Definitional Skills as a Bridge towards School Achievement

Caterina Artuso, Paola Palladino, Perla Valentini and Carmen Belacchi
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Caterina Artuso: Department of Communication Sciences, Humanities and International Studies, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, 61029 Urbino, Italy
Paola Palladino: Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy
Perla Valentini: Department of Communication Sciences, Humanities and International Studies, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, 61029 Urbino, Italy
Carmen Belacchi: Department of Communication Sciences, Humanities and International Studies, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, 61029 Urbino, Italy

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: The general aim of the current study was to investigate the role of definitional skills in promoting primary school achievement (third- to fifth graders) and how school learning may shape definitional skills. Marks from four school subjects, linguistic (Italian and English) and scientific (Math and Science) were collected as well as scores in a Definitional Task. These two domains were chosen as they clearly entail the two different definition types, that is, lexicographic and scientific . Results indicated that scientific school subject marks are more predictive of definitional skills than linguistic school marks are. The opposite direction (i.e., how definitional skills are predictive of school achievement) appears less clear. In sum, the results, although preliminary, suggest that definitional skills represent a bridge towards school achievement as they promote good marks in all disciplines. Moreover, definitional skills are predicted from levels of competence acquired especially in scientific school subjects that request a higher degree of formal/organized learning. It is then of primary importance to promote interaction–integration between these two kinds of concepts via formal schooling.

Keywords: definitional skills; school achievement; primary school (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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