Possible
Misconceptions about the Cone4
Q
Are the upper levels of the Cone for
the older student and the lower ones for the child?
Are the upper levels of the Cone for
the older student and the lower ones for the child? A It is true
that the older a person is, the more abstract his concepts are likely to be. We can explain this developmental change by a greater physical maturation, greater opportunity for vivid experiences, and (in certain circumstances) greater motivation for learning.
But an older student does not live exclusively in the world of his abstract concepts, just
as a child does not live only through the impressions his senses give him. The shuttling process, in fact, continues not only through the learning of a particular
concept, but throughout all life. And this interaction is an indication of the nature and complexity of concepts themselves. (continued on next slide)
4From
Dale, 1969, p. 130