Development of cognitive capacities in 6-7 year-old children through problem situations in mathematics

Abstract

Problem and objective. The relevance of the study is determined by the need for the development of cognitive capacities in the senior preschool age since they form a basis for general giftedness. However, there is no generally accepted point of view in the scientific and pedagogical community as to understanding the essence of children’s cognitive capacities and defining their structure. One of the means to develop these abilities is represented by problem situations which, in the process of their solution, have a positive effect on cognitive capacities. The purpose of the study: modelling the component structure of cognitive capacities and their practical development in children of senior preschool age using problem situations. Materials and methods. A system analysis of scientific sources was carried out; a pedagogical experiment was carried out covering 48 children of the Municipal state-run preschool educational institution “Kindergarten No. 72” of Kirov; a set of variable problem situations in mathematics aimed at the development of cognitive capacities in children aged 6-7 was developed and tested. The Wilcoxon rank sum test was used in the processing of the results. Results. The component structure of senior preschool children’s cognitive capacities was developed which includes cognitive processes as well as the forms and properties of intellection. Problem situations of four types are used for the development of cognitive capacities: a problem question, an entertaining question, an entertaining task and a joke task. Their use contributes to the effective development of all structural components of cognitive capacities: a statistically significant shift was recorded in the experimental group at a significance level of p<0.01, while it was absent in the control group. Conclusion. The author’s concept of children’s cognitive capacities is formulated; a model of cognitive capacities component structure in senior preschool children was developed; preschool children’s specific skills for each substantive component of cognitive capacities were identified; the expediency of using problem situations in mathematics for the development of intellection processes as one of the components of senior preschool children’s cognitive capacities was experimentally proved.