Consultation “Formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking in preschool educational institutions”

10/22/2018 Yulia Shevchenko

General Director of the Perm Center for the Development of Giftedness Yulia Shevchenko took part in a discussion about the engineering thinking of preschoolers at the Leaders of Change forum and spoke about her impressions. We publish her opinion.

— The topic of the discussion in which I was invited to participate was designated “Engineering thinking of preschoolers.” True, there was a subtitle specifying that the conversation should turn towards the developmental effect of robotics and other types of technical activities available to preschoolers, but somehow it immediately focused on an attempt to separate a whole “nest” of concepts, to identify their boundaries, place and right to exist. This is probably correct: it is difficult to talk about the development of something if you are not sure that it exists or do not understand what the essence of this phenomenon is. Another thing is that meaning and essence are not the easiest subject for “podium” discussions, as they are in forum formats.

Engineering thinking - a process or a property?

Let's start with the main question for discussion about the legitimacy of distinguishing and the essence of engineering thinking. In general, thinking allows us to reflect patterns and cause-and-effect relationships. At the same time, two options are not distinguished in verbal form: thinking as a process of reflecting such patterns and thinking as a property that allows a person to reflect such patterns.

Therefore, a few clarifications. Mental processes are the basis of mental activity. Or, one might say, mental activity (the work of the psyche) is realized in mental processes. Mental properties are some stable characteristics by which people can differ from each other. They represent stable characteristics that determine the effectiveness of a particular process in a particular person. The difference between mental processes and properties (and there are also mental states, but we won’t talk about them now) is not always easy to grasp. Understanding is usually facilitated by the use of physiological analogies. Physiology also has processes and their individual characteristics (and states, but we won’t talk about them). Let's take digestion. In general, this is a certain process that is characteristic of everyone, for simplicity, let’s say, people. But if someone says that due to “weak digestion” he is forced to give up a certain product, he is talking about a property that distinguishes him from other people.

MAGAZINE Preschooler.RF

• Ananyeva Elena Vladimirovna
• Skvortsova Yulia Vladimirovna

Teachers of MKDOU d/s No. 428, Novosibirsk, Novosibirsk region

Recently, there has been active talk about propaedeutics of engineering education for preschool children in preschool educational institutions. There are reasons for this: the designated modern vector of development of society is aimed at the transition to a new technological structure, which requires the formation of an individual ready to live and work in qualitatively new conditions, which do not come down to the ability to master and operate constantly improving equipment and technologies, but require the ability to cope with a set of new production tasks - design, engineering, technological, management...

Modern realities show a gradual annual increase in the number of children with disabilities in preschool organizations. Statistics from 2022 indicate that 4.5% of examined children in Russia have developmental anomalies, of which: disabled children - 580 thousand, children with disabilities - 751 thousand. No more than 10% of preschool children can be considered absolutely healthy. Children with disabilities require special organization of education, when the methods of forming activities are adequate to the level and capabilities of the children.

Recently, the paradigm of modern preschool education has changed significantly. New regulatory documents have been published: Federal Law dated December 29, 2012 No. 273-FZ “On Education in the Russian Federation” , “Federal Educational State Standard of Preschool Education” dated October 17, 2013 No. 1155, which guides us towards “personal development of preschool children age in various types of communication and activities, taking into account their age, individual psychological and physiological characteristics... and is implemented in the following types of activities specific to preschool age: such as play..., construction from different materials..."

Therefore, one of the priority tasks of a modern preschool educational institution is the creation of organizational and content conditions that provide equal opportunities for the formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking in preschool children, regardless of their level of development, gender, nation, language, social status, psychophysiological and other characteristics.

In our kindergarten, a model has been developed to form the prerequisites for engineering thinking in children in accordance with their individual developmental characteristics through scientific and technical creativity. Having been working in this area for four years now, we can say with confidence that the declared model is effective.

The novelty of this model is that it is transformable, depending on the interests and capabilities of the children, on the goals and objectives that the teacher sets for himself. It is implemented in the system, in a combination of such activities as Lego - construction, modeling from the Tico constructor, Bee-Bot programming, the formation of elementary mathematical representations through Cuisenaire's counting sticks and Dienesh's logical blocks, work in the "System Operator" . It is noteworthy that this program is available to any preschool institution, as it does not require large financial costs.

The Program is being implemented within the educational field - cognitive development. The pedagogical council decided to carry out direct educational activities on design in accordance with this program.

Classes are held twice a week, once as part of the educational activity design, the second time as a joint activity between the teacher and the children. Duration of classes according to SANPIN No. 26 dated May 15, 2013: in the middle group - 20 minutes, in the senior group - 25 minutes, in the preparatory group - 30 minutes. The number of children in a group is no more than 12.

During classes, the teacher uses different forms of organizing activities with children: frontal, group, individual, independent.

This program implies the following structure of educational activities:

• presentation of new material (presentation and explanation of new material both verbally, the classical teaching method, and using ICT);
• setting a learning task - in the form of stimulating dialogue;
• discussion and analysis of the task;
• practical search for a solution to the problem;
• reflection (presentation and analysis of the obtained result of productive or research activity);
• playing with buildings, exhibition of works.

The basic rules for conducting classes under the Program are as follows: the child is an active participant in the process, not a teacher, and the children help and teach each other; a special, developmental, informational subject-spatial environment is needed; the ability for children to independently choose a building model; self-control and identification of errors by the child himself; development and observance of certain rules of behavior in the classroom; creation of means of pedagogical support for the child.

