Hd Chapter 3: Neural And Cognitive Development - The Early Years

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PROGRESSION OF PRENATAL BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

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•Neuralation: at 2 weeks, cells from embryo’s upper surface forms a sheet that turns inward and curls→Neural Tube-beginning of CNS development= 25th day- takes on curved shape, eventually develops into hindbrain, midbrain, forebrain.
•Neurons (nerve cells): at about the 5th week of gestation, neurons begin to increase rapidly (250, 000/minute for 9 months)
•Glia:supporting neuron cells, scaffolding for neurons, guides neurons.

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MAJOR STRUCTURES OF THE BRAIN

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•Forebrain= cerebrum, corpus callosum, lobes (frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal), limbic system (hippocampus, amygdale, septum).
•Midbrain= reticular activating system, superior colliculi, inferior colliculi, substantia nigra.
•Hindbrain=it’s composed of the medulla, pons, cerebellum, reticular formation.

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HINDBRAIN (regulate the autonomic functions that are outside our conscious control).

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•Medulla/medulla oblangata= nerves cross from one side of the body to the opposite side, regulates heart rate, blood pressure, respiration.
•Pons= relays messages between cerebellum and cortex and play a critical role in respiration. (regulation of sleep-wake cycle)
•Cerebellum: Part of the hindbrain that controls balance, and maintains muscle coordination. Damage to this area may→ equilibrium problems, postural defects, impairments in skilled motor activity.

Hint 3

Reticular formation= system of nerves , running from hindbrain and through the midbrain to the cerebral cortex, controlling arousal and attention.
-With the brainstem (medulla, pons, and midbrain) this structure acts together with specific nuclei to forms the reticular activating system: alerts higher structures to pay attention to incoming stimuli; filters out extraneous stimuli that we perceive at any point in time. -These areas are sensitive to overdose of alcohol or drugs.

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Mid Brain:

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-Superior colliculi, Inferior Colliculi, Substantia Nigra: Involved in hearing, vision, and consciousness; also a part of the reticular activating system.

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FOREBRAIN: larger and dominant part of the brain: Cerebrum or Cerebral Cortex( controls complex thought processes): 2/3 of total mass of forebrain

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A fissure divides cerebrum in half Information is transferred between the two halves by a network of fibers comprising the Corpus callosum.
-these halves are referred to as the left and right hemispheres. Language functions such as vocabulary knowledge and speech are localized in the left hemisphere, and visual-spatial skills are localized on the right hemisphere.

Hint 5

The Cerebrum: the cerebrum’s surface- the neocortex- is convulated into hundreds of folds. The neocortex is where all the higher brain functions take place. The cortex provides the connections and pathways for the higher cognitive functions, such as language and abstract thinking.

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Forebrain cont:

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Frontal lobe: is the area of the brain responsible for higher cognitive functions: problem solving, spontaneity, memory, motivation, judgment, impulse control, social and sexual behavior.
Association areas: ¾ of cortex= integrate information coming from various primary cortical areas.
+ important for complex cognitive functioning.

Hint 6

Temporal lobe: plays a role in emotions, and is also responsible for auditory processing, smelling, tasting, and it also contains the language area of the brain (WERNICKE’S)

Parietal lobe: plays a role in our sensations of touch, smell, and taste.
Occipital lobe: is at the rear of the brain and controls vision and recognition.

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Completing the forebrain are the structures of the limbic system (hippocampus, amygdala, and spectum), the thalamus, and the hypothalamus.

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Limbic Lobe
•The limbic lobe is located deep in the brain, and makes up the limbic system.
Limbic system: Regulates emotions and memory. It directly connects the lower and higher brain functions.

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Limbic system: Regulates emotions and memory. It directly connects the lower and higher brain functions.

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-Hippocampus: emotions, learning, memory, compare sensory information to expectations
-Amygdala: motivation, emotional control, fear responses, interpretations of nonverbal, emotional responses

Hint 8

-Thalamus= It relays information from sensory organs and limbic system to cerebral cortex.
-The hypothalamus= controls many critical bodily functions: Controls autonomic nervous system, centers for emotional responses and behavior, regulates body temperature, water balance and thirst, controls sleep-wake cycles, and the endocrine system.

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-STRUCTURES AND FUNCTIONS OF NEURONS

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-White matter: is made up of myelin sheath (myelin sheath are white)
-Gray matter= made up of cell bodies
-Neuron= is the primary unit of communication in the brain.
-Nucleus= executive of neuron
-Dendrites= gather info.
-Axon terminal= Neurotransmitters are released.

