The idea of "developmental tasks" is appropriately credited to Robert Havighurst who stated that the concept was developed in the 1930s and 40s by Frank, Zachry, Prescott, and Tyron.  He further stated, “The developmental-task concept occupies a middle ground between two opposing theories of education: the theory of freedom — that the child will develop best if left as free as possible; and the theory of constraint — that the child must learn to become a worthy, responsible adult through restraints imposed by his society [inculcation].  A developmental task is midway between an individual need and a societal demand.  It assumes an active learner interacting with an active social environment.”  Tasks for three of the developmental stages are presented on the next three slides. Drawn from the description of Havighurst’s book in Developmental Advising: Annotated Bibliography for Research Published Prior to 1999, an annotated bibliography compiled by G. Steele and Melinda McDonald for the NACADA Journal. Retrieved from http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/Journal/developmental.htm   The book is Havighurst, R. J. (1972). Developmental tasks and education. New York: David McCay.
Robert Havighurst’s “Developmental Task Theory”
He also introduced the concepts of “teachable moment,” “authoritarian conscience,” and “rational conscience,” concepts similar to those of Piaget.
Robert J. Havighurst
Slide arranged by Dr. Gordon Vessels 2005
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