The main methods of working on the program: cognitive, problem-based, project method, systematizing, control method.

The model we have developed allows us to effectively use different forms of interaction with parents. The most interesting form of master classes turned out to be when parents come up with a model at home together with their child, and in a kindergarten group they teach preschoolers to construct a structure they have invented.

This program is based on the principles of the Federal State Educational Standard of Education dated October 17, 2013 N 1155 and is presented on the website http: //ds428nsk. edusite. ru/

In addition to this program, there are methodological developments of lesson notes, card files of games, diagrams, “Album of scientific and technical creativity of children” , “Notebook for young inventors” .

From the experience of my teaching activities, I can say with confidence that the content of the subject-development environment is very important; children should have enough types of different construction sets, building diagrams, and additional toys to play with the constructed models.

As a result of the implementation of the model we propose, children develop at their own rhythm and in accordance with their own interests, consolidate fundamental mathematical concepts, and become familiar with the basics of design and modeling. They develop analytical and strategic thinking; attentiveness, hard work, dexterity, perseverance, endurance; creative, logical, visual and imaginative thinking, pre-engineering thinking develops; spatial imagination is trained; speech develops. Children learn to work with information, find it, analyze it, record it, compose and write down an algorithm, sketch diagrams, and fill out tables. They know how to work consistently in a team, observing internal discipline, which is expressed in the ability to accept the rules of the group and respect the activities of others.

Engineering thinking for everyone?

One of the questions that was repeated several times yesterday was whether engineering thinking is inherent in everyone, or is it a gift of a select few (sounded in the context of “is it necessary to work with everyone?”). Here I will use an analogy again. Does everyone have logical thinking? If we consider it as a procedural characteristic, then the answer is clear: of course. Thinking is logical by nature, this is its integral characteristic, but when we say about someone “he has wonderful logical thinking!”, We are pointing to special properties, some property that distinguishes one person from others. Therefore, in practice the concepts of “developed logical thinking”, “weak logical thinking”, etc. are used.

The difficulty with engineering thinking is that the legitimacy of its identification is not so obvious, although this concept has been introduced both into the scientific field and into applied contexts, and of course, for the first time it was not heard in “recent documents from the Department of Education,” as was mentioned yesterday. The need for it arose when it was not possible to explain by the work of other aspects of thinking the possibility of solving problems of a certain type - engineering problems. Let's take a trivial one: you need to pull out a small ball that has rolled into a very narrow gap between the sofa and the floor. If we have an object that looks like a stick, this sets one level of the problem. What if there is no mop, but only sheets of paper, or only a plastic bottle, or, say, only a banana? Relying only on logical, mathematical, or artistic thinking, it is impossible to solve such a problem. And, if we try to imagine, visualize what is happening in our heads when we are looking for a way to cope with this difficulty, most likely we will see something special, similar to diagrams from physics textbooks. Therefore, I personally support the opinion that specific engineering thinking does exist. Different researchers describe the characteristics unique to engineering thinking in different ways. I personally really liked the statement from some relatively recent popular science article that engineering thinking allows you to see structures and act under constraints. I think the article stated that it was from the book Think Like an Engineer. The book doesn't have very good reviews on Ozone, but it looks like I wanted to form my own opinion.

Features of the development of engineering thinking in preschool children

Preschool age is an important period for the development of all mental functions: speech, thinking, emotions, mechanisms for controlling voluntary movements, for which the higher structures of the brain are responsible - the cortex. It's all about the game. The mental development of preschool children is characterized by the formation of figurative thinking, which allows him to think about objects and compare them in his mind even when he does not see them. However, logical thinking has not yet formed. This is hampered by egocentrism and the inability to focus on changes in the object.

In the development of a preschooler’s thinking, a significant role is played by children’s mastery of methods for visually modeling certain phenomena. Visual models, in which essential connections and relationships of objects and events are reproduced, are the most important means of developing a child’s abilities and the most important condition for the formation of an internal, ideal plan of mental activity. The emergence of a plane of visual representations of reality and the ability to act in terms of images (internal plane) constitute, according to Zaporozhets A.V., the first, “ground floor” of the general edifice of human thinking. It is laid down in various types of children's activities - in play, design, visual arts and others [3,5].

The ability to use model images in thinking, which begins to develop in children of 3–4 years of age, becomes in older preschool age the basis for understanding the various relationships of objects, allows children to assimilate generalized knowledge and apply it when solving new mental problems. This ability is manifested in particular in the fact that children easily and quickly understand schematic images offered by adults and use them successfully. Starting from the age of 5, preschoolers, even without special explanation, understand what the floor plan is and, using the mark on the floor plan, find a hidden object in the room. They recognize objects well in schematic images, successfully use path diagrams, etc. [2].

Psychological and pedagogical research has established that in organizing the acquisition by older preschool children of knowledge about space, about the phenomena of living and inanimate nature, in teaching them the basics of mathematics and literacy, and in other types of education, the use of visual models is especially effective. Working with visual models, children easily understand relationships between things and phenomena that they are unable to learn either on the basis of verbal explanations or when acting with real objects. Thus, when teaching mathematics, the model of quantitative relations helps children determine these relations from other properties of objects and master the idea of ​​number, and the model of the relationship between part and whole helps them understand the meaning of the operations of addition and subtraction [8].

Nowadays, the technical complexity of means of production is constantly increasing, which requires special attention to the professional intellectual qualities of the engineer, as well as to his creative abilities.

