Memory and Language in Early Childhood
The term 'cognitive' is the adjective form of 'cognition', which refers to processes of thought and thinking. Here, we look at some important cognitive changes that occur in the development of babies, toddlers, and young children.
Memory
- As shown by experiments with nonverbal 'deferred imitation' based tasks [observing and copying actions], long term declarative memory emerges in the first year of life, and gradually develops in the first and second years (Jones & Herbert, 2006).
- A fascinating study by researchers at the University of Otago has showed young children displaying the ability to verbally recall 'unique events' 6 years after their occurrence - two of the participants of the study were under three-years-old when the event occurred (Jack, Hayne, & Simcock, 2012).
- Check out this article and this article about the fascinating recall abilities of toddlers and young children.
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Non-declarative memory is present from birth, and can be seen in the ability of infants' to recognise faces.
- According to psychologist Jean Piaget's four-stage theory of cognitive development, infants develop object permanence [the comprehension that unseen things continue to exist] at the sensorimotor stage of development, between zero and two years old (Piaget & Inhelder, 1966).
Language
- At Piaget's second stage, preoperational, children between three and seven use language to represent the world symbolically - their language reflects their thoughts.
- For Psychologist Lev Vygotsky, language is more central to children's cognitive development - their thoughts are generated by the language they use.
**Note: Piaget and Vygotsky's theories are explored at a later point in the Introduction to Human Development course, when we look at 'Western Theories of Human Development'.
The video below shows how important the first five years of life are to language acquisition, and how this has long term impacts on an individual's development. Watch the video and take part in the discussion on the next page.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u49uLLCUlEk