Psychology (which essentially is the study of the mind) is a science that consists of a concept known as “Developmental psychology” a.k.a. child development, which relates to the growth of an infant and a child. Now over the years there have been many psychologists/pedagogues who have established path breaking theories in developmental psychology. A few important psychologists/pedagogues that have made a major impact on developmental psychology are as follows:
1. Jean Piaget (Switzerland):
Born on 9th August 1896 in Switzerland Jean Piaget was a clinical psychologist renowned for being a pioneer in the concept of child development. This is because he established a theory in child development which is popularly known as “Piaget’s theory of cognitive development”. Additionally, there consists of four stages in the theory that quite aptly reflects Piaget’s belief on the concept of child development.
2. Howard Gardner (United States of America):
Popular for his book “Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences” Howard Gardner is a famous American psychologist. A graduate from Harvard University Gardner established a theory called “theory of multiple intelligences”. This theory was first published in 1983 in book called “Frames of mind: The theory of Multiple Intelligences”. He has been the co-director of the Good Project since 1995 and, currently is the senior director at Harvard Project Zero.
3. Friedrich Fröbel (Germany):
“Fröbel Gifts” a form of educational toys was invented by a German pedagogue known as Friedrich Fröbel. He was also responsible for developing the concept of “kindergarten” with regards to child development. He also understood that every child is “unique” and hence needs to be treated accordingly. He was a student of famous Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi.
4. Maria Montessori (Italy):
Popular for establishing an effective education system known as “Montessori Education” Maria Montessori was an Italian physician and educator. The education system developed by Maria is still used in some public and private schools throughout the globe. The theory and philosophy of this system has been heavily inspired from the works of well known pedagogues such as Friedrich Fröbel and Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi.
Image Credits: Wikipedia
