Child Development Exam 1

Describe three evolved characteristics that can help infants survive.

1. Reflexes 2. Facial Features - cuteness schema 3. Crying

Define Epigenesis. Why is it important for early childhood teachers to understand environmental modifications of gene expression?

Epigenetics: DNA is a dynamic movie in which our experiences are being written Teachers need to be aware of the environmental effects in order to know what their students need, and to be able to educate their parents. Teachers also need to understand why the students act the way they do if they are affected by experiences that rewrite their DNA.

Describe the Bobo doll experiment. Who was the initial researcher behind this idea? What did he find? Why was it an important study? What school of thought formed as a result of the findings?

-A clown doll was placed inside a room. Children watched as adults interacted with the doll. -Bandura was the initial researcher -He found that the children interacted with the doll the same way that the adults they witnessed interacting with it did. -Behaviorism was formed because of this

What is a food desert? How could it affect children in early childhood (birth to grade 3) settings? How do fatty foods potentially affect the brain? What are three specific ways to encourage healthy eating habits in the classroom?

-A food desert is an urban area in which it is difficult to buy affordable or good quality fresh food. -Children who are living in food deserts are affected the most nutritionally, behaviorally, and academically. Children in food deserts are also more likely to develop obesity, which can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure, and even anxiety. They are also, more likely to develop type-2 diabetes due to the lack of healthy food in their environment. Lastly, children will also tend to have less academic success compared to those who have easy access to nutritional food. - Can have an effect on ones memory as well as cognitive functions and increases the likelihood of craving unhealthy foods. -3 ways to encourage healthy eating: Teach healthy eating habits, give students choices, teach them where healthy foods come from

What are the weaknesses of Piaget's theory?

-Change is more gradual and continuous than stage-like -Children are more cognitively competent than Piaget proposed -The idea of egocentrism is not always correct. Some 3 year olds are aware of other's viewpoints. -Not all groups get to the formal operational stage -There should be a fifth stage: Post-Formal Thinking Stage -Lack of emphasis on children's social and cultural contexts that affect the structure of their cognitive world

What is the difference between classical conditioning and operant conditioning?

-Classical Conditioning: when you learn to associate two different stimuli. No behavior is involved. -Involuntary, stimulus before response,learner is passive -Operant Conditioning: involves changing of behavior as a result of responses that occur after that behavior. -Voluntary, stimulus after desired response, learner is actively involved

Define Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory. Name each system. Use the idea of domestic violence to provide an example for each system.

-Definition: Formulated to explain how the inherent qualities of a child and his environment interaction to influence how he will grow and develop. -Microsystem: Meaningful one-on-one interactions - No meaningful one-on-one interactions with peers or family Mesosystem: Relationships between 2 or more microsystems, what is learned at home - Bad relationships with parents or those from immediate family Exosystem: Environmental effects on how one develops which is out of one control -The environment one was raised in is traumatic Macrosystem: Large cultural and social structural elements of the environment that shapes human development -Lack of development when it comes to human interactions, doesn't understand a healthy relationship Chronosystem: Big events in the world that help psychologists understand the effect it will have on a person's development through time. -Domestic violence having a lasting effect on a person

How do Erikson's psychosocial stage theory and Freud's psychosexual stage theory differ? How are they similar? How can they be applied to the educational setting?

-Erikson differed from Freud in that he did not believe in the sexual adaptations of Freud's Phychosexual stage theory. Freud believed that the caretaker was responsible for how the child progressed through the stages. -They both assume children move through a series of stages in which they confront conflicts through biological drives and social expectations. How they resolve these things determines their psychological adjustment -They also both believed in the Id, Ego and Superego and infantile sexuality. -By knowing each stage that the child goes through, and is going through allows teachers to understand what each child is going through, why they are acting the way that they are, and how to help the child in whatever stage he/ she is in.

Define resilience. How do we build resilience? Provide an example of how early childhood programs aim to build resilience in young children.

-Resilience: The ability to overcome hardship -One way to understand the development or resilience is to visualize a balance scale or seesaw. Protective experiences and coping skills on one side counter balances significant advertising on the others. -Resilience is evident when a child's health and development tips toward positive outcomes even when a heavy load of factors is stacked on the negative outcomes side.

What is a theory? Describe in detail the three main issues all theorists of child development take a stand on.

-THEORY: An orderly, integrated statements that describes behavior, explains behavior and predicts behavior. 1.Continuous or discontinuous 2.One course of development or many 3.Relative influence of nature and nurture

Describe the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study. What are the results from this study? Why is it important? What does it mean for early childhood teachers? Why are protective factors so important?

-The ACE study is one of the largest investigations ever conducted to assess associations between childhood maltreatment and later-life health and well- being. -An ACE score is a tally of different types of abuse, neglect, and other hallmarks of a rough childhood. According to the Adverse Childhood Experiences study, the rougher your childhood, the higher your score is likely to be and the higher your risk for later health problems. -Protective factors are important because they show what factors are involved with those that do no have a high ACE score.

Provide four ways that family-neighborhood-school ties reduce parenting stress and promote child development.

