Description:

This course is a comprehensive account of human development from conception through adolescence. The course integrates genetic, biological, physical and anthropological influences with psychological processes and explores determinants of behavior from a genetic and environmental perspective. 3 hrs./wk.

Supplies: Refer to the instructor’s course syllabus for details about any supplies that may be required.

Textbook(s): For information see - http://bookstore.jccc.net

Course Fees: NONE

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course the student should be able to:

1. Demonstrate the ability to apply, analyze and critique research in the study of child development.
2. Compare traditional and contemporary theories in child development.
3. Identify and critically review the metatheoretical issues in child development theories.
4. Explain the rationale for changes in the perceived importance of certain topics and ideas, and shifts in theoretical focus over time.
5. Identify prenatal influences that affect a child's growth and development.
6. Describe how physical, cognitive, social and emotional factors contribute and interact to effect change throughout childhood.

Content Outline & Competencies:

I. Theory and Research in Child Development
   A. Trace the history of the conceptualization of children from early to
modern times.
   B. Identify and describe the following theoretical issues in child
development:
      1. Nature/Nurture
      2. Continuity/Discontinuity
      3. Stability/Change
   C. Explain the importance of developmental milestones and secular
trends in describing child development.
   D. Describe the various research methods used to study children.
   E. Differentiate descriptive, correlational and experimental research
and explain the advantages and disadvantages of each.
   F. Identify the various research designs used to study children and
explain the advantages and disadvantages of each.
   G. Define validity and reliability and explain why these concepts are
important to developmental research.
   H. Evaluate the cross-cultural aspects of research in child
development.
   I. List and explain the APA guidelines governing research with
children.
   J. Explain how the APA guidelines governing research with children
provide protection for children in research situations.

II. Biological and Environmental Foundations of Child Development
   A. Explain the genetic process involved in conception.
   B. List the most common genetic abnormalities and their causes.
   C. Explain the process of fertilization and creation of the zygote.
   D. Trace physical development through the germinal, embryonic and fetal
period.
   E. Evaluate the role of the environment in modifying developmental
outcomes.
   F. Identify the three stages of the birth process and describe what
occurs during each stage.
   G. List the various methods of childbirth; explain the rationale of
each method and list the advantages and disadvantages of each.
   H. Identify birth complications, discuss their cause and describe the
implications of each for later development.
   I. Discuss infant mortality and the conditions that can increase or
decrease infant mortality.
   J. Explain the importance of the first years of life (infancy) to later
development.
      1.    Describe various neonatal reflexes and explain their
function.
      2. Identify and describe the various physiological states of the
newborn.
      3. Illustrate examples of classical and operant conditioning in
newborns.
      4. Describe how imitation and habituation/dishabituation provide
support for infant learning abilities.
      5. Identify fine motor skills and trace their development through
infancy.
      6. Identify gross motor skills and trace their development through
infancy.
      7. Describe the role of maturation and experience in motor
development.
      8. Explain the development of the individual sense modalities in
infants.
      9. Define intermodal perception and evaluate arguments as to whether
these abilities are innate or learned.
       10. Explain the impact of early stimulation in infancy and discuss
the implications of enriched or impoverished environments.

III. Physical Growth and Development
   A. Trace the physical changes that take place between infancy and
puberty.
      1. Describe secular trends in human growth.
      2. Identify what the following terms mean with respect to brain
development:
         a. Proliferation
         b. Migration
         c. Differentiation
         d. Glial cells
         e. Cell death
      3. Describe the development of the cerebral cortex.
      4. Explain what is meant by brain lateralization and describe the
effect of this lateralization on behavior.
      5. Identify the critical periods in brain growth.
      6. Trace the sequence of pubertal events in boys and girls.
         a. Explain familial and cultural influences on children's
responses to menarche and spermarche.
         b. Describe the effects of the timing of the onset of puberty for
both boys and girls.
   B. Evaluate the nature/nurture argument with respect to all aspects of
physical growth.

