EFFECTS OF AGE AND SCHOOLING ON THE ACQUISITION OF ELEMENTARY QUANTITATIVE SKILLS

The influence of school- and age-related variables was examined separa tely on 2 tasks involving elementary quantitative skills: conservation of number and mental addition. Performance on these tasks was compare d by using a cutoff design with 3 groups of kindergarten and Grade 1 c hildren who differed in age but not amount of schooling (grade), in sc hooling but not age, or in both age and schooling. The effects of age and schooling were distinct. On conservation of number, performance im proved as a function of age but not schooling. On mental arithmetic, a ccuracy improved with schooling rather than age, but children's use of various solution procedures (e.g., retrieval, counting) was not influ enced by schooling. Thus, in the domain of elementary mathematical ski lls, the influence of schooling can be very specific, and age-related variables other than schooling play an important role in the developme nt of elementary mathematical skills. Results illustrate the utility o f the cutoff design for investigating instructional and developmental influences on cognitive development.