Engineering thinking is understood as a type of cognitive activity aimed at researching, creating and operating new high-performance and reliable equipment, advanced technology, automation and mechanization of production, and improving product quality. The main thing in engineering thinking is the solution of specific tasks and goals put forward by production using technical means to achieve the most effective and high-quality result. At the same time, rationalization, invention and discovery as the results of scientific and technical creativity generate qualitatively new results in the field of science and technology and are distinguished by originality and uniqueness.

Modern engineering thinking is deeply scientific, therefore it is necessary to highlight pre-engineering thinking as the basis for the formation of engineering thinking. Let us highlight the following signs of pre-engineering thinking:

- is formed on the basis of scientific and technical activities, such as thinking about construction from Lego, etc.;

- rationally, expressed in a publicly accessible form as a product;

- has no tendency towards formalization and standardization, relies only on experimental and design base;

— systematically formed in the process of scientific and technical creativity;

- tends to universalize and spread to all spheres of human life [1,4].

The structure of pre-engineering thinking includes rational, sensory-emotional and axiological elements, memory, imagination, fantasies, abilities, etc. The level of development of pre-engineering thinking can be assessed:

Table 1

Pedagogical assessment of the formation of pre-engineering thinking of a preschool child

The rudiments of engineering thinking are necessary for a child from an early age, since from early childhood he is surrounded by technology, electronics and even robots. This type of thinking is necessary both for studying and operating technology, and for preventing the child’s “immersion” in the technological world (learning from an early age to explore the chain “button - process - result” instead of learning to simply and thoughtlessly “press buttons”). The child should also gain an understanding of initial modeling as part of scientific and technical creativity. The basics of modeling should be naturally included in the child's development process in the same way as the study of shape and color [6,9].

The opportunity to develop does not remain unchanged. Every child is born with a rich fibrous network connecting brain cells. At an early stage of development, brain cells need not only adequate nutrition, but also sufficient stimulation. Neural connections are strengthened only when certain nervous structures are activated, when certain abilities begin to function, causing the passage of biocurrents along the “lines of communication.” Neurons deprived of nutrition or a stimulating “learning” environment cannot form an extensive network and eventually atrophy. Therefore, the younger the child, the easier the formation of connections occurs. And with age this happens more and more difficult. Boris Nikitin (a famous Russian teacher) called this phenomenon NUVERS - the irreversible extinction of opportunities for the effective development of abilities [7].

As you can see, early development is determined both physiologically and by social needs - children who had a high level of development before starting school did not experience difficulties in this subsequently.

Sometimes before children enter first grade, they are given several psychological tests, based on the results of which classes of different levels of training are formed. Children often differ very strikingly from each other in terms of development. Why is there such a difference? Scientists studied younger preschoolers more than 20 years ago and were convinced: the younger the children were, the closer they were in development. Therefore, if you want your child to achieve high results at school age, you need to start developing it as early as possible. Moreover, the result of pedagogical influences on him in the future (for example, with the aim of developing engineering thinking) depends on the level and quality of the child’s “basic” thinking.

table 2

Levels of development of engineering thinking in a preschool child

In addition, the rudiments of engineering thinking are necessary for a child from an early age, since from early childhood he is surrounded by technology, electronics and even robots. This type of thinking is necessary both for studying and operating technology, and for preventing the child’s “immersion” in the technological world (training from an early age to explore the “button - process”

- result” instead of teaching simple and thoughtless “pressing buttons”). The child should also gain an understanding of initial modeling as part of scientific and technical creativity. The basics of modeling should be incorporated naturally into a child's development, just as learning about shapes and colors should be.

The formation of the child’s personality traits, his physical and intellectual abilities through targeted pedagogical influence should be carried out consistently and continuously.

The preparatory stage of development, the “advanced” intellectual and creative development of a child, is considered as an important prerequisite for the formation of engineering thinking in a teenager.

Literature:

1. Volkova S. I. Design - M: Education, 2010.

2. Vygotsky L. S. Pedagogical psychology. - M., 1991.

3. Dubrovina I.V., Danilova E.E., Prikhozhan A.M. Psychology. 2nd ed., erased. - M.: Academy, 2003–464 p.

4. Kochkina N. A. Organizational and methodological foundations for planning educational activities // Management of preschool educational institutions. - 2012. - No. 6. - P. 24.

5. Leontyev A. N., Zaporozhets A. V. Questions of psychology of a preschool child: Sat. Art./Ed. Leontyev A.N. and Zaporozhets A.V. - M.: International Educational and Psychological College, 1995. - 144 p.

6. Meerovich, M. I. Technology of creative thinking: A practical guide Text. / M. I. Meerovich, JI. I. Shragina // Library of practical psychology. - Minsk: Harvest, 2003. - 432 p.

7. Nikitin B.P. Steps of creativity or educational games. - M.: Education, 1991.

8. Ponomarev Ya. A. Knowledge, thinking and mental development. - M., 1967.

9. Teplov B. M. Practical thinking // Reader on general psychology: Psychology of thinking. - M.: MSU, 1981.

What is engineering thinking?

During the discussion, the opinion was also voiced that engineering thinking is a concept in the same category as “culinary thinking,” “hairdressing thinking,” etc. (sounded in support of the thesis “there is no need to create entities, so you can come up with any kind of thinking”). Well, if someone tells me about a special type of culinary or hairdressing problems that cannot be reduced to mathematical, artistic or engineering, but on the contrary - universal, arising and solved in various types of practical/professional activities, then I will definitely agree that such an “idea” will be good and scientifically substantiated. When it comes to engineering problems that require us to use specific cognitive skills, they are all around us. Engineering thinking may be required if you need to open a jammed lock, get a kitten out of a tree, put on tight shoes without special equipment, iron one sleeve of a shirt without creasing the previous one, attach a bag to an uncomfortable back of a chair at a conference, and so on ad infinitum. Engineering problems are regularly faced by professionals and amateurs in the field of cooking or hairdressing.

