Natural training tools of informatics in conditions of embodied and mental approach realization

Abstract

Modern processes of globalization and informatization of human activity cause the necessity of change of the educational paradigm in the field of information training of a person, focused on the formation of the strong fundamental knowledge and abilities, which are necessary for person’s information activities and self-education during all life. In connection with these requirements, it is necessary to pay attention to new approaches in education, based on achievements of cognitive science and modern pedagogic. One of such approaches is embodied and mental approach. The paper is devoted to the description of a way of realization of embodied and mental approach in training of informatics through application of the natural tools, providing the fullest and deep understanding of the educational material, and development of cognitive abilities of students. In the paper the theoretical analysis of psychology-pedagogical and methodical literature on a research subject is carried out, results are generalized, natural tools are modeled and results of their partial approbation are described. Achievement of necessary quality of education is offered due to the use of modern techniques, focused on the development of cognitive abilities and improvement of quality of the knowledge. In the conditions of information education, the combination of embodied and mental approaches will allow to acquaint students with the essence of the studied subject due to activation of motor area of the memory and the kinesthetic and visual perception channels. The instrument of realization of this idea is offered to use natural tools in informatics, what is actualized by age features of cognitive abilities of students and individual requirements to ways of perception and mastering of the material, matched according to the level of their knowledge. The research results describe the models of natural tools, developed by students and lecturers of the basic Department of Informatics and Information Technologies in Education of Krasnoyarsk State Pedagogical University named after V. Astafyev. Partial approbation of natural tools has shown the increase of respondents’ interest in the studied subjects, activation of mental actions, and time reduction for the development of the studied informatics methods. In the conditions of realization of embodied and mental approach, natural tools will help to correct the critical deficiency in the mechanism of training of informatics, having eliminated the reason of emergence of this deficiency, ordered the received system of knowledge and restored didactically true structure of transition from touch operating to abstract. Performance of certain methods with use of these tools will allow developing students’ thinking, thereby having provided conscious understanding of a training material. The created system of students involvement to design and development of natural and didactic tools on the basis of the latest technologies and also their approbation and creation of innovative techniques of training with their use will significantly enrich the theory and practice of training of future lecturers to informatics in the field of technical education. Further work in the project and possible spheres of use of the received results are provided in the paper conclusion.