How can teachers help children successfully solve the challenges of the different stages of psychosocial development?
Psychosocial development is characterized by an individual’s increasing awareness of self. It is a transition from the reflexive and reactive state to that of an organized and active state. This development is not independent but interacts with biological and cognitive development (1997). At any given time, the learner will have to cope with meeting the challenges that these development presents, making every phase of the learner’s development meaningful. Psychosocial development of a child needs the guidance of other people like the parents or the teachers. When a child goes to school to learn, his or her learning and how the teacher handles it can affect the overall psychosocial development of the child.
Three principal areas of concern in creating a quality early childhood educational environment are identified: 1) the environment's effect on the social development of children, 2) the provision of the physical setting, and 3) the provision of a psychological environment. Key components are: interaction between teacher and children, establishment of a caring atmosphere among peers, and teacher-to-teacher interaction. As important as the preschool environment is to children's social development, a family's socioeconomic status, ways of interacting, and methods of education also are significant influences (2002).
Teachers are crucial since in formal schooling they are the ones who provide instruction to their students. Instruction is a crucial factor in the teaching-learning process. For that matter, the teacher assumes the responsibility of bringing out the best in the individual transformation in the different phases of a student’s development. By development, this means the whole development of the child, including his physical, mental, psychosocial, and other aspects of a child’s development.
The success of such efforts however, is determined not only by the teacher’s mastery of the subject matter and efficient use of instructional materials but also through understanding of the aspects of human growth and development. In Singapore, this is important as the country has placed great emphasis on education. Singapore has made the schooling of its children the No. 1 national priority, recognizing that it's critical to the country's success (2003).
The competence of a teacher is manifested in his or her ability to identify the needs of the child, recognize the child’s potentials, harness them, and adjust instruction in accordance with the child’s abilities. It is therefore imperative that the teacher recognizes the uniqueness of an individual even as he or she acquires knowledge of learning. This is very important if learning is to be successful and the aim of education is to be met.
The development of a child undergoes a complicated process; it is a pattern of growth that is unique for every individual. For this reason, a teacher should have a thorough understanding of the principles of development which is to be considered in order to promote a successful transformation of the learner not only within the four walls of the classroom but in the whole society as well.
Normally, in a child’s process of growth, he or she goes through sequences that include physical, mental, motor and even socio-emotional growth (1996). Along with all these, the teacher should try to focus attention to the patterns of behavior that make for individual differences which are evident even in the child’s early foundation.
For this reason, it is said that a successful future hinges on how well an individual is able to adjust to life and how powerful he or she is in getting rid of the constraints or hazards that go with development. These hazards may stem from his physical inadequacies, psychological problems and even environmental influences.
Knowledge of the principles of human growth and development is important in order for teachers to help children successfully solve the challenges of the different stages of psychosocial development. It will help the teachers know what to expect and when to expect it. Otherwise, there would be a tendency to expect too much or too little of the child at a given time, which is bad. It also gives the teacher information as to when to stimulate and not to stimulate the child. It gives a basis for planning the environmental encouragement that must be offered and the correct time for this encouragement.
Understanding and knowledge of the children who are the learners is an essential of effective teaching (1996). This simply means, of course, the understanding of the basic principles of human growth and development. If a teacher expects to guide learning effectively, he must know how much children are capable of understanding at various levels of maturity. The teacher must also know the interests and previous experiences of the learners which he or she can utilize in motivating them.
By understanding the basic principles of human growth and development, the teacher will be able to know the adjustments that children have to make at various stages of development and the physical, emotional, and social problems they face in growing up. A teacher must therefore develop the special skills needed in gathering information about children.
The teacher must know various psychological theories that apply to the child’s learning. Basic to the teacher’s success as a facilitator of learning is his or her understanding of certain psychological principles underlying the relationship between teaching approaches and the learner’s performance.
In the learning principle wherein the learner must be psychologically and physiologically ready, this is in line with Thorndike’s law of readiness and law of effect. Edward L. Thorndike is a well-known American psychologist and educator. The law of readiness states that when a person is prepared to respond or act, giving the response is satisfying and being prevented from doing so is annoying (1912). This law is related to the law of effect and accounts for a child’s motivational aspect of learning.
This law implies that it is important for a teacher to either wait for a child’s readiness or accept the present level of readiness of the learner and to be satisfied with a slower learning rate in presenting a new learning experience.
Let us take for example a 7-year old Singaporean child who is sent to have formal lessons at school. Normally, a child with a mental age of 7 will already have the maturity level to enable him to cope with formal lessons at school. Suppose this child does not have the requisite maturation, the experience of trying to learn at school will be frustrating and annoying for him. Herein, the teacher must not force the child beyond his level if the teacher wants the child to successfully overcome the challenges presented by his psychosocial development. The teacher must let the learner learn at his or her own pace.
The law of effect states that learning is strengthened when it results in satisfaction but is weakened if it leads to annoyance ( 1912). In relation to the given example above, the Singaporean child will feel annoyed if he is being forced to learn, and the tendency would be for the child to avoid the experience which only annoyed him or her.
The teacher must guide the learner all throughout the learning process, including guiding the learner in practicing or repeating what he or she has learned in order to remember them. This is in accordance with Thorndike’s law of exercise. The constant repetition of a response strengthens its connection with the stimulus and disuse of a response weakens it (1912). The teacher can utilize educational practices such as drill, review, and examination to exemplify this principle. However, there must be understanding on the part of the learner before they are made to memorize or repeat them.