IV. Cognitive and Language Development
   A. Piaget
      1. Describe the origin and motivation for Piaget's cognitive
developmental theory.
      2. Identify and explain the key concepts of Piagetian theory with
respect to:
         a. Stages of cognitive development
         b. Equilibrium; schemes
         c. Assimilation and accommodation
      3. Describe the cognitive achievements of each Piagetian stage.
      4. Describe the cognitive limitations of each Piagetian stage.
      5. Evaluate the criticisms of Piagetian theory with respect to the
following:
         a. Continuity/discontinuity
         b. Underestimation of children's abilities
      6. Evaluate the implications of Piaget's theory for education.
   B. Vygotsky
      1.    Describe the origin and motivation for Vygotsky's theory of
cognitive development.
      2. Identify and describe the key concepts of Vygotsky's theory.
      3.    Compare and contrast Piaget's and Vygotsky's view of the
development and function of private speech.
      4. Evaluate the implications of Vygotsky's theory for education.
   C. Information processing
      1. Compare information processing theory with cognitive
developmental and contextual perspectives.
      2. Compare the store and levels of processing theories of memory.
      3. Distinguish between the differentiation and enrichment theories
of perceptual processing.
      4. Describe the following features of cognitive development in
children from an information-processing perspective:
         a. Attentional processes
         b. Memory strategies
         c. Memory retrieval
      5. Explain the function of scripts in children's everyday life.
      6. Trace the development of metacognitive knowledge and
self-regulation.
      7. Evaluate the application of information-processing theory to
education.
      8. Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the information
processing approach.
   D. Intelligence
      1. Identify the various definitions of intelligence; distinguish the
traditional definitions from more recent conceptualizations.
      2. Trace the history of intelligence assessment.
      3. Define and explain the traditional approach to describing IQ and
the deviation IQ.
      4. Discuss the various instruments used to evaluate children's
intelligence; specify the unique features of each and discuss the
strengths and weaknesses of each measure.
      5. Analyze the effectiveness of intelligence tests in measuring
academic success, vocational success and psychological adjustment.
      6. Evaluate the research on racial, ethnic and socio-economic
differences in IQ.
      7. Describe the genetic and environmental influences on
intelligence.
      8. Discuss the link between intelligence and creativity.
   E. Language
      1. List the four main areas of language skill.
      2. Trace the course of language development.
      3. Describe the behavioral view of language acquisition and compare
it with Chomsky's theory of language acquisition.
      4. Evaluate both the behavioral and Chomsky's perspective of
language acquisition as an explanation of how children learn language.
      5. Describe the interactionist perspective of language development.
      6. Explain the following terms as they relate to language
development:
         a. Critical periods
         b. Individual differences
         c. Universals
         d. Comprehension
         e. Production
      7. Explain metalinguistic development.

V. Personality and Social Development
   A. Emotional development
      1. Describe the various methods for measuring the quality and
intensity of emotional reactions.
      2. Explain the behaviorist, social-learning, cognitive-developmental
and discrepancy theories of emotional development.
      3. Analyze research addressing the universality and social context
of emotional expression.
      4. Explain how the ability of children to recognize and respond to
the emotions of others develops.
      5. Describe temperament and list the methods used to assess
temperamental qualities in children.
      6. Discuss the biological aspects of temperament and the stability
of temperament in childhood and adolescence.
      7. Evaluate the information regarding temperamental qualities as
predictors of later behavior.
      8. Describe the following perspectives explaining attachment:
         a. Psychoanalytic
         b. Behavioral
         c. Ethological
         d. Ecological
      9. Evaluate the importance of Harlow's research on attachment.
      10. Describe how Ainsworth's Strange Situation was used to classify
attachment patterns.
      11. Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the Strange Situation
in classifying attachment patterns.
      12. Explain the relationship between the quality of early
infant-mother attachment and later attachment.
      13. Identify the factors that affect the development of attachment.
      14. Summarize the concept of reciprocity in the development of
attachment in relation to parents and other caregivers.
   B. The self and social understanding
      1. Describe the development of self-recognition in infancy.
      2. Explain the development of self-concept and self-esteem.
      3. Specify the role of child rearing practices, children's
attributions and social experience on the development of self-concept and
self-esteem.
      4. Summarize the process of identity formation in adolescence.
      5. Identity the relationships among cognitive development, personal
perception and the concept of other.
      6. Summarize Damon's stage sequence of the child's understanding of
friendship.
      7. Identify the components of the problem-solving process.
   C. The development of morality and self-control
      1. Describe the philosophical roots of the major theories of moral
development.
      2. Evaluate the validity of the following major theories of moral
development:
         a. Psychoanalytic
         b. Behaviorist
         c. Sociobiological
         d. Cognitive
      3. Discuss the relationship between moral reasoning and moral
behavior and explain the role of situational factors.
      4. Trace the development of self-control from late infancy into the
middle childhood years.
   D. Development of gender differences and gender roles
      1. List and describe the major perspectives on the development of
gender-role identity.
      2. Trace the development of gender-role identity from early
childhood through adolescence.
      3. List the factors that influence the differences between males and
females and identify the research findings that support their positions.
      4. Differentiate among masculine, feminine and androgynous
gender-role identities and identify the psychological adjustment for each
of these roles.
      5. Explain the reasons that culture-specific gender stereotypes are
self-perpetuating.
      6. Take a position on the issue of whether gender stereotypes and
traditional gender roles are grounded in biological differences between
the sexes or occur as a result of environmental influences.

