Infancy to Adolescence: Play, Language and Learning

What to remember

• Development is orderly: it moves from head to foot (cephalocaudal), from centre to outside (proximodistal) and from general to specific, but every child grows at an individual pace.
• Piaget's four stages (sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational) and Erikson's eight psychosocial crises are the most-asked theories.
• Play is the child's natural way of learning; language grows from crying to cooing, babbling, one word, two words and then sentences.

Growth and development: basic ideas

Growth means physical increase in size (height, weight). It can be measured. Development is a wider and continuing change in structure and function, including movement, thinking, language, emotion and social skills. Maturation is the unfolding of abilities that depend on the body's ripening, and learning is change due to experience and practice. Both work together.

Principles of development

• It is continuous and follows a fixed sequence (a child sits before standing and stands before walking).
• It is cephalocaudal: control begins with the head and moves downward.
• It is proximodistal: control begins near the body's centre and moves outward (shoulder before fingers).
• It goes from general to specific: a baby waves the whole arm before picking a small object with finger and thumb.
• Rates differ between children, and early years are the most important because the brain grows fastest then.
• Heredity and environment both matter, and neither works alone.

Stages of the life span (child)

Infancy: milestones and reflexes

Newborn reflexes: rooting (turns towards a touch on the cheek), sucking, Moro or startle reflex (arms fling out when startled), palmar grasp, Babinski (toes fan out when the sole is stroked) and stepping. Most disappear in the first months; if they persist beyond the expected age, a doctor should check.

These ages are guides. A child who is clearly behind should be referred early to a health worker.

Early and late childhood

• Early childhood (2 to 6 years): fast growth of vocabulary, curiosity, pretend play, toilet training, growing independence. The child is self-centred (egocentric) in thinking.
• Late childhood (6 to 12 years): slower, steady growth, school learning, friendships, rule-following and a sense of competence.

Adolescence

Adolescence is the bridge between childhood and adulthood. It begins with puberty, when hormones cause a growth spurt, secondary sexual characters (breast development and menarche in girls; voice change and facial hair in boys) and body changes.

• G. Stanley Hall called adolescence a period of "storm and stress".
• Main tasks: forming identity, independence from parents, peer acceptance, planning for career and values.
• Common needs and risks: extra iron and calcium, anaemia in girls, mood swings, peer pressure, body image worries, substance use. Guidance, life-skills education and a supportive family help.

Theories of development

Piaget (cognitive development)

Piaget's key words: schema, assimilation, accommodation, equilibration.

Erikson (psychosocial)

(Later adult stages are intimacy versus isolation, generativity versus stagnation, and integrity versus despair.)

Freud (psychosexual): oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital.

Vygotsky: social interaction drives learning; the Zone of Proximal Development is the gap between what a child can do alone and what he or she can do with help.

Kohlberg (moral development): pre-conventional, conventional and post-conventional levels.

Bowlby: attachment between infant and caregiver is vital for emotional security.

Play

Play is voluntary, enjoyable, active and self-motivated. It builds body control, thinking, language, social skills and emotional release. In the anganwadi it is the main method of teaching ("play-way").

Parten's stages of social play

• 1. Unoccupied play: random movements without a goal.
• 2. Solitary play: plays alone, no interest in others.
• 3. Onlooker play: watches others play without joining.
• 4. Parallel play: plays beside others with similar toys but not together.
• 5. Associative play: shares and talks but without a common goal or rules.
• 6. Cooperative play: group has a shared goal, roles and rules.

Kinds of play: functional or sensorimotor (repeating movements such as shaking a rattle), constructive (building with blocks), dramatic or pretend (playing "house" or "doctor") and games with rules (older children). Good play materials are safe, low-cost and made from local things such as stones, seeds, leaves, clay and cloth.

Language development

Theories: B. F. Skinner said language is learned through reinforcement and imitation. Noam Chomsky said children are born with a Language Acquisition Device (LAD). Vygotsky stressed social talk. Children understand more words (receptive language) than they can say (expressive language). Parents help by talking, singing, reading and naming things.

Learning

Learning is a relatively lasting change in behaviour due to experience.

Good teaching of young children is concrete, active, repeated, rewarded and linked to their own experience.

