The Effect of Context upon Elementary Children's Attention to Contour and Interior Pattern of Shapes in Color Drawings

Abstract

The ability to perceive similarities and differences in contour and interior pattern of shapes in color drawings and test shapes was accessed for children in grades one, three, and five in two contextual conditions: an isolated shape and a shape in a full drawing. The analysis of data indicated that first graders had significantly more errors for both dimensions than fifth graders did. Third graders made significantly fewer errors than first graders for interior pattern. Fifth graders made significantly fewer errors than first graders for contour and interior pattern. Significant differences due to context were evident for first and third graders on both dimensions, while context effected the identification of only contour for fifth graders. With increase of age, attention to the interior pattern of shapes improved while attention to contour information was significantly effected by the surrounding contextual information found in the drawings.