Piaget’s Stages of

Cognitive
Development

Jean Piaget

Introduction
Theory of Cognitive Development

This theory fueled other researchers and

theories of development and learning.
Its focus is on how individual construct
knowledge
 
His research method involved observing a
small number of individuals as they
responded to cognitive tasks that he
designed. These task were later known as
“ Piagetian Task”
Genetic Epistemology

 Piaget called his general theoretical framework
“Genetic Epistemology” because he was interested
in how knowledge developed in human organisms.
 He is into Biology and has a background in
Philosophy and his knowledge from both these
disciplines influenced his theories and research of
child development.
 Out of his researches, Piaget came up with the
Stages of Cognitive Development.
Implication of his Theory

Not only to aspect of Cognition but also to
Intelligence and Moral Development.

His theory has been applied in Teaching

and Curriculum design specifically in the
preschool and elementary curricula
Basic Cognitive Concepts

a) Schema

b) Assimilation

c) Accommodation

d) Equilibration
Schema

 … individuals intellectually adapt to and organize
their environment.
 It is an individual’s way to understand or create
meaning about a thing or experience.
 It is like the mind has a filing cabinet and each
drawer has folder that contain files of things he had
experienced.
…Example

 a child sees a DOG for the first time, he creates his
own schema of what dog is.

 It has four legs

 It has a tail
 Its furry
 And it barks
 
The child then puts this “description of a
dog on file” in his mind. (The Schema of a dog)

 And when he sees another similar dog, he pulls

out the file in his mind, looks at the animal and
says, It has four legs, tail, furry and it barks….

• That’s a DOG!!!
Assimilation

Process of fitting a new experience
(description) into an existing or
previously created cognitive structure
or schema
…Example

When a child sees another dog, this time a
little smaller one, he will add this new
information (a different looking dog) into his
Schema of a dog.
Accommodation

 Process of creating a new schema.
 If sees another animal that looks a little bit like a dog,
but somehow different.
 He might try to fit it into his schema of a dog.
…Example

 The child will likely say “ look mommy, what a
funny looking dog. Its barks is funny too!”
 Then the mommy explains “that’s not funny looking
dog, that’s a goat!”
 With further descriptions, the child will now create a
new schema of a goat, adding new file in his filing
cabinet.
Equilibration

 Piaget believes that people have the Natural Need to
understand how the world works and to find order.
 Equilibration is achieving proper balance between
Assimilation and Accommodation.
 When our Experience do not match our
Scheme/Schemata or Cognitive Structure, we
experience Cognitive Disequilibrium.
 
Cognitive Disequilibrium

 Means there is discrepancy between what is

perceived and what is understood. We then exert
effort through assimilation and accommodation to
establish equilibration once more.
 
 COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT involves a
continuous effort to adapt to the environment in
terms of Assimilation and Accommodation.
 
Piaget’s Stages of
Cognitive
Development
Piaget’s Stages of
Cognitive Development

1) Sensori-motor Stage
2) Pre-Operational Stage

3) Concrete-Operational Stage
4) Formal Operational Stage
1. Sensori-motor Stage

From Birth to Infancy
The stage when a child is initially reflexive in
grasping, sucking and reaching
Becomes more organized in his movement
and activity.
Prominence of senses and muscle movement
in which the infant is learning about himself
and the world.
…application

 In working with the children in Sensor-
motor stage, teacher should aim to provide a
rich stimulating environment with
appropriate objects to play with.
 
Object Permanence

 Ability of the child to know that an object still

exists even when out of sight
 This ability is attained in the sensori-motor stage.
2. Pre-Operational Stage

From 2 - 7 years old or preschool year.
Intelligence in this stage is intuitive in nature.
Can make Mental Representation and is able
to pretend and now ever closer to the use of
the Symbols.
 
Symbolic Function

 Ability to represent objects and events using

symbols that represents something else.
 A drawing, written word, or a spoken word
comes to be understood as representing a real
objects.

* examples in the book

 
Egocentrism

 Tendency of the child to only see his point of view

and to assume that everyone also has his same
point of view.
 Cannot take the perspective of others

* examples in the book

 
Centration

 Tendency of the child to only focus on one

aspect of a thing or event and exclude other
aspects.

* examples in the book

 
Irreversibility

 The inability of the child to reverse their thinking

Example:
They can understand that 2+1=5, but
cannot understand 5-3=2
 
Animism

 Tendency of the child to attribute human like

traits or characteristic t inanimate objects.

Example:
“Mr. Sun is sleeping at night”
 
Transductive Reasoning

 Child’s reasoning neither inductive or deductive.

Reasoning appears to be from particular to
particular. That is if a A causes B, then B causes A.

* examples in the book

3. Concrete-Operational Stage

Approximately covers the age between 8-11
years old or the elementary school year.
Stage is characterized by the ability of the
child to think logically but only in terms of
concrete objects.
 
Decentering

 Ability of the child to perceive different features

of objects and situations. No longer focuses only
or limited only on one aspect or dimension.
 
 Reversibility

 The child can now follow that certain operations

can be done in reverse

* examples in the book

 
Conservation

Ability to know that certain properties of

objects like numbers, mass, volume, or
area do not change even if there is a
change in appearance.
 
Seriation

Ability to order or arrange things in a

series based on one dimension such as
weight, volume or size.
4. Formal Operational Stage

From age 12 to 15 years old.
Thinking becomes more logical
They can now solve abstract problems and
can hypothesize.
 
Hypothetical Reasoning

 Ability to come up with different hypothesis

about a problem and to gather weigh data in
order to make a final decision or judgement in the
absence of the concrete object.
 Can now deal with “what if” question.
 
Analogical Reasoning

 Ability to perceive the relationship in one instance

and then use that relationship to narrow down
possible answers in another similar situation or
problems.

* examples in the book

 
Deductive Reasoning

 Ability to think logically by applying a general

rule to particular instance or situation.

* examples in the book

QUIZ

 Rules and Regulation

DO NOT
COPY OR
U’LL DIE!!!
 
1. What is the name of the theory of Jean
Piaget that focuses on how individual
construct knowledge?
 
2. What is the method that involves observing a
small number of individuals as they responded
to cognitive tasks that he designed?
 
3. Piaget called his general theoretical
framework as ___________________ because he
was interested on how knowledge developed
in human organisms.
 
4 – 7. What are the Four Basic Cognitive
Concepts on Jean Piaget’s Cognitive
Development?
 
8. From what age of the child is the
Sensori-motor Stage?
 
9. From what age of the child is the
Concrete-Operational Stage?
 
10. From what age of the child is the
Pre-Operational Stage?
 
11. From what age of the child is the
Formal Operational Stage?
 
12 - 15 . What are the Four Stages of Cognitive
Development according to Jean Piaget?

(*In proper order)

Answers:

1. Theory of Cognitive Development or Cognitive Theory of Development
2. Piagetian Task
3. Genetic Epistemology
4. Schema
5. Assimilation
6. Accommodation
7. Equilibration
8. Birth to Infancy
9. 8 to 11
10. 2 to 7
11. 12 to 15
12. Sensori-motor Stage
13. Pre-Operational Stage
14. Concrete-Operational Stage
15. Formal Operational Stage