HPTET TGT flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Object permanence

Piaget's sensorimotor achievement in which a child understands that objects continue to exist when hidden from view; typically develops in the later sensorimotor substages, before two years of age.

Conservation

The understanding that quantity, mass, or volume stays the same despite changes in appearance or arrangement. Piaget placed its mastery in the concrete operational stage, roughly seven to eleven years.

Zone of Proximal Development

Vygotsky's term for the range of tasks a learner can complete with guidance but not yet alone. Instruction is most effective when pitched inside this zone with appropriate scaffolding.

Scaffolding

Temporary, graduated support a teacher or peer gives a learner, withdrawn as competence grows. It may be modelling, prompts, or partial solutions, and it targets the learner's current ZPD.

Egocentrism

Piaget's label for a preoperational child's difficulty taking another's viewpoint, shown in three-mountain tasks and collective monologue. It is not selfishness but a cognitive limitation.

Formative assessment

Ongoing assessment used during teaching to diagnose understanding and adjust instruction. It includes questioning, quizzes, observation, and feedback, and is not used for final grading.

Criterion-referenced test

A test that interprets a score against fixed learning criteria or standards rather than against other students. It answers whether a learner can do a defined task.

Kohlberg preconventional level

The first moral level, where right and wrong are judged by punishment, obedience, and personal reward. Reasoning is self-interested and typical of young children.

Industry vs inferiority

Erikson's fourth psychosocial crisis, roughly ages six to twelve. Success in school and peer tasks builds competence; repeated failure or criticism breeds feelings of inadequacy.

Bloom revised taxonomy

A hierarchy of cognitive objectives: remember, understand, apply, analyse, evaluate, create. Lower levels test recall and comprehension; upper levels demand transfer and judgement.

Inclusive education

A model in which students with disabilities and diverse needs learn in mainstream settings with adapted curriculum, support, and environment. It removes barriers rather than segregating learners.

Constructivism

A learning theory holding that learners actively build knowledge by connecting new information to prior experience. Teaching therefore uses exploration, questioning, and authentic tasks rather than pure transmission.

Intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation

Intrinsic motivation arises from interest and satisfaction in the task itself; extrinsic motivation comes from external rewards or pressure. Intrinsic motivation generally sustains learning longer.

Operant conditioning

Skinner's principle that behaviour is shaped by its consequences: reinforcement increases a response while punishment decreases it. Positive means adding a stimulus; negative means removing one.

Differentiated instruction

Planning that adapts content, process, or product to learner readiness, interest, and profile. It keeps common goals while varying pace, materials, and support within one classroom.

Diagnostic assessment

A pre-instruction or early check that identifies specific learning gaps, misconceptions, and prerequisite skills. Its results guide remediation rather than ranking or certification of students.

Multiple-choice item stem

The question or incomplete statement of an MCQ. It must pose one clear problem and avoid negative phrasing where possible, so the intended task is unambiguous.

Distractor design

In an MCQ, wrong options built from plausible errors such as sign slips, unit confusion, or misread concepts. Each distractor should attract some students but be clearly incorrect.

Inference question

A comprehension item asking what follows from a passage though not stated directly. The answer must be supported by textual evidence, not personal opinion or outside knowledge.

Worked example

A fully solved problem shown step by step before practice. It reduces cognitive load for novices learning procedures, and fades as learners gain fluency.

Concept map

A diagram linking concepts with labelled relationships, often hierarchical. It externalises a learner's schema and reveals misconceptions in subject content.

Significant figures

Digits in a measurement that carry meaning for precision. In science answers, the result is rounded to match the least precise given value, and units are always stated.

Primary vs secondary source

A primary source is contemporary evidence from the period, such as inscriptions or diaries. A secondary source interprets such evidence later, like a textbook or review article.

Cause and consequence

A historical reasoning skill distinguishing why an event happened from what followed it. Items should test links between conditions, actions, and outcomes rather than isolated dates.

Process skills in science

Observable laboratory abilities: observing, measuring, recording data, interpreting results, and following safety. Practical assessment should target these rather than recall of procedure text.

Higher-order item

A test question requiring application, analysis, or evaluation in a new context rather than recall. It typically presents unfamiliar data or a scenario and asks for justified reasoning.

Himachal Pradesh statehood

Himachal Pradesh became a Union Territory on 15 April 1948 and a full state on 25 January 1971, the date now observed as Statehood Day.

Himachal Pradesh capital

Shimla is the summer capital and administrative headquarters of Himachal Pradesh, while Dharamshala serves as winter capital and hosts the Tibetan government-in-exile.

Shipki La pass

A high mountain pass in Kinnaur district on the India–China border. The Satluj river enters India near it, and it historically served as a trade route to Tibet.

Reo Purgyil

The highest peak in Himachal Pradesh, located in Kinnaur district near the Tibet border. Its elevation is about 6,816 metres, exceeding other state peaks.

Great Himalayan National Park

A national park in Kullu district, Himachal Pradesh, recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its Himalayan biodiversity, including western tragopan and snow leopard habitat.

Kullu Dussehra

A week-long festival in Kullu valley beginning on Vijayadashami, famous for assembled village deities and the international fair. It differs from Dussehra elsewhere by starting after the effigy burning.