It will not be possible to integrate engineering thinking into the series “visual-effective - visual-figurative - verbal-logical”. The concept of “engineering thinking” does not correspond to the concept of “abstract thinking”, where they tried to place it. The relationships between these phenomena are completely different. The fact is that, in essence, visual-effective, visual-figurative and verbal-logical thinking is, rather, not classification categories, but a chain of mental new formations that open up new opportunities for us in the course of development (both individual and evolutionary). The “field of objects” in which we can solve problems of different types is gradually expanding. At first we can solve mental problems only on the basis of manipulating material objects, then by working with images, then by using abstractions. It's the same story with engineering problems. Doesn’t a child who is looking for support, mastering upright walking, or a baby trying to overcome the ingenious mechanisms of “child protection” encounter them? And although visual-effective, visual-figurative and verbal-logical thinking are most often called types, more accurate, in my opinion, is another conceptual construct: thinking at different levels. And then we can talk about engineering thinking, which can be implemented at three different levels. At the same time, it is important not to forget that the transition to a new level does not reduce the significance of previous achievements. After all, any tool must be used rationally. If it is important for us to quickly get the ball out from under the sofa, and we have a mop with a long handle of a suitable diameter at hand, it would be irrational to create a design for a mechanical arm or carry out complex calculations describing the mechanics of the interaction of the mop, the floor, the sofa, the ball and our own body, taking into account the draft and thermal characteristics of the room.

Consultation “Formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking in preschool educational institutions”

KAMCHATKA KRAI

municipal government preschool educational institution No. 1

"Kindergarten "Ryabinka"

Consultation on the topic:

Formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking of preschool children based on the development of constructive skills.

Prepared by:

Deputy Head for Educational Work Gorbenko E.A.

Good afternoon colleagues, before starting a discussion of this topic, I suggest you set yourself in a positive mood and play the “Compliment” game

Assignment: come up with a compliment that matches the personal qualities of the interlocutor.

Instructions: remember the words of B. Okudzhava

“Let's exclaim, admire each other,

There is no need to be afraid of high-flown words.

Let's compliment each other

After all, these are all happy moments of love!

Now we will compliment each other. A compliment is accepted in a certain form: Yes, it is! And I…

For example:

- Sveta, you are such a sympathetic person!

- Yes it is! And also, I'm kind!

-And you, Asya, have such beautiful eyes! Yes it is.! And I…

Wonderful colleagues, now let’s start the consultation.

Modern society and the technical world are inseparable in their improvement and advancement. The world of technology has captured the entire sphere of human existence and is not giving up its positions at all; on the contrary, it is rapidly developing every minute.

Is an adult ready for this and is a child ready for this? More often we notice that children strive to master modern technologies, are drawn to new things, and there are a number of reasons for this. The modern direction of development of the surrounding world requires a person to live and work in qualitatively new conditions, who can not only master and operate modern equipment and technologies according to instructions, but also create and modernize them themselves, thereby improving the quality of life and being in demand and useful to society. We can say that mature engineering thinking is the key to success in the modern world, but this type of thinking is not formed on its own. There can only be prerequisites and the task of teachers is to develop these prerequisites, thereby forming engineering thinking, to educate a creative person who is able to navigate the world of high technical equipment, who thinks creatively and is able not only to use, but also to create new technical forms himself.

“In the modern world, an engineer is a highly qualified specialist who not only ensures the operation of complex equipment, but, in fact, shapes the reality around us” V.V. Putin

Engineering thinking is systematic creative technical thinking that allows you to see the whole problem from different sides and the connections between its parts. In addition, I.m. allows you to see simultaneously the system, supersystem, subsystem, connections between them and within them, and for each of them see the past, present and future.

The most important characteristic of creative engineering thinking is its systematic nature.

To the features of I.m. can be attributed:

a) the ability to identify a technical contradiction and consciously initially orient thought towards an ideal solution, when the main function of the object is performed as if by itself, without wasting energy and money;

b) orientation of thought in the most promising direction, from the point of view of the laws of development of technical systems;

c) the ability to control psychological factors and consciously boost creative imagination.

Engineering thinking combines different types of thinking: logical, creative, visual, practical, theoretical, technical. All of them begin to form in preschool age.

On TV. Kudryavtsev, engineering thinking is a type of technical thinking that develops in the context of solving structural and technical problems and is aimed at research, creation of equipment and technology. Based on the features of engineering thinking presented in the scientific and methodological literature, features of the development of engineering thinking in preschool children were formulated, which need to be taken into account in their work.

Features of the development of engineering thinking in preschool children.

Ø Not every person has an engineering mindset.

Ø The development of engineering thinking in preschool age is impossible as such; it is only possible to create the prerequisites for the development of this type of thinking.

Ø Development of higher mental functions: memory, perception, thinking and speech.

Ø Creation of prerequisites for the development of various types of thinking.

Ø Development of attention, will, imagination, creativity and creativity in preschool children.

Ø Identification and development of technical abilities in preschool children.

Ø Development of children’s ability to foresee and predict the path and results of ongoing or upcoming activities.

