What term describes the ongoing process of growth in thinking, understanding, solving problems, and making meaning?

• A. Chromosome 21
• B. Congenital Heart Conditions
• C. Cognitive Development
• D. Early Intervention

Answer: (C)

The ongoing growth in thinking, understanding, solving problems, and making meaning is cognitive development. This term captures how mental abilities—like memory, attention, language, reasoning, and problem-solving—progress and become more sophisticated over time, from infancy through adulthood. It describes the overall maturation and learning of how we think and interpret experiences, not a specific medical condition or a service approach. For example, a child moving from simple counting to using more advanced strategies to solve problems illustrates cognitive development in action. The other options refer to a genetic condition, a medical diagnosis, or a service model, none of which describe the process of mental growth and thinking itself.