understanding childhood and child development

1. CHILDHOOD AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
MODULE 02
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2. At the end of this course student will be able to:
• understand the concept of childhood
• explain basic principles of child development;
• understand child's characteristics, needs, and the multiple
interactional influences on children's development
• describe how children develop in each developmental domain;
• understand basic psychology of child which will help to deal with
child in conflict with law and child in need of care and protection
and
• ensure a protective environment for overall development of the
child.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES

3. INTRODUCTION
What is Childhood?
In the process of understanding the notion of child Development, one must known the
concept of Child, Childhood and Childlike. Child is a biological construction and it is
linked with the age group of 0 to 18 years. This age on the based of various social
issues is also a subject of variation.
Childhood is a bunch of activities associated with a child starting from infancy to
adolescence. Childhood has no universal definition. It is a dynamic concept, depending
on social reality, and changes that have been continuous with the passing of time.
Childhood is a social and cultural construction based on activities the child performs.
Childhood is a developmental stage of a child where he/she learns from their society
and cultures.
Child like as a concept refers to those activities which are supposed to be perform by
children but adults at different stages express those activities and invite criticism by
different members of society who are observing or knowns those activities.

4. IMPORTANCE OF CHILDHOOD
Research states that a person’s life successes, health and
emotional well-being have their roots in early childhood. We
know that if we get it right and proper in the early years, we
can expect to see children thrive throughout school and their
adult lives.
Both nature and nurture (genes and environment) influences
childhood. The quality of a child’s earliest environments and
the availability of appropriate experiences at the right stage
of development are crucial determinants of the way each
child’s brain architecture develops.
The emotional, social and physical development in childhood
stages have a direct effect on their overall development and
on the adult they will become. It is important to understand
the need of investment in children (from early age) is
very important to maximize their future well-being.
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5. CHARACTERISTICS Of CHILDREN EXHIBITING
NORMALLY
• Happy & Pleasant
• Tension and stress free
• Inquisitive & Curious
• Naughty
• Active
• Playful
• Interested in other people, activities etc.
• Enthusiastic
• Sensitive towards criticism and appreciation
• Not knowing much the consequences of own act due to
lack of experience/understanding

6. CHILDHOOD AS SOCIO-CULTURAL CONSTRUCTION
Following are some of the example which may help you to understand that childhood
is a socio-cultural construction:
• Five months old child starts expressing his/her hunger, smile when he/she sees
his/her mother or any member involved in mother like activities and wants to play
with whatever is available within his/her reach.
• The childhood of a child belonging to a rich family from New Delhi may differ from
the child belonging to a poor family of Kota city, Rajasthan due to differences in
social, cultural, economic, political, geographical, educational conditions.
• The Childhood of a child belonging to a particular religion (Hindu or Muslim), caste
(Bramhan or Maali), or tribes (Sahria or Gujar) may be different from a child
belonging to other religion, caste and tribe in the context of religious practice,
eating habits, dressing, education etc.
• Some children speak more than one language due to multi-cultural impact
• A girl child drops out from school and gets engaged in household work with adult
may impact her upbringing from other girls who are able to continue their
education.

7. SOCIO-CULTURAL COMPONENTS AFFECTING CHILDHOOD
Following are some of socio-cultural components affecting the childhood
of a child:
 Attitudes and Beliefs of the people
 Demography
 Population distribution
 Religion
 Language
 Cast and Ethnicity
 Economic status
 Pressure Group and other primary and secondary groups
 Class Structure etc.
On the base of above components we can argue that childhood is a social and cultural
conception or construction. These components are specific in any society. You can observe
some more components affecting childhood when you observe your society closely. It will
enhance your understanding also.

8. CHILD DEVELOPMENT
What is Child Development?
Child Development is a process operated
through the roles of various internal and
external forces by which child (from birth
or even during pregnancy to 18 years of
age) grows biologically, psychologically,
emotionally, socially and cognitively so that
she/he could perform roles effectively and
could contribute to societal development.
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9. THEORIES OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT
If we look at the history, there have been many theories on child
development. Following are some of most recognized theories introduce
and developed by:
Sigmund Freud devises a
psychosexual stage theory of
development. He believes that
children move through specific
stages of development due to innate
unconscious sexual drives.
Erik Erikson emphasizes on the
importance of interaction flanked by
biological and social factors in the
development of personality.
Lev Vygotsky believed that children
learn about their world through
physical interaction. His theory
asserts that learning is an essentially
social process in which the support
of parents, caregivers, peers and the
wider society become important.
Culture plays a crucial role in the
development of higher psychological
and social functions.
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10. STAGES OF CHILDHOOD/ DEVELOPMENT
INFANCY
(0 to 2 years of
age)
EARLY
CHILDHOOD
(2 to 7 Years of
age)
ADOLESCENC
E
(13 to under 18
years of age)
MIDDLE
CHILDHOOD
(7 to 13 years of
age)
It has been observed that different researchers present the stages of
childhood in there theories. Following is the most known stages of child
development:

11. Contd..
a) Infancy – Begins at birth and ends at two year of age
• The child is totally dependent on the caregiver for the fulfilment of
his/her needs.
• This period represents most rapid growth and development
throughout the lifespan.
• At this stage children learn rolling over, sitting up, crawling, and
walking.
• Social development that usually takes place during this time involve
developing a sense of self-awareness.
b) Early Childhood – from two to seven years of age
• Communicates his/her likes and dislikes and acts independently (as
much as can)
• Develops the language skills that helps him/her to express ideas,
wants, and needs.
• Child at this level learn by watching, playing and interacting with others.
• according to the National Association for the Education of Young
Children, early childhood also includes infancy

12. Contd..
c) Middle Childhood – from seven to thirteen years of age
• Middle childhood starts at about 7 years of age. Mostly this is the time
when child goes to school for formal learning.
• During middle childhood child learns the values of his/her group and
society.
• This period is marked by puberty also begins at the age of about eleven
years.
• On the stage child makes new friends and acquires new skills that will
enhance their individuality and independence.
• This stage child learns his/her responsibility from their teachers and parents.
d) Adolescence – from thirteen to eighteen years of age
• Adolescence is an age close to the state of maturity. It is biologically distinct
from biological stages till middle stage of child.
• This stage of age characterized by various physical, psychological and
behavioral changes.
• Sexual maturation is the most significant development at during this age.
(release of the hormones testosterone (male) and of estrogen (female)).

13. AREAS OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Child development is overall development of a child which entails
the biological, psychological, and emotional changes. These
changes occur in child between birth to the end of adolescence.
There are five main areas of development:
 PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT (Height, Strength And Weight)
 MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT (Attitude, Thinking,
Understanding)
 SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (Interaction with others)
 MORAL AND ETHICAL DEVELOPMENT (Belief, Religion and
morality)
 LINGUISTIC AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT (Languages,
knowledge and information)

14. Cont..
PSYSICAL DEVELOPMENT MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Physical development refers to
progressive changes in the body-
structure of male and female
child. It includes movement and
their senses how to deal with
gravity, to keep his/her balance, to
move his/her body through space,
precise control of hand muscles,
eye-hand coordination, proper
height and weight growth. In the
beginning, it is an evolutionary
process, however due to latest
technological advancement
internal changes in the body can
not be ruled out also.
Mental and emotional development refers to changes
in how the child expresses the feelings. It includes
different stages till the child attains 18 years of age.
Following are the stages of child’s mental and
emotional development by Erikson’s.
Includes stormy self - will, tantrums, stubbornness,
and negativism.(18 months to 4 years)
Imagination, cooperation ,lead and follow (3 and
half years to 6 years) Relating to peer group,
understanding team work, mastering social studies,
reading, arithmetic(6-12 years)
Asking questions about identity (who am I ?),
anxiety, anger, love, developing sexual and gender
identities (12-18 years) etc.
Love, care and wisdom — 18 years onwards

15. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT MORAL AND ETHICAL DEVELOPMENT
Social development refers to the learning
of values, inculcating the knowledge and
skills which enable the child to relate to
other people effectively and to
contribute in positive ways to his/her
family, school and the community. Child
learns all this directly by all those who
care for his/her and teach his/him. The
indirect medium of learning is through
social relationships within the family or
with friends and by the means of his/her
participation in culture around his/her.
On the basis of all this, they develops a
sense of who is and about this/her role
in the society.
Moral and ethical development refers to
understanding the standards set by parents
and society and responding according to what
is right and wrong. It makes the basis of
managing emotions such as anger, aggression,
and self- destructive or antisocial behaviors.
In the first stage of ethical development, a
child develops fear of punishment or an
appraisal . The second stage comprises the
development of desire to be perceived as a
good person. In the third stage, the child
develops concern for the relationship with the
society as a whole.
Cont..

16. LINGUISTIC AND COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
Linguistic and Cognitive Development refers to the development of a child in
terms of how the Information gets processed, development of perceptual skill,
conceptual resources, language learning and other aspects which contribute to
the developed adult brain. These changes include, how the child speaks, thinks,
remembers, reasons, and understands.
In this module 02 we understood that childhood is a set of behaviors of a child
that influenced by various components of society. Childhood is social construction.
The life of a individual influenced by their childhood. It should be everyone’s
responsibility to ensure a positive environment to the child so that all round
development of a child could become a possibility.
Cont..

17. CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
Q-01. Childhood is a bunch of
activities associated with a child
starting from infancy to adolescence.
a) True
b) False
Q-02. Which of the following component
influence childhood?
a) Attitude and beliefs of the family
b) Cast and ethnicity
c) Religion
d) All the above
Q-03. Who believed that children learn about
their world through physical interaction.
a) Sigmund Freud
b) Lev Vygotsky
c) Erik Erikson
d) All the above
Q-04. Muscle and eye-hand coordination
is part of
a) Physical Development
b) Mental and Emotional Development
c) Social Development
d) Moral and Ethical Development

18. CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
1. Early Childhood
2. Infancy
3. Adolescence
4. Middle Childhood
a) 0 to 02 years old
b) 02 to 07 Years old
c) 07 to 13 years old
d) 13 to under 18 years
old
Q-4. Which of the following match is correct ?
A) A1,b2,c3,d4
B) a2,b1,c4,d3
C) A3,b1,c4,d2
D) A4,b3,c1,d2