Leonid Vladimirovich Zankov: system of developmental training
The Zankov system was introduced in Russian schools in1995-1996 as a parallel system of primary education. We can say that it corresponds to a rather high degree set forth in the Law of the Russian Federation on Education Principles. According to them, education must have a humanitarian character. In addition, it must ensure the development of the personality of each child.
The essence of Zankov's system
Today the Zankov system is one of those,which are allowed to use, as well as other programs of primary school. Let's briefly describe what its essence is. This system assumes that children must "get" knowledge. They should not simply be presented to students, as Zankov believed. His system is aimed at the fact that the teacher asks a certain problem, and the children should solve it independently, naturally, under the guidance of the teacher. During the lesson, there is a dispute, a discussion in which a lot of opinions arise. Gradually, from them crystallizes knowledge. Intellectual movement, thus, goes in the reverse traditional order: not from simple to complex, but on the contrary.
To other features proposed by Zankov(the portrait is presented above), the program includes high training speed, a lot of tasks for working out the material. This process is not easy. It should be as diverse and dynamic as possible. For example, schoolchildren often visit libraries, museums, exhibitions, a large extracurricular work is conducted. All this contributes to successful learning.
Now consider more deeply and in detailmethod, which suggested Zankov. His system today is very popular. However, often its principles are misunderstood. First, we briefly outline the ideas that Zankov proposed. Its system will be examined by us in general terms. Then we will talk about what mistakes modern teachers allow in realizing these principles.
The purpose of the Zankov system
So, the popular method of elementary educationwas developed by Leonid Vladimirovich Zankov. His system pursued the following goal: a high overall development of children. What did L. V. Zankov mean by this? The all-round development of the child's personality, which affects the "mind" (cognitive processes), volitional qualities governing all activities ("will"), as well as moral and ethical qualities ("feelings") that manifest themselves in various activities. General development is the formation and qualitative transformation of the personality. These properties are the foundation of successful education in school years. After graduation they become the basis of creative work in various fields of activity. The development of the imagination contributes to the effective solution of problems in many areas. LV Zankov wrote that the process of learning when using this system least of all resembles a cold and measured perception of the material. He is imbued with a feeling that appears when a person is admired by the treasury of knowledge that has opened to him.
In order to solve this problem, it was impossiblesimply to improve the existing primary school curriculum. Therefore, in the 60-70s of the 20th century a new didactic teaching system was created. The core on which the whole educational process is built is the core and single basis of it. In brief, we will talk about each of them.
High level of difficulty
It was necessary to proceed from the fact that thethe school programs were not saturated with educational material. In addition, the methods of teaching did not contribute to the manifestation of the creative activity of children. Therefore, the first principle was the principle of teaching students at a high level of complexity. This is most important in the Zankov system, since only the educational process, which provides ample food for the mind, can contribute to an intensive and rapid development. Under the difficulty is meant the tension of both the intellectual forces of the schoolchild and spiritual ones. When solving problems, intensive work of thought and development of imagination must take place.
A student must overcome obstacles thatarise in the course of cognition. In the Zankov system, the necessary tension is achieved through the use of analyzing observation and the problem method of teaching, and not through the use of complex material.
The importance of a high level of difficulty
The main idea of this principle is to createa special atmosphere, in which the intellectual activity of schoolchildren is observed. It is necessary to give them the opportunity to solve the tasks independently, and also to understand and be able to determine the difficulties that arise in the learning process. It is important to find ways to overcome these difficulties. This activity, according to Zankov, contributes to the fact that all available knowledge about the subject is activated. He also develops self-control, arbitrariness (that is, management of activities) and observance. At the same time, the emotional background of the learning process also increases. After all, every person likes to feel smart and able to achieve success.
Fast pace
LV Zankov opposed monotonous and monotonous exercises, as well as repeated repetition of the material. He introduced another principle, the essence of which was to study at a rapid pace. Zankov's method implies a dynamic and constant change of actions and tasks.
The leading role of theoretical knowledge
LV Zankov did not deny that the primary school's task is to form computational, spelling and other skills. However, he was against "pulling", passive-reproductive methods. Zankov Leonid called for the students' skills to be formed as a result of a deep understanding of the science underlying the subject. So there was one more principle, according to which the leading role should belong to theoretical knowledge. It was aimed at increasing the cognitive focus of primary education.
Consciousness of training
Equally important is the awareness of learning. Under it meant understanding the content of the material. The system of L. V. Zankov expands this interpretation. The process of learning itself must be conscious. To this comes another principle, which Leonid Zankov proposed. Let's talk about him.
Connections between parts of the material
Objects of close attention should beconnections existing between parts of the material, patterns of computational, grammatical and other operations, as well as the mechanism of the appearance of errors and their overcoming.
This principle can be discerned as follows. The younger schoolchildren have an important feature of the study of the material, which is that the activity of its analytical comprehension decreases at a rapid pace, if the pupils are forced to analyze several units of material in a series of lessons, carry out the same thought operations (for example, by changing the shape of a word to select verifying words to it). Zankov's math is therefore very different from mathematics taught by other systems. After all, this is the subject most often studied on the same type of tasks, against which Leonid Vladimirovich is speaking. It is known that at this age children very quickly get bored of doing the same thing. As a result, the effectiveness of their work decreases, the development process slows down.
The LV system Zankova solves this problem in the following way. In order not to "trample in place", it is necessary to investigate the units of material in connection with others. Each section should be compared with others. It is recommended that the lesson be taught in the Zankov system so that students can find similarities and differences between different parts of the teaching material. They should be able to determine the measure of the dependence of the didactic unit on the others. The material should be interpreted as a logical interacting system.
Another aspect of this principle isincrease the capacity of time allocated for training, increase the efficiency. This can be done, firstly, through a comprehensive mastery of the material, and secondly, by the absence of separate periods in the program, designed to repeat what was studied earlier, as in