Practical guidance for the anganwadi

The Anganwadi worker should watch each child's milestones against the age guide and record any delay. She should encourage mothers to talk, sing and play with infants every day, offer safe objects to grasp and explore, give toddlers chances to walk, climb and scribble, and give older children simple tasks that build confidence. She should refer a child early if he or she does not follow sounds, does not smile, does not sit by nine months, does not walk by 18 months, or does not speak words by two years. Praise, patience and a safe, loving environment support every area of development. Both heredity (inherited traits) and environment (nutrition, stimulation, family, school) shape the child, and the early years carry the greatest weight.

Exam traps

• Growth is physical and measurable; development is wider.
• Cephalocaudal means head to foot; proximodistal means centre to outside.
• Piaget's preoperational stage is 2 to 7; concrete operational is 7 to 11.
• Erikson's first crisis is trust versus mistrust, not autonomy versus shame.
• Parallel play is playing side by side; cooperative play has shared goals.
• Babbling comes at about six months, cooing earlier.
• Classical conditioning is Pavlov; operant conditioning is Skinner.
• Holophrase is one word; telegraphic speech is two or more.
• Vygotsky is linked with the Zone of Proximal Development, Piaget with schema.
• Bandura is the person for observational learning, not Thorndike.

One-liners

• 1. Development is orderly and sequential.
• 2. Cephalocaudal development goes from head to foot.
• 3. Social smile appears at about two months.
• 4. A child sits without support at about eight months.
• 5. Piaget's sensorimotor stage lasts up to two years.
• 6. Object permanence develops in infancy.
• 7. Erikson's adolescent crisis is identity versus role confusion.
• 8. Parten described six stages of social play.
• 9. Babbling begins at about six months.
• 10. Chomsky proposed the Language Acquisition Device.
• 11. Bandura demonstrated learning by observation.
• 12. G. Stanley Hall called adolescence "storm and stress".

Practice questions

1. According to Erikson, the psychosocial crisis of infancy is

   1. Initiative versus guilt
   2. Trust versus mistrust
   3. Industry versus inferiority
   4. Autonomy versus shame and doubt
   Answer

   B. Trust versus mistrust

   In the first year the child learns to trust or mistrust the caregiver.

2. Development that proceeds from head to foot is called

   1. Reflexive
   2. Proximodistal
   3. Specific to general
   4. Cephalocaudal
   Answer

   D. Cephalocaudal

   Cephalocaudal means from the head downward.

3. Piaget's stage that covers about 2 to 7 years is the

   1. Formal operational stage
   2. Sensorimotor stage
   3. Preoperational stage
   4. Concrete operational stage
   Answer

   C. Preoperational stage

   The preoperational stage is marked by symbolic thought and egocentrism.

4. Classical conditioning is associated with

   1. Pavlov
   2. Bandura
   3. Skinner
   4. Kohler
   Answer

   A. Pavlov

   Pavlov showed that a neutral stimulus paired with a natural one can produce the same response.

5. Learning through reinforcement of behaviour is called

   1. Insight learning
   2. Imprinting
   3. Classical conditioning
   4. Operant conditioning
   Answer

   D. Operant conditioning

   Skinner's operant conditioning: rewarded behaviour is repeated.

6. The Zone of Proximal Development is a concept of

   1. Erikson
   2. Vygotsky
   3. Freud
   4. Piaget
   Answer

   B. Vygotsky

   It is the gap between what a child can do alone and with help.

7. Babbling in infants usually begins at about

   1. One month
   2. Two months
   3. Twelve months
   4. Six months
   Answer

   D. Six months

   Babbling of syllables like ba-ba starts at about six months.

8. In a newborn, fanning out of the toes when the sole is stroked is the

   1. Babinski reflex
   2. Palmar grasp
   3. Moro reflex
   4. Rooting reflex
   Answer

   A. Babinski reflex

   This is the Babinski reflex.

9. A child plays beside others with similar toys but does not interact. This is

   1. Onlooker play
   2. Associative play
   3. Parallel play
   4. Cooperative play
   Answer

   C. Parallel play

   Parten called side-by-side play without interaction parallel play.

