Application of information technologies as a significant factor in the formation of conceptual thinking of schoolchildren

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Application of information technologies as a significant factor in the formation of conceptual thinking of schoolchildren

Victoria L. Shamkut

Abstract. Problem and goal. The article is aimed at identifying factors in the development of conceptual thinking of schoolchildren in the conditions of informatization of education. The rapid informatization of society and education makes modern teachers look for new ways to form the conceptual thinking of students, while involving the latest information and communication technologies. There is a problem of determining the role and place of conceptual thinking in the evolution of a digital society, identifying effective domestic and foreign electronic educational resources that contribute to the formation of conceptual thinking in children of different ages. Methodology. A model for the formation of conceptual thinking of secondary school students based on an electronic course in Spanish has been created. Experimental training of schoolchildren was carried out using educational electronic resources, the development of which was completed on the basis of taking into account the provisions of this model. Results. It is experimentally substantiated that the positive dynamics of the formation of the readiness of primary school students to use terminological structures is due to the identified pedagogical conditions, the introduction of the proposed teaching methods and informatization tools. As a result of the experiment, schoolchildren revealed the improvement of conceptual thinking and an increase in motivation for communication. Conclusion. The use of the created and tested electronic textbook helps to increase the efficiency of the formation of conceptual thinking in primary school students in the framework of teaching a foreign language. The development of conceptual thinking using a foreign language can be carried out by taking into account the described pedagogical conditions, which provide for the widespread use of modern information technologies.

Keywords: information technologies, conceptual thinking, schoolchildren, information competence, digital competence, electronic educational resource

Применение информационных технологий как значимый фактор формирования понятийного мышления школьников

В.Л. Шамкуть

Аннотация. Проблема и цель. Выявляются факторы развития понятийного мышления школьников в условиях информатизации образования. Стремительная информатизация общества и образования заставляет современных педагогов искать новые пути формирования понятийного мышления учащихся, привлекая при этом новейшие информационно-коммуникационные технологии. Существует проблема определения роли и места понятийного мышления в эволюционировании цифрового общества, обнаружения эффективных отечественных и зарубежных электронных образовательных ресурсов, способствующих развитию понятийного мышления у детей разного возраста. Методология. Разработана модель формирования понятийного мышления учащихся основной школы на основе электронного курса по испанскому языку. Проведено экспериментальное обучение школьников с применением образовательных электронных ресурсов, созданных с учетом положений указанной модели. Результаты. Экспериментально обосновано, что положительная динамика сформированности готовности учащихся основной школы к использованию терминологических конструкций обусловлена принятием во внимание имеющихся педагогических условий, внедрением предложенных методов обучения и средств информатизации. В результате эксперимента у школьников зафиксировано развитие понятийного мышления и повышение мотивации к коммуникации. Заключение. Использование созданного и апробированного электронного учебного пособия способствует повышению эффективности формирования понятийного мышления у учащихся основной школы в рамках обучения иностранному языку. Развитие понятийного мышления с использованием иностранного языка можно осуществить благодаря учету описанных педагогических условий, предусматривающих широкое применение современных информационных технологий.

Ключевые слова: информационные технологии, понятийное мышление, школьники, информационно-цифровая компетентность, электронный образовательный ресурс

digital society conceptual thinking children electronic educational resources

Problem and goal. The Russian education system has recently been undergoing constant changes. The modernization of the educational process systematically leads each teacher to understand the need to search for such pedagogical technologies that could interest students and motivate them to study the subject. Motivation is the most important component of the structure of educational activity, and developed internal motivation is the main criterion for a person. It lies in the fact that the child enjoys the activity itself, the importance of its immediate result for the individual [1].

The strategy for the development of education directs the activities of teachers and scientists to search for alternative models for the organization of education and the formation of a safe educational environment in the context of informatization. Digital technologies have become essential components of the new educational environment at all levels of the education system, which led to the emergence of new requirements for all participants in the educational process, especially teachers and students [2]. One of the key components of the new formation school formula is an innovative type of education based on the formation of competencies necessary for successful self-realization in society [3], among which are mathematical and information-digital competence. In turn, one of the components of mathematical competence is the culture of logical and algorithmic thinking [4], which, no doubt, plays one of the key roles in the formation of a conscious person who is confident in his judgments and is able to think logically not only within the framework of exact disciplines and apply the skill in any area of its activity. A necessary component of such a skill is conceptual thinking, that is, a certain minimum of logical operations necessary for each intellectual person to operate with basic and fundamental concepts.

