Jean Piaget
Jean Piaget was a Swiss psychologist who developed influential theories of cognitive development in children.
His work described stages through which children progress—from sensorimotor exploration in infancy through abstract reasoning in adolescence.
Piaget's ideas shaped modern educational theory and developmental psychology: The curriculum follows Piagetian principles.
His name often appears as an adjective: Piagetian stages, neo-Piagetian theory.
Relating sensation to movement
- preoperationalCognitive stage, ages 2-7
- object permanenceKnowledge things persist unseen
- egocentrismViewing all through oneself
- conservationPreventing waste or loss
classification · seriation · reversibility · animism · abstract reasoning · logical thinking
Active knowledge-building theory
- schemaOrganized representational structure
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- accommodationShelter or housing provided
- equilibrationReaching a balanced state
adaptation · epistemology · structuralism · operations · scientific thought · developmental psychology · cognitive theory
Recreation or staged drama
- learningGaining knowledge gradually
- curiosityDesire to learn
- growthIncrease in size
- imaginationFaculty for forming ideas
kindergarten · toddler · preschool · infancy · maturation · exploration · socialization · nursery
Child-led educational philosophy
- educational reformImproving learning institutions systematically
- discovery learningTeaching through self-directed exploration
- active learningEducation through direct participation
- early childhood educationSchooling before elementary years
sensorimotor
Relating sensation to movement
- preoperationalCognitive stage, ages 2-7
- object permanenceKnowledge things persist unseen
- egocentrismViewing all through oneself
conservation · classification · seriation · reversibility · animism · abstract reasoning · logical thinking
constructivism
Active knowledge-building theory
- schemaOrganized representational structure
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- accommodationShelter or housing provided
equilibration · adaptation · epistemology · structuralism · operations · scientific thought · developmental psychology · cognitive theory
play
Recreation or staged drama
imagination · kindergarten · toddler · preschool · infancy · maturation · exploration · socialization · nursery · observation
Montessori
Child-led educational philosophy
- educational reformImproving learning institutions systematically
- discovery learningTeaching through self-directed exploration
- active learningEducation through direct participation
early childhood education · pedagogy · cognitive psychology · progressive education
- Child Psychologists
- educatorseducator, teacher, teachers, professor, instructor
- Child EducatorsMaria Montessori, John Dewey, Fred Rogers
- French ScholarsMarie Curie, Pierre Curie, Louis Pasteur, Blaise Pascal, Rene Descartes
- PsychologistsFreud, Jung, Skinner, Maslow, Pavlov
- Swiss FiguresJean-Jacques Rousseau, Carl Jung, John Calvin, Roger Federer, Paul Klee
Jean PiagetB.F. Skinner
Behaviorist psychologist, conditioning researcher