10. Who described adolescence as a period of storm and stress?

    1. Kohlberg
    2. G. Stanley Hall
    3. Piaget
    4. Erikson
    Answer

    B. G. Stanley Hall

    G. Stanley Hall used the phrase for the emotional ups and downs of adolescence.

11. Object permanence develops mainly in Piaget's

    1. Formal operational stage
    2. Concrete operational stage
    3. Preoperational stage
    4. Sensorimotor stage
    Answer

    D. Sensorimotor stage

    Infants learn that objects still exist when out of sight during the sensorimotor stage.

12. A typical infant sits without support at about

    1. Eighteen months
    2. Three months
    3. Eight months
    4. Fourteen months
    Answer

    C. Eight months

    Sitting with support is at about six months and without support at about eight months.

13. When one word is used by a toddler to express a whole sentence, it is called a

    1. Holophrase
    2. Telegraphic speech
    3. Coo
    4. Babble
    Answer

    A. Holophrase

    A holophrase is a single word that carries the meaning of a sentence.

14. Learning by observing and imitating models is mainly explained by

    1. Skinner
    2. Bandura
    3. Pavlov
    4. Thorndike
    Answer

    B. Bandura

    Bandura's social learning theory, shown in the Bobo doll experiment.

15. A child who builds a tower with blocks is engaged in

    1. Constructive play
    2. Dramatic play
    3. Functional play
    4. Games with rules
    Answer

    A. Constructive play

    Building and making things with materials is constructive play.

16. A child stands at the edge of a group, watching others play, but does not join. This is

    1. Cooperative play
    2. Solitary play
    3. Onlooker play
    4. Parallel play
    Answer

    C. Onlooker play

    Watching without joining is onlooker play.

17. A 14-month-old says milk and points to the cup to mean I want milk. This is an example of

    1. Cooing
    2. Holophrase
    3. Telegraphic speech
    4. Echolalia
    Answer

    B. Holophrase

    One word standing for a full sentence is a holophrase.

18. A child can sort objects by size and understands that the amount of water stays the same when poured into a different glass, but cannot think about abstract ideas. The child is in the

    1. Preoperational stage
    2. Formal operational stage
    3. Sensorimotor stage
    4. Concrete operational stage
    Answer

    D. Concrete operational stage

    Conservation and classification of real objects mark the concrete operational stage.

19. A child is made afraid of a white rat by pairing it with a loud noise. This is an example of

    1. Insight learning
    2. Classical conditioning
    3. Operant conditioning
    4. Trial and error
    Answer

    B. Classical conditioning

    A neutral stimulus (rat) paired with a fear stimulus (noise) becomes a conditioned stimulus.

20. A child who gets a star each time she keeps her toys tidy starts tidying more often. This is

    1. Observational learning
    2. Classical conditioning
    3. Operant conditioning
    4. Insight learning
    Answer

    C. Operant conditioning

    The star is a reinforcer that increases the behaviour.

21. The idea that children are born with a Language Acquisition Device was given by

    1. Noam Chomsky
    2. John Bowlby
    3. B. F. Skinner
    4. Jean Piaget
    Answer

    A. Noam Chomsky

    Chomsky proposed an inborn LAD for language learning.

22. The crisis of the school-age years (6 to 12) in Erikson's theory is

    1. Identity versus role confusion
    2. Initiative versus guilt
    3. Trust versus mistrust
    4. Industry versus inferiority
    Answer

    D. Industry versus inferiority

    School-age children develop a sense of competence or inferiority.

23. Kohlberg's stages are concerned with

    1. Emotional attachment
    2. Moral development
    3. Physical growth
    4. Language development
    Answer

    B. Moral development

    Kohlberg described pre-conventional, conventional and post-conventional moral reasoning.

24. The first stage in Freud's psychosexual development is the

    1. Oral stage
    2. Anal stage
    3. Latency stage
    4. Phallic stage
    Answer

    A. Oral stage

    The order is oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital.

25. Cooing in infants usually begins at about

    1. 9 months
    2. 12 months
    3. 6 to 8 weeks
    4. 2 years
    Answer

    C. 6 to 8 weeks

    Cooing of vowel sounds starts at about 6 to 8 weeks, before babbling.

26. Telegraphic speech is the use of

    1. One-word sentences
    2. Single sounds
    3. Reflex crying
    4. Short two-word phrases
    Answer

    D. Short two-word phrases

    At about 18 to 24 months children join two words such as mama come.

