Roots of Early Childhood Education How did it all begin? Where did our “big ideas” about Early Childhood Education come from? The following are just a few of the major theorists of child development. Play as Therapy: Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)  In 1920, Sigmund Freud posed a psychoanalytic play theory that was defined in his book "Beyond the Pleasure Principle." In this work, Freud described play as a child's mechanism for repeatedly working out a previously experienced traumatic event in an effort to correct or master the event to his satisfaction. Main Theory Experiences in early childhood influence later development. Assumes sexual factors are major factors, even in early childhood. Freud's work was heavily criticized for lack of substantial evidence. He regarded basic sexual instincts as being the driving force behind virtually all behaviour. There are many unproven aspects to Freud's work, for example Freud theorized that certain characteristics were related to childhood factors like parental attitudes to toilet training. For example… If parents were too strict or began toilet training too early, Freud believed that an anal-retentive personality develops in which the individual is stringent, orderly, rigid and obsessive. Play as Preparation: John Dewey (1859-1952)  John Dewey was a prominent theorist in the early 1900s. According to Dewey, play is a subconscious activity that helps an individual develop both mentally and socially. It should be separate from work as play helps a child to grow into a working world. As children become adults, they no longer "play" but seek amusement from their occupation. This childhood activity of play prepares them to become healthy working adults. Play as Sensory Learning: Maria Montessori (1870-1952)  Maria Montessori, an Italian educationist during the early 1900s, postulated that "play is the child's work." According to the Montessori method, which is still employed today in private schools, children would be best served spending their play time learning or imagining. Montessori play is sensory, using a hands-on approach to everyday tools like sand tables. The child sets her own pace, and the teacher is collaborative in helping the child play to learn. Play as Intellectual Development: Jean Piaget (1896-1980)  Jean Piaget is most noted for introducing the stages of child development. These stages directly relate to play, as he stated that intellectual growth occurs as children go through the stages of assimilation, or manipulating the outside world to meet one's own needs--playacting--and accommodation, or readjusting one's own views to meet the needs of the outside environment, or work. Play as Social Development: Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934)  Lev Vygotsky suggested that children will use play as a means to grow socially. In play, they encounter others and learn to interact using language and role-play. Vygotsky is most noted for introducing the ZPD, or zone of proximal development. This suggests that while children need their peers or playmates to grow, they need adult interaction as they master each social skill and are ready to be introduced to new learning for growth. In Vygotsky’s view the adults provide the scaffolding to help children learn new information and develop more complex thinking abilities. Play is the work of children: Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) Friedrich Froebel was from German heritage and loved nature. He developed the word "kindergarten", and designed what is called the "Froebel gifts" (geometric blocks, pattern blocks, etc). Froebel's contribution to the education world was his ideas in recognising that children had unique needs and capabilities, and the importance of the activities in the children's learning. Through play, the individual learns that there is 1) Unity in the universe 2) Opposites can be resolved 3) Materials can be combined to create diff. things. Social Child Development Theories John Bowlby (1907-1990) There is a great deal of research on the social development of children. John Bowlby proposed one of the earliest theories of social development. Bowlby believed that early relationships with caregivers play a major role in child development and continue to influence social relationships throughout life. Bowlby’s evolutionary theory of attachment suggests that children come into the world biologically pre-programmed to form attachments with others, because this will help them to survive. Erik Erikson (1902-1994) Theorist Erik Erikson also proposed a stage theory of development, but his theory encompassed development throughout the human lifespan. Erickson believed that there were eight stages through which a healthily developing human should pass from infancy to late adulthood. In each stage the person confronts, and hopefully masters, new challenges. Each stage builds on the successful completion of earlier stages. The challenges of stages not successfully completed may be expected to reappear as problems in the future. Albert Bandura (1925Psychologist Albert Bandura proposed what is known as social learning theory. According to this theory of child development, children learn new behaviors from observing other people. Unlike behavioral theories, Bandura believed that external reinforcement was not the only way that people learned new things. Instead, intrinsic reinforcements such as a sense of pride, satisfaction and accomplishment could also lead to learning. By observing the actions of others, including parents and peers, children develop new skills and acquire new information. Main Theory Learning takes place by imitation. This differs from Skinner's "conditioning" because there is more emphasis on inner motivational factors. Bandura's theory known as "Social Learning Theory" has been renamed "Social Cognitive Theory" to accomodate later developments of the theory. Bandura is seen by many as a cognitive psychologist because of his focus on motivational factors and self-regulatory mechanisms that contribute to a person's behaviour, rather than just environmental factors. Bandura proposed that children learn from copying others and tend to repeat behavior if they see someone else being rewarded for that behavior. This focus on cognition is what differentiates social cognitive theory from Skinner's purely behaviouristic viewpoint. B.F.Skinner (1904-1990) Main Theory Reinforcement and punishment moulds behaviour. Children are conditioned by their experiences. Skinner maintained that learning occurred as a result of the organism responding to, or operating on, its environment, and coined the term operant conditioning (1938) to describe this phenomenon. He did extensive research with animals, notably rats and pigeons, and invented the famous Skinner box, in which a rat learns to press a lever in order to obtain food. He believed that behavior that is rewarded (reinforced) is likely to be repeated. Arnold Gesell (1880-1961) Main Theory Development is genetically determined by universal "maturation patterns" which occurs in a predictable sequence. Gesell's classic study involved twin girls, both given training for motor skills but one given training for longer than the other. There was no measurable difference in the age at which either child acquired the skills, suggesting that development had happened in a genetically programmed way, irrespective of the training given. A child learns whether or not an adult teaches him/her, suggesting physical development at least is largely pre-programmed. By studying thousands of children over many years, Gesell came up with "milestones of development" – (1940’s) stages by which normal children can accomplish different tasks. These are still used today. Jerome Bruner (1915Bruner was one of the founding fathers of constructivist theory. Constructivism is a broad conceptual framework with numerous perspectives, and Bruner's is only one. Bruner's theoretical framework is based on the theme that learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon existing knowledge. Learning is an active process. In the 1960s Jerome Bruner developed a theory of cognitive growth. His approach (in contrast to Piaget) looked to environmental and experiential factors. Bruner suggested that intellectual ability developed in stages through step-by-step changes in how the mind is used. Information sourced through Google and compiled by Mary Rose Taylor