Definition
A teaching principle in which instruction begins with tangible, physically observable items or experiences (the concrete) and then moves toward ideas, principles, or theories that cannot be directly seen or touched (the abstract). The learner first encounters something real and familiar, then uses that grounding to build an understanding of the underlying concept.
Plain English
Start with something the student can see, touch, or do. Then use that real example to help them understand the bigger idea behind it.
Context Anchor
Seen in aviation instructor training and lesson planning, especially when deciding how to introduce a new concept to a student pilot.
Derivation
‘Concrete’ comes from the Latin concretus, meaning ‘grown together’ or ‘solid,’ used for things you can physically experience. ‘Abstract’ comes from the Latin abstractus, meaning ‘drawn away’ — ideas pulled away from physical examples. The phrase describes the direction of teaching: from what is solid and real toward what is purely conceptual.
Why Pilots Care
Following this progression reduces student confusion and helps new pilots build reliable understanding rather than memorizing disconnected facts.
Analogy
Like teaching someone to drive by first sitting in a real car and operating the pedals before explaining the physics of motion.
Grounding Statement
Start with the actual thing or a clear example, then move to the general idea it represents.
Intuition Check
Concrete does not mean pavement or cement here. It means real, visible, specific, or hands-on; abstract means a general idea that is harder to picture by itself.
Example Sentence 1
Before explaining the theory of lift, the instructor used the concrete to the abstract approach by first having the student feel the airflow over a wing model.
Example Sentence 2
Lesson plans that move from concrete to the abstract help students apply what they learned in the cockpit to new situations.