger they are
forced to work. Many have had accidents and died. When typhoon
Ketsana came, her house was destroyed. Her mom lost her job. With no
house and no money for food, Michelle and her siblings could not go to
school anymore.

CHAPTER 2
 ''PHYSICAL AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT OF
CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS''
PHYSICAL & MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

A. Early Childhood
Growth- seen in height & weight measurements
Cephalocaudal trend
- Growth & development that occurs head down.
 Neck legs
 Trunks brains

Proximodistal trend
-development occurs from the center or core of the body in an outward direction.

 Internal organs, arms and hands

FACTORS AFFECTING PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

 Genetic

 Nutrition

 Physical & Psychological disorders

 climate
Age growth in height growth in weight

6-12 y/o 2-3inches/year 6lbs/year

 large muscles develop and coordinated-add strength and speed.

 Hand-eye coordination activities (shooting basketball,piano/violin)

 in school age children: development is seen in fine motor (drawing,

cutting,writing)

 there in maturation of wrist (early in girls than boys)

Gross motor skills

 are involved in movement and coordination of the arms, legs, and other large
part body parts and movement. They involve actions such as running,
crawling, and swimming.

Fine motor skills

 are involved in smaller that occurs in the wrists,hands,fingers,feet and toes.

B. MIDDLE CHILDHOOD

 improvement in fine motor skills and those involving large muscles (ex.
Cursive writing in 1st grade children).
  Gross motor skills and hand-eye coordination are improved with agility and
balance.

 Male: 7y.o-15 year old

 female: 6 and half-10 year old

C. Adolescence

Early sign is growth spurt

• Male: 10 1⁄2 - 16 y.o. • Female: 9 1⁄2 - 14 y.o.

Adult height growth

• Male: 18 y.o. • Female: 14-15 y.o.

SECONDARY SEX CHARACTERISTICS/

PHYSICAL CHANGES PRIMARY SEX CHARACTERISTICS

Primary Sex Characteristics

Male Female

• Growth of testes • Growth of ovaries

• Principal sign of maturation: • Principal sign of maturation:

SPERMACHE – first ejaculation of MENARCHE- beginning of menstrual

sperm containing ejaculate. Cycle.

II. BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

A. Early Childhood

 Brain continues to develop after birth, doubles weight at 6 months, weighs

half of adult brain.

 Develop at an uneven pace at 3-10 months & 15-24 month.

Important terminologies:

1.NEURONS- A nerve cell that transmit impulses

2.GLIAL CELLS – Nourish neurons, produce myelin

3. MYELIN – substance that forms covering of the axon of the neuron, conducts
impulses at higher speeds.

4. AXONS – Long filament extending out from the cell body by which neurons makes
contact with other nerve cells thereby transmitting neural messages.

PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM – first myelinated connecting the sensory perception,

brain muscles, spinal cord, internal organs and gland.

5. DENDRITES- branchlike fibers, along which impulses are received from

other cells.

• Sensory and motor areas are primary sites of brain growth during the first growth,
associated with the noted improvements in fine motor skills and eye-hand-
coordination.

• Occurs at age 6 and 8.

• It is in the second spurt of brain growth that the focus of development shifts to the
frontal lobes of cerebral cortex.

B. MIDDLE CHILDHOOD
• At 9 years old – 95% of brain growth is reached

• Myelination continues & nerves linking the reticular formation to the frontal lobes
(controls attention)

• Selective attention – ability to control Attention ( 6-12 y.o.)

CHARACTERIZED BY TWO INTERRELATED PROCESSES

1. Cell proliferation (1st few years of life)

• Overproduction of neurons &

interconnections.

2. Cell pruning ( happens in childhood)

• Selective elimination of excess cells & cutting back of connections

Changes:
1. neurons of association areas are myelinized (sensory, motor, intellectual

functions.

2. Ability to identify & act a relationship between objects in space.

3. Lateralization of spatial perception at right cerebral hemisphere ( 6 y.o.)

4. Complex lateral perception (8 y.o.)

C. ADOLESCENCE

 2 major brain growth spurts

 At 13- 15 y.o. – cerebral cortex becomes thicker and neural pathways becomes
more efficient ( perception & motor functions).

 think abstractly & reflect on their cognitive process

 17 yrs to early adulthood – development of frontal lobes of

cerebral cortex

 Problem solving requiring cognitive functions.

III. FACTORS AFFECTING DEVELOPMENT: MATERNAL NUTRITION,

CHILD NUTRITION, EARLY SENSORY STIMULATION
 Human development is affected by both genetic and environmental in-
fluences:

1. Maternal Nutrition- mother supplies all the nutrients to the inborn fetus through
the food intake (she should get a continuous supply of fresh vegetables, fruits,
minerals, vitamins).

2. Child Nutrition- adequate nutrition contributes to a continuous brain

growth, rapid skeletal and muscular development (adequate supply of fruits and
vegetables, whole grains, foods rich in protein and calcium like meat and dairy
products).

3. Early Sensory Stimulation – children under 6 y.o. tend to be farsighted because

their eyes have not matured and are shaped differently from adults, after that age,
they become mature and can focus better.

