Development of concrete operational thought and information coding in schooled and unschooled children |
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Authors: | Udaya N. Dash J. P. Das |
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Affiliation: | Udaya N. Dash is at Utkal University, Bhubaneswar 4, India |
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Abstract: | In this study, we examine the influence of schooling and age on the development of concrete and operational thought and information processing as measured by non-Piagetian tasks. One hundred schooled and 100 non-schooled children in the age brackets of 6–8 and 10–12, and 50 4–6-year-old preschool children from a relatively homogeneous socio-demographic background in a rural part of India were given four tests for information-coding processes. Half of the subjects in each group were also given four Piagetian concrete operational tasks. As predicted, performance on Piagetian tasks increased as a function of age only, whereas the effects of schooling, age, and their interaction were clearly observed for coding processes. It is concluded that information-processing modes rather than concrete operational skills are more sensitive to cognitive consequences of schooling. |
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