Conceptual Development in Advantaged and Disadvantaged Kindergarten Children

Abstract

This study examined conceptualization in 60 white advantaged (a) and disadvantaged (da) kindergarten children as demonstrated by their performance on an object-sorting test. The two tasks in this test, varying in degree of structure, were referred to as spontaneous and structured sorting. Ss were equally divided as to sex. The two groups were significantly different on the following variables: mental age, educational level of father, educational level of mother, occupation of father, restriction of home environment, stimulating opportunities provided by games in the home, availability of record player, and attendance of movies. A significant difference was found in the performance of the two groups with the advantaged performing at a higher level. Sex and task differences were not significant. The failure to find a discrepancy between spontaneous and structured sorting was considered to be growth from egocentric thinking to an acquisition of greater flexibility in change of focus. The postulated five-level hierarchy in conceptual development, useful in early childhood curriculum planning, was supported by the distribution of responses.