The behaviour of animals

Scientists constantly study the reactions of animals in order to understand their behaviour. Behaviour includes all the responses of animals and their ways of acting. The general behaviour of most animals seems to depend on patterns of reaction with which they are born, called instincts or reflexes. Such reactions have nothing to do with reasoning. That is, animals do certain things without learning and without knowing what will happen as a result. After breaking out of its cocoon, a moth flies about and finds its food in the juices of plants without having to learn how to do so. Instinct directs the animal to do certain things to stay alive.

Some animals also show signs of intelligence ( the ability to learn from experie4nce and to solve problems). Animals with backbones show more intelligence than most animals without backbones. For example, apes, monkeys, and dolphins quickly learn to solve problems that require relatively high intelligence. Many animals without backbones, such as insects and lobsters, show the ability to learn when they are carefully trained. Even an earthworm can be trained to turn to the right, rather than to the left, to avoid an electric shock.

The studies of many scientists show that chimpanzees learn more rapidly than do any other nonhumans. But no one has ever seen a chimpanzee writing a message for other chimps to read. Only human beings can record thoughts and knowledge and hand them down from generation to generation.

Individual differences among children

Two main forces – heredity and environment – account for the individual differences among children. Heredity is the process by which children inherit physical and mental traits from their parents. Environment consists of all the things in a child’s surroundings that affect the child’s development of the inherited traits.

Individual differences among children are caused by heredity an environment acting together, not separately. In general, heredity limits what the environment can do in influencing a child’s development. For example, every child inherits a tendency to grow to a certain height. Not even the best environmental conditions will enable a child to grow much taller than this height. But children need the right conditions, including proper nourishment, and exercise, to grow as tall as their heredity allows. Heredity and environment together thus determine the physical differences among children. The two forces together also account for individual differences in intelligence.

Differences in IQ among children are usually measured by IQ tests. These tests are designed to indicate a child’s general mental ability in relation to other children of the same age. Each child’s performance on the tests is rated by an IQ score. On most such tests, about two-thirds of all children score from 84 to 116. About a sixth score below 84, and a sixth score above 116.

The IQ scores of persons related by blood generally differ less than do the scores of unrelated persons. Some experts therefore conclude that general mental ability is largely inherited and is only slightly affected by environment. Other experts, however, believe that environment has a strong influence on a person’s intelligence. Their view is supported by studies of culturally deprived children. Children are considered culturally deprived if their home life lacks the kinds of experiences that will help them profit from formal schooling. Many such children have an IQ score below 80. But in a number of cases, culturally deprived children greatly improved their score after receiving special training.

Child

Child is a person between about 18 months and 13 years old. Childhood is one of the major stages in a person’s development. By the age of 13, most boys and girls have nearly doubled in height and quadrupled in weight. They have also begun to develop sexually. They are thus starting to look more and more like young adults. But growing up involves far more than physical growth and development. It also involves significant changes in a child’s behaviour, thought processes, emotions, and attitudes.. These psychological changes largely determine the kind of adult the child will become.

Parents play a vital role in their children’s development. One of the chief concerns of parents is to help their children develop normally. The word normal has two meanings as applied to child development. One meaning concerns the absence of physical and mental disorders that are considered abnormal in every society. Relatively few children are born with or develop such physical and mental disorders, and so the vast majority of children are normal according to this definition.

The second meaning of normal concerns the degree to which a child possesses certain skills or traits that the child’s particular society values. Children are regarded as normal in this sense of the word if they compare favourably with the majority of children in developing a valued trait or skill. In every society, normal development includes learning to communicate, to get along with other people, and to act intelligently and responsibly. These skills and traits are essential to group living, and so all parents are expected to help their children develop them.

The role of parents varies according to the skills and personality traits that children are expected to develop. The role of parents also varies according to the needs of children at different stages of their development and according to the different needs of individual children.

Why can most children be given more independence by about 5 years old?

In what ways do all children differ? What two main forces account for these differences?

What are the two meanings of the word "normal" as applied to child development?