Formation of ideas about the social world in older preschool children: theoretical foundations and pedagogical conditions

Introduction

In modern society, the importance of social development of the individual, starting from preschool childhood, is increasing. During this period, primary ideas about social objects, norms, and relationships are formed. Social cognition of a child is a key component of socialization, and the emerging ideas about the social world create the foundation for building a self-concept and effective orientation in the surrounding reality (M. I. Lisina, V. S. Mukhina). The relevance of the study is due to the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard for Preschool Education regarding the development of social qualities in preschoolers, as well as the insufficient elaboration of the theory and methods of forming ideas about the social world in the practice of preschool educational institutions.

Research problem – to determine the pedagogical conditions that ensure effective formation of ideas about the social world in older preschool children.

Purpose of the study – to identify and substantiate the pedagogical conditions for the formation of ideas about the social world in older preschool children.

Objectives:

1. To study the problem in psychological and pedagogical literature;
2. To clarify the essence, content, criteria, and levels of formation of ideas;
3. To identify pedagogical conditions;
4. To assess the level of formation of ideas in older preschoolers;
5. To develop methodological recommendations.

Research methods: theoretical analysis of literature, pedagogical experiment (ascertaining stage), qualitative and quantitative analysis of results.

Base of the study: Kindergarten No. 14 "Golden Key", Belgorod, 20 children aged 5-6 years.

Theoretical foundations of forming ideas about the social world in older preschoolers

Psychological and pedagogical research (L. S. Vygotsky, D. B. Elkonin, A. V. Zaporozhets) views a child’s social development through the assimilation of social experience and inclusion in the system of social relations. Ideas about the social world are an integrative formation that is part of the child’s holistic worldview, reflecting the degree of understanding of social reality, a system of knowledge about people, norms, relationships, and social phenomena. The structure of these ideas includes three components:

• Cognitive component (knowledge about oneself, family, social roles, behavioral norms);
• Emotional-value component (attitude towards people, empathy, moral feelings);
• Behavioral component (implementation of knowledge in behavior, interaction skills).

The criteria for the formation of ideas about the social world include completeness and systematicity of knowledge (cognitive criterion), the presence of and adequate assessment of actions (emotional-value criterion), the ability to apply knowledge in activities and observe behavioral norms (behavioral criterion). Accordingly, high, medium, and low levels are distinguished.

The following pedagogical conditions for the formation of ideas about the social world in older preschoolers are proposed:

1. The use of didactic games and exercises aimed at developing empathy, cooperation skills, and understanding of social roles.
2. The use of multimedia tools (short educational cartoons, interactive stories) that visually demonstrate various social situations and relationships.

These conditions ensure a comprehensive impact on the cognitive, emotional-value, and behavioral spheres of the child.

Results of the ascertaining experiment

To assess the level of formation of ideas about the social world, three diagnostic methods were used: "Story Pictures" (modification by R. R. Kalinina) – for the cognitive criterion; the questionnaire "The Nature of Empathic Reactions and Behavior in Children" by A. M. Shchetinina – for the emotional-value criterion; and the "Pictures" technique (E. O. Smirnova, V. M. Kholmogorova) – for the behavioral criterion.

Results for the cognitive criterion: high level – 40% of children, medium – 30%, low – 30%. Children with a high level demonstrate an understanding of social norms and can argue the moral assessment of actions. Children with medium and low levels have difficulty explaining the reasons for behavior and identifying the moral content of situations.

Results for the emotional-value criterion: high level – 30% of children, medium – 50%, low – 20%. Most children show instability of empathic reactions and often need adult initiative to provide help.

Results for the behavioral criterion: high level – 40% of children, medium – 40%, low – 20%. Children with medium and low levels demonstrate situational compliance with norms, difficulties in resolving conflicts, and insufficient initiative in socially approved behavior.

Thus, the majority of older preschoolers have medium and low levels of formation of ideas about the social world, which confirms the need to implement the proposed pedagogical conditions.

Methodological recommendations

To increase the level of formation of ideas about the social world, it is recommended to organize purposeful work including:

• Didactic games and exercises: "Guess the Emotion" (recognizing feelings), "What to do if...?" (solving problem situations), "Good Deeds" (consolidating humanistic forms of behavior), role-playing games ("Family", "Shop", "Kindergarten"), the exercise "Finish the Story" (social forecasting).
• Use of multimedia tools: viewing and discussing educational cartoons ("Tsvetnyashki", "Aunt Owl's Lessons", "About Mira and Gosha"), interactive presentations with choice of behavior options, analysis of characters’ emotional states.

It is recommended to observe the principles of accessibility, repetition, and consideration of individual characteristics of children.

Conclusion

The problem of forming ideas about the social world in older preschool children is urgent and requires an integrated approach. Theoretical analysis made it possible to clarify the structure of ideas (cognitive, emotional-value, behavioral components) and identify the criteria for their formation. The experiment confirmed that the majority of older preschoolers have medium and low levels of ideas about the social world. Effective pedagogical conditions include the targeted use of didactic games and exercises that develop empathy, cooperation, and understanding of social roles, as well as the use of multimedia tools. The developed methodological recommendations can be used by preschool teachers to optimize the process of social development of preschoolers.