Moral Development Theories
Piaget, Bandura, Turiel, and Kohlberg have influenced the ongoing ideas of moral and social learning theories. Though these theorists have diverse views of moral development and social learning theories, they are all effective and efficient through their definitions of one’s moral development. Teachers are often faced with students with various behavioral and academic needs. For these reasons, teachers are often frustrated and burnt out through the individualized needs of their students in the classroom. Behaviors are the leading causes of teachers quitting the profession, for many teachers cannot attend to those behaviorally challenged in the school. The purpose of these theories is to influence the educational philosophies of both the students and teachers in the school. Through each description, I plan to effectively utilize the works of the theorists described to demonstrate my overall knowledge of their thoughts and interests in moral development; nevertheless, I use their theories to apply to my classroom to create an effective learning environment.
Piaget’s Theory of Moral Development
Born in Switzerland in the 1800s, Jean Piaget was a brilliant student. He became exposed to children’s intellectual development when he worked for Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon as their assistants to help standardize today’s IQ Tests (Cherry, 2020). Through his observations of his nephew and daughter, Jean Piaget became interested in the cognitive development of children’s minds. He believed that children’s minds were simply a smaller version of the adults (Cherry, 2020).
Piaget believed that children pass through four stages of cognitive development: sensorimotor stage (birth to 2 years), Preoperational stage (2 to 7), concrete operational stage (7 to 11), and Formal operational stage (12 and up) (Cherry, 2020). Through Piaget’s theory of moral development, he believed that children used their environments to adapt their new knowledge to their past knowledge (Cherry, 2020). Furthermore, he thought that a child’s cognitive development is shaped through their adaptation and personal experimentation with nature. Through the different stages of cognitive development, there is a diverse range of what the child can and cannot do, as well as what they can comprehend and vice versa. Each child in a particular developmental stage has a different cognitive ability than the other.
For the sensorimotor stage( Birth to 2 years), characteristic and developmental changes include realizing their actions, understanding the world around them through their movements and sensations, and separating from other objects and people in the world around them (Cherry, 2020). From toddlers to even infants, children can experiment with their environment to create sensory and motor skills. Piaget developed the term “object permanence” to describe the child’s knowledge of the object, even when it is not visible (Cherry, 2020). Key characteristics and developmental changes in the preoperational stage (2 to 7 years) include children thinking on a symbolic level, utilizing words and pictures to describe objects, and struggling to adapt to the perception of others (Cherry, 2020).
In the concrete and operational stage (7 to 11 years), children begin to think logically about factual circumstances and develop an understanding of conservation and an inductive logical way of thinking, applying a specific form of reasoning to a generalized principle (Cherry, 2020). The last stage is the formal operational stage (12 and up). During this stage, the young adult or adolescent begins to think about logic abstractly, developing reasoning on hypothetical situations (Cherry, 2020). Furthermore, adolescents in this stage develop deductive reasoning, applying generalized principles to specific conditions (Cherry, 2020).
Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development
Lawrence Kohlberg (1927-1987) was an American psychologist who furthered the ideas of moral development; he further explained how humans know the difference between wrong and right (Kurt, 2020). Two stages of development are a part of the pre-conventional stage. The Pre-Conventional Morality stage of development is for young children under 9. In these stages of development, Obedience and Punishment Orientation, and Individualism and Exchange are the key components. In Stage 1: Obedience and Punishment Orientation, children and adults seek interests and decision-making to avoid punishments at all costs (Kurt, 2020). For example, a man may refuse to steal to avoid going to jail (Kurt, 2020). As long as man knows the repercussions of their actions, they will be less likely to commit an act that will lead to necessary consequences.
Stage 2, Individualism and Exchange, describes how children understand that there is more than one point of view on everything in the world. Furthermore, they are heavily influenced by the exchange of favors; they always wonder what they can get for acceptance and tasks completed (Kurt, 2020). During this stage, parents often reward their children with allowances for doing chores to motivate them to achieve the desired tasks. Conventional morality is the stage for older children, adolescents, and many adults; stages 3 and 4 are a part of this stage of development. Stage 3: Good interpersonal relationships describe one’s desire to be accepted by others.
Furthermore, from a study, many would commit a crime or a heinous act to protect their loved ones. Stage 4: Maintaining the social order recognizes the impact of maintaining social order in the community (Kurt, 2020). Furthermore, during this phase, many realize that certain acts are unacceptable due to their impact on the community and society.
Stages 5 and 6 are enclosed in the last phase of moral development, conventional morality. Stage 5: Social contract and individual rights; members of the society are questioning what defines a good culture. (Kurt, 2020). The overall goal for this stage is to keep the community functioning effectively at all costs (Kurt, 2020). Stage 6: Universal principles “states that moral reasoning is based on personal values” (Kurt, 2020). Furthermore, one’s value dictates the decision they make in the community, affecting society.