VI. Contexts for Development
   A. The family
      1. Identify traditional family functions and describe how they
changed with the advent of the Industrial Revolution.
      2. Describe the ecological approach to understanding the family
system and critique this perspective.
      3. Identify and describe Baumrind's parenting styles and explain the
outcomes of each style in regard to children's behavior and personality.
      4. Describe the following factors that influence parenting style and
child development:
         a. Family size
         b. Maternal employment
         c. Child maltreatment
         d. Education level of the parents
         e. Family SES
      5. List and describe the various forms of child maltreatment.
      6. Identify risk factors for children and families with respect to
child maltreatment.
      7. Discuss interventions that help prevent child maltreatment.
   B. Peers, school, media
      1. Trace the development of peer sociability from infancy to
adolescence.
      2. Explain the influence of situational factors on child-to-child
interaction.
      3. Describe how peer acceptance is assessed.
      4. Identify the strategies used by children to encourage the
development of satisfactory peer relations.
      5. Describe interventions to assist children in the development of
satisfactory peer interactions.
      6. Summarize the various methods of classroom management and
evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each.
      7. Explain the origin of differential treatment of students and
describe the effects of such treatment.
      8. Summarize the effects of the attempts to desegregate schools.
      9. Describe the impact of the physical environment of school of
social and academic outcomes for students.
      10. Describe the role of computers, television and other
technologies upon the classroom learning experience.
      11. Explain how children with special needs are identified and
evaluated and describe intervention strategies used to promote optimal
cognitive and social development.
      12. Summarize the information on the impact of television on the
development of children's self-concept, self-esteem, gender identity and
social skills.
   C. Child development and social policy
      1. Explain the role of societal values, special interest groups and
economic conditions in influencing child-related public policies.
      2. Describe local, state and federal policies and legislation that
pertain to children.
      3. Summarize the impact of the United Nations on the status of
children across the globe.

Methods of Evaluation of Competencies:

Evaluation of student mastery of course competencies will be accomplished using the following methods:

A minimum of four exams                                  60% of grade
A comprehensive final exam                               20% of grade
A research paper/project requiring the use of
   several sources of information and demonstrating
   the student's understanding of developmental
   theories.  The paper must be written in APA style.    20% of grade
Total                                                   100%

Caveats: NONE

Disabilities:

If you are a student with a disability, and if you will be requesting accommodations, it is your responsibility to contact Access Services. Access Services will recommend any appropriate accommodations to your professor and his/her director. The professor and director will identify for you which accommodations will be arranged.

JCCC provides a range of services to allow persons with disabilities to participate in educational programs and activities. If you desire support services, contact the office of Access Services for Students With Disabilities (913) 469-8500, ext. 3521 or TDD (913) 469-3885. The Access Services office is located in the Success Center on the second floor of the Student Center.