| Recent research on intellectual and social development | | | | The four categories of learning outlined below are |
| and learning is rich in implications for curriculum and | | | | especially relevant to the education of young children: |
| teaching strategies for early childhood education. | | | | Knowledge. In early childhood, knowledge consists of |
| Unfortunately, educational practices tend to lag behind | | | | facts, concepts, ideas, vocabulary, and stories. A child |
| what is known about teaching and learning. This digest | | | | acquires knowledge from someone's answers to his |
| discusses curriculum and the methods of teaching | | | | questions, explanations, descriptions and accounts of |
| which best serve children's long-term development. | | | | events as well as through observation. |
| The Nature Of Development | | | | Skills. Skills are small units of action which occur in a |
| The concept of development includes two dimensions: | | | | relatively short period of time and are easily observed |
| the normative dimension, concerning the capabilities | | | | or inferred. Physical, social, verbal, counting and drawing |
| and limitations of most children at a given age, and the | | | | skills are among a few of the almost endless number |
| dynamic dimension, concerning the sequence and | | | | of skills learned in the early years. Skills can be learned |
| changes that occur in all aspects of the child's | | | | from direct instruction and improved with practice and |
| functioning as he grows. While the normative | | | | drill. |
| dimension indicates what children can and cannot do at | | | | Dispositions. Dispositions can be thought of as habits of |
| a given age, the dynamic dimension raises questions | | | | mind or tendencies to respond to certain situations in |
| about what children should or should not do at a | | | | certain ways. Curiosity, friendliness or unfriendliness, |
| particular time in their development in light of possible | | | | bossiness, and creativity are dispositions or sets of |
| long-term consequences. | | | | dispositions rather than skills or pieces of knowledge. |
| In many preschool programs and kindergartens, young | | | | There is a significant difference between having writing |
| children are engaged in filling out worksheets, reading | | | | skills and having the disposition to be a writer. |
| from flash cards or reciting numbers in rote fashion. | | | | Dispositions are not learned through instruction or drill. |
| But just because young children can do those things, in | | | | The dispositions that children need to acquire or to |
| a normative sense, is not sufficient justification for | | | | strengthen--curiosity, creativity, cooperation, |
| requiring them to do so. Young children usually do | | | | friendliness--are learned primarily from being around |
| willingly most things adults ask of them. But their | | | | people who exhibit them. It is unfortunate that some |
| willingness is not a reliable indicator of the value of an | | | | dispositions, such as being curious or puzzled, are |
| activity. The developmental question is not, What can | | | | rarely displayed by adults in front of children. |
| children do? Rather it is, What should children do that | | | | A child who is to learn a particular disposition must |
| best serves their learning and development in the long | | | | have the opportunity to behave in a manner that is in |
| term? | | | | keeping with the disposition. If that occurs, then the |
| Learning Through Interaction | | | | child's behavior can be responded to, and thus |
| Contemporary research confirms the view that young | | | | strengthened. Teachers can reinforce certain |
| children learn most efficiently when they are engaged | | | | dispositions by setting learning goals rather than |
| in interaction rather than in merely receptive or passive | | | | performance goals. A teacher who says, "Let's see |
| activities. Young children should be interacting with | | | | how much we can find out about something," rather |
| adults, materials and their surroundings in ways which | | | | than, "I want to see how well you can do," encourages |
| help them make sense of their own experience and | | | | children to focus on what they are learning rather than |
| environment. They should be investigating and | | | | on their performance. |
| observing aspects of their environment worth learning | | | | Feelings. These are subjective emotional states, many |
| about, and recording their findings and observations | | | | of which are innate. Among those that are learned are |
| through talk, paintings and drawings. Interaction that | | | | feelings of competence, belonging, and security. |
| arises in the course of such activities provides a | | | | Feelings about school, teachers, learning and other |
| context for much social and cognitive learning. | | | | children are also learned in the early years. |
| Four Categories Of Learning | | | | |