Amber W. Bunce
University of West Georgia
Fall 2010
Cognitive Theories of Development
 Learning is a mental process.
 Emphasis is on conscious thoughts, intelligence and
language
 Important theorist include Jean Piaget (Cognitive
Development Theory) and Vygotsky (Sociocultural
Cognitive Theory)
Jean Piaget
Lev Vygotsky
Information-Processing Theory
 Development does not occur in stages
 Human input is comparative to the input functions of a
computer
 People manipulate information, monitor it, and then
strategize about it
 An individual’s ability to process information gradually
increases and becomes more complex
 Older children have more complex and a larger variety of
mental processes than those of younger
children (Gale Research 1998)
Information-Processing: George A. Miller
 George A. Miller (Kearsley 2010)outlined major concepts
to information-processing
 Basic principles to Miller’s theory
 Chunking – short-term memory can only comprehend 7 (plus or
minus 2) chunks of information
 Concepts of human processing: gathering
and encoding information; retention of
information; retrieval of
information (Cooper 2009)
Information-Processing: Allan Paivio
 Dual-encoding theory
 Verbal and non-verbal encoding occurs
 Verbal and non-verbal encoding are both equally
important to processing
 Research based on Paivio’s dual-encoding theory has
been beneficial and used in bilingual education
(Kearsley 2010)
Information-Processing: In the Classroom
 Starting class:
 Gain attention

Visual cues, voice inflection, movement
 Access Prior Knowledge

Review previous materials
Chart (Huitt 2003)
Information-Processing: In the Classroom
 Teaching new materials
 Highlight important information
 Help/Teach organization skills – helping to relate new
information to prior knowledge
 Teach in “chunks” of material
Chart (Huitt 2003)
Information-Processing: In the Classroom
 Have them “use” the information – show learning
 Comparing and Contrasting
 Displaying information/data
 Mnemonic clues
Chart (Huitt 2003)
Information-Processing: In the Classroom
 Reinforce basic skills and knowledge
 Drills
 Repetition of lesson main points
 Memory games
Chart (Huitt 2003)
Resources
 Ali-Hassan, H. (2008). Information processing theory. Retrieved from
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http://www.fsc.yorku.ca/york/istheory/wiki/index.php/Information_p
rocessing_theory.
Cooper, S. (2009). Theories in Learning in Educational Psychology.
Retrieved from http://www.lifecirclesinc.com/Learningtheories/learningmap.html.
Gale Research. (1998). Information processing theory. Encyclopedia of
Childhood and Adolescence. FindArticles.com. 24 Oct, 2010.
Huitt, W. (2003). The information processing approach to cognition.
Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State
University. Retrieved from,
http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cogsys/infoproc.html
Kearsley, G. (2010). The theory into practice database. Retrieved from
http://tip.psychology.org.
Santrock, J.W., (2008). Essentials of life-span development (1st ed.).
New York: McGraw-Hill