Cognitive Reasoning Skills in Preparatory Stage Students: A Study Based on Spearman’s Two-Factor Theory in Iraq

Background/purpose. During puberty, cognitive growth extends beyond basic reasoning and testing, enabling faster, more complex thinking. Abstract reasoning—understanding concepts through logic and symbols without relying on senses—is crucial, especially in academic settings. As literature affirms its role in problem-solving and decision-making, this study aims to assess the reasoning levels of preparatory students to inform and improve educational practices.

Materials/methods. A descriptive approach was adopted to analyze this phenomenon as it appears in reality, aiming to provide a precise description of the characteristics of abstract reasoning ability. The study addressed the following key research questions: What is the level of abstract reasoning among preparatory stage students? How do gender, academic specialization, and school type influence this ability? The researcher used Mazloom’s (2015) Abstract Reasoning Test, based on Spearman’s (1927) theory, consisting of 61 multiple-choice items. The sample population consisted of 500 male and female preparatory students, stratified by sex and academic specialization, who were then selected through random sampling.

Results. Analysis conducted on the abstract reasoning ability tests administered to the 500 preparatory students demonstrated a statistically significant difference between their mean score (38.078) and the hypothetical mean of 30.5, yielding a t-value of 16.829, which exceeds the critical value of 1.96 at α = 0.05 level of significance. This strongly affirms remarkable abstract reasoning ability in alignment with Spearman's (1904) perspective, arguing that such cognitive abilities facilitate streamlined problem solving, goal attainment, and overall academic functioning as heuristics propel achievement-oriented cognition.

Conclusion. The study illustrates the impact of mental maturity, teaching approaches, and family engagement on students’ cognitive development within education systems firmly suggesting that policymakers should prioritize the pedagogical shift from rote memorization towards fostering advanced cognitive skill frameworks beyond mere recall to actively stimulate higherorder thinking skills as foundational principles underlying curriculum design are essential for fostering robust transformative pedagogies and strategies aimed at cultivating students' analytical, symbolic reasoning, and multifaceted problemsolving capabilities are crucial during early education stages.

Keywords: Ability, thinking, preparatory educational stage, Iraq

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