We explain what a preconception is and how it intervenes in education. In addition, we explain how it differs from a prejudice.
What is a preconception?
A preconception is a idea preconceived, that is, a previous notion that one has of something before being able to experience it directly. It is a commonly used word in social Sciences, formed by the Latin prefix pre- (“advancement”) and the Latin voice conceive (“to conceive”), where it comes from concepts ("concept"). Therefore, a preconception is something that is thought or reasoned in advance, and in that sense it is similar (but not equivalent) to the notion of prejudice.
Whatever we think or accept about the world before it can be experienced (directly or verified by some means). research method) is fundamentally a preconception. In fact, in the study of pedagogy, this word is used to refer to the basic and intuitive that the child is formed from the reality, and which are the starting point for the teaching of true concepts.
For example, a child may understand that two identical glasses with the same volume of water contain the same, but if we pour the contents of one into a narrower and taller glass, the child may think that it magically contains more water. This is precisely due to a preconceived idea about the capacity of things, which in this case leads to erroneous conclusions. The mission of education system modern, then, is to replace preconceptions with verifiable and demonstrable concepts.
However, we all handle many preconceptions to a certain extent: ideas that we make of some reality and that for one reason or another we have not been able to subject to critical judgment, or to verification of reality. experience direct. Thus, for example, many people rely on cultural prejudices, commonplaces and wrong preconceptions when dealing with people other cultures or geographies, often discovering for herself that what she took for granted was nothing more than a preconceived idea.
Differences between prejudice and prejudice
Although both a preconception and a prejudice constitute preconceived ideas, the term “preconception” is generally reserved for scientific, argumentative, or matters related to knowledge and understanding. knowledge, more than with subjective postures around other people, which is typical of prejudice.
If a preconception is a kind of "previous concept", then a prejudice will be, precisely, a "previous judgement": a conclusion or a reasoning which is reached with respect to another person, without giving him the opportunity to show who he is and what he is like.
For example, a person who, without ever having been to Japan, thinks that the Japanese are very organized and good at math, is committing a prejudice. On the other hand, a person who thinks that Japan is a larger country geographically than it really turns out to be, is incurring a prejudice, since he is not making a judgment or a subjective assessment of anyone.