Piagetian principles: simple and effective application

A simplified version of Piaget's sensorimotor levels was employed to teach a group of 25 extremely impaired individuals who live in a large residential facility. Throughout the facility, all available formal assessments using the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales (VABS) were compared. Using this tool, an average of 13% of individuals from the common population pool increased their scores over a 6-year time period. All of the individuals who received training within the experimental group demonstrated increased scores. Scores increased such that an average gain of nearly 1 month in overall age equivalency per individual per year was realized. A matched group comparison, a prediction test for like sensorimotor skill attainment (the primary distinction of this curriculum methodology), and an historical review of subject skill training, all support the cognitively geared methodology as being primarily responsible for this accelerated progress.