The need to master the skill of conceptual thinking of a person in the 21st century is indicated in the digital competence framework of citizens DigComp 2.0. The rapid informatization of society and education makes modern teachers look for new ways to form the conceptual thinking of students, while involving the latest information and communication technologies (ICT) [5].

In this regard, there is a problem of determining the role and place of conceptual thinking in the development of a digital society, identifying effective domestic and foreign electronic educational resources that contribute to the development of conceptual thinking in children of different ages. The solution of such a problem will make it possible to substantiate the possibility and expediency of using information technologies to solve pedagogical problems related to the formation and development of conceptual thinking in schoolchildren.

M.K. Akimova, V.T. Kozlova and N.A. Ferens the specificity of conceptual thinking was considered, which consists in operating with concepts, judgments, conclusions based on the laws of logic [6]. Part of the research is devoted to the study of didactic conditions for the formation and development of conceptual thinking and considers various approaches to organizing the formation of conceptual thinking in schoolchildren [7].

O.V. Bulatov and V.I. Koroleva argue that the modernization of the education system is aimed at shaping a person who is able to solve problems in nonstandard conditions, flexibly and independently use the acquired knowledge in a variety of life situations. In this regard, the main task of the school is to provide conditions for the development of the personality of each student, the key competencies that form the basis of the ability to learn and the system of fundamental elements of scientific knowledge that underlie the modern scientific picture of the world. Teaching scientific knowledge at school determines the development of scientific concepts. Learning success is directly related to this type of thinking [8].

In the article by V.E. Steinberg emphasizes not only the importance of developing conceptual thinking, but also the need to find effective teaching aids. Regardless of the chosen direction of study, it is important to take into account the development of conceptual and graphic visual aids in the form of visual didactic regulators. However, the literature review conducted in the article [9] proves a clear lack of research and development in the field of didactics of the conceptual- graphic type. However, the improvement in the functionality of conceptual and graphical tools is explained by the application of the principles of cognitive-visual representation of knowledge and the method of logical-semantic modeling.

As emphasized by S.A. Gilmanov, in the scientific works of psychologists and teachers, the phenomenon of conceptual thinking and the methods of its formation are considered very versatile and deeply. However, there are practically no approaches to the study of this side of conceptual thinking in humanitarian activities, including pedagogy and psychology. The importance of the competent use of concepts in reasoning, in solving intellectual problems is also spoken by experts in the development of critical thinking. This method is also actively used in the practice of foreign language education [10].

The goals of teaching a school course in a foreign language are formulated based on the general goals of the educational process in general educational institutions, as well as on the features of the discipline as a science, its place and role in the life of the modern information society and in the system of sciences [11].

In the curricula for the middle classes of general educational institutions, the goals for the development of conceptual thinking are formulated in the following form:

- development of logical, systemic thinking and the main types of mental activity: the ability to use induction, deduction, analysis, synthesis, draw conclusions, generalizations;

- formation of a theoretical knowledge base of students about the processes of transformation, transmission and use of information, disclosure of the meaning of information processes in the formation of basic concepts;

- development of the ability to solve meaningful problems of different levels of complexity, using well-known theoretical positions and logic within the framework of operating with basic concepts.

One of the recent pedagogical innovations is the use of symbolic systems, the integration of which into the educational process is developing in parallel with the growth of informatization. Modern children are audiovisual by nature, so they remember what they hear by 15%, see by 25%, and when these processes are combined, the level of memorization increases to 65% [7]. In this regard, it becomes possible to widely use ICT for the development of conceptual thinking, memory, imagination, and attention of students in average schools. However, the use of only one type of ICT in teaching a foreign language to children in secondary school may reduce interest in the process. Therefore, it is important to take into account the pedagogical possibilities of the above-described ICT for the development of conceptual thinking (Table 1).

Today, there are many examples of the use of ICT aimed at developing conceptual thinking in a playful way, and world practice shows that the number of relevant resources is constantly growing, their quality is improving, and the audience of users is expanding. The importance of the development of conceptual thinking for a modern person is indicated by the presence of complex electronic resources that allow you to train the logic of thinking at any age to develop the skill of operating with concepts. One of the reasons for this need is the influence of the same digital technologies, which, in particular, are characterized by huge amounts of information and a decrease in the concentration of users' attention [12].

