Features of education at different age stages

FEATURES OF PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

The concept of age-related and individual characteristics of personality development in psychology is associated with a description of changes over time in its natural organism and personality as a whole. In this sense, science speaks of dividing the entire cycle of human life into separate, qualitatively different periods, building a periodization of human development . There are many age periodizations of human life, built on different psychological foundations.

In Russian psychology and pedagogy, the age periodization of personality formation is based on taking into account the unity of the biological and social in its development. In human development from birth to maturity, the following age periods can be distinguished, leaving their mark on the upbringing and formation of personal qualities: infancy (up to 1 year), early childhood (2-3 years), pre-school age (3-5 years) , preschool age (5-6 years), primary school age (6-10 years), adolescence (11-15 years), early adolescence or high school age (15-18 years), adolescence (18-25).

The happiness of the first years of a person’s life lies in the predominance of contemplation over solving life’s problems. A child's brain, which reaches full volume by the age of seven, provides him with intensive intellectual development. Through active interaction with the world, children explore the essence of existence, the measure of necessary behavior. The impressionability of childhood does not miss anything that can be useful in life.

In preschool and preschool age, the child discovers the world of human relationships, his living conditions are rapidly expanding. He gets acquainted with peers, and accordingly, the range of games expands: if until now he played most often alone, now he is more interested in role-playing games with peers. Imaginative-role-playing, plot-role-playing games already have a plot, content, roles, game conditions, which opens up new paths to the formation of intellectual operations.

speech basically ends.

. By the age of 7, language becomes a means of communication and thinking, as well as a subject of conscious study. The sound side of speech develops, vocabulary grows rapidly. This age is characterized by children's word creation, during which children master linguistic subtleties.

Communication with peers and adults, and the new communication tasks that arise in this regard by the end of the preschool period, stimulate the use of new forms of speech and an increase in vocabulary: the transition to contextual speech (the child can retell a story or fairy tale he has read), expanded statements, and the development of dialogic speech.

In preschool age, meaningful, purposeful perception

: observation, examination, search.
of thinking
develops – visual-figurative.
The main line of development of thinking is the transition from visual-effective to visual-figurative and, at the end of the period, to verbal thinking. This period is the most favorable for the development of memory
, which is, as a rule, involuntary in nature: the child remembers what is interesting to him, without setting such a goal. Voluntary memory begins to form in middle preschool age, but conscious, purposeful memorization appears sporadically. The third and fourth years of life become the years of the first childhood memories.

Changes during this period and emotional

human processes: the range of emotions expands, they become more intense, but at the same time balanced; a mechanism of emotional anticipation arises, which underlies the emotional regulation of the child’s actions.

The child is included in new systems of relationships, new types of activities. Accordingly, new motives

: gaming motives, the need for self-affirmation and recognition from adults and peers, imitation of adults, cognitive and moral motives. One of the most important achievements of preschool age: the subordination of motives, the identification of dominant ones, which contributes to the development of voluntary behavior of a preschooler.

The central new formation of preschool age is the formation of self-awareness

, thanks to intensive intellectual and personal development. Based on emotional self-esteem (“I am good”) and a rational assessment of other people’s behavior, self-esteem becomes more adequate by the end of the period. Self-awareness develops over time: at 6-7 years old, a child remembers himself in the past, is aware of himself in the present and imagines himself in the future.

Junior school age is associated with children's education in primary school. The rate of physiological growth, a certain level of motivational development of the child, including the social motive for learning (the need to take a certain position that opens access to the world of adults) and a cognitive need that he cannot satisfy at home, sufficient development of voluntary behavior and the intellectual sphere characterize the child’s readiness for schooling. . The main activity of the children is play, which is gradually shifting towards the leading educational activity.

From the point of view of anatomical and physiological maturation, at this time the strengthening of the skeleton as a whole continues (it is important to remember that under unfavorable conditions this process can occur with large anomalies, for example, physical overload can have harmful effects). An essential feature of younger schoolchildren is increased muscle growth and a significant increase in muscle strength. This determines the greater mobility of younger schoolchildren and their inability to remain in the same position for a long time. Therefore, it is important to practice various types of educational work during classes (alternate writing with reading, use visual aids, etc.), hold physical education breaks, and study with the windows open.

