Piaget theory of moral development

How moral development occurs :An exploratory study by Jean Piaget on moral reasoning i.e. all about Heteronomous morality ( moral realism) and Autonomous morality (moral relativism) in young children,its educational implications and criticism. Especially for NET/SLET/CTET/B.Ed./M.Ed./M.A and entrance Aspirants..

1. Piaget's Theory of Moral Development Jagannath Kunar Dept. of Higher Education Govt. of Odisha Email:[email protected]

2. Skeletal framework Moral Development by Jean Piaget Main types of moral thinking Heteronomous Morality(moral realism)[5-9 Yrs. Autonomous morality(moral relativism)[9-10 Yrs. Educational Implications Criticism

3. Moral Development by Jean Piaget Jean Piaget (1932) was not interested in whether children break rules or not, but in what way they think. In other words he was principally interested in children’s moral reasoning. Piaget sketched out three main aspects of children’s understanding of moral issues .These are.. Understanding of rules : who makes rules, can it be changed/ unchangable forever) Understanding of moral responsibility : behavior is judged as “bad” in terms of consequences, Is there a difference between accidental and deliberate wrongdoing Understanding of justice : Should the punishment fit the crime? Are the guilty always punished?

4. Main types of moral thinking: Piaget (1932) suggested two main types of moral thinking: Heteronomous Morality(moral realism)[5-9 Yrs.] Autonomous morality (moral relativism) [9-10 Yrs.]

5. 1. Heteronomous Morality(moral realism)[5-9 Yrs. Children considered morality as obeying rules and laws (made by parents, teacher, Government and God) ,which is absolute & can’t be changed. Breaking rules leads to punishment, they believes in “Tit for tat”/an eye for an eye Immanent justice:  interpret misfortune as if it were some kind of punishment from God Behavior can be judged as good/bad in terms of consequences regardless on the intention or reasons

6. Cont…. The children in this stage (pre & concrete operational stage) may not judge the intention behind rather they consider severity of consequences Example: If someone put a dilemma like :A child named Uttam broke 6 glasses accidentally while serving his friends and a child named Tanaya out of anger ,throw a glass and broke ,Who is naughtier, they will answer Uttam . This is moral realism as per Piaget.

7. 2. Autonomous morality(moral relativism)[9-10 Yrs . As children get older their whole attitude to moral questions undergoes a radical change Children recognize there is no absolute right or wrong and that morality depends on intentions not consequences. Overcome the egocentrism & developed the ability to see moral rules from other people’s point of view.

8. Cont… Making the more independent moral judgments Children now understand that, People make rules and can be changeable. Children don’t just take the consequences into account they also consider motives Punishment:  the emphasis now moves from retribution(an eye for an eye) to restitution(bringing something back to its original state)

9. Teacher Teacher educator Researcher : Curriculum framer:

10. Educational Implications …….. Therefore the type of moral education suitable for the children(age specific) will need to be varied as the child grows older and advances in intellectual growth. The traditional approaches to character development such as indoctrination , rewards, punishment, and modeling are all valuable methods and should not be abandoned. Teacher should create an empathetic atmosphere in class room to foster moral development. Teacher educator should trained with different brain compatible strategies for moral development of young student teachers As Pieget did this experiment with small sample , hence a great scope for the researcher to study moral development of young children. Curriculum framer may take suggestions from developmental psychologist ,stakeholders while framing curriculum . So that the curriculum may includes activities and strategies for moral development of children Moral Development Cognitive Development

11. Critics…. Piaget used observation/interview to judge moral development so generalization is a primitive question The age range for moral realism” to “moral relativism is not appropriate. Nelson (1980) found that even 3-year olds could distinguish intentions from consequences Many psychologists argue that what is far more important is not what children think about moral issues but how they actually behave, which was not answered by piaget .

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