Piagetian Tasks for Curriculum Construction in Java Using Sequence Analysis

Abstract

It is asserted that two aspects of Piagetian theory which most need confirmation in the cross-cultural setting are that: (1) the order of appearance of success in the achievement of the tasks Piaget uses as developmental signposts is the same across cultures and (2) the way in which the "signpost" begins to appear is also similar across cultures. Subjects were 144 primary school children in East Java, who provided results on a number of cognitive tasks of Piagetian origin, together with other measures. These results were subjected to sequence analysis derived from the ordering theory approach described by Krus, Bart and Airasian (1975). The sequences which emerged were not the same as those described by the Genevans as universal, and this is important for educational planning, at least in Java.