27. Development that moves from the centre of the body outward is called

    1. Reflex development
    2. Proximodistal
    3. Sequential specific
    4. Cephalocaudal
    Answer

    B. Proximodistal

    Proximodistal: shoulder control comes before finger control.

28. A three-year-old believes that the sun follows him and a toy feels pain. This thinking is typical of the

    1. Sensorimotor stage
    2. Formal operational stage
    3. Preoperational stage
    4. Concrete operational stage
    Answer

    C. Preoperational stage

    Egocentrism and animism are features of the preoperational stage.

29. In Piaget's theory, accommodation means

    1. Fitting new information into existing schemas
    2. Forgetting old information
    3. Learning by imitation
    4. Changing existing schemas to fit new information
    Answer

    D. Changing existing schemas to fit new information

    Assimilation uses existing schemas; accommodation changes them.

30. Which method is best for teaching a four-year-old child in an anganwadi?

    1. Play-way, activity-based learning
    2. Writing tests
    3. Long lectures
    4. Memorising written tables
    Answer

    A. Play-way, activity-based learning

    Young children learn best through concrete, active play.

31. Which pair is correctly matched?

    1. Skinner - Zone of Proximal Development
    2. Hall - conservation
    3. Pavlov - attachment
    4. Bowlby - attachment
    Answer

    D. Bowlby - attachment

    Bowlby studied attachment; Pavlov is classical conditioning, Vygotsky is ZPD, Piaget is conservation.

32. Consider the statements. 1. Growth can be measured in height and weight. 2. Development means only increase in height. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Development is wider than physical growth.

33. Consider the statements. 1. Piaget's formal operational stage begins at about 7 years. 2. Sensorimotor is Piaget's first stage. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Formal operations begin at about 11 years.

34. Consider the statements. 1. In parallel play children play side by side. 2. In cooperative play children share a goal and rules. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both describe Parten's stages correctly.

35. Consider the statements. 1. Skinner is linked with classical conditioning. 2. Pavlov is linked with operant conditioning. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    D. Neither 1 nor 2

    The two names are reversed in both statements.

36. Consider the statements. 1. Vygotsky stressed the role of social interaction in learning. 2. Chomsky said language is learned only by reinforcement. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Chomsky argued for an inborn language ability; reinforcement was Skinner's view.

37. Consider the statements. 1. Babinski reflex is seen in newborns. 2. The Moro reflex is a startle response. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both are standard newborn reflexes.

38. Consider the statements. 1. Autonomy versus shame is the crisis of adolescence. 2. Identity versus role confusion is the crisis of adolescence. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    Autonomy versus shame belongs to ages 1 to 3.

39. Consider the statements. 1. Cephalocaudal means from the centre outward. 2. Proximodistal means from head to foot. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    D. Neither 1 nor 2

    The two meanings are swapped.

40. Consider the statements. 1. Children understand more words than they can say. 2. Babbling comes before the first meaningful words. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Receptive language exceeds expressive language, and babbling precedes words.

41. Consider the statements. 1. The rooting reflex is turning towards a touch on the cheek. 2. The rooting reflex helps a baby to walk. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    Rooting helps the baby find the nipple for feeding.

42. Consider the statements. 1. The social smile appears at about 12 months. 2. The first meaningful words appear at about 12 months. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    B. 2 only

    The social smile appears at about two months.

43. Consider the statements. 1. Bandura's Bobo doll experiment showed that children learn only when they are directly rewarded. 2. Thorndike's laws belong to insight learning. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    D. Neither 1 nor 2

    Children learned by watching a model; Thorndike's laws belong to trial-and-error learning.

44. Consider the statements. 1. Play is voluntary and enjoyable. 2. Local materials such as seeds and clay can serve as play materials. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    C. Both 1 and 2

    Both are true of play in early childhood care.

45. Consider the statements. 1. Puberty marks the start of adolescence. 2. Piaget's concrete operational stage comes before the preoperational stage. Which is/are correct?

    1. 1 only
    2. 2 only
    3. Both 1 and 2
    4. Neither 1 nor 2
    Answer

    A. 1 only

    The order is sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational.