Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood
Middle adulthood, which beings around age 40 and ends about 65, is marked by narrowing life options and a shrinking future as children leave home and career paths become more determined. In this chapter, traces physical and cognitive development from the fifth into the seventh decade of life. Besides heredity and biological aging, our personal approach to passing years combines with family, community, and cultural contexts to affect the way we age.

1. One significant learning I wanted to mention for this chapter is "Health and Fitness." The textbook mentions, "In midlife, nearly 85 percent of Americans rate their health as either "excellent" or "good" -- still a large majority, but lower than 95 percent figure in early adulthood." This means that some people in the United States don't even know if they are healthy or not. I believe that some people in the United States just assume they are healthy because of their "body figures." But, sometimes that is not the case. Studies show that, getting a yearly check ups are a must to prevent diseases forming and other harmful lifelong conditions. I wanted to mention "Cancer" since it is the most common in the middle adulthood stage. From early to middle adulthood, the death rate due to cancer multiples tenfold, accounting for about 1/3 of all midlife deaths in the United States. Although, cancer decreasing, the rise of lung cancer is, because of a dramatic increase in lung cancer due to cigarette smoking or second hand smoking. For cancers, can affect both sexes, men are generally more vulnerable than woman.
2. There was a time in freshman year high school in health class, where my teacher told the whole class that we need to start eating healthy and doing some kind of physical exercise because our bodies will be changing drastically. At first, I didn't really listen because I assumed I was in shape because of my body figure. But, when our class started letting us do laps around the school,  I could barely keep with all my classmates. I was probably one of the last people to finish my lap. That's when I knew I should keep a healthy living lifestyle and do some kind of physical activity. I joined our school basketball team and was able to be in shape. But, once sophomore year ended, I started slacking off because I got "bored" and got "lazy." It wasn't until then when one of my family members died from cancer. It was so heart-breakng because she was a very unhealthy person. If she should've just ate healthy and did some kind of daily exercise then she would still be here today. Cancer does suck, but  if we keep living a healthy lifestyle then we wouldn't end up with one.

Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Emotional and Social Development in Early Adulthood.
In this chapter, we take up the emotional and social sides of early adulthood. Not until their mid-to late twenties did they make lasting career and romantic choices and attain full economic independence - makers of adulthood that young people of previous generations reached considerably earlier. This will revel that identity, love, and work are intertwined.
1. One significant learning I wanted to mention for this chapter is "Close Relationships." To establish an intimate tie to another person, people must find a partner and build a lasting emotional bond. Although young adults are especially concerned with romantic love, the need for intimacy can also be satisfied through other relationships involving  mutual commitment -- with friends, siblings, and co-workers. The one I wanted to talk about under this section is "friendships." This is the time when early adulthood children, tend to select their friendships and are picky of who they want to be friends with. In early years, friends in adulthood enhance self-esteem through affirmation and acceptance and provide support in times of stress. This is the stage where children are easily influenced with their peers.
2. Having some kind of friendship during this stage/age, is important because this is where children choose who they want to be friends with. This is the start of the knowledge with trust, intimacy, and loyalty. Sharing thoughts and feelings is sometimes greater in friendship than in marriage, although commitment is less strong as friends come and go over the life course. Since, friends do come and go in this stage I wanted to talk about my experience in my middle school years. There was a point during middle school where I had no friends because I was insecure in talking to people. I didn't find anyone to talk to because I was afraid that my peers will not like me as a person. But, that wasn't the case. I was a very shy student because I just didn't know how to talk to people. But, that once I join the sport of basketball, I became a new person. I was more willing to talk to my peers because it was so easy to get along with my basketball group mates. So, I applied that trait to other people outside the sport I am in, so things just started to fall into place. As an early childhood education major, I will be willingly understanding to the behaviors all my students are experiencing.

Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Adulthood.
In this chapter, we take up the physical and cognitive sides of early adulthood, which extends from about age 18 to 40. In one of the earliest chapters, the adult years are difficult to divide into discrete periods because the timing of important milestones varies greatly among individuals. But, for most people, early adulthood involves a common set of tasks, for instances, leaving home, completing education, beginning full time-work, etc.
1. One significant learning I wanted to mention for this chapter is selecting vocational choice and there influencing factors. In young adults, college bound or not, face a major life decision: the choice of a suitable work role. In the realistic period stage, this is when high school is just about to end, and the student starts deciding whether or not they want to work or go to college. A first step is often further exploration -- gathering more information about possibilities that blend with their personal characteristic. Most, not all, young people follow this pattern of vocational development. A few know from an early age just what they want to be and follow a direct path to a career goal. Some decide and still change their mind after they experienced the job life. With the help of peers, family members and/or teachers, young adults can decide what they want to do after they finish high school.
2. When I was a senior in high school, I was set on not going to college because I felt like school was not for me. I was one of those lazy students who just want to pass school and earn money. Prior to me being a lazy student, I still managed to get A's and B's in school. One of the reasons my mind changed, in going to college was the influence I got for my family, friends and teachers. I would always get asked, "Anne, what will you be doing after high school?" I never really had a response because I was unsure of what answer I was going to give. One school morning, a few of my peers were looking at the catalog for UOG. I was influenced to look at the catalog because it seemed to interest everyone. Once I flipped through the pages, I knew I wanted to give college a try because why not? It will not hurt to try. Almost 3 years later, and I am finally a junior at the University of Guam and life shouldn't be more rewarding because I am so close to the finish line. All things may not fall into place right now, but I know it will soon. Family and teachers have taught me that giving up isn't the way, but trying your best is. The university also lead me to the major I wanted to do, which was Early Childhood. :)

Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood

During the middle childhood, the bones of the body lengthen and broaden. But ligaments are not yet firmly attached to bones; this, combined with increasing muscle strength, gives children the unusual flexibility needed to perform cartwheels and handstands. Between ages 6 to 12, all 20 primary teeth are lost and replaced by permanent ones, with girls losing their teeth slightly earlier than boys. 

1. One significant learning I wanted to mention for this chapter is Gardner's Theory of multiple intelligence. In yet another view of how information-processing skills underlie intelligent behavior, Howard Garner's. Theory of multiple intelligences defines intelligence in terms of distinct sets of processing operations that permit individuals to engage in wide range of culturally valued activities. Dismissing the idea of general intelligence, Gardner proposes at least eight independent intelligences. Gardner believes that each intelligence has a unique biological basis, a distinct course of development, and different expert performances. 

2. As a future educator, Gardner's theory of multiple intelligence applies to all student aspects because each student is unique in their own ways. There are 8 different categories a student can call under in. I am going to briefly talk about each one. I believe that I fall under 2 out of the 8 categories. One that I fall under in is linguistic, I say this because I am sensitive to sound, rhythms, and meaning of words and the apply them to functions of language. As a future teacher, you can get a degree on linguistics and still be able to teach. I believe that this is important because people who study linguistics have a great communication with anyone. Especially for my future students and their parents, I want to be able to communicate as accurate as I can. Another intelligence I am under in is interpersonal. They have the ability to detect and respond appropriately to the moods, temperaments, motivations, and intentions of others. Since I do like talking to people, I don't think I will have a problem communicating with my future students and their parents.  

Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Emotional and Social Development in Early Childhood
This chapter is devoted to the many facets of early childhood emotional and social development. It begins with Erikson's view of personality change in the preschool years. Then considers children's concepts of themselves, their insights into social and moral worlds, their gender typing, and their increasing ability to manage their emotional and social behaviors.
1. For this chapter, one significant learning I wanted to mention is the the other side of morality: development of aggression. It begins in the late infancy, all children display aggression at times. As interactions with siblings and peers increase, so do aggressive outbursts. In this particular section, I wanted to talk about violent media and aggression. The textbook says, "In the United States, 57 percent of television programs between 6 am and 11 pm contain violent scenes, often portraying repeated aggressive acts that go unpunished."
2. I believe that it is not a bad idea to let our young students/children watch television, but if the parents are not aware of what their children are watching outside of school, then something can go wrong with that. I wanted to talk about my experience growing up. I remember that my parents would let my brother and I watch whatever TV shows we wanted to watch. Our family runs with the more traditional side. In my culture, the Filipino culture, my parents were not strict on what we watched just as long as we were happy watching it. I feel as if my parents just let just watch whatever we wanted on TV because they didn't want us to make noise or they simply just wanted to distract us somehow. So I was pretty much allowed to watch anything I wanted at any day and any time of the day. I feel as if my brother and I experienced violence through the shows we were watching. Since we were young, we were easily influenced by the shows on TV; and my parents didn't understand that, us watching whatever we wanted, influenced us to act up and be aggressive with one another.

Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Childhood.
In this chapter, children the years from 2 to 6 are often called "the play years" aptly so, since play blossoms during this time and supports every aspect of development. The discussion opens with the physical achievements in motor coordination. Then it explores on early childhood cognition, beginning with Piaget's proportional stage. Along with Vygotsky's sociocultural stage.
1. One significant I wanted to talk about in this chapter is the Educational Media. Since technology has expanded throughout the years, everybody basically has access to any electronic device whether it is free or not. This also applies to young children especially since our chapter is on Early Childhood. Besides home and preschool, young children spend much time in another learning environment: electronic media, including ipads, television and computers. The textbook mentions that, "In the United States and other industrialized nations, nearly all homes have at least one television set, and most have two or more." There are many advantages and disadvantages to letting young children use electronic devices.
2. Since I am an aspiring educator and also a technology junkie, I wanted to be able to apply my knowledge and technology and skills and share them with my future students. In my ED271 course, we learned about preparing different documents that could be used in our future classrooms. One skilled I obtained from the course, is creating different ways to let students be more active in the classrooms. Teacher and student interaction if I may say, we learned to use kahoot to let students be able to more participation in the classrooms. But, since I am studying to have a degree on Early Chilhood, my students are still too young to use that kind of site. But, I wanted to show my future students different videos on the site "Youtube" and incorporate that into my lessons. So, that those who are more on the visual learner side, will understand the lessons more, vs. a student who is better at learning through their textbooks. An advantage on these educational media, is students will learn but at the same time, having fun while learning. And, an advantage will be that if technology in the classroom gets out of hand, it can get abused.

Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Emotional/ Social Development in Infancy & Toddler
This chapter talks about the children's reactions reflect two related aspects of personality development during the first two years: close ties to others a sense of self. Also, this chapter will begin with Erikson's psychosocial theory, which provides an overview of infant and toddler personality development.
1. One significant learning I wanted to talk about for this chapter is the importance of 'measuring the security of attachment'. I wanted to talk about the security of attachment because the class was able to act and share their experiences with all five attachment styles. The one that my group and I did for the attachment style is the 'Avoidant attachment'. The textbook defines this attachment as "these infants seem unresponsive to the parent when she is present. When she leaves, they usually are not distressed, and they react to the stranger in much the same way as the parent. During reunion, they avoid or are slow to greet the parent. During reunion, they avoid or are slow to greet the parent, and when picked up, they open fail to cling" (Berk 2008). This attachment can have its pros and cons as a parents and a child.
2. Learning about the different attachment is highly important. As a future educator and also a future parent, I want to know what kind of attachment style my child has. I say this because it will be much easier to know what kind of attachment style each student has; for that, the adults will know how to identify and know how to handle each student according to their behavior and attachment style. As a future parent, I would want to know what is going on in my child's life from when they are born, to when they are grown up. Since, my group and I demonstrated the "avoidant attachment style", I can say that this is probably one of the easiest child to handle among the rest. I wanted to mention once again what avoidant attachment style is. When the child is with his or her parent, they don't really cling to them as much because they know that they are around the room with them. Also, when the parent leaves the child, the child does not cry or cling to the parent only because they know they will be back. It also goes with a stranger, the child will not react to the stranger because he or she will be comfortable with them. As a future educator, I would want to know how the child is before entering my classroom. As I am pursuing my career in Early Childhood, I would want the parents to tell me how their children react to a new environment, especially to around a stranger.

Chapter 5

Chapter 5- Cognitive Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood.

In this Chapter, we take up three perspectives on early cognitive development: "Piaget's cognitive developmental theory, information processing, and Vygotsky's sociocultural theory. This chapter is when we look at the beginnings  of language. This stage is see how toddlers first words build on cognitive achievements and how, very soon, new words and expressions greatly increase the speed and flexibility of thinking. 

1. One significant learning I wanted to mention for this chapter is the social issues of education. This  issue tells the us that the first two years of a child's life, they already have a video deficit effect. This effect is when babies have a difficult time distinguishing whether or not they are watching a movie/video or if they are looking at something in real life. Children first become TV and video viewers in early infancy, as they are exposed to programs watched by parents and older siblings or to shows aimed at baby viewers such as Barney, Baby Einstein or Dora. Initially, infants respond to videos of people as if viewing people directly - smiling, moving their arms and legs, and (by 6 months) imitating actions of a televised adult. Toddlers continue to have difficulty applying what they see on video to real situations. Responds to videos of people as if viewing people directly- smiling moving their arms and legs. Discount information on video because people do not look for converse with them directly as caregivers do. The best way to teach as a tool when it is rich in social cues, close-ups and who is directly at the camera. 

2. The concepts that apply to the learner is that without address this problem it will definitely be a huge issue. One of the things I am afraid of when I become a teacher is I don't want my students to be confused with communicating in real life and communicating through movies or videos. I know that technology has been evolving drastically, and of course many teachers today and future teachers will be using sites like "Youtube" to incorporate in their lessons with teaching. I don't want students to be relying on movies and videos too much because students might lack social interaction. I want my students to learn that communicating face-to-face with other kids is more important than watching and interacting with Barney or Dora. I want my students to interact with one another because this will build their future confidence and as social as they can be.  

Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Physical Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood. This chapter traces physical growth during the first two years - one of the most remarkable and busiest times of development. We will see how rapid changes in the infant's body and brain support learning, motor skills, and perceptual capacities.

1. One significant learning I wanted to point out for this chapter is the Influences on Early Physical Growth. Physical growth, like other aspects of development, results from the continuous and complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors. Heredity, nutrition, and emotional well-being all affect early physical growth. First factor is Heredity. The example I wanted to give for this is having poor diet and health. I believe that when a baby is in the mothers womb, the baby is affected to what the mother is eating and not eating. For instance, a friend of mine was not eating the right kind of foods while she was pregnant. Instead of having a nine month pregnancy, she had a six month pregnancy. Her baby became premature because of the lack of nutrition she was consuming. Note: genetic makeup also affects body weight: The weights of adopted children correlate more strongly with those of their biological than their adoptive parents. The second factor is Nutrition. It is especially crucial for development in the first two years because the baby's brain and body are growing so rapidly. The book says that babies need extra calories to keep rapidly developing organs functioning properly. (Trahms & Pipes, 1997). An example of this is breastfeeding, it is something that all mothers look forward to after giving birth because this is the first time their babies will receive the correct nutrition. Breastfeeding has many benefits, babies in poverty stricken regions are much less likely to be malnourished and 6 to 14 times more to survive the first year of life. Breastfeeding is better than the formula milk because the milk is coming directly straight to the mother herself. Lastly, emotional well-being. We may not think of affection and stimulation as necessary for healthy physical growth, but they are just as vital as food. "Nonorganic failure to thrive, a growth disorder resulting from lack of parental love, is usually present by 18 months of age." (Black, 2005). I believe that the mother should be hands on to their new born babies. More hands on than ever because even though babies are not well developed, they can/need to warmth of their mothers or even fathers. 

2. These concepts are important and will apply to the learner because physical growth, like other aspects of development, results from the continuous and complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors. I believe that without knowing these high risk factors as an incoming parent(s), a child might be affected undeveloped conditions. Even just eating healthy during pregnancy so that the baby will come out of the mother's womb healthy. Without the proper nutrition during pregnancy and even after pregnancy,  a child might not have proper cognitive development. I wanted to share my experience with one of my close friends. One of my closest friends was pregnant during the time of senior year of High School. I mentioned a little of her in the first paragraph. She had no idea that she was pregnancy and with all the upcoming events during senior year, she was also stressed. Her other half was not being supportive so this made her stressed even more. During her sixth month of pregnancy, she gave birth at 6 months which was of course unhealthy for the baby. The baby turned out to be only 2 pounds and was very tiny. The baby almost didn't make it.. It was not a pleasant experience. I believed this caused her pregnancy to be short, because she was super stressed by school and her other half. I also forgot to mention, the place she was residing in was not a good environment. In conclusion, when the mother is not taking care of her body, she will likely have a miscarriage and the baby will not be developed fully. 