1. Parental self-worth 2. Parental access to valuable info and services 3. Child-rearing controls and role models 4. Direct assistance with child rearing

Describe three ways playing outdoors can affect a child's physical development.

1. When a child is outside, they probably have more space and freedom for big movements, like running, jumping, kicking and throwing. Physical activities like these are good for their health, fitness and physical development. 2. Allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, physical, cognitive and emotional strength. 3. Play is important to healthy brain development. It is through play that children at a very early age engage and interact in the world around them. Play allows children to create and explore a world they can master, conquering their fears while practicing adult roles, sometimes in conjunction with other children or adult caregivers.

What are the educational implications of Piaget's theory? (i.e., children constructing their knowledge, discovery learning, sensitivity to readiness, etc.)

Emphasis on Discovery Learning -children encouraged to discover information themselves -teachers provide activities to promote exploration and discovery Sensitivity to readiness to learn -learning must be based on level of child's thinking -new skills not imposed until child is ready and interested

Environmental modification of gene expression can occur at any age, even prenatally, with lasting consequences. Provide examples for this statement.

Exposure to pharmaceuticals and toxic chemicals, diet, stress, exercise, and other environmental factors are capable of eliciting positive or negative epigenetic modification with lasting effects on development, metabolism and health. Those can impact the body so profoundly as to permanently alter the epigenetic profile of an individual. As well these diverse environmental factors can cause both direct and indirect epigenetic changes and how this knowledge can be used to improve personalized medicine.

What is the difference between gross motor skills and fine motor skills? Give two examples of each. How do perception and motor behavior work together to influence gross motor and fine motor skills?

Gross motor skills: movements related to large muscles such as legs, arms, ect. Ex: swimming, climbing Fine motor skills: movements involving smaller muscle groups such as those in the hand and wrist. Ex: holding a spoon, threading -You need perception and motor to get a physical outcome. These outcomes are gross motor skills and fine motor skills.

What is perceptual-motor coordination. Briefly describe the 3 sub-strands and provide one tip (per sub-strand) that teachers can use to help build this area of development.

Perceptual-motor coordination: is the process of receiving, interpreting, and using information of all the body's senses to carry out the physical output. 3 sub-strands: -Body Awareness: ability to understand where our bodies are in space and how our bodies move. Tip: Simon says -Spatial Awareness: ability to understand and interact with the environment around you. Tip: set up obstacle courses -Directional Awareness: it helps children understand the space around them in the everyday world. It helps them identify where things are. Tip: place a ladder on the ground and give directions to jump 3 spaces, go forward 3, go back 4, ect.

Describe the three main domains of child development.

Physical -Body Size, Functioning of the Body Size -Motor capacities Cognition -Intellectual Abilities (memories, problem solving, language) Emotional and Social -Emotional Communication -Self- understanding, knowledge about others -Interpersonal skills and relationships -Moral reasoning and behavior

Describe Piaget's notion of cognitive change. Provide a detailed description of the Adaptation and Organization processes. Define assimilation, accommodation, schemes, equilibrium, and disequilibrium. Use an example to organize these definitions.

Piaget's notion of cognitive change: Piaget observed that children think differently than adults. He believed that children construct their knowledge from their environments. -Children organize things into different schemas. Everything learned is structures. Once new information is given to the children, this is the moment of disequilibrium. They adapt by accomationg their new information into new schemas. Assimilation: make new information fit into existing schemas. Ex: "heart" = ( Drawn heart) Accomodation: adjusting your schema to fit new information. Ex: "heart" = what a heart really looks like, arteries, ventricles, ect. Schemes: cognitive or mental structure by which individuals intellectually adapt to and organize the environment. Ex: schema of a house goes from knowing roof and walls to a complex version as you add windows, doors, pipes, ect. Equilibrium: current schemas match their old experiences. Ex: dog = tail, 4 legs, two ears Disequilibrium: new experiences do not match their understanding and current schemas Ex: child is introduced to cat; cat = tail, 4 legs, two ears, but says meow

For operant conditioning, describe the difference between positive reinforcement, punishment I, punishment II, and negative reinforcement. Give an example from the classroom of each.

Positive Reinforcement -Present something of value after desired behavior. -Especially behavior that runs counter to misbehavior -Examples of Positive Reinforcers •Praise, Food, Stickers, Pencils, Ribbons or Awards, Free Time, No Homework Passes, Etc. Punishment 1 - After misbehavior student receives some aversive stimulus...leads to decrease in behavior -Examples of Punishment I Verbal reprimand, Spanking, Sending to principal, Letter home for misbehavior, etc. -Punishment 2 -After misbehavior, student loses something of value...leads to decrease in behavior -Time Out -: Keep from rewarding activity- At home, might be referred to "restriction" to room Negative Reinforcement - After desired behavior, student escapes or avoids something aversive...leads to increase in behavior. -Relief from aversion is reinforcing -Headache: Take aspirin because it stops headache -When used, the idea is you are waiting for the good behavior then aversive event is removed/avoided.

Describe the difference between positive, tolerant, and toxic stress. Give an example of each.