Hint 9

-Synaptic gap= is the sac in the axon terminals containing neurotransmitters burst and release their contents into this space between the neurons.

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POSTNATAL BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

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•Synaptogenesis: continued brain growth primarily due to formation of synapses, added by nerve growth factor
•Neural pruning: synaptic overproduction; many neurons would die off or selectively discarded. Development of synapses that are dependent on environmental input= experience-expectant; development of synapses that occur as a result of exposure to more individualized kinds of environmental events= experience-dependent
-Simulating and complex environments shown in research to promote synaptic development in rats and other mammals, likely infants and children as well.

Hint 10

Development of synapses that are dependent on environmental input= experience-expectant; development of synapses that occur as a result of exposure to more individualized kinds of environmental events= experience-dependent

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SENSORY AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

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•Sensory integration Dysfunction: extreme hypersensitivity or hyposensitivity to sensations such as bright lights, loud sounds, pain, certain textures, or human touch; motor clumsiness; balance problems; fidgeting; and poor eye-hand coordination.
•Sensory and cognitive development are uneven.

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Table 3.2 major milestones in Motor, Visual, and Auditory Development

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•1 month- lifts head, holds things in hands, alert to sound
•4 months- sits with support; rolls over from front to back
•7 months- sits without support, plays with simple toys
•9 months- crawls, pincer grasp, interpret others’ facial expressions
•12-18 months- walks alone, scribbles
•2-3 years- runs, jumps, climbs, etc..; dressing and feeding inproves.
•4-5 years- dresses and undresses oneself easily; more skillful with scissors.

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PIAGET’S CONSTRUCTIVISTIC THEORY

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•The human mind constructs its knowledge
•Adaptation: the process by which children learn.
-Assimilation: children learn and interpret new stimulation in ways that fit with what they already know. Sometimes distortion.
-Accommodation: As new information is assimilated, the child’s existing knowledge may be modified somewhat, providing a better match or fit to what is new.

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INFANT COGNITION: THE SENSORIMOTOR STAGE:

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•Habituation paradigm, which takes advantage of a baby’s tendency to orient to new stimulation and to habituate to repeated or old stimulation.
-Orienting response: looking longer, suck on pacifier more rigorously, blood pressure and heart rate decrease
-Habituation (familiarization): shorter looking times, less vigorous sucking, return to heartbeat and blood pressure base rate
-Dishabituation response: renewed orientation response. Reacquainted self to new stimuli: eg, green grapes to red grapes.

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-UNDERSTANDING OBJECTS

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•Object concept: objects have properties that can stimulate their senses (babies know objects)
•Preferential looking paradigm: used in studies examining learning in babies
•Intersensory integration: senses are related early in life; development of one sensory system is influenced by the development of other systems. Notion that senses are related to one another.
•Object permanence: ability to realize that objects have a separate existence. Until 8-12 months; knowing that an object exists.

Hint 15

•Representational thought: capacity to think about things or events that are not currently stimulating our senses.
•Hidden object test: assess object permanence. Infants younger than 8-12 months fail to search for the object- lack of representational thought.

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Remembering

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•Recognition: is the ability to differentiate between experiences that are new and experiences that we have had before. improves throughout infancy
-Duration and speed of habituation increases with age
-Recognition speed is correlated with later intelligence test performance.
•Recall: (in order to recall, baby must have mental representation/object permanence)
-Is the ability to bring to mind an experience that has happened in the past.

Hint 16

-One indicator of recall is Deferred imitation: Observe the actions of an individual on one occasion and then imitate those actions later.
-Develops approximately around 9 months of age and improved dramatically over the next year.
->social learning- observational learning/modeling
-Separation anxiety example: 8 months and above, because baby is able to mentally recall mom.

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HAVING INTENTIONS

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•4-8 months: making interesting sights last (starting to see cause and effect)
-precursor of intentional behavior
•8-12 months: means-end behavior (get them what they want)
•12-18 months: beginning of intentional behavior. (may invent actions to get what they want. e.g., attention seeking.
-Actively invent new variations on their actions to fit the situation.
•24 months: control of mental representation is advanced
-will mentally invent new means to an end.

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INFERRING OTHER’S INTENTIONS

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Agengy vs. Intention= Agency refers to the ability to act without an external trigger. Intention is an internal mental state, such as a plan or a desire, that is the source or an action.
•Babies understand agency by 12 months.
•Preliminary understanding of intentions by end of 1st year.
•(THEORY OF MIND STARTS AT 1ST AGE). Theory of mind= is the ability to take in others perspectives.