The social development of children can be viewed from various theoretical perspectives; the perspective underlying this article is that of Erik Erickson. Erickson’s theory of psychosocial development states that there are several stages in psychosocial development wherein a crisis occurs that must be resolved with a satisfactory balancing of opposites if there is to be a healthy progress into the next stage. How successfully these crises are resolved at each stage determines how healthy the development will be (2003). Out of the eight stages, a school age child will be in at least two or three stages while he or she is attending school and under the guide of a teacher who could help him or her get through the crisis presented in every stage.
The first is the stage of initiative and guilt which is a conflict between children’s urge to form and carry out goals and their moral judgments of what they want to do. This is from age 3 to 6 years. The teacher in this stage has to guide the children to resolve the crisis. If it is resolved well, children acquire the virtue of purpose. If it is not resolved well, children may become guilt-ridden and repressed ( 2004).
Teachers in the pre-school level, together with parents and other members of the immediate family, should allow the children to engage in considerable free experiment to encourage the development of autonomy but at the same time provide some guidance to reduce the possibility of the establishment of doubt. More specifically, teachers should subtly direct a child who is attempting something beyond his capabilities. Teachers in the kindergarten level should allow children considerable self-initiated activities and intervene only when the child steps on the rights of others.
The second is the stage of industry and inferiority from 6 to 12 years of age. This is a time of relative emotional calm, when children can attend to their schooling and learn the skills that culture requires. The characteristic crisis of this period is that of industry versus inferiority, and the issue to be resolved is the child’s capacity for productive work. The virtue that develops with a successful resolution of the crisis is competence, a view of the self as able to master and complete tasks ( 2006). Children develop a general sense of personal mastery of a great number of activities and games, including that of learning.
The teacher has the responsibility of encouraging the child in these activities that he or she is interested. If children are not encouraged to actively engage in these activities, their sense of mastery will give way to personal inferiority. During this time, the teacher must help the child master his or her surroundings or else the child will suffer inferiority. Teachers in the elementary level should make the classroom situation a meaningful to the pupils as possible so as to facilitate personal industry and mastery. The learners should be encouraged to compete with themselves instead of with others.
In the next stage, from age 12 to 18 years, the chief task of the adolescence is to resolve the conflict of identity versus role confusion. The desirable outcome is a sense of oneself as a unique human being with a meaningful role to play in the society ( 2006).
The teacher has the role of helping the adolescent search for his or her identity. Educators also need to understand that adolescence is a time immensely complicated by problems. Teachers should help the students to anticipate the future and weigh possibilities in career choice.
The kind of teaching strategy that should be used by the teacher in order to help children successfully solve the challenges of the different stages of psychosocial development should be one that will require the active participation of the learners. The teacher should take care to invite children who are not active in participation.
Sometimes, in a lesson, it is important that the teacher will follow it with a drill. The drill lesson is the automatization of certain facts, habits, or skills. Drills aim to fix associations for permanency or to perfect a skill (1987). In line with Erickson’s stage of industry and inferiority, the drill can help the child with mastery of what he or she is learning.
Mere repetition will of course not bring mastery. And in this the teacher must be keen on. The teacher must see to it that the learners do it with attention, comprehension, and interest. Sometimes, it cannot be stopped that drill work can be perceived by the learners as boring and presents apathy and listlessness in the children. The teacher must therefore combine this with games or songs which would arouse the interest of children, even if done repeatedly.
Another teaching strategy that would help the children solve the challenges of the different stages of psychosocial development would be group work where the children can interact with one another. This could be done through the laboratory method wherein the learning process deals with firsthand experiences regarding materials or facts obtained from investigation or experimentation. This could be a reflection of John Dewey’s theory on learning by doing (2000). The children learn more by participating first hand in the learning experience. This also provides a direct preparation for life for the learners.
In their philosophies of education, both Vygotsky and Dewey stress that learning is a social process. Vygotsky's "zone of proximal development" emphasizes his belief that learning is socially mediated activity. It is the zone in which students can solve problems collaboratively and learn from one another. In other words, students may be able to complete some tasks independently; however, in order for them to increase their "level of potential development," students need to work with others (2000).
If a child uses these cognitive processes with the help of others such as teachers, parents, and other students, they will then become skills and abilities that can be independently practiced by the learner. As Vygotsky put it, “what the child is able to do in collaboration today he will be able to do independently tomorrow.”
According to a study, a multidisciplinary approach would seem to have the best chance of success. Groups of professionals with a vested interest and responsibility to optimize the psychosocial development of children need to join forces. Pediatricians, educators, social workers, psychologists, and others should work to collectively make the public aware of the importance of social/emotional learning programs. Pressure needs to then be exerted on the branches of government to find the funding, so these programs can be expanded and made more readily available (2006).
It is not enough, however, for a teacher to just know the characteristics of children. Equally important is that the teacher must like children. One can hardly be expected to stimulate children’s growth if the teacher does not find any satisfaction in working with them. Only a teacher who has genuine and sincere love and interest for teaching children and the children themselves can successfully help children solve the challenges of the different stages of psychosocial development and ultimately create in children the love for learning.
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