FACTORS THAT AFFECT GROWTH

1. Genetic History – influences to a large extent to his growth.

2. Nutrition – “without good diet, kids won’t grow normally”

3. Medical condition – children born with or develop serious medical conditions can
have stunted growth if not treated. Some of these are gastroentestinal disorders
such as eliac diseases, food allergies, thyroid problems, hormone deficiency, heart,
kidney or liver ailments and certain chromosomal abnormalities. It is important that
medications should be monitored closely.

3. exercise – regular physical activity promotes growth by strengthening bones and

muscles.

4. sleep – 70-80% of growth hormone is secreted during sleep.

5. emotional well-being – children must be nurtured with love, patience, and

understanding, supportive family environment. When children experience anxieties
brought by emotional neglect and too much tension, growth is also

stunted- psychosocial failure- rare but its consequences are as real as malnutrition.

IV. EXCEPTIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

PHYSICAL DISABILITIES, SENSORY IMPAIRMENTS, LEARNING

DISABILITIES AND ADHD

1. physical disabilities – temporary or permanent

Example: Paralysis, stiffness or lack of motor coordination of bones, muscles or joints

(needs special equipment or helping in moving out).

Crippling disabilities include the following:

A. impairment of bone and muscles systems which affects mobility and manual
dexterity.

Example: Amputees & with severe fracture

B. Impairment of the nerve & muscles systems making mobility awkward &
uncoordinated.

Ex. Cerebral palsy

C. Deformities or absence of body organs and systems necessary for mobility.

Example: Club foot & paraplegics

CAUSES OF HANDICAPS
1. prenatal factors – these are factors tat affect normal growth and development
before and after conception- 1 st to 3 rd trimester.

A. genetic or chromosomal aberrations

 blood incompatibility of husband and wife

 There is a transfer of defective genes from parent to offspring.

B. prematurity- birth before 9 th month

C. infection – bacteria or virus on the fetus in the womb of the mother

Example: Rubella or venereal diseases

D. Malnutrition – insufficient intake of food nutrients necessary to sustain growth and

development of fetus and mother.

E. Irradiation – exposure of pregnant mother to radioactive elements like x-ray.

F. metabolic disturbances – inability of the mother or fetus to .make use of the food
intake.

G. Drug Abuse – entry of large quantities of medicines.

(Thalidomide used by mothers has affected thousands of babies who were born
without limbs and other extremities)

2. PERINATAL FACTORS FACTORS- CAUSE CRIPPLING CONDITIONS

DURING PERIOD OF BIRTH
A. birth injuries- ex. Injury to the spine will cause paralysis (kernicterus).

B. difficult labor – hard & prolonged labor=deprivation of oxygen to the baby &
mother.

C. hemorrhage profuse bleeding of the mother

3. POSTNATAL FACTORS - FACTORS THAT CAUSE CRIPPLING CONDITIONS AFTER

BIRTH

A. infections – caused by illness like diphtheria, typhoid, meningitis, encephalitis 7

rickets in infants.

B. Tumor and abscess in the brain – destroy brain cells that control movement

C. Fractures & dislocations – falls or accidents causing fractures and dislocations

D. Tuberculosis of the bones – TB germs attack the bones

E. Cerebrovascular injuries – injuries in the head cause brain damage

F. Post seizure or post-surgical complications – convulsions after delivery

G. Arthritis, rheumatism – diseases affecting the spinal column & the muscles of
locomotion at the back.

B. SENSORY IMPAIRMENTS

2 classes of visual handicaps:

1.Visual impairment – visual problem that calls for specific modifications or

adjustments in the students educational program.

2. Blindness – inability of the person to see anything

• Visual impairment refers to those who were previously blind and partially sighted;
lack sufficient vision to effect a normal functioning in the school

• Visually handicapped: form of impairment which, even with correction, still cannot
achieve a normal educational performance

• Partially sighted children – “low vision”, able to use print with or without aids.

• Blind students – with so little vision and can learn through the use of BRAILLE.

VISUAL ACUITY PROBLEMS

1. reduced visual acuity - poor sight

2. amblyopia - lazy eye

3.hyperopia - farsightedness

4. Myopia - nearsightedness

5. astigmatism - imperfect vision

OTHER VISUAL PROBLEMS THAT MAY AFFECT STUDENTS

1. albinism – rapid, involuntary side movement of eyeball or nystagmus

2. cataracts – lens of the eye becomes cloudy or opaque

3. macular degeneration – the remaining peripheral vision can see large objects and
colors but not to read.

4. diabetic retinopathy – hemorrhaging of the tiny vessels of the retina

5. glaucoma – increased pressure within the eye

6. retinitis pigmentosa – inherited conditionn, begins with loss of night vision and
gradually decreasing peripheral vision, the dark pigmentation of the retina is slowly
lost causing gradual reduction in visual field.

7. Retinopathy of prematurity (deterioration of retina) – caused by high level of

oxygen required for survival of premature infants who would not have previously
survived.

IMPACT OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENT ON INDIVIDUAL’S DEVELOPMENT

1. visually uncoordinated in their movement caused by inability to develop

needed physical skills.