The development of the psyche and cognitive activity is important. By the end of primary school age, the weight of the brain approaches the weight of the brain of an adult, and the nerve branches are improved. This creates biological prerequisites for the development of neuropsychic activity. In younger schoolchildren, consciousness control over behavior increases, volitional processes develop, and an internal plan of action is formed.

When a child becomes a student, his social status changes dramatically, which leads to quite significant changes in his behavior and psyche. According to L.I. Bozhovich, the crisis of 7 years is the period of birth of the child’s social “I”. A change in self-awareness leads to a reassessment of values. The child suddenly loses his naivety and spontaneity and becomes less understandable to others. The complication of the emotional and motivational sphere leads to the emergence of the child’s inner life. The child thinks before acting and begins to hide his experiences. Outwardly, this can be expressed in purely crisis manifestations: mannerisms, antics, etc. At the same time, the most important acquisitions of a child during this period are the emerging pride and self-esteem

as stable personality traits.
Reflection
appears —children’s awareness of their actions.

When organizing the cognitive activity of younger schoolchildren, one should develop those mental processes that are associated with direct knowledge of the environment, that is, the feeling

and
perception
;
develop the ability to notice similarities and differences between objects and thereby develop concrete thinking. In younger schoolchildren, the second signaling system, associated with abstract thinking
and
speech,
.
This is beneficial for mastering theory (language, mathematics). When mastering the material, it is necessary to learn to dissect the whole into parts, highlight the essential, make comparisons, and inferences. The transition from visual-figurative to verbal-logical thinking
.
During the learning process, scientific concepts are formed and theoretical thinking develops. Memory
develops in two directions - arbitrariness and meaningfulness.
Younger schoolchildren have good mechanical memory: they tend to reproduce verbatim what they remember. Students are already able to concentrate attention on uninteresting actions, but their involuntary attention still prevails. Attention
is characterized by small volume, low stability, distribution and switching of attention is difficult. In the process of learning activities, voluntary attention develops.

The education of younger schoolchildren is greatly influenced by the personality of the teacher, the influence of parents and adults; Much in education depends on their sensitivity, attention, ability to stimulate and organize the activities of children. For example, a school grade greatly influences the self-esteem of a primary school student and can form the motivation to achieve success, or, conversely, the motivation to avoid failure. Assessment of academic performance at the beginning of school is essentially an assessment of the personality as a whole and determines the social status of the child.

The middle school (adolescent) age of students is usually called transitional, since during this period the transition from childhood to adolescence occurs. Until the XVII-XVIII centuries. adolescence was not distinguished as an independent age in the human life cycle. Today, this period is considered the most difficult stage in a person’s life, and the concept of adolescence crisis has appeared.

The physical development of adolescents is very intensive and uneven. Disproportion is often observed: the limbs grow faster, the development of the torso lags somewhat behind. The growth itself is also uneven: it either slows down or is too intense. At the same time, muscle tissue develops, which gives the teenager greater physical strength.

There are disproportions in the development of the cardiovascular system. The heart grows faster, and the growth of blood vessels lags behind, which leads to a lack of blood flow to individual organs, increased blood pressure, and headaches. All this specifically affects the behavior of adolescents. They are distinguished by great mobility, increased agility, a desire for activity, lifting weights, and so on. But since the muscles and circulatory system are not yet strong enough, teenagers get tired quickly, and excessive physical activity often leads to injuries.

All of these physical changes are complicated by puberty. Puberty is a central factor in the physical development of an adolescent. It has a significant impact on the functioning of internal organs and leads to the emergence of new sensations, feelings, experiences, thoughts, and desires. Restructuring in the endocrine system is often the cause of the general imbalance of a teenager, his irritability, physical activity, periodic lethargy and apathy.

Brain development and further structural formation of nerve cells create the prerequisites for improving the cognitive activity of adolescents. Unlike younger schoolchildren, they are not limited to the external perception of objects and phenomena, but strive to understand their essence, cause-and-effect relationships, ask a lot of questions, require the teacher to provide arguments for the questions and convincing proof of the answers. They develop abstract thinking

and logical
memory
.
In the process of comprehending and memorizing the material, adolescents transform the text and reproduce the main meaning, there is a gradual abandonment of verbatim memorization through repetition, and the development of mechanical memory slows down. Verbal material is perceived and remembered already at the level of concept formation. Perception
becomes planned, consistent, intentional, but
attention
is characterized by inconsistency: on the one hand, verbal-logical memory contributes to the stability of voluntary attention, on the other hand, the abundance of impressions, experiences, activity, and impulsiveness of a teenager leads to instability of attention.

thinking skills also develop

, thanks to which teenagers talk about the past, present, future, put forward hypotheses, and make forecasts.
speech
becomes more complex, is independent and consistent, and his vocabulary increases, mainly due to special scientific terms acquired in the process of studying various academic subjects. The development of the intellectual sphere influences the development of other aspects of the adolescent’s psyche. In the mental appearance of a teenager, they are most often combined, according to N.S. Leites, the activity of analyzing thought, a tendency to reason and special emotionality and impressionability.