Positive: Brief increases in heart rate, mild elevations in stress hormone levels. - Examples: first day with a new caregiver or receiving an injected immunization Tolerable: Serious, temporary stress responses, buffered by supportive relationships. - Examples: serious illness or death of a loved one Toxic: Prolonged activation of stress response systems in the absence of protective relationships. - Examples: abuse, neglect, extreme poverty, violence, household dysfunction, and food scarcity.

What is a preterm infant? What are possible consequences for caregiving? What type of interventions can help?

Preterm infant: born several weeks or more before their due date. Their weight may be appropriate based on time spent in the uterus. Consequences for caregiving: - Preterm babies may be scrawny, unresponsive and irritable, which can lead parents to be less sensitive and responsive in caring for them. - Preterm babies as a group are at risk for child abuse, especially when they are born to isolated, poverty-stricken mothers. - How well preterm babies develop has a great deal to do with the parent-child relationship. Interventions for preterm babies: - Incubator - Respirator - Feeding tube - Intravenous medication - Special infant stimulation - Kangaroo care - Parent training in caregiving

Describe Piaget's four stages of cognitive development. Provide the stage, the age period of the stage, and a description of the cognitive attainments at each stage. Describe how children's thinking qualitatively differs at each stage. Be specific and use language and definitions relevant for each stage (i.e., reflexes, object permanence, egocentrism, conservation, symbolic thought and mental representations, logical thought, abstract thought, irreversibility/reversibility, animism, decentration, hypothetical thinking, and scientific reasoning).

Sensorimotor -Birth to nearly 2 years -Infants construct understanding of world by coordination their sensory experiences like seeing, hearing, and smelling with motor actions like reaching and touching. -Develop object permanence (memory): realize that objects exist even if they are out of sight Preoperational -About 2 to 6 years -Child develops ability to match objects with images and words, language skills, and imatiotion. -Engages in ecocentric (failure to recognize more viewpoints than their own) -Engages in animistic thinking (belief that inanimate objects have lifelike qualities, such as feeling or thoughts). -Centration: tendency to focus on one single aspect of a situation -Decentration in thinking begins at the end of this stage -Irreversibility of actions Concrete Operational -About 7 to 11 years -the child develops the fundamentals of logic -ability to sort and classify objects -understanding of conservation (physical quantities do not change based on the arrangement and/or appearance of the object -reversibility -decentration Formal Operational -About 12 through adulthood -think about how reality compares to ideals -think hypothetically about different choices and their consequences -testing hypotheses systematically: scientific reasoning -critiques the reasoning of others -debates matters of justice, meaning of life, and human nature

How does childhood trauma change the way your genes behave?

Short term trauma and exposure to large amounts of stress in childhood is linked to epigenetic changes, this changes the way that the body turns genes on and off, and regulates biological processes which can last into adulthood.

Define the psychosocial theory. Describe the stages of this theory. Psychosocial theory: Erikson believed how we interact with others influences how we progress through stages and our personality. He identified eight psychological struggles he believed contribute to one's personality. Each stage has inherent conflict, with no fixation. Each stage is faced with "crisis" (relationships with others and ourselves). Resolution affects later functioning.

Stage 1: Trust vs Mistrust (0-1 ½ years) - Forms loving, trusting relationships with caregivers - Virtue: Hope - Maladaptation: Gullibility - Malignancy: Withdrawal Stage 2: Autonomy vs Shame/Doubt (1 ½ - 2 or 3 years) - Develops sense of self-sufficiency in satisfying one's own needs - Virtue: Willpower - Maladaptation: Impulsivity - Malignancy: Chronic low self-esteem Stage 3: Initiative vs Guilt (2 to 3-6 years) - Develops responsibility in planning and undertaking activities - Virtue: Purpose - Maladaptation: Ruthless - Malignancy: Inhibition Stage 4: Industry vs Inferiority (6-11 years) - Develops sense of competence through one's accomplishments - Virtue: Competence - Maladaptation: Narrow Virtuosity - Malignancy: Apathy Stage 5: Identity vs Identity Confusion (Adolescence) - Develops sense of the role they will fill in the adult world - Virtue: Fidelity; Health self- definition - Maladaptation: Fanatic rigidness to beliefs; lacks tolerance - Malignancy: Negative identity Stage 6: Intimacy vs Isolation (Young Adulthood) - Forms intimate and reciprocal relationships - Virtue: Love - Maladaptation: Promiscuity - Malignancy: Exclusive Isolation Stage 7: Generativity vs Stagnation (Mid Adulthood) - Gives to society and guides future generations - Virtue: Care - Maladaptation: Overextension - Malignancy: Rejectivity / Lack of participation Stage 8: Integrity vs Despair (Late Adulthood) - Reviews one's life and comes to a sense of acceptance and fulfillment - Virtue: Wisdom - Maladaptation: Resumption - Malignancy: Disdain

What is a teratogen? How can some teratogens be avoided during pregnancy?

Teratogen: an agent or factor that can cause a malformation to an embryo - Examples: alcohol, drugs, caffeine, tobacco, over the counter medicine, prescription drugs, maternal malnutrition, maternal stress