三～六歲幼兒對重量概念的認知：基礎認知與現象推理

本研究屬「幼兒重量概念發展」系列研究之一，其目的主要在探測此概念內涵中，比較原發、經驗性推理，分別檢視幼兒對重量的「基礎認知」（含觸感辨識、詞彙理解與重量推測）與「現象推理」（含搬物、落體、浮沈等效應）。研究者鑑於幼兒的認知特質，強調以呼應檢視焦點的故事畫面，來誘發幼兒的想像與推理，期望鮮活的捕捉其思考的互動網絡。研究結果顯示，24名3~6歲幼兒：(1)已能區辨物體的輕重，唯對於微量重量差異（5克以內）的觸感辨識，需至6歲才成熟；(2)對「輕、重」字彙的理解萌發尚早，然在極輕物體中，較無法理解「比較重」與「有重量」二詞的意涵；(3)已能自發採用多元線索，進行重量的預測與現象的推理，「重量」為搬物、落體與浮沈現象的必要考量因素；(4)在如何搬動重物上，能自發提出「力的合成」、「物的分解」、「力的轉換」等三類型解決方法；(5)在如何提昇落體效果上，部分早慧或較年長幼兒，除改善「落體條件」外，另涉及「被撞擊物」的調整；(6)在浮沈推理上，呈現較強烈的認知衝突，並出現「無關聯想」、「隨機線索」、「並立法則」、「協調邏輯」等四種推理機制。

關鍵字

重量；浮沈；落體；概念發展

並列摘要

This study was aimed to explore the rudimentary understanding of weight among young children, such as tactile experiencing and the reasoning of weight phenomena. Among 24 participants, we reached the following results: Firstly, the concept of weight was apparent to most of the young children through the tactile exploring although only the 6-year-olds were able to detect the fine differences within 5 grams among the light objects. Secondly, all participants were capable of using the terms such as ”heavy” and ”light”. However, through tactile experiencing in light objects, they had difficulty in terminology to understand ”heavier” and ”weight”. Thirdly, even the 3-year-olds were able to construct the rationale from multiple cues to predict and make inference about weigh as a crucial factor. Fourthly, in solving the problem of moving objects, young children have already developed the strategies by the composition and transformation of force and the resolution of object. Fifthly, on the ways to promote the effect of the free fall, the older children or those who excel in thinking showed their understanding not only in improving the condition of falling object but also in adjusting the fragility of the struck objects. Lastly, in regard of reasoning of floating and sinking, young children faced considerable cognitive conflicts; in the meantime, they employed the reasoning strategies such as irrelevant imagination, arbitrary clue-searching, either-or principle and logic-modifying.