Essay Items

74.Describe two characteristics each of preoperational thought, concrete operational thought, and formal operational thought.

75.  You’re an eleventh-grade physics teacher.  Based on research examining Piaget’s theory, identify one of the most important implications of his theory for your teaching.

76.  Gary is a fourth grader in school early in the school year.  He has above-average ability according to intelligence tests.  One day Mrs. Winton, Gary’s teacher gave the class a math test, and Gary did quite poorly on it. Gary was devastated but resolved to try harder on the next test.

Given the information in the example, what would be the best explanation for Gary’s performance on the test, according to Piagetian theory?

77.  Children typically are not allowed to start school if their birthday falls past a certain date (e.g., turning 5 by the first of October).  Historically, this hasn’t always been the case.  Explain how this policy could be the result of Piaget’s influence.

78.  Two kindergarten teachers were joking about their ages.  Patti is older than Jeanna.  Jeanna, however, is taller.  The children consistently conclude that Jeanna is older than Patti.  On the basis of Piagetian theory, explain why the children would conclude that Jeanna is the older of the two.

79.Describe three guidelines that teachers can use when applying Piaget’s theory with their students, and provide a classroom example of each.