Ø Development of ideas in a preschool child about the objective world and social reality.

Ø Diversified development of a preschool child in the process of organizing various types of children's activities.

Ø Supporting initiative and independence in preschool children.

Ø Construction of educational activities taking into account the principles of humanization and science, a systemic activity approach.

Ø Achieving the targets of the Federal State Educational Standard for Education.

Forming the prerequisites for engineering thinking must begin in kindergarten; from preschool age, the child begins to model, explore, construct, and most importantly, he does this not out of necessity, but with passion.

In the development of engineering thinking, a special role is played by children’s mastery of methods of visual modeling of certain phenomena. Visual models are a means of developing a child’s abilities and a condition for the development of mental activity. Working with visual models, children more easily understand such relationships and interconnections of things and phenomena that they are not able to master either on the basis of verbal instructions or when acting with real objects. The ability to use model images in thinking begins at the age of three. This ability is manifested in the fact that children master the material more easily and better using schematic images (mnemonic tables, mind maps, construction, etc.).

Constructive activity is a practical activity aimed at obtaining a specific, pre-conceived product that corresponds to its functional purpose. Constructive activities of preschoolers are productive, as they lead to visible results of actions. This is an important fact, since the child simultaneously realizes his ideas about the subject and receives a visual object made with his own hands. In design, the entire path from idea to goal is completed in a short period of time, which is a motivating condition in children’s activities.

A characteristic feature of the process of this activity is the reconstruction and transformation (combination) of spatial representations and images, which contributes to the practical knowledge of properties and spatial relationships.

In design, two types can be distinguished, available at preschool age:

· technical

artistic

Technical design is based on the real characteristics of objects, taking into account the shape and structure. The child builds a house from cubes and bricks and at the same time makes sure to highlight the doorway and designate the window. In artistic design, children, when creating images, not only (and not so much) display their structure, but express their attitude towards them, convey their character, using color, texture, and shape. Computer design, as well as the creation of structures from waste material, can be both technical and artistic in nature. It depends on the goal that the child himself or the adult sets for himself.

The following types of design are distinguished: 1) design according to a model (finished building, diagram, drawing, drawing, plan);

Model-based construction, developed by F. Froebel, consists in the fact that children are offered samples of buildings made from parts of building materials and construction sets, paper crafts, etc., and, as a rule, are shown how to reproduce them. This form of education ensures direct transfer of ready-made knowledge and methods of action to children, based on imitation. It is difficult to directly connect such design with the development of creativity [Zaporozhets, 1967; Novoselova, 2002, Poddyakov, 1985].

However, as studies by V.G. Nechaeva, Z.V. Lishtvan, A.N. Davidchuk, the use of samples is a necessary important stage of learning, during which children learn about the properties of parts of building materials, master the technique of constructing buildings (they learn to allocate space for construction, carefully connect parts, make floors, etc.). A properly organized examination of samples helps children master a generalized method of analysis - the ability to identify the main parts of any object, establish their spatial location, highlight individual details in these parts, etc. Such structural analysis helps to identify significant relationships and dependencies between parts of an object, establishing the functional the purpose of each of them, creates the prerequisites for the development in children of the ability to plan their practical activities in creating structures, taking into account their main functions [Zaporozhets, 1967; Luria, Tsvetkova, 1966; Novoselova, 2002; Paramonova, 2008].

2) design according to conditions

- requirements that the future design must satisfy (for example, you need to build a house for a matryoshka doll, and the doll has a certain size). Design according to conditions proposed by N.N. Poddiakov, is fundamentally different in nature. It is as follows. Without giving children a sample of the building, drawings and methods of its construction, they only determine the conditions that the building must meet and which, as a rule, emphasize its practical purpose (for example, to build a bridge of a certain width across the river for pedestrians and vehicles, a garage for cars or trucks etc.) [Poddyakov, 1985]. Design tasks in this case are expressed through conditions and are problematic in nature, since no methods for solving them are given. In the process of such construction, children develop the ability to analyze conditions and, on the basis of this analysis, build their practical activities of a rather complex structure. Children also easily and firmly grasp the general dependence of the structure of a structure on its practical purpose and in the future, as our experiments have shown, they can themselves, based on the establishment of such a dependence, determine the specific conditions to which their construction will correspond, create interesting ideas and implement them, i.e. .set a task for yourself.

As studies have shown (N.N. Poddyakov, A.N. Davidchuk, L.A. Paramonova), this form of educational organization most contributes to the development of creative design. However, children should already have certain experience: generalized ideas about the objects being constructed, the ability to analyze objects that are similar in structure and the properties of different materials, etc. This experience is formed, first of all, in designing from samples and in the process of experimenting with different materials [Poddyakov, 1985] .

Design based on simple drawings and visual diagrams was developed by S. Leona Lorenzo and V.V. Kholmovskaya. The authors note that the modeling nature of the activity, in which the external and individual functional features of real objects are recreated from parts of building materials, creates opportunities for the development of internal forms of visual modeling. These possibilities can be most successfully realized if children are first taught to construct simple diagrams, reflecting examples of buildings, and then, conversely, to practically create structures using simple diagrams [Zaporozhets, 1967; Novoselova, 2002; Paramonova, 2008].

3)
design by design;
Designing according to a plan, compared to designing according to a model, has greater opportunities for developing children’s creativity and for demonstrating their independence; here the child decides for himself what and how he will design. But we must remember that creating a plan for a future design and its implementation is a rather difficult task for preschoolers: plans are unstable and often change in the process of activity.