The central new formation of personality in adolescence is the “sense of adulthood” and on this basis a new level of self-awareness emerges. If a preschooler plays at an adult, a junior schoolchild imitates him, then a teenager puts himself in the situation of an adult and strives for independence.

At the age of 12-14, a turning point occurs in the psychological development of a teenager, known as the “adolescent crisis.” It lies in the fact that the child has new needs, the satisfaction of which is seriously difficult. The desire for self-affirmation and self-expression can outwardly manifest itself in rudeness and deliberate behavior, the desire to act contrary to the demands of adults. A particularly important case of manifestation of deficiencies in the socialization of adolescents is deviant behavior

, manifested in actions reflecting moral vices, deviations from the principles and norms of morality and law.

However, there are cases of crisis-free development. More often this happens when adults take into account the main personality developments when raising a teenager. Teenagers are more willing to follow rules of behavior if these rules are well understood by them and act as their own moral principles. Teenagers are distinguished by high collectivism, they are attracted by common interests and joint activities. They highly value the opinions of their peers and react sharply to their position in the team. An essential age feature is the desire to assert one’s dignity and prestige among one’s comrades. If it is necessary to make a choice between the opinion of the teacher and the opinion of the team, the teenager most often adheres to the opinion of his comrades. However, teenagers judge the shortcomings of others strictly and forget about their own, so it is necessary to develop in them self-criticism and an incentive for self-education.

High school age is a period of early adolescence, characterized by the onset of physical and mental maturity.

Students of this age smooth out those contradictions and disproportions that are inherent in teenagers. Disproportion in the development of the limbs and torso disappears. The ratio between body weight and heart volume is equalized, and the lag in the development of the circulatory system is eliminated. Muscle strength increases and physical performance increases. Basically, puberty ends. The development of the nervous system rises to a higher level, causing a number of specific features of cognitive activity and the sensory sphere.

thinking plays a predominant role in cognitive activity

, analytical-synthetic activity, desire for comparison; and the categorical judgment inherent in adolescents gives way to hypothetical thinking, the desire to understand the connection between quantitative and qualitative changes. The tendency towards abstract thinking is typical mainly for young men. Although girls at this age are better students and outperform boys in diligence and academic performance, their cognitive interests are less defined. For boys, the most common interest is in studying subjects of the natural cycle; among girls, artistic and humanitarian interests prevail over natural sciences.

The development of thinking abilities gives rise to a desire in high school students to put their thoughts into more precise and vivid verbal forms, to use aphorisms and statements of outstanding figures. This must be taken into account in educational work and help students hone their thoughts, teach them to consult dictionaries, explain scientific terms and foreign words.

There is a differentiation of mental abilities. The development of intelligence contributes to the development of creative abilities. However, the originality of a young man’s thinking can easily be confused with originality as a means of self-affirmation, and the craving for independence with age-related self-confidence and negativism. This places great responsibility on teachers. Education should stimulate the independence and creativity of high school students.

A high school student enters a new social development situation: the final stage of primary socialization. The main task of this age is choosing a profession. The transition to high school or new educational institutions implies not only new teams, but also, most importantly, a focus on the future: on the choice of lifestyle, profession, reference groups of people. The range of social roles is expanding, the high school student becomes an active subject of self-development and self-determination. The leading type of activity becomes educational and professional activity, thanks to which the high school student develops certain cognitive and professional interests, elements of research skills, the ability to make life plans and develop moral ideals. The heightened consciousness and feelings of high school students in connection with their upcoming life self-determination and choice of profession should be kept in mind when conducting career guidance work with them.