2. awkward appearance

3. sensory deprivation
AUDITORY HANDICAP (LIMITED FUNCTIONING OF THE AUDITORY SYSTEM)

 Sever auditory problem beyond correction

 Affect range and volume of sounds that can be received by the individual

 Auditory handicapped students manifest poor language development

 Infants born deaf can at the start produce the range of expected sound but
show a rapid decline in sound production

 Reading failure- inability to hear himself or others

HEARING IMPAIRMENT/HEARING DISABILITY CAN BE MILD OR PROFOUND

 DEAF - are those whose hearing disability precludes successful processing of

linguistic information through hearing with or without hearing aid.

Prelingual – present at birth or occurring before language or speech development

Postlingual – occurs after speech or language development

Sensory neural deafness – caused by physical impairment of the inner ear,

peripheral hearing nerve & other parts of the auditory system that extends to the
cortex of the brain.

 HARD OF HEARING INDIVIDUALS – are those who use hearing aid & therefore
can have hearing adequate for the processing of linguistic information.

CAUSES OF DEAFNESS

1. PRENATAL CAUSES

a. toxic condition

b. viral diseases – mumps, influenza, rubella

c. congenital defects – lack/closure of the external canal, ossification of the three

little bones in the ear.

2. PERINATAL CAUSES

a. injury during delivery- pressure from use of forcep & intracranial hemorrhage

b. anoxia or lack of oxygen due to prolonged labor

c. heavy sedation due to overdose of anesthesia in twilight deliveries

d. blockage of infants respiratory passage

3. Postnatal Causes

a.diseases/ailments – meningitis, otitis, otitis media, hardened earwax

b.Accidents/trauma/falls, headbumps, overexposure to high frequency sounds, loud

explosions, puncturing eardrum,difference in pressure in outer & middle ear,
undrained water in the ear.

4. OTHER CAUSES

A. heredity

B. prematurity

C. malnutrition

D. Rh factor – blood incompatibility of parents

E. over dosage of medicine

CLASSIFICATION OF HEARING IMPAIRED CHILDREN

• Classified according to:

1. Age of onset of deafness

a. congenitally deaf - those born deaf

b. adventitiously deaf – born with normal hearing became deaf due to accident or
illness

2. Language development

a. prelingually deaf – born deaf but lost hearing before speech and language were
developed.

b. postligually deaf – became deaf after the development of language and speech

3. Place of impairment

a. conductive hearing loss – impaired hearing due to interference in sound

transmission to and through sense organ, in particular in the outer or middle ear.

b. Sensory neural hearing loss – abnormal inner ear or auditory nerve or both

c. Mixed hearing loss – combination of conductive and sensory neural hearing loss
flat loss.

4. degree of hearing loss

• A. slight

• B. mild

• C. moderate

• D. severe

• C. profound

C. LEARNING DISABILITIES

• Disorders in understanding- inability to listen well, process information readily,

inability to talk, write, read, spell, even add numbers.

• Referred as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, brain dysfunction, developmental

aphasia & specific sensory motor dysfunction.

• At preschool level, learning disabilities may come in the form of problems related
to pre-academic skills, gross & fine motor, visual, auditory, tactile kinesthetic
perception and expressive language.

• Sensory integration – ability of the individual to process information coming from

the environment and makes use of the information in the process.

1. Normal intelligence – refers to child’s performance at above normal range using

non-verbal meaning which include language concept

2. Academic achievement deficit. Condition where child shows academic

achievements deficit in at least one subject, such as oral expression, listening,
comprehension, mathematical calculation and spelling.

3. Absence of other handicapping conditions. There must be no manifestation of

visual or hearing impairment, mental retardation, severe cases of emotional
disturbance and culture neglect.

• Learning disability is characterized by poor academic performance, social and

psychological problems and delayed physical development.

The different types of learning disability are:

Dyslexia – reading

Dysgraphia – writing

Visual agnosia – sight

Motor aphasia – speaking

Dysarthia – stuttering

Auditory agnosia – hearing

Olfactory agnosia – smelling

Dyscalculia – math

There are three general causes of learning disability:

1.Problematic pregnancies, occurring before, during and after delivery causing injury
whether minimal or severe to brain and brain dysfunction.

2.Biochemical imbalance caused by intake of food with artificial food colorings and
flavorings.

3.Environment factors caused by emotional disturbance, poor quality of instruction

and lack of motivation.

ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER (ADHD)

• Most common learning disorder among children and adolescents

• Interferes individual’s: ability to focus (INATTENTION)

• regulate activity level (HYPERACTIVITY)

• nhibit behavior ( IMPULSITIVITY)

SUBTYPES

a. Predominantly inattentive

b. Predominantly hyperactive

c. Combined type

ADD – Attention Deficit Disorder- children with inhibited behavior, inattentive and
w/o focus, withdrawn, polite & shy.

 According to some research, the disorder results from an imbalance in certain

neurotransmitters ( most likely serotonin & dopamine).

 these substances help the brain to achieve focus and regulate behavior

 Associated w/ symptoms in children like difficult pregnancies & problem

deliveries

 Maternal smoking and exposure as well as environmental toxins

 Other studies indicate that ADHD brain consumes less glucose.

 Is ADHD inherited? Probably.

 Is it possible to have ADHD-like behavior and not ADHD?

– Yes. Children with inability to adjust and adopt to what is acceptable behavior but
can be taught of appropriate behavior & modify sources of stress.

 Can schools inadvertently enhance ADHD-like behavior?

1.teachers tend to cover curriculum too fast

2.teachers without regard for students learning preferences

3. Discipline is arbitrary and unfair ( different teachers with different rules,

expectations and personalities)

4. Few opportunities to move around

5. Classroom atmosphere not conducive for learning

6. No interaction taking place

7. Classroom emotional climate causes stress

WHAT DO EDUCATORS NEED TO CONSIDER?

• Start identifying areas where difficulties occur

• Once pinpointed, interventions can be done in areas concerned

• The interventions should be applied on a case to case basis for a more effective
learning results.

• With the right intervention, performance can be expected to improve

• Teachers need to be proactive and well-versed in problem solving, understanding,

patience, passion.

Chapter 3

Linguistic and Literacy Development of Children and Adolescents

 asserts that children have an innate Language Acquisition Device (LAD) that
enables them to learn a language early and quickly. They also claimed that
the nativist ignores the social context in which language is acquired and
developed.
I. Natural History of Language Development

Language primarily is learned through imitation.

Noam Chomsky (Nativist Approach)

Modern Theorist

 view that recognizes children as biologically prepared for language but

requires extensive experience with spoken language for adequate
development.

Jerome Bruner

 emphasizes the critical roles parents and other early caregivers play in
language development. Proposes the Language Acquisition Support System
(LASS).

The Antecedents of Language Development

Pseudodialogues

 the give and take of conversation is one of the early training infant’s acquire
in the language development.
II. Bilingual Language Development

Children learn two languages.

Cognitive Advantages of Bilingualism

1. Does not impact on early language milestones like babbling.
2. Bilingual homes, infants readily discriminate between two languages
phonologically and grammatically.
3. Learning a grammatical device as using s to denote plurals in one language
facilitate learning corresponding devices in the other language.
4. Bilingualism is associated with an advantage in metalinguistic ability or capacity
to think about language among preschool and school age children.
5. Most bilingual children manifest greater ability than monolingual children when it
comes to focusing attention on language task.

Cognitive Disadvantages of Bilingualism

1. Limited Vocabulary.
2. Think more slowly in the language in which they have the lesser fluency.
3. Parents who choose bilingualism should consider whether they can help their
children achieve fluency in both languages.
4. Children who speak their immigrant parents’ language tend to be attached to
their parents’ culture of origin and therefore are able to speak the language.

Implications of Language and Culture

1. Children use the four language systems at the same time in the process of
communicating.
2. Children bring their unique backgrounds of experience to the process of learning.
3. Children’s cultural and linguistic diversity impact on the students’ learning
process.

III. Emergent and early Literacy: Reading Development and Performance

 Children may communicate single words not only to name things but also to
communicate more complex thoughts called holophrase the first stage of
language acquisition.

Fast Mapping
 child’s ability to map the meaning of a new word onto a referent after hearing
the word used on context just once.

Holophrase
 is a single word used to represent a phrase to sentence.

Vocabulary Explosion
 is the rapid addition of new words to a toddler’s vocabulary.
Stages of language development (Cobb, 2001)

1. Children speak two word sentences.

2. Children use rules to inflect words, indicating plurality and tense.
3. Children can use rules to transpose meaning from one form of sentence to
another.
4. Children’s sentences become increasingly complex in the fourth and fifth stages.

 Teale and Sulzby (1989 as cited by Tompkins, 2002) paint a portrait of young
children as literacy learners with these characteristics:

1. Learning the functions of literacy through observation and participation in real life
situations where reading and writing is used.
2. Developing reading and writing abilities concurrently and interrelatedly through
experiences in reading and writing; and
4. Constructing understanding of reading and writing through engagement with
literacy materials.

 Juel (1991 as cited by Tompkins, 2002) Children move through three stages as
they learn to read, namely: emergent reading, beginning reading and fluent
reading.

IV. Factors Affecting Development: Early Language Stimulation, Literate

Communities and Environment, Story Reading

As they acquire new experiences, they start to experiment with the objects they
come in contact.

A. Early Language Stimulation

 A child in this case, frets, gets confused, agitated so that he is compelled to

seek for a comfortable balance with the environment.

Three Steps of the process are:

1. Disruption of equilibrium by the introduction of new information.

2. Occurrence of disequilibrium followed by the dual processes of assimilation and
accommodation function
3. Attainment of equilibrium at a higher developmental level.

The teacher’s role in guiding students’ learning within the zone of proximal
development includes three components, Dixon-Kraus (1996) as cited by Tompkins
(2002).
1. Teachers meditate or augment children’s learning through social learning.
2. Teachers are flexible and provide support based on feedback from children as they
are engaged in the learning task.
3. Teachers vary the amount of support from very explicit to vague, to suit children’s
needs.

Constructivist and Sociolinguistic Learning Theorist:

1. Students actively participate in learning.

2. Students learn by associating new information to acquired knowledge.
3. Students organize their knowledge in schemata.
4. Students consciously and automatically use skills and strategies as learning
progresses.
5. Students learn through social interactions.
6. Teachers provide scaffolds for students.
B. Literate Communities and Environment

 Teacher plays a multifaceted role in a language classroom. Teacher should

realize that children’s literacy is dependent upon opportunities for children to
engage in meaningful and purposeful experiences with the members of the
class.

C. Story Reading

 Knowledge about stories is called a concept of story.

Elements of a story are plot, character, setting, theme, and information about the
author’s style and conventions.

Key Concepts in story reading (Tompkins, 2002)

1. Acquired by reading and writing stories and by learning about the elements of
story structure.
2. Stories are distinguished from other forms of writing by their unique structural
elements.
3. Teachers present lessons about the elements of story structure and students apply
what they have learned from stories they read.
4. The concept of story informs and supports the reading of stories which is done
aesthetically.
5. Comprehension involves 3 factors: the reader, text, and purpose.
6. Teachers involve students in varied activities to develop students’ use of all five
comprehension processes.
7. Students read and write stories as part of literature.

V. Exceptional Development: Aphasia and Dyslexia

*Aphasia- loss of ability to use and understand language caused by physical

condition such as deafness.

*Receptive Aphasia- Persons with Wernicke’s aphasia can produce many words
and they often speak using grammatically correct sentences with normal rate and
However, often what they say doesn’t make a lot of sense or they pepper their
sentences with non-existent or irrelevant words. They may fail to realize that they
are using the wrong words or using a non-existent word and often they are not fully
aware that what they say doesn’t make sense.

*Expressive Aphasia- Injury to the left frontal area can lead to what is called
Broca’s aphasia. Survivors with Broca's aphasia:

*Can have great difficulty forming complete sentences.

*May get out some basic words to get their message across, but leave out words like
“is” or “the.”

*Often say something that doesn’t resemble a sentence.

*Can have trouble understanding sentences.

*Can make mistakes in following directions like “left, right, under, and after.”
Global Aphasia- When a stroke affects an extensive portion of the front and back
regions of the left hemisphere, the result may be global aphasia. Survivors with
global aphasia:

*May have great difficulty in understanding words and sentences.

*May have great difficulty in forming words and sentences.

*May understand some words.

*Get out a few words at a time.

*Have severe difficulties that prevent them from effectively communicating.

*Dyslexia- having a trouble recognizing letters, can hardly read and write. Letters
and numbers are written invertedly and words are commonly misspelled. He cannot
follow multiple instructions and has poor motor skills.

*Posterior Alexia- An adult who can write but not read.

*Optic Alexia- similar letters in configuration are mistaken from one another, ex. m
and n or k and x.

*Dysgnosia- inefficient recognition.

*Agnostic Dyslexia- can read but throw a slow, letter by letter analysis of a word.
Chapter 4
Cognitive Development of Children and
Adolescents

I. Theories of Cognitive Development

Cognition – is the process of learning in the broadest sense that includes
perception, memory, judgment and thinking. It is both a mental activity and
behaviour that provides an understanding of the world arising from biological,
experiential, motivational and social influences.

Piaget’s important observations on the development of the first

intelligence test started by Alfred Binet :
1. Children of the same age tended to make the same mistakes and get the
same answers wrong.
2. Errors of children of a particular age differed in systematic ways from those of
older or younger children.
Piaget’s methods in studying children’s way of thinking
1. Interviews – children would be presented a problem to solve or question to
answer. Afterwards they were made to explain their thinking.
2. Observations – Piaget would watch closely the behaviour of children as they
tried solving the problem presented.
Piaget’s Main Tenet: The Child Actively Seeks Knowledge
 A child actively seeks out information. Such information is in turn adapted to
the children’s acquired knowledge and conceptions about the world.
  It is from their experiences that children construct their understanding of
reality.
 Children have the capacity as well to organize this knowledge into an
increasingly complex cognitive structure called schemata.

Schema (plural, schemata) – is an organized unit of knowledge. The child uses

this to be able to understand a situation or an experience and
which will serve as basis for organizing actions to respond to the environment.

Piaget’s modified opined on schemata

 Organization – is the predisposition to combine simple physical or
psychological structures into more complex systems.
 Adaptation involves the process of assimilation and accommodation that are
complementary.
 Adaptation is adjusting one’s thinking according to environmental demands.
 Assimilation is making use of an existing schema to a new experience
 Accommodation is modifying an existing schema to make it work in a new
experience.

The Stages of Cognitive Development

Vigotsky’s Social-Cultural Theory of Cognitive Development


 Lev Vygotsky was hired by the
soviet government following the
Bolshevik revolution of 1917 to
create a school system that
would serve the ends of the new
 communist regime.Vygotsky devised a theory of child development that was
unique.
 His death in 1938 and the historical events followed, WW II and the Cold War
resulted in his work remaining largely unknown outside the Soviet Union for
decades.
 Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory asserts that complex forms of thinking have
their origins in social interactions rather than in the child’s private
explorations.
 Children’s learning of new cognitive skills is guided by an adult for a more
skilled child, such as an older sibling, who structures the child’s learning
experience, a process Vygotsky called scaffolding.
 To create an appropriate scaffold, the adult must gain and keep the child’s
attention, model the best strategy, and adapt the whole process to the child’s
developmental level, or zone of proximal development.

Zone of Proximal Development

 In this process, teacher makes adjustment in the amount and type of support
he gives to the child as he tries to acquire a skill. When the child has acquired
a skill, the teacher withdraws support.

Reciprocal Instruction
 Stems from the use of community learners models whereby learning abilities
and skills development are acquired through social interaction.

Guided Participation
 Emphasizes the cognitive development through active participation of both
the learners and the more experienced people.

Two Principles of Cultural Influence in Vygotsky’s Theory

1. Cultures are varied – They use different ways, tools and settings to facilitate
children’s development.
2. Variations in culture as well as cultural contexts must be considered in
assessing children’s cognitive development.

Egocentric Speech
  Transitions from the social activities of children to a more individualized
activity which involves thinking until they are able to overcome difficulties.
 It takes the form of a self-directed dialogue where the child instructs herself
in solving problems and drawing plans.
 It is in the age of maturity that egocentric speech materialized into inner
speech.

Inner Speech
 Is egocentric speech that has been internalized and which develops
intellectual capacities.
Vygotsky’s three categories in thinking and problem solving :
1. some can be performed independently by the child.
2. others cannot be performed even with the help from others
3. between the 1st two are tasks that can be performed with help from others

Information Processing Theories

 The information-processing approach takes the human mind as a system that
processes information. l
 This views development according to cognitive competencies as derived from
changes in the processes and strategies applied in the process

Information processing approaches:

1. thinking is information processing
 Mental Activity or thinking is putting into the mind whatever information there
is to process in ways or means that can render the information
understandable, functional and usable.
2. Mechanisms of change are important to describe
 Mechanisms like encoding, strategy construction, automatization, and
generalization all together help in instituting change in the children’s
cognitive skills.
 Constantly used cognitive skills eventually become a routine.
3. The cognitive system is self-modifying
 Child is able to modify his responses to new situations or problems by using
the acquired knowledge and strategies from solving earlier problems.

4. Careful task analysis is crucial

  Child’s cognitive performance is dependent on the problems or situation and
the ability to handle such according to his level of development.

Microgenetic Analysis – calls for a close scrutiny, a detailed examination of how a

child solves a problem on a particular learning situation or in the succeeding learning
activities that immediately follow.

Metacognition – is the individual’s knowledge and control of cognitive activities. It

is knowledge that develops through time, over childhood and which includes
knowledge of the self, his frame of mind, knowledge about task and the strategies
that can be applied.

Bio-cultural Theories
 One of the most current trends in developmental psychology is the
established link between physiological processes and development explained
through universal changes and individual differences.

Nativism Theory
 Views human as endowed with genetic traits seen in all members of the
species, regardless of differences in their environment.
 Peculiarities in behaviour can be identified early in life, developed in all
individuals in every culture but do not exist in other species.

Ethology Theory
 Points to genetically survival behaviors assumed to have evolved through
natural selection.
Sociobiology Theory
 Focuses on the study of society using the methods and concepts of biological
science.

Brofenbrenner’s Ecological Theory

 Urie Bronfenbrenner was a

Russian-born American
developmental psychologist His
 theory explains the development in terms of relationships between people
and their environment, or context.
 He attempts to classify all the individual and contextual variables that affect
development and to specify how they interact.
 The contexts of development are like circles with in circles.
 According to Brofenbrenner the child’s development is also influenced by his
genetic make-up

 Macrosystem (cultural context) – contains the

values and beliefs of the culture in which a child is growing up.
 Exosystem (socioeconomic context) – cultural institutions which have indirect
influence on the child’s development.
 Microsystem (immediate context) – includes those units that have directly
influence on the children.
 Mesosystem – consists of the interconnections between these components.

II. Theories of Intelligence that Influence Individual Differences

 Information-processing specialists believe that to understand intelligence, we

must supplement traditional IQ tests with procedures that assess the
components of information-processing, such as memory and problem-solving
abilities people use in performing intellectual tests.
Triarchic Theory of Intelligence


 Robert Sternberg is an American
psychologist and Psychometrician
The Triarchic Theory has three
major points of intelligent behavior
 Information Processing Skills
– required to encode,
combine and compare
varying kinds of information
 Experience with a given task
or situation
 Ability to adjust one’s behaviour to the demands of a context.
 Stenberg has developed a theory of successful intelligence as an extension of
his triarchic theory. This states that man can mold, shape environment to
meet his needs as well as that of society through analytical, creative and
practical abilities.

 Analytical abilities – refer

to the power to apply logical
reasoning to arrive at the
best answer to a question.
 Creative abilities – involve
imagining and devising new
ways of addressing issues
and concerns including present demands.
 Practical abilities – involves the use of tacit knowledge or common sense.
These are day to day activities people used in the process of social and
professional inter action within the
family and in the work place.

Gender Schema Theory

 Sandra Bem an American

psychologist known for her works
in androgyny and gender studies
  The Gender Schema Theory has evolved from the social learning approach
and is a variation of the cognitive development theory.
 This theory postulates an organizational pattern of behaviour that enables
children to sort out perceived information. The organized information
revolves around what the society defines and classifies in terms of accepted
behaviour patterns and individual differences and the principle of gender.
Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

 Howard Gardner, the exponent

of the theory of multiple
intelligencesHe opines that
human beings have seven kinds
of intelligences.
 After 1999, he added a new
intelligence which he called as
naturalist intelligence.
 He claimed that the number of intelligences can even be greater than eight
and possibly be nine which he called spirituality or existential intelligence.