The success of design depends on the level of thinking and perception. To build a structure from building material, you must be able to examine the object, divide it into its component parts - parts, evaluate their size, spatial arrangement, and replace some parts with others if necessary. Also, for successful design, you need to be able to imagine the future object as a whole - from all sides, front, side, etc.; It is especially difficult to imagine invisible details [Paramonova, 2008]. Older preschoolers have such global plans that they cannot do without preliminary schematic planning. Have you noticed how one child draws in the sand and explains to another where and what to place in the future model?

There are two interconnected stages in design: the creation of a plan and its execution. Creativity, as a rule, is associated more with the creation of a plan. However, practical activity aimed at fulfilling the plan is not purely executive. A feature of design thinking even among older schoolchildren is the continuous combination and interaction of mental and practical acts (T.V. Kudryavtsev, E.A. Faranonova, etc.).

It is especially difficult for children to independently construct a diagram, a drawing of a future object, and select the building material necessary for it [Zaporozhets, 1967; Uruntaeva, Afonkina, 1995].

Children's constructive creativity can develop successfully if they have clear ideas about structures that clearly reflect the spatial characteristics of objects and their relationships. Such ideas are formed in conditions of the child’s active cognition of the environment and deepen in the process of representation. The basis of children's ideas is the analysis and synthesis of objects and buildings.

Children's construction is an ideal activity used in early childhood education, it has a number of important developmental aspects, and the integration of educational areas is easily achieved. Favorite and exciting design activities leave a vivid emotional mark in the child’s memory, sometimes lasting a lifetime.

Logic, coordination of movements, spatial thinking, fine motor skills, imagination - all this develops well in the design process.

Model of formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking

Ø I am a researcher. At this stage, the child explores the product and develops a perception of the shape, size, properties of an object or space. The young researcher studies and subsequently uses various symbols, signs, and learns to establish cause-and-effect relationships. The so-called technical bureau.

Ø I am a designer. In the design bureau the product is improved, the child makes it unique and branded. Initiative, inquisitiveness, creativity and imagination help him find the positive properties of objects, the use of which will improve the object. Particular attention should be paid here to the concepts of synthesis and analysis.

Ø I am a master. In the workshop, the child creates his own master case and fills it with the necessary materials: waste, natural, etc.

Ø I am a creator. This creator is the pinnacle of skill. His case includes design skills, research results, creativity, creative, unique signature. The product of his activity is part of the surrounding life, it can be a hero of a fairy tale, it can be a tool or device. His creation, in need of the support and approval of others.

In order for a child to achieve high results at the stages of his growing up, he must begin to develop him as early as possible; the result of pedagogical influences on him in the future depends on the level and quality of the child’s basic thinking. For the development of a child, it is necessary to properly organize his activities. This means that our task is to organize conditions that provoke children's activity.

Conditions for the formation of prerequisites for engineering thinking

- children should be interested;

- knowledge must be applied by children in practice;

- children should be taught in an entertaining way.

Result:

Thus, it becomes clear to us that in order to form the prerequisites for engineering thinking in a child, we must raise him as a creative person with creative thinking, capable of navigating the world of high technical equipment and the ability to independently create new technical forms.

A design engineer can build a reliable house. A plumbing engineer can supply water to the house. Engineers can build airplanes, ships and railroads are built by engineers. They can build TV towers and beautiful bridges. If you become an engineer, you will be very needed!!!

It's time for us to say goodbye for today, and I invite everyone to stand in a circle and say goodbye to each other by giving a figurative gift with a wish associated with design. For example: “I give you this cylinder so that there are no sharp corners in your professional life,” etc.

Sources:

Luss T.V. Formation of skills in constructive play activities in children using LEGO. - Moscow. 2003

Volosovets T.V., Karpova Yu.V., Timofeeva T.V. Partial educational program for preschool education “From Froebel to the robot. We are raising a future engineer! - Samara. 2022

Raising future engineers in kindergarten / N. A. Khlamova, N. A. Novikova, R. R. Tarunina [and others]. — Text: immediate // Young scientist. - 2022. - No. 46 (232). — P. 335-337. — URL: https://moluch.ru/archive/232/53790/ (date of access: 02/02/2022).

Technical creativity or engineering thinking?

Now about the relationship between the concepts of “technical creativity” and “engineering thinking”. It would seem that everything is simple here, but we have to stop at this point, because we ended up facing a funny situation. During the discussion, a completely understandable idea was voiced that thinking is an abstract thing, it is easier to discuss what can be seen and touched - technical creativity. I remembered: “And the head is a dark object and cannot be examined.” You can’t argue: creativity is indeed easier to discuss. And after the meeting ended, we read the following response on the feedback board: “in the end, I realized that young children cannot have engineering thinking, but only technical creativity”... I hope the author of the response will read this note, including the following thesis. Creativity is an activity. During its course, various mental manifestations are involved: sensations, perception, attention, memory, imagination, emotions, will and, of course, thinking of different types and different levels. The leading type of thinking in most cases will be determined by the nature of creative activity, but will not always be limited to it. For example, engineering thinking can be involved in the process of artistic creativity: for example, when creating many sculptures, complex engineering problems are solved. It could probably be the other way around: but I haven’t come up with a beautiful and obvious example yet.

