Which one of the following best illustrates Piaget's concept of accommodation?

• A. A child repeats the word 'dog' after hearing an adult say it.
• B. A child ignores a horse because it does not look like the dogs she knows.
• C. A child who previously called all four-legged animals 'dog' learns that a horse is a different animal and starts calling it 'horse' instead.
• D. A child who sees a new breed of dog and calls it 'dog' because it has four legs and fur.

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand Piaget's concept of accommodation, which involves modifying existing cognitive schemas or creating new ones when encountering new information that does not fit into existing schemas.
2. Step 2: Review each option to identify which scenario shows a change or adjustment in the child's existing understanding or schema.
3. Step 3: Recognize that simply repeating a word or ignoring new information does not involve changing schemas, so these options do not illustrate accommodation.
4. Step 4: Identify that calling a new breed of dog 'dog' without changing the category reflects assimilation, not accommodation.
5. Step 5: Conclude that the example where the child learns that a horse is different from a dog and changes the label accordingly best illustrates accommodation, as it shows the child adjusting their schema to fit new information.