Nine Multiple Intelligences

Arthur Robert Jensen (August 24, 1923 – October 22, 2012)

  an american psychologist and author. He was a professor of educational
psychology at the University of California.
 As early as 1969, he claims that as much as 80% of difference in IQ was
attributable to genetic or inherited factors. Only a small portion of differences
comes from social environmental factors.
 Jensen proposes two types of learning, both inherited but each distinct from
the other
 Associative learning (Level 1 learning) – involves short term memory, rote
learning, attention, simple associative skills.
 Cognitive learning (Level 2 learning) – a child as he moves on to a higher
level of learning can engage in abstract thinking, analysing symbols, learn
concepts and even use language in problem solving.
 Jensen opines that cognitive learning predicts school achievement for it
manifests the amount of knowledge one is able to acquire and therefore is a
measure of performance.
 According to Jensen, associative learning is distributed across people but Level
II learning is more concentrated in the middle class than in working class.

Achievement Motivation and Intellectual Performance

 Achievement motivation comes in various manifestations: (1) a tendency to

strive for successful performance, (2) to evaluate performance against specific
standards of excellence, (3) and to experience pleasure out of successful
performance.
  Achievement motivation and intellectual performance vary according to the
child’s idea or concept of himself, as a person or as a learner. This is referred
to as self-esteem.

What is Intelligence?
 Intelligence is the capacity to think and understand
 It includes the combination of various separate abilities that includes verbal
communication, abstract thinking, logical reasoning and use of common
sense.

4 different conceptual approaches to intelligence

 Psychometric Approach – refers to measurement of hidden intelligence or
mental characteristics.
 Factor Analysis and General Intelligence – This approach is similar to the
concept of “factoring” in mathematics where complex expressions are
simplified to arrive at the common multiplier of all terms. Factor analysis
establishes the relation of different measures of intelligence.
 Cognitive Approach – concern itself with the processes that result to intelligent
behaviour.
 Implicit Theory Approach – asserts that intelligence is that which is used every
day.
III. Factors Affecting Development
A. Universal Changes
* are changes all individual under go as biological organisms.
* Every organism is subject to a genetically programmed maturing process; all
physical changes that happen from infancy to adulthood are programmed and
are part of the plan for the physical body.

B. Group-Specific Changes
* are changes manifested and observed from members growing up together in a
particular group and hence influenced heavily by the dominant culture.
C. Individual Changes
* These are changes typical of particular individuals and which result from
unique, unshared events.

Atypical Development
 Is another kind of Individual Change
  This kind of development is harmful to the individual in that it deviates from
the typical or normal development path.
 Usually, this points to the abnormal or maladaptive behaviour.
 An alcoholic, drug addict, mentally retarded, even those with hyperactivity
disorder are examples of deviants or individuals with atypical development.

IV. Exceptional Development

 Every child is unique to himself, in personality traits, in cognitive abilities, in
physical stature, in emotional stability and others.
 An IQ score above 130 signals intellectual giftedness, an IQ score below 70
indicates mental retardation.
 Exceptional development in children can be seen in both the intellectually
gifted and those with intellectual deficits.

A. The Intellectually Gifted

 According to Terman (1954 as cited by Hetherington, 2006) one of the earliest
leaders in the study of the gifted child, bright children are usually far ahead of
their age-mates, not just intellectually, but socially and physically as well.
 The process that underline the cognitive achievements of gifted children are
not unique – it is simply that the gifted children are able to learn faster and
more efficiently and process information at a rapid pace, significantly better
and different from the rest.
B. Children with Intellectual Deficits
Down Syndrome (DS, DNS, or Trisomy 21)
  DS is characterized by a distinct physical appearance, and physical and
mental retardation.
 Most common physical characteristics: almond shaped eyes, folded eyelids,
short stature.
 Children with DS are susceptible to respirational infections, heart disorders,
leukemia and pneumonia.
 Mental retardation can be moderate to severe,
 They are also at risk to develop Alzheimer’s disease later in life.
 Down syndrome is caused by having three copies of
the genes on chromosome 21, rather than the usual two
 The extra 21st chromosome most often comes from the mother’s egg when
her homologous pair of 21st chromosome fails to separate during meiosis.
 Male sperm carry the extra chromosome in only about 5% of cases.
 This error often occurs as women age.
 These children’s are genetically slow to learn to speak and often have
difficulty articulating words. They also have trouble attending to,
discriminating and interpreting complex or subtle information in their
environments.