Since we have already started to understand, let’s try to separate all the concepts of this field. How are thinking and intelligence related? If thinking is fundamentally procedural, then intelligence is a quality, a property in its pure form. Moreover, in contrast to “good/lively/fast/accurate thinking” (which, as we said above, is also a property), intelligence is a more complex property: its content contains not only the speed and efficiency of cognitive operations, but also other characteristics (this “filling” is described differently by different concepts of intelligence). It is likely that engineering intelligence and engineering thinking are related in a similar way.

Engineering thinking in preschoolers

ENGINEERING THINKING IN PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Currently, due to the fact that the modern world is taking big steps towards globalization and computerization, and according to the government of the Russian Federation, the field of engineering and technology is the area of ​​greatest deficit in Russian society, all links in the educational chain set themselves the goal of developing these areas of education. Preschool education sets itself the goal of developing engineering thinking in a child. Namely, to educate a creative person, with creative thinking, capable of navigating the world of high technical equipment and able to independently create new technical forms.

What is engineering thinking? Engineering thinking in a textbook on the history and philosophy of science and technology, ed. and the following definition is given: “ENGINEERING THINKING is a type of cognitive activity aimed at researching, creating and operating new high-performance and reliable equipment, advanced technology, automation and mechanization of production, improving product quality.”

That is, we can say that mature engineering thinking is the key to success in production for specialists in the technical industry. But this type of thinking is not formed on its own; there can only be prerequisites for its formation in a particular individual. What still contributes to the formation of engineering thinking in humans? And the quality of the entire educational process contributes: not only higher, secondary and primary, but also preschool. After all, as we know, preschool education is the first link in the educational chain, on which the foundation of a future personality is laid.

We can assert that the formation of high-quality engineering thinking is determined by the quality of the entire educational process, its integrity and versatility. Let's look at the criteria and essence of human engineering thinking.

An engineer’s thinking contains not only data, information, and formulas; it is based on the ability to independently build an algorithm of actions and the sequence of manufacturing a product. That is, an engineer is able to mentally predict the result of his activities, relying on well-founded facts, accumulated knowledge, skills and experience. The formula for engineering thinking is as follows: knowledge, skills, experience in professional activities plus the ability to work independently, resourcefulness, ingenuity, creativity, responsibility, the ability to analyze and predict. Engineering thinking is an active form of creative thinking.

The formation of engineering thinking is facilitated by setting and solving practical professional problems. The tasks that engineering sets for itself must be solved on the basis of scientific humanism, that is, the solution to these problems must be based on universal human interests (ecological, economic, social) and recognize human life as the highest value.

That is, in order to realize the goal of preschool education in the field of technical creativity - to form engineering thinking in a child. Namely, to educate a creative person, with creative thinking, capable of navigating the world of high technical equipment and able to independently create new technical forms, it is necessary to develop a number of basic qualities necessary for a future successful engineer. These qualities are:

- wealth of elementary conceptual apparatus,

- the ability to combine, reason, establish logical connections,

- development of attention and concentration,

- efficiency, complexity, systematic thinking,

- development of creative thinking,

- ability to perform independent types of work,

— humanism.

The development of technical thinking is a very positive trend for humanity. Since it is based on humanistic ideas and is focused on creating inventions useful for society. A. Einstein said this about technical creative engineering activity: “This is a range of proportions that prevent you from doing badly and help you do well.”

Bibliographic description: Features of the development of engineering thinking in preschool children // Young scientist. - 2015. - No. 17. — P. 545-548.

Preschool age is an important period for the development of all mental functions: speech, thinking, emotions, mechanisms for controlling voluntary movements, for which the higher structures of the brain are responsible - the cortex. It's all about the game. The mental development of preschool children is characterized by the formation of figurative thinking, which allows him to think about objects and compare them in his mind even when he does not see them. However, logical thinking has not yet formed. This is hampered by egocentrism and the inability to focus on changes in the object. In the development of a preschooler’s thinking, a significant role is played by children’s mastery of methods for visually modeling certain phenomena. Visual models, in which essential connections and relationships of objects and events are reproduced, are the most important means of developing a child’s abilities and the most important condition for the formation of an internal, ideal plan of mental activity. The emergence of a plane of visual representations of reality and the ability to act in terms of images (internal plane) constitute, in the words of , the first, “ground floor” of the general edifice of human thinking. It is laid down in various types of children's activities - in play, design, visual arts and others [3,5]. The ability to use model images in thinking, which begins to develop in children of 3–4 years of age, becomes in older preschool age the basis for understanding the various relationships of objects, allows children to assimilate generalized knowledge and apply it when solving new mental problems. This ability is manifested in particular in the fact that children easily and quickly understand schematic images offered by adults and use them successfully. Starting from the age of 5, preschoolers, even without special explanation, understand what the floor plan is and, using the mark on the floor plan, find a hidden object in the room. They recognize objects well in schematic images, successfully use path diagrams, etc. [2]. Psychological and pedagogical research has established that in organizing the acquisition by older preschool children of knowledge about space, about the phenomena of living and inanimate nature, in teaching them the basics of mathematics and literacy, and in other types of education, the use of visual models is especially effective. Working with visual models, children easily understand relationships between things and phenomena that they are unable to learn either on the basis of verbal explanations or when acting with real objects. Thus, when teaching mathematics, the model of quantitative relations helps children determine these relations from other properties of objects and master the idea of ​​number, and the model of the relationship between part and whole helps them understand the meaning of the operations of addition and subtraction [8]. Nowadays, the technical complexity of means of production is constantly increasing, which requires special attention to the professional intellectual qualities of the engineer, as well as to his creative abilities. Engineering thinking is understood as a type of cognitive activity aimed at researching, creating and operating new high-performance and reliable equipment, advanced technology, automation and mechanization of production, and improving product quality. The main thing in engineering thinking is the solution of specific tasks and goals put forward by production using technical means to achieve the most effective and high-quality result. At the same time, rationalization, invention and discovery as the results of scientific and technical creativity generate qualitatively new results in the field of science and technology and are distinguished by originality and uniqueness. Modern engineering thinking is deeply scientific, therefore it is necessary to highlight pre-engineering thinking as the basis for the formation of engineering thinking. Let us highlight the following signs of pre-engineering thinking: - formed on the basis of scientific and technical activities, such as thinking about constructing from Lego, etc.; - rationally, expressed in a publicly accessible form as a product; - has no tendency towards formalization and standardization, relies only on experimental and design base; — systematically formed in the process of scientific and technical creativity; - tends to universalize and spread to all spheres of human life [1,4]. The structure of pre-engineering thinking includes rational, sensory-emotional and axiological elements, memory, imagination, fantasies, abilities, etc. The level of development of pre-engineering thinking can be assessed.

