Cognitive Development

Which term refers to changes that occur in human beings between conception and death, but only those that appear in orderly ways and remain for a reasonably long period?

According to the text, which of the following is an example of a discontinuous or qualitative change in development?

What part of the brain is responsible for coordinating and orchestrating balance and smooth, skilled movements?

At birth, a child has approximately 100 to 200 billion neurons, each with about how many synapses?

What is the process called when unused neurons are cleaned up to support cognitive development?

Which type of synaptic overproduction and pruning process is responsible for general development in large areas of the brain, such as the development of vision and hearing?

Which part of the cerebral cortex is the last to develop and controls higher-order thinking processes?

What is the term for the specialization of the two hemispheres of the brain?

During adolescence, which part of the brain develops earlier and is associated with emotions and reward-seeking behaviors?

According to Piaget, what are the two basic inherited tendencies, or 'invariant functions,' that guide all cognitive development?

In Piaget's theory, what is the term for the basic building blocks of thinking, which are organized systems of actions or thought that allow us to mentally represent objects and events?

When a child sees a raccoon for the first time and calls it a 'kitty,' they are using an existing scheme to make sense of a new experience. According to Piaget, what is this process called?

Which of Piaget's stages of cognitive development is characterized by the development of object permanence and the beginning of logical, goal-directed actions?

A 5-year-old child, Leah, believes a tall glass has more water than a short, wide one, even when the amounts are identical. According to Piaget, her inability to consider both height and diameter simultaneously is a failure of what cognitive ability?

During which of Piaget's stages do children master conservation, classification, and seriation, but are still tied to thinking about physical reality?

The hallmark of Piaget's formal operational stage, which involves considering a hypothetical situation and reasoning from a general assumption to specific implications, is called what?

One of the criticisms of Piaget's theory is that it overlooks the important effects of a child's cultural and social group. Research comparing Western children to non-Western children has generally found that:

Which theorist believed that human activities take place in cultural settings and that cognitive structures and thinking processes are created through social interactions?

According to Vygotsky, higher mental processes appear twice. What are the two levels he describes?

Vygotsky referred to a child's self-talk, which guides thinking and action, as what?

What is the term Vygotsky used for the area where a child can solve a problem with guidance and encouragement from an adult or more capable peer, but cannot yet solve it alone?

One major difference between the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky is their view on the relationship between learning and development. Which statement best summarizes Vygotsky's view?

According to the text, a major limitation of Vygotsky's theory is that:

An important implication of Piaget's theory for teaching, as described by J. Hunt, is the 'problem of the match.' What does this concept suggest?

What is the key idea behind 'assisted learning' as derived from Vygotsky's theory?

What approximate percentage of the brain's weight in adulthood does the cerebral cortex account for?

The text mentions a myth that you use only 10 percent of your brain. What is the truth presented in the chapter regarding this myth?

In Piaget's theory, the process of searching for a mental balance between existing schemes and new information is called:

What ability, mastered in the concrete operational stage, allows a student to understand that if a glass is narrower, the liquid will rise higher?

Adolescents' feeling that 'everyone is watching' them is a feature of adolescent egocentrism that Elkind calls the:

Robbie Case's neo-Piagetian theory suggests that as children practice using schemes in a specific domain, the schemes become more automatic. What is the main benefit of this increased automaticity?

What type of cultural tools did Vygotsky believe included items like printing presses, rulers, and computers?

Which of the following is NOT listed as a general principle of development supported by almost all theorists?

The text states that the use of private speech peaks at around what age before going 'underground'?

According to the Point/Counterpoint section on brain-based education, what is one major reason that John Bruer is critical of the 'right-brain, left-brain learning' concept?

What did the research on the reading instruction of poor readers by Bennett Shaywitz and colleagues reveal about brain function?

In the context of adolescent brain development, why might a teenager need about 9 hours of sleep but find it difficult to fall asleep before midnight?

What is the term for the process of coating axon neuron fibers with an insulating fatty glial covering, which makes message transmission faster and more efficient?

The major accomplishment of the preoperational period that involves the ability to form and use symbols like words, gestures, and images is called:

The text presents a critique of Piaget's stage model, suggesting that developmental changes can appear as sudden leaps but are actually preceded by slow, continuous changes. This idea is described by a branch of mathematics called:

What does research about calculators in math class, such as the TIMSS study, suggest about their use?

Both Piaget and Vygotsky emphasized social interactions in cognitive development, but for different reasons. What did Piaget believe was the main benefit of peer interaction?

What is the primary goal of the Tools of the Mind curriculum, which is based on Vygotsky's theory?

Which of the following would be an example of scaffolding?

According to Piaget, how is knowledge constructed?

By ages 2 to 3, a child's brain has many more synapses than an adult brain will have. Each neuron at this age has around how many synapses?

Which part of the brain is described as playing a critical role in recalling new information and recent experiences?

Patricia, a student who struggles with math, feels embarrassed and develops a fear response when asked to solve a problem on the board. This immediate, emotionally-charged association is linked to which part of the brain?

What does Vygotsky's concept of 'co-constructed' processes mean?

According to the summary of brain-based learning principles for teachers, why is it beneficial to use a range of modalities for instruction, such as maps and songs to teach geography?