Risk of DS (sources: Gardner and Sutherland, 1996; Hsu, 1998)

Mater DS DS Frequen
nal detect detected @ cy of DS
Age ed @ 16 weeks among
9-11 by births
weeks Amniocent
by CVS esis
20-24 1/1,400
25-29 1/1,100
30 1/900
35 1/250 1/250 1/385
40 1/80 1/70 1/100
45 1/25 1/25 1/40
Over 1/20 1/15 1/25
45

Turner Syndrome (TS, 45,x or 45,x,o)

  TS is a chromosome abnormality found in females
 TS is a condition in which a female is partly or completely missing an X
chromosome
 Usually this occurs because the father’s sperm contained neither an X nor a Y
chromosome
 Common physical characteristics of girls with TS: short stature, low hairline,
fold of skin on neck (misshaped necks), stubby fingers, unusually shaped
mouths and ears, under developed breast.
 They usually have normal intelligence and they tend to be docile, pleasant
and do not easily upset
 As teenagers they do not develop secondary sex characteristics such as
breast and pubic hair, unless given female hormones.
 Because their internal reproductive organs do not develop normally, they
remain sterile throughout their lives.
 Women with TS tend to have problems in social relationships because they are
immature and lacking in assertiveness.
 Women with TS have difficulty discriminating and interpreting emotional cues
and facial expressions in others, skills essential for appropriate social
interactions.

Triple X Syndrome (XXX, Trisomy X or Trisomy 47)

 Another sex chromosome abnormality found in females. In which a girl inherits

three X chromosomes instead of the normal two.
  These Triple X girls appear normal physically and have normal secondary
sexual development, but their cognitive abilities are affected, especially their
short-term memory and verbal skills.

Klinefelter’s Syndrome (KS, 47XXY or XXY)

 Is a chromosome abnormality found in males

 It is a form of chromosome abnormality characterized by feminine physical
characteristics like breast development and rounded broad, hipped figure.
 When a male inherits an extra X chromosome, it results in the XXY pattern,
making him sterile.
 Males with KS are sometimes mentally retarded and have verbal language
deficits and reading problems

Jacob’s Syndrome (XYY, XYY karyotype, YY Syndrome)

 XYY syndrome is a rare chromosomal disorder that affects males

 It is caused by the presence of an extra Y chromosome. Males normally have
one X and one Y chromosome. However, individuals with this syndrome have
one X and two Y chromosomes.
 Males with XYY are excessively aggressive and are likely to suffer some
cognitive impairment
 XYY men are generally taller than normal men and they usually have a lot of
acnes.

Fragile X Syndrome (FXS, Martin-Bell syndrome or marker X syndrome)

  Some people carry an X chromosome that appears to be pinched or narrowed
in some areas, causing it to be quite weak or fragile
 FXS is a rare genetic disorder more common in males than females
 Physical features may include a long and narrow face, large ears, flexible
fingers, and large testicles.
 Males with FXS are often retarded with an IQ ranging between 30-55
 More common physical abnormalities are cleft palate, seizures, abnormal
EEGs and eye disorders
 Psychological and social problems include anxiety, hyperactivity, attention
deficits and abnormal communication patterns.

Pervasive Development Disorders (PDD)

 PDD is a collection of disorders characterized by gross deficits in many areas

of cognitive, emotional and social development.
 These result from severe and pervasive impairment of social interaction and
communication skills, such disorders are often referred to as psychoses.

Psychoses - broadly, disturbances in which the person’s functioning is so

maladaptive that he or she is said to be out of touch with reality.
 Schizophrenia - is a serious disorder characterized by hallucinations, delusions,
and other kinds of thought disorders. It commonly manifests in late adolescence
or early childhood

Autistic Disorder (ASD, Kanner’s Autism)

 Is a PDD otherwise known as early infantile autism or childhood autism
 First to have identified this disorder is psychiatrist Leo Kanner
 Autism commonly appears in boys than in girls (3-5 boys to 1 girl)
 AD is characterized by inability of children to communicate and interact
socially.
 These children have specific language deficiencies, demonstrate a need for
sameness in their environment and engage in repetitive behaviors

a. Extreme Autistic Aloneness – An autistic is a loner. He expresses lack of

interest in other people.
b. Language Abnormalities – Rather than engage in conversation, the autistic
tends to repeat the words rather that reply, answer or engage in conversation.
c. Repetitive Behaviors – An autistic extends concentration on something and
preserves the sameness of the environment.

Asperger’s Syndrome (AS)

 was first identified by an Austrian physician Hans Asperger in 1944 calling it a
developmental disorder which has many symptoms similar to that of autism
 AS was first publicly recognized in 1980
 AS is a developmental disorder characterized by significant difficulties
in social interaction and nonverbal communication, along with restricted and
repetitive patterns of behavior and interests.
Asperger Vs Autism

Asperger Autistic Disorder

Syndrome (AS) (ASD)
Children with Children with autism
Asperger’s tend to have a
Syndrome display language delay or
good language skills start talking later in
although they might life.
use the language in
different ways.
Children with AS do Some autistics have
not suffer from mental retardation
cognitive delay (mid (low to mid-range IQ)
to high range IQ)
Rarely have Physical Physical
Development Delays Development Delays

Over developed use They have the world

of imagination, they of their own, they
are more social and prefer inanimate
wilful objects to human
interactions.
Children with Autistic children have
Asperger’s severe symptoms
syndrome have very and signs compared
mild symptoms and to children with
signs compared to Asperger’s
Autistic children. In syndrome.
fact, an Asperger’s
child will often look
just like a normal
child with a quite
different behavior.

Echolalia
 Is a form of autism where the autistic repeats what is said by another rather
than respond to a question.
 It is usually a word for word repetition.
“What the child is able to do in collaboration today, he will be able to
do independently tomorrow”
- Lev Vygotsky