Students from Upper School Advanced Placement psychology spent time visiting with Preschool students in the last week to observe them in action and put the developmental theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky into practice.

According to Ingrid Andrews, director of the Early Childhood Development Center, “Vygotsky theorized that cognitive development happens through social interaction, and Piaget showed that young children think in strikingly different ways compared to adults. He was interested in discovering how the infant, and then the child, develops into an individual who can reason and think using hypotheses. By observing and engaging the preschoolers in conversation, the AP psychology students were discovering this, as well.”

Academic Dean and AP psychology teacher Jeneen Graham said, “The ECDC serves as the perfect lab for our students as they begin to understand the philosophy of human development. In AP psychology, we study the theories of Piaget and Vygotsky and then watch them play out before our very eyes! We begin to understand the vital role of play, peer to peer interaction, and the freedom of choice for the developing child and how this kind of environment sets them up to be engaged, empowered learners now and in the future. The students not only observed students and teachers, but also physical space and how everything in the ECDC is developed with intentionality. Many walked away with a whole new respect for the complexity of early childhood education and a new-found interest in becoming an educator of students in this most critical age.” AP psychology is also taught by School Counselor Jeremy Daily.

After observing the students, AP psychology student Erin Fitzpatrick, grade 12, said, “It was so fascinating and rewarding to see an example of how what we learn in class is applied in real life. I loved observing and interacting with the kids. It was clear that even before they’ve gone through the bulk of their development, they are already unique individuals.”

As the result of the Upper School students visiting the Preschool, Mrs. Andrews said there have been several requests for students to do their Independent Senior Project in the ECDC this May.

“From this experience with the preschoolers, I hope to do an ISP in developmental psychology, and the growth in learning and changes in the different stages in life,” said Alexa Vandenburg, grade 12.