About Exploring childrens' learning

How does a childs mind and behaviour change as they develop over time? In this unit four theories of child development are explored. Each theory views child development from a different perspective and all have underpinned psychological research for many years, and continue to do so today. By the end of this unit you will have a good understanding of each of the theories and will probably have begun to challenge your own assumptions about how your own children, or children you know, have developed over time. After you have studied this unit you should be able to: describe the key features of behaviourist, social learning, constructivist and social constructivist theories of development; evaluate critically these four theories; illustrate their application to practical issues in child development.