Theories Of Child Development And The Biosocial Theory Of Development

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There are four essential developmental theories that demonstrate how children’s development changes as they grow up. These theories range from explaining how children grow from birth, how they feel about certain aspects of life, how they socialize with their peers, to how they think. The four theories of development that are vital to understand as teachers are Biosocial, Social Learning, Humanistic, and Psychoanalytic. Each of these theories provide teachers with an understanding of why children act a certain way during a certain point in their lives. Teachers that are knowledgeable about each of these theories will be more likely to be effective teachers, and to make a difference in their student’s lives. The Biosocial Theory of Development …show more content…

Both the brain and the body grow according to various biological and social factors. Therefore, a child’s home life and social life must have a positive influence on their lives. During early childhood, well-nourished children are expected to grow about four inches and 4.5 pounds per year (p. 208). Children lack a sense of preservation within this time period of their lives. As a teacher, one must realize that students can become easily distracted. They will not be able to keep their minds fully focused on one task for a long time, so teachers must create a variety of activities to overcome this issue. They also lack impulse control, which means that they have to be constantly moving around. This is why some students during early childhood have difficulty sitting still. It is suggested that teachers give students various times throughout the day to get their energy out of their systems, so that they can focus more easily. However, if a student is swinging their legs in their seat then they should be allowed to do this. As long as they are not bothering anyone, then theorists recommend that teachers allow …show more content…

369). He created a new theory of motivation, which involved a hierarchy of needs: physiological, safety, love and belongingness, self-esteem, and self-actualization. He believed that a person must fulfill their basic needs before they are able to fill higher needs (Crain, 2005, p. 372-373). Thus, children who live in low-income families have a difficult time staying focused in school. This is become their physiological needs of an adequate food supply are not met, so they are not worried about anything else. This idea of a hierarchy of needs is necessary for teachers to understand. A teacher must get to know each and every one of their students to be able to help them reach their full potential. Maslow believed that very few people ever reach self-actualization. However, some traits of self-actualizers are found in many children. A lot of children are afraid to think things that do not coincide with what others think. If their peers might disapprove their thoughts, then many children would rather keep it to themselves. Due to socialization, students lose a lot of their creativity. Therefore, they stop trusting what they believe and rely on the opinions of others (Crain, 2005, p. 373). Teachers can help students to regain their creativity by not constantly correcting student errors. If a student got an answer wrong, then having them find their own mistake would be more beneficial

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