Table 1

Possibilities of the main types of ICT in the process of learning a foreign language of children of secondary school age

The development of conceptual thinking is devoted to multi-vector sites with databases on basic concepts in any field of science, services with tasks for the development of non-standard thinking, riddles, etc. Note that very often on such resources, tasks are not dynamic or interactive, but are presented in text form, and the answers to them are hidden and submitted after the condition [13].

Of course, the development of conceptual thinking of students of different ages is inextricably linked with the study of basic concepts [14]. Therefore, ICT can be used situationally, during the development of non-standard training sessions or extracurricular activities. For example, the world-famous resource LearningApps, LearningApps. Available from: https://learningapps.org/ (accessed: 14.12.2019). which contains dozens of templates for developing learning tasks, including logic, which has powerful functionality for developing various tasks, will be an excellent tool for a creative teacher [15].

In the course of the study, the assumption is substantiated that the use of sign- symbolic means in the learning process forms the conceptual thinking of students, facilitates the assimilation of material when studying complex concepts.

Methodology. On the basis of the above theoretical provisions, a model for the formation of conceptual thinking of elementary school students was developed on the basis of an electronic course in Spanish. The model of the formation of conceptual thinking of secondary school students in the study of the Spanish language is presented in the form of a schematic representation of the didactic process aimed at forming the conceptual thinking of secondary school students to use information support tools based on both well-known general didactic principles and specific procedural principles. A schematically proposed model of informatization of teaching a foreign language for the formation of conceptual thinking of secondary school students is shown in Figure 1.

Model of informatization of teaching a foreign language for the formation of conceptual thinking

This approach can be very useful for people with poor foreign language training, as it provides an opportunity to improve knowledge of a foreign language with an emphasis on acquiring listening and speech skills to learn how to operate with previously learned concepts. It is especially important to develop a positive motivation for learning a foreign language among students, as well as to form the ability and readiness to use the skills of conceptual thinking in teaching a foreign language [16]. The use of information and communication technologies in practical classes in the discipline “Foreign Language” contributes to a more successful formation of the conceptual thinking of primary school students.

The use of ICT in practical classes in a foreign language includes:

- educational resources of the Internet;

- electronic dictionaries and reference books;

- DVDs and CDs;

- video and audio equipment;

- multimedia presentations.

Results and discussion. Within the framework of this study, the results of an experimental verification of the effectiveness of the use of information technologies for the formation of conceptual thinking in schoolchildren are presented [17]. The analysis of the presented learning technology based on the methodology of modeling educational processes and creating an information educational environment was carried out based on the results of a mathematical assessment of the effectiveness of the results obtained.

Table 2. Assessment of the levels of formation of oral skills in the assessment of conceptual thinking by students of grade 5

The purpose of the study was to determine the forms and level of development of conceptual thinking among 120 students of the 5 th grade of general education schools. The students were divided into two groups - experimental (EG) and control (CG). The methodology for assessing the levels of development of language skills in the course of assessing the conceptual thinking of fifth graders is presented in Table 2.

In order to identify the effectiveness of introducing technology into the educational process, proposed by the author as part of the study of a foreign language, classes were organized in an electronic learning environment based on a number of educational principles. In CG No. 1, classes were conducted according to the traditional principle of education: schoolchildren studied according to a program that did not provide for the use and combination of traditional lessons and ICT. In the second EG, classes were conducted according to the proposed communicative- oriented pedagogical language technology, taking into account the human-centric, competence-based and communicative approaches to learning using an electronic manual and applying appropriate pedagogical conditions. The training took place in three stages: propaedeutic, professionally oriented, control.

During the formative stage of the experiment, a retest of the questionnaire and survey was carried out in the CG and the EG to determine the levels of formation of the psychological component according to motivational and emotional- volitional criteria in accordance with the selected methods. Determination of the levels of formation of the content-practical component (cognitive and operational-activity) was carried out through a post-experimental cut.

Let us consider in more detail the results obtained in terms of the level of formation of the psychological and content-practical components of the conceptual thinking of students of the basic school in the CG and the EG after the formative experiment and carry out their comparative characteristics.

So, the levels of formation of the psychological component were the first to be determined using the methodology of L.N. Vavilova [18]. Data on the result is given in the comparative Table 3.

Table 3