Elliot Turiel’s Moral Domain Theory
Elliot Turiel’s book, The Development of Social Knowledge: Morality and Convention (1983), “Turiel outlined three domains of knowledge: the moral, the societal, and the psychological” (Encyclopedia, 2021). During the moral domain of knowledge, these are the overall principles of how others should treat each other (Encyclopedia, 2021): the good vs. bad.
Morals and ethics go hand in hand with how we should treat others and present ourselves in society. The societal domain describes the laws and policies designed to keep our community functioning effectively and efficiently. The psychological part is understanding himself, others, their principles, and their cultures and beliefs (Encyclopedia, 2021).
Albert Bandura’s Theory of Moral Development through Social Learning
Developed by Albert Bandura (1977), the Social Learning Theory encompasses the theories of operational learning and classical conditioning (Mcleod, 2016). His approach is identified in four stages: attention, retention, reproduction, and Motivation (Mcleod, 2016). In the famous Bobo Doll experiment, Bandura determined that children learn from others through their environment and actions (Bandura, 1961). Thus, observed individuals are labeled models (Mcleod, 2016). In the attention stage, it is evident for the individual to pay attention to their surroundings and behavior to form a mental representation of the behavior (McLeod, 2016). Retention is the idea of memory, how well the behavior of oneself and others is retained and memorized.
Reproduction is one’s ability to imitate the behavior of others in the environment (McLeod, 2016). Lastly, Motivation is the overall willingness to perform and mimic the behavior despite the rewards and punishments that may occur after the behavior has been exhibited (McLeod, 2016). Reinforcement is the overall Motivation to allow others to show the desired behaviors.
The theories of Kohlberg and Turiel are similar, in my opinion. Specifically, the ideas based upon social order and morality both believed that it was necessary to maintain social order through the pictures of regulations and policies in the community to allow the functioning of the society to be effective no matter the costs. Both theorists based their developmental theories on the ethics and the morality of one’s actions to allow them to be held responsible and accountable.
Furthermore, Bandura’s and Piaget’s theories were different in several ways. Piaget believed that the four different stages of development in children were created solely by them through their cognitive development. At the same time, Bandura believed that children, adolescents, and adults learn from others’ behaviors through operant conditioning and classical conditioning. The models described in Bandura’s theory serve as individuals who are being observed; furthermore, children in Piaget’s theory of development are said to create their cognitive thinking of development through their physical and emotional changes in their environment.
John 8:12 says, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but have the light of life “(ESV). This scripture is aligned best with Bandura’s theory of Social Learning. As Bandura described, individuals need to model the moral behaviors of those watching.
Their attention, retention, and Motivation are all the consequences of the behaviors they are exposed to. We must remember to let our light shine and allow others to follow us like not darkness, no matter the circumstance.
In conclusion, these four theorists described their views of moral and social development in many ways. They have and will continue to influence the philosophy of education for teachers in and outside the classroom. Through the diverse theories of Bandura, Piaget, Turiel, and Kohlberg, teachers have the platform to understand why their students behave the way they do and, most importantly, serve them individually based on their needs and wants. Furthermore, the philosophies of the theories described and the truth of the Bible shall serve as the platform for effective teaching and learning in the classroom.
References
“Moral Domain Theory .” International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. . Retrieved June 16, 2021 from Encyclopedia.com:
100 Bible Verses about Let Your Light Shine. What Does the Bible Say About Let Your Light Shine? (n.d.). https://www.openbible.info/topics/let_your_light_shine.
Cherry, K. (2020, March 31). What Are Piaget’s Four Stages of Development? Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/piagets-stages-of-cognitive-development- 2795457.
https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences/applied-and-social-sciences- magazines/moral-domain-theory
Kurt, S. (2020, August 17). Stages of Moral Development – Lawrence Kohlberg.
Educational Technology.https://educationaltechnology.net/stages-of-moral- development-lawrence-kohlberg/.
Mcleod, S. (n.d.). Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory. Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory | Simply Psychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html.
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Question 
Social, moral, and emotional development flows directly from teacher to pupil. It is essential to remember that you are not only imparting content and head knowledge to your learners; you are modeling and cultivating character qualities in your learners that will help to equip them for life.
Moral Development Theories
Instructions
For this assignment, you will write a 1,500-word paper (minimum) that includes an introduction, conclusion, and the following sections:
1) Describe each of the following theories:
· Describe Jean Piaget’s Theory of Moral Development
· Describe Lawrence Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development
· Describe Elliot Turiel’s Moral Domain Theory
· Albert Bandura’s Theory of Moral Development through Social Learning
2) Choose two theories and explain how they are similar. Provide two examples to clarify the similarities.
3) Choose two theories and explain how they differ from one another. Provide two examples to clarify the differences.
4) Choose one theory and explain how it aligns with a biblical worldview. Use at least one scripture to support your explanation.