Another important acquisition of early youth is the discovery of one’s inner world. Adolescence, according to E. Erikson, is built around a crisis of personal identification, consisting of a series of social and individual personal choices. Accordingly, the criteria for adolescent and female self-esteem differ. If a young man evaluates himself mainly by his subject achievements, the core of his personality and self-awareness depends more on his professional self-determination and achievements in his chosen activity, then for a girl interpersonal relationships are more important, in female self-awareness family is given more importance than profession. One of the most important new developments of this age is the feeling of love.

High school students differ significantly from each other not only in temperament and character, but also in personality orientation (needs, motives for studying and choosing a profession, self-awareness, etc.). Individual personality traits are also manifested in the choice of life path.

Adolescence is generally recognized as a transition period to independent adult life, a time of formation of a person’s social maturity, intensive development of intellectual and creative powers (under favorable conditions), formation of a worldview, beliefs, moral principles and criteria. But precisely as a result of this, young people are subject to a whole whirlwind of contradictions and undergo significant changes, which can be characterized from three sides:

– biological, which includes features of higher nervous activity, sensitivity of analyzers, level and quality of mnemonic activity, etc.; in general, the process of physiological maturation of a person is completed;

- from the social, since there is a change in the social situation of development - to one degree or another, liberation from parental care, professional self-determination, enrichment of communication, civic and moral maturation, etc., that is, the formation of social relations and qualities occurs in accordance with belonging to a certain social group;

– with psychological, which is caused by new formations in the psyche, for example, the manifestation of the ability to abstract thinking, leaps in intellectual development, qualitative changes in self-awareness and character, the entire system of value orientations, etc.

Psychologists argue that adolescence is characterized by the achievement of an optimum in the development of most mental, social and physical capabilities, for example, maximum plasticity in the formation of complex psychomotor and other skills, the highest speed of working memory and switching of attention, solving verbal and logical problems, strengthening of conscious motives of behavior etc.

According to many scientists, adolescence is a sensitive period of personal self-development. However, the degree and depth of self-development depends not only on age, but also on a person’s personal qualities and abilities, and on social conditions.

Youth is a time of introspection and self-assessment, the development of self-awareness is a central psychological process, but the question arises about the adequacy of self-perception: the real “I” is not yet fully understood and appreciated by the individual, and the ideal “I” is not always developed independently and corresponds to the goals of the individual. Increasing intellectual and physical strength, accompanied by attention to one’s own appearance, often creates the illusion of “omnipotence” and forms inflated self-esteem, which leads to a discrepancy between existing abilities and the possibilities for their implementation.

The opposite effect is also possible - the formation of self-doubt, instability of self-images, decreased self-esteem, a painful reaction to criticism, laughter, and the bad opinion of others. Inadequate identity can lead to avoidance of close interpersonal relationships, shyness, withdrawal from reality into the world of dreams or, as often happens now, into the virtual computer world; fear of growing up and change, inability to make life plans; inability to mobilize one’s internal resources, inability to concentrate on the main activity; refusal of self-determination and the choice of negative role models.

Many experts note that a person’s ability for conscious self-regulation at the age of 17-20 is not sufficiently developed: contradictions arise between the need for greater independence and the inability to foresee the consequences of one’s actions; between determination, dedication, perseverance and unmotivated risk, lack of self-control, inability to control oneself; between the presence (ideally) of young people of interest in knowledge and the inability to mobilize internal resources for self-education. Moreover, research shows that young people do not always successfully master knowledge (especially in the first years of university) precisely because they do not have the ability to study independently, the ability to correctly and rationally allocate time for independent work, that is, not enough self-education and self-education skills have been developed.

The crisis of youth (if it occurs) is associated with the destruction of decorative models of happiness, the awareness of the relativity of this very concept. Understanding of the world becomes more realistic, and in many cases, down-to-earth and pragmatic. Life forces are mobilized for new achievements - as a rule, for those that are real, useful and achievable.

Of course, age-related characteristics of human development must be taken into account both in the process of training and education, and in interpersonal interaction. When constructing state curricula and programs based on these features, the complexity and accessibility of educational material are determined, and the types of mental operations are assumed. Focusing on the “zone of proximal development”, knowing the age characteristics of children, the teacher can assume the real result of their development, rationally using the intellectual, physical and mental properties of his students.

Even more than in the learning process, knowledge of age characteristics is necessary when building communicative relationships and organizing educational work, which is not regulated as strictly and precisely as the learning process. Based on this, teachers and psychologists independently and creatively determine the style of communication with students in different age groups, the type, complexity, entertainment, and age-related relevance of the activity being organized.

