Cognitive development includes the growth of an individual’s abilities to think and reason. This domain is especially important in adolescence as children aged 12 to 24 learn to solve more complex cognitive tasks. Primary cognitive needs in adolescence include abstract thinking, metacognition, moral reasoning, and critical thinking (Newman & Newman, 2020). Adolescents are capable of processing the information quicker due to better working memory. They also think about hypothetical issues, for example, scientific problems or philosophical concepts. Additionally, teens can exercise better self-control and self-regulation, as well as understand metaphorical language. Metacognition refers to the phenomenon of increased awareness of the process of thinking. Due to this fact teens often consider their own feelings and emotions as totally unique, as well as develop adolescent egocentrism. However, metacognition also can help them to predict consequences and make future plans. More abstract thinking helps teens to exercise moral reasoning that guides their actions. Finally, adolescents are able to think critically and consider a particular problem from various perspectives. Activities at this stage of life should include tasks aimed at problem-solving, ability to argue, as well as critically evaluate and analyze.
Therefore, based on the cognitive needs described above the following activities for cognitive development in adolescence are suggested:
- Puzzles and quests. Collecting puzzles or searching for clues as part of a quest helps teenagers develop abstract and logical thinking, as well as visual-spatial perception. These activities can be carried out as part of the development of various skills, including the study of languages, school material or psychological sessions.
- Finding creative solutions to specific problems. It is important for teenagers to use abstract and critical thinking, so activities such as independent search for answers to the questions posed should be introduced or small engineering projects should be used. Thus, adolescents can try finding solutions for real-world problems by applying abstract thinking. Teens can be given a specific topic to research or a particular engineering task to address so that they can search for necessary information and then present their findings.
- Reading and interpretation of fiction. Adolescence is characterized by the development of moral reasoning and critical thinking, which allows adolescents to consider the behavior of people in various situations. Reading and discussing the literature can support this cognitive process. It also can help teens to exercise their debate and argument skills in order to present and defend their point of view.
Reference
Newman, B. M., & Newman, P. R. (2020). Theories of adolescent development. Elsevier Science.