The rudiments of engineering thinking are necessary for a child from an early age, since from early childhood he is surrounded by technology, electronics and even robots. This type of thinking is necessary both for studying and operating technology, and for preventing the child’s “immersion” in the technological world (learning from an early age to explore the chain “button - process - result” instead of learning to simply and thoughtlessly “press buttons”). The child should also gain an understanding of initial modeling as part of scientific and technical creativity. The basics of modeling should be naturally included in the child's development process in the same way as the study of shape and color [6,9]. The opportunity to develop does not remain unchanged. Every child is born with a rich fibrous network connecting brain cells. At an early stage of development, brain cells need not only adequate nutrition, but also sufficient stimulation. Neural connections are strengthened only when certain nervous structures are activated, when certain abilities begin to function, causing the passage of biocurrents along the “lines of communication.” Neurons deprived of nutrition or a stimulating “learning” environment cannot form an extensive network and eventually atrophy. Therefore, the younger the child, the easier the formation of connections occurs. And with age this happens more and more difficult. Boris Nikitin (a famous Russian teacher) called this phenomenon NUVERS - the irreversible extinction of opportunities for the effective development of abilities [7]. As you can see, early development is determined both physiologically and by social needs - children who had a high level of development before starting school did not experience difficulties in this subsequently. Sometimes before children enter first grade, they are given several psychological tests, based on the results of which classes of different levels of training are formed. Children often differ very strikingly from each other in terms of development. Why is there such a difference? Scientists studied younger preschoolers more than 20 years ago and were convinced: the younger the children were, the closer they were in development. Therefore, if you want your child to achieve high results at school age, you need to start developing it as early as possible. Moreover, the result of pedagogical influences on him in the future (for example, with the aim of developing engineering thinking) depends on the level and quality of the child’s “basic” thinking.

In addition, the rudiments of engineering thinking are necessary for a child from an early age, since from early childhood he is surrounded by technology, electronics and even robots. This type of thinking is necessary both for studying and operating technology, and for preventing the child’s “immersion” in the technological world (learning from an early age to explore the chain “button - process - result” instead of learning to simply and thoughtlessly “press buttons”). The child should also gain an understanding of initial modeling as part of scientific and technical creativity. The basics of modeling should be incorporated naturally into a child's development, just as learning about shapes and colors should be. The formation of the child’s personality traits, his physical and intellectual abilities through targeted pedagogical influence should be carried out consistently and continuously. The preparatory stage of development, the “advanced” intellectual and creative development of a child, is considered as an important prerequisite for the formation of engineering thinking in a teenager

Features of the development of engineering thinking in preschool children // Young scientist. - 2015. - No. 17. — P. 545-548.

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Abilities and giftedness

In addition, there is also the concept of engineering abilities. In general, abilities and talent characterize a person from the point of view of his ability to achieve success in general intellectual or in some specific activity. At the same time, according to Teplov’s clarification, abilities should not be reduced to knowledge, skills and abilities. Abilities are some private, specific properties. These may be, for example, characteristics of mental processes that have become individual characteristics (good logical thinking, vivid imagination, stable attention, a special angle of perception (“I’m an artist, I see this”), or there may be some qualities that are largely determined by physiologically: hearing, sense of rhythm, eye. Talent, according to the sources that have received the most recognition, is an integral phenomenon, the important components of which are the cognitive component, creativity and motivation. Thus, high engineering intelligence or “good” engineering thinking is part of the content of a special type special talent.

Engineering or technical?

It seems that I described all the concepts that I wanted... and now I admit: for me, there remains one difficulty in this whole concept: to clarify which adjective is more correct in the names of all these cognitive phenomena: after all, “engineering” or still “technical”. It’s good that we didn’t get to this issue yesterday.

And, to finish with the psychological issues raised yesterday, I can’t resist and quickly refute a number of theses that were voiced at the event. In fact, there is no scientific data that reliably proves that the possibilities for the manifestation of engineering thinking, intelligence, abilities, or the potential for achieving success in technical activities are limited by temperamental characteristics, the organization of the work of the cerebral hemispheres, or gender-related characteristics of human psychophysiology.

I will only add that insofar as it did not concern essential issues, the discussion, in my opinion, turned out to be complete and was quite successful: we lagged behind different positions, found common ground, were emotional, caring and ready for mutual understanding. For all this, thanks to the organizers, fellow speakers, moderator, experts and all participants!

Photo: Legopolis kindergarten.