The dissertation work is devoted to the study of the problem of intellectual education of children of older preschool age (on the material of teaching children elementary mathematical concepts) in the conditions of a preschool education institution. The choice of the research topic is due to the fact that the priority task of modern education is the formation of a generation of a new formation - with innovative thinking, an active life position, the ability for self-determination and self-education. This determines an innovative strategy for its development, starting from its preschool stage. Therefore, the task of updating the system of mental education of preschoolers, which should be aimed at constructing non-traditional content, forms and methods that ensure the development of cognitive abilities and personal qualities in each child, is being updated. The nature and effectiveness of such mental development in preschool age becomes a factor of success, in particular, further learning of mathematics at school.
The scientific novelty of the study is that for the first time: a holistic theoretical analysis of the problem of mental education of preschool children was carried out based on the ideas of systemic, activity-oriented and personally oriented approaches; the system of intellectual education of children of older preschool age is substantiated in a combination of the following stages (target, organizational, didactic-methodical and diagnostic); the organizational and pedagogical conditions for the implementation of the system of intellectual education of children of older preschool age in primary and secondary schools are defined and theoretically substantiated (creating a sensorial and cognitive space for the child, ensuring the readiness of educators to implement the tasks of intellectual education of older preschool children, introducing game modules of mathematical content into the educational1 process of SEN); systematized diagnostic tools for assessing the effectiveness of the mental education system of preschool children in preschool education institutions, containing: criteria for comprehensive assessment of the state of mental development (active environment of the sensory and cognitive space of the preschool education institution; level of mental development of preschool children; readiness of educators to implement mental education tasks children; criteria of mental development of preschool children (cognitive, emotional-valuable, operational-practical) with corresponding indicators and its levels (high, sufficient, average and low); the effectiveness of the organizational and pedagogical conditions for the implementation of the mental education system for children of older preschool age was experimentally verified; the essence of the main concepts of the study was clarified: “education”, “mental education”, “mental development”, “cognitive activity of preschool children”, “sensory-cognitive environment”, “game modules”; criteria for comprehensive assessment of the mental education system of older preschool children (sensory-cognitive space of preschool age, level of mental development of older preschool children, readiness of educators to implement mental education tasks); criteria of mental development of older preschool children (cognitive, emotional-value, operational-activity) with corresponding indicators and levels (high, sufficient, average and low); further development was achieved: issues of theory and practice of intellectual education of children of older preschool age in preschool education institutions; scientifically based ideas about methodological approaches, principles, content, forms of educational interaction of educators with children, pedagogical methods, means of mental development.
The carried out scientific understanding of key concepts and their definitions from the problem of mental education of older preschool children made it possible to systematize them in relation to the key concept of “mental development” and provide their interpretation. Thus, we understand the concept of “mental education” as the systematic, purposeful influence of adults on the mental development of a child with the aim of forming a system of knowledge about the surrounding world, developing cognitive activity, the ability for independent cognition, the concept of “mental development’ of older preschool children as qualitative changes in the child’s cognitive activity that occur as a result of the development of mathematical skills and related logical operations. Mental education as a process does not happen by itself, but is guided by many factors and is the result of complex influences of all subjects of the educational process. The effectiveness of the organizational and pedagogical conditions for the introduction of the mental education system in preschool education institutions was experimentally verified.
