Development and Lifelong Learning for Infants

Development and Lifelong Learning for Infants
Lucille Watson
ECE332: Child Development
Instructor: Lori Schieffer
January 16, 2011

Experts in early development and care have increasingly recognized the importance of giving infants the freedom to make choices. This paper urges caregivers to be in charge of the kinds of stimulation that infant’s experience. Caregivers have often been told to stimulate or "teach" babies early in life and to do special activities or else the children will be missing key learning experiences. In addition, countless numbers of educational toys and materials have been designed to teach babies specific lessons. This push to teach and control the stimulation that infants receive is now being balanced by a growing awareness of the effect of too much stimulation on babies. Indeed, the research literature questions the value of teaching infants especially when teaching interferes with children's natural learning activities. Thoman and Browder suggest that in optimal learning situations, babies are in control; and formal teaching usually takes control away from them. (Evelyn B. Thoman and Sue Browder, Born Dancing: How Intuitive Parents Understand Their Baby's Unspoken Language and Natural Rhythms. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 1988, pp. 109-110.)
But if being in control is beneficial for babies, does the caregiver have any role to play in early cognitive development and learning? 'The answer is an unqualified yes...

Development and Lifelong Learning for Infants

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