However, typical age characteristics, verified by time and science, are not yet a sufficient characteristic of a student’s personality. These features can be refracted in each individual in very different ways. One of the important and natural reasons for such diversity is the unevenness of physical and mental development. At an early age, unevenness and individual characteristics are often determined by family environment and upbringing. For example, circumstances such as the composition of the family, its financial situation, and the social status of the parents can not only leave an imprint on the child’s character, but also influence his entire future fate.

The teacher and psychologist comprehend individual differences and characteristics in the process of personal study of students, paying attention, first of all, to the physical condition and health, types of attention in the classroom, and the general performance of students. Based on knowledge of age characteristics, it is necessary to pay close attention to how individual memory properties, inclinations and interests, and inclinations to study certain subjects are manifested in cognitive activity in different students of the same age. This will allow you to find the right approach to training and education, determine the prospects for mental and moral development.

It is difficult, but very important, to study the needs of each student, his motives, attitudes, internal life position, relationships with adults and a group of friends. This knowledge will help you find the right style of communication with each person and, if necessary, effectively influence their development.

Lecture 6.

SENSUAL FORMS OF ACQUISITION OF REALITY:

Periods of development and types of activities characteristic of them:

• From the first days to a year. This time is characterized by emotional contact between mother and newborn. It turns out that the main activity is social contact and the need for it. The beginning of objective activity is also formed: this is grasping objects and moving the body (consciously moving hands, standing up and walking, crawling and sitting).

Toys of this period are aimed at developing the senses (vision, hearing, touch) and finger motor skills. Later, mastery of the subject as an integral object (color, shape, weight, smell, size) will appear.

The task of parents is to purchase rich and colorful toys.

Speech is limited to the pronunciation of sounds and their combinations.

• From 1 year to 3 years. Early childhood is characterized by object-manipulative activity. The baby learns to communicate and use surrounding objects using generally accepted rules. Mastering subjects occurs with the support of parents, who show the principle of working with this subject.

Parents, it is very important to do everything together: brush your teeth, get dressed, eat.

The child understands the meaning of the object and what needs to be done with this object.

At this moment of the child’s psychological development and activity, the first crisis appears - “I myself” (I am a person).

Speech is enriched with vocabulary and built into sentences.

• From 3 to 5 years. Plot-role-playing (game) activity is the basis of this time period. In play, the baby becomes aware of the variety of social relationships and functions in various situations. Played scenes from the lives of adults acquire special properties for a child. He learns to substitute objects by imagining the functions of the real object. The baby also actively takes on a role in his staged scenario.

In parallel, visual-effective (visual-figurative) thinking, arbitrariness, acceptance of moral rules, feelings and experiences develop.

Parents, engage with your child in retelling various genres of literature.

Speech becomes more complex in sentence structure.

• From 5 to 7 years. This age plays an important role in preparing for school.

The speech of the teacher and peers must be recognized by ear (auditory perception and memory).

The task of parents in preparation:

1. In memory;
2. Speeches;
3. Reading and Math;
4. Logical thinking;
5. Communication skills;
6. Discipline and daily routine.

• From 7 to 11 years old. Psychological features of children's development during educational activities - the ability to study and operate acquired knowledge. At this age, due to significant changes in the surrounding social sphere, the student experiences a crisis. A large load is placed on the memory, which has to work hard. From involuntary memory it turns into purposeful memory.

Changes that have taken place:

1. Expanding the circle of authorities - teacher;
2. Special requirements and rules of conduct at school and in the classroom;
3. The student is the object of assessment;
4. Partnership relationships.

From 11 to 15 years. Different types of activities develop at this age (sports, work, education, art). Teenagers are interested in play not as a process, but as a result for self-expression. Educational activity still comes first, only now it is complicated by the specifics of the subjects and the attitude towards these activities. This period is also a crisis: the teenager considers himself an adult, but he is not ready for this yet.

Parents, help your teenager not just model a future perspective, but take specific actions. At this age, a teenager associates himself with a member of society.

• From 15 to 17 years old. Educational activities continue to play a leading role. This activity is now reoriented in the minds of the senior student in accordance with his future plans for professional guidance. Self-awareness works to develop moral and political, as well as aesthetic ideals.

All the child’s activities are ordered by age and cannot occur earlier than another psychological stage of development, and have the properties of one whole.