Which statement is true about Engelmann's contributions to early childhood education?

• A. Engelmann claimed Piaget's conservation did depend solely on a child's stage.
• B. Engelmann demonstrated that Piaget's conservation did not depend only on a child's stage.
• C. Engelmann argued that learning is entirely teacher-directed.
• D. Engelmann developed the High/Scope Curriculum.

Answer: (B)

Cognitive performance on Piagetian tasks, like conservation, can be shaped by how we teach, not just by a child’s developmental stage. Engelmann showed that with explicit, structured instruction—his Direct Instruction approach—children can understand conservation concepts earlier and more reliably than Piaget’s stage-based predictions would suggest. This work argues that what a learner knows can be expanded through well-designed teaching methods that provide clear goals, modeling, guided practice, and immediate feedback, rather than being fixed by innate stages alone.

That’s why the statement about him demonstrating that conservation did not depend only on a child’s stage is the best fit. It captures the idea that instruction plays a crucial role in cognitive achievement, rather than relying solely on maturation. The other options misstate his contributions: one implies a strict stage-only view, which his work challenges; another overstates that learning is entirely teacher-directed; and the last wrongly attributes the High/Scope Curriculum to him.