Chapter 3

 Chapter 3 Prenatal Development, Birth and the Newborn Baby. This chapter talks about the beginning stages of the baby. This chapter talks about the stages of a mother being healthy, the safety precautions of the environment and the stages of birth.
1. One significant learning I wanted to point out are the early stages of pregnancy. I want to point out the period prenatal development. These development includes, Zygote which is 2 weeks in, the Embryo, 6 weeks in and lastly the Fetus which is about 30 weeks into the pregnancy. The embryo is the most critical stage in the stage of a woman's pregnancy because this is where the primitive brain and spinal cord appear. Heart, muscles, ribs, backbone, and digestive tract begin to develop. This stage has a higher risk of miscarriage. This is the most dangerous time for mother and baby because health needs to be #1 priority to keep both healthy. Another significant learning I wanted to share is "SIDS." SIDS also known as sudden infant death syndrome, the unexpected death, usually during the night, of an infant under 1 year of age that remains unexplained after thorough investigation. The article that we read on pg. 85. I found this article interesting because I've never heard of SIDS before, and it stares me that mothers have to go through this knowing that they carried their babies inside them for about 9 months long. This article also mentioned that one hypothesis about SIDS is that impaired brain functioning prevents these infants from learning how to respond when their survival is threatened. Things to not do to reduce SIDS are quit smoking, changing an infants sleeping position and removing a few clothes for more comfort. When SIDS occur, surviving family members require a great deal of help to overcome a sudden unexpected death. This is probably the worst crisis a family might ever go through.
2. I wanted to talk about the experience I had back in Elementary School. I still remember the time vividly. I remember having a teacher that was pregnant at the time. She was almost due for her baby so she will be going on leave soon. As time passed, we had a temporary teacher that was watching and teaching our class. One day, I remember our substitute teacher telling us that our main teacher might not be coming back. The reason being was that her baby was in critical condition and there were rumors that the baby wasn't going to make it. After hearing the news, the class prayed and hoped for the best for our teachers baby. A month passed and the students get another news that the baby survived is okay. I wanted to share that story because I know that if the baby is sick, a mothers first instincts is to tend to their children. I believe that sometimes having a new born baby is full term commitment. It might affect the mothers profession but anything that will help the baby be healthy beside the mother is the best job ever because you get to see how your baby will grow. And what many people say, "Mothers Know Best."

Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Genetic and Environmental Foundation
This chapter takes a close look at the foundations of development: heredity and environment. Because nature has prepared us for survival, all humans have common features. Yet all of us are unique in our own ways.
1. One significant point I wanted to mention was the Chromosomal Abnormalities. Book states, "Abnormalities of the chromosomes are another major cause of serious developmental problems. Most chromosomal defects results from mistakes occurring during meiosis, when the ovum and sperm are formed. A chromosome pair does not separate properly, a part of a chromosome breaks off." In America, one of the most common abnormalities after birth is the Down Syndrome. Chromosomal disorder, occurring in 1 out of every 1,000 live births. In 95% of chromosomes to separate during meiosis, so the new individual inherits three of these chromosomes rather then the normal two. I have noticed as well that children who do have this disorder share a certain look, making them look all about the same. Physical features like, flat facial profile, an upward slant to the eyes, small ears, and a protruding tongue. There are also many types of other abnormalities.
2. Children with down syndrome have many effects. This include children usually learn and process more slowly than children who do not have this disorder. But, not all areas of development are equally affected. There is a specific pattern of cognitive and behavioral features that are observed among children with Down syndrome that differs from other children. For instance, children who are not familiar with other people often do not interact with them, they are usually scared of strangers and will automatically cry. Whereas, babies with down syndrome look at faces and smile only a week or two later. Babies who have this disorder enjoy communicating and making good use of non-verbal skills including babbling and gesture in social situations.

Chapter 1

Chapter 1; History, Theory, and Research Strategies
For Chapter 1 the class learned about the basics of this the lifespan development. This chapter covered the basic issues of todays growth and development and how it affect some aspects of behavior.
1. The significant learning I wanted to point out for this chapter is Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory. I believe that this is important to the beginnings stages of development. Why? Because this theory is learned through someones community. Thus it is learned through people and eventually passed on through the next generations. The books definition states, "Sociocultural theory, focuses on how culture, the values, beliefs, customs, and skills of a social group is transmitted to the next generations. According to Vygotsky, social interaction in particular, cooperative dialogues with more knowledgeable members of society- is necessary for children to acquire the ways of thinking and behaving that make up a community's culture." The adults are the expects in this theory because when they pass down the language to their children, they are letting them acquire new information that will help them participate in meaningful conversations and teach them to acquire new knowledge for having their own thoughts and actions to acquire new skills succeed.
2. This component will apply to the learning by preparing them to acquire skills of language to prepare them for new dialogues to be shared with other people and with the next generations. In a child's culture they will be able to learn from the expects (adults) and they will be able to communicate with others effectively. One example I wanted to share was having someone teach you something. Just because someone thought you how to speak a language does not mean you will automatically have the same experience as the teacher. Children will experience their know mistakes and learn from them. Lastly, as it was mentioned in the beginning, children will pass down the information that was learned through their culture to new young children of the next generations.