Secondary research | Theories of learning in early childhood
2. Emotional- Aesthetics/Visual attractiveness to child and parent 3. Educational- Encouraging exploration and problem solving, sparking the imagination, encouraging activity instead of static games, cross-generational participation. 4. Cost-Related 5. Children Demographic- Age, sex 6. Parent Demographic- Age, sex, income level, education level.
3.5. Theories of learning in early childhood To design activities for the kids to learn effectively, it is important to know how learning occurs during childhood. In this section, we try to understand the process of learning in kids. This is done by studying the various popular and widely accepted theories of early childhood education.
1. Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences: The child has no preconceived notions about his/her surroundings, which is why learning can be imparted in a variety of ways. Gardner says that these differences “challenge an educational system that assumes that everyone can learn the same materials in the same way and that a uniform, universal measure suffices to test student learning. Indeed, as currently constituted, our educational system is heavily biased toward linguistic modes of instruction and assessment and, to a somewhat lesser degree, toward logical-quantitative modes as well.” Gardner argues that “a contrasting set of assumptions is more likely to be educationally effective. Students learn in ways that are identifiably distinctive. The broad spectrum of students - and perhaps the society as a whole - would be better served if disciplines could be presented in a numbers of ways and learning could be assessed through a variety of means, the different ways of learning are : Visual-Spatial – Thinking in terms of physical space. Some tools to enhance this are drawing, solving jigsaw puzzles, photographs, 3D modelling, videos, etc. Bodily-kinesthetic - Using the body effectively, where there is a keen sense of body awareness. Learning can be imparted through physical activity, hands-on learning, acting out and role-playing. Tools include equipment and real objects. 38