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PRESCHOOLER’S COGNITION: THE PREOPERATIONAL STAGE:

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•By age 2, children are thinkers
•Understand that objects exist apart from their own perceptions and actions.(object permanence)
•Can call to mind previously experienced events
•Can plan and execute complex behaviors
•Know that humans are agents
•Use of symbols: (symbols are stand-ins for other things) due to mental representation: To use and understand symbols, children must be able to mentally represent the things being symbolized. Example: language skills, pretend play
•Self-centered

Hint 19

•2-6 or 7 ego centricism. Kids think that everybody thinks and perceives the world as they see it.
•Centration= thought is centered on one salient feature of an experience or event at a time.
•Decentration= ability to take into account multiple pieces of information simultaneously. Thinking more logical.
•Preschoolers make appearance-based conclusions, miss deeper significance of events.
•Thinking is affected by singular, salient dimensions of a situation.

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UNDERSTANDING THE MIND

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•“three Mountains Task”= a three dimensional model of three mountains was shown to children from several different angles. Until about age 7, children tended to select the same picture both times, suggesting that they believed that other observers shared their perspective.
•Preoperational egocentrism: poor perspective-taking skills due to centration.
•Egocentrism also evident in young children’s encounters with others.

Hint 20

Theory of mind: ability to take on others’ perspectives---crucial in social development of relationships.
•By age 2, children will show the earliest signs that they have some notion of the existence of and use of “mental” words--- such as need, feel, want.

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UNDERSTANDING THE MIND Cont.

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•False belief tasks
-Until about 4 or 5 years of age, children attribute the same knowledge to others that they have themselves.
•Taking on another’s perspective and realizing the limitations of one’s own perspective are very difficult for young children, especially when one’s own emotions are involved.

Hint 21

•How do young children overcome their problems with perspective taking and build a realistic theory or mind?
-Gradual improvement in decentering, social interaction, practive in turn-taking, make believe play, siblings.

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UNDERSTANDING SYMBOLIC ARTIFACTS

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•Symbolic artifacts= Pictures, maps, or scale models
•Dual nature: they are both concrete objects themselves and symbols for other things.
•To understand them, children must represent the same thing in two ways at once.

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UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE

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•Phonology: sound system of language
•Babies have preference for native language because phonological development begins before birth
•Babbling begins around 6 months
•By 9 months, babbling matches native language sounds
•Full sound system not mastered for many years.
•Semantics: meaning of words
•First words by 12 months, then progress is slow
•Vocabulary spurt: 18-24 months-from 50-500 words

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UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE Cont.

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•Fast mapping: the speed with which young children add new words to functional vocabulary after only one or two exposures.
•Syntax/Grammar
-Beginning at about 18-24 months-5years old, children quickly progress in their ability to produce most sentence structures.

Hint 24

•Pragmatics: how to use language effectively to communicate
-Construct narratives at about 2-3 years old
-Sketchy and uniformative in early years
-As perspective-taking progresses, so does pragmatics
-Code-switching is learned gradually; this is the ability to shift from using slang with friend to using more polite forms with teachers.

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Table 3.3 From Birth to Five: Typical Changes in Communicative/Interactive Skills

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Age
New born to 1mont =Reflexively signals need through cries, facial expressions
1-3 months= Coos, grunts, makes some other vocal sounds; quiets or smiles when
Spoken to
3-5 months=smiles and shows interest in favorite people; makes wider range of vocal;Sounds (e.g., vowel sounds, squeals)
6-7 moths= Babbles (consonant-vowel-consonant repetitions)

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Physical and Brian-related changes in Middle childhood

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1. maturation of Corpus Callosum and Cerebellum
2. Myelinaton of Reticular Formation and increase synaptogenesis in frontal lobe
3. Myelination of certain association areas of the cortex in cross-modal processing of information
4. Continued changes in frontal cortex

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Maturation in Corpus Callosum and Cerebellum in Middle childhood

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improvement in motor coordination (Gross and fine)
1. at age 6: Gross motor coordination (riding a bike, climbing a tree)
2. at age 8-9: fine motor coordination (draw, write,use tools)
3. Eye hand coordination improves

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Myelination of reticular formation and increased synaptogenesis in frontal lobe in middle childhood

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increase in attention, concentration, and planning

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Myelination of certain association areas of the cortex involved in cross-modal processing of information in Middle childhood

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development of higher order thinking skills (age 8)

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Changes in frontal cortex in Middle childhood

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improvement in verbal memory throughout childhood and adolescence

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Cognitive development in Middle childhood

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1. Piaget's Stage of Concrete Operations
2. Information Processing Approach
3. Memory and Attention
4. Number and Math skills
5. Problem-solving progress

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Piaget's Stage of Concrete Operation

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1. 6-12 years
2. Decenteration
3. Reversible relationship
4. difficult for them to do abstract thinking
5. concrete or realistic equivalents to think
6. Ego-centerism
7. logical thinking may be domain specific rather than domain general

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Decenteration

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ability to think about more than one dimension of situation at once

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Reversible relationship

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one change reverses the effects of the other change
(being able to recognize reversible relationship is important to logical thinking)

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Ego-centerism in Middle childhood

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1. failure to recognize own subjectivity
2. failure to distinguish between their own beliefs, assumptions, or theories and objective facts
3. difficulty evaluating their own theory

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Chapter 3 (the brain) continuation: Table 3.3 From Birth to Five: Typical Changes in Communicative/Interactive Skills

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9-12 months=shows and gives objects; points to desire objects;13-18 months= increases expressive vocabulary slowly, acquiring up to 50 words for familiar actions, events, and objects.
18-24 months= increases expressive vocabulary rapidly (3 or more words per day)

Hint 36

2-3years= speaks clearly enough to be understood by family members;3-4 years= speaks clearly enough to be understood by others; 4-5 years= produces most speech sounds correctly; tell stories that stick to the topic; coordinates conversation with multiple partners.

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HOW LANGUAGE IS LEARNED

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-language consists of so many complex systems.
Genetically programmed?; Analytic capacity of the human brain?;
-Vocabulary is related to home and pre-school environment
-Joint book reading, parent—child conversations are important.
-Children who hear the most language develop more vocabulary
-Quantity and quality of parent-child conversation can be a significant factor in vocabulary development and expression.

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VYGOTSKY’S SOCIOCULTURAL THEORY

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Emphasis on culture or society into which one is born in the transmission of knowledge.
- Mediation=the signs are shaped and developed by others
-scaffolding (supporting development)=scaffolding serves as a temporary prop until the child has mastered a task.
-Zone of Proximal Development=to perform some skill only with support of scaffolding from someone else.

Hint 38

-Egocentric Speech (private speech)=serves an eminently useful purpose in human development and the precursor to problem solving, planning, and self-control.
•Eventually becomes internalized into inner speech, which facilitates thinking.
-3 stages: 1) 3 year olds- running commentaries, talk themselves through problems
2) 6 years old- more subdued and idiosyncratic
3) 8 years old- internalize the dialogue

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Box 3.3 Early Childhood Education

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What is preschool For?
Preschool programs are very diverse in the United States and fall roughly into 4 categories
1) Childcare (or day care) programs may server children from infancy through school age.
2) Early education programs= have a more academic purpose
3) Special programs= consider early interventions, e.g., the Early Head Start Programs. This program combines classroom program and family services for children who are at higher risk of being unprepared for school
4) Nursery schools= provide programs for a few hours a day. They give children the opportunity to play with other children.

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-The Pre-K movement= is a social and educational movement afoot that aims to bring more uniformity of purpose and consistency of quality of programs to all families

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Box 3.3 Early Childhood Education, cont:

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What makes a child ready for school?
-cognitive development in the early years, and the next two on social/emotional development;
-growing a good vocabulary is important for reading.
-narrative or story telling skill is also a building block for reading.
-Extensive and positive early experience with books is another cornerstone of later literacy
-phonological awareness is critical for beginning readers.

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Box 3.3 Early Childhood Education, Cont.

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What is the Value of Preschool?
-it can substantially improve school readiness, reduce a child’s chances if a “special education” placement, increase chances of high school graduation, reduce crime and incarceration rates, and benefit later earnings.

Hint 41

What makes a Preschool Program “High Quality”?
-Quality of teacher-child interaction is critical
-Teacher’s education- teachers with higher degrees and preparation in early childhood education promote positive development
-Teacher-child ratios= 9:1 are recommended
-A variety of equipment and materials
-school promotes a safe environment

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Lobes of the Brain

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Front 43

Where are the Forebrain, Midbrain and Hindbrain?

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Front 44

Name and place the components of the limbic systems

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Front 45

Show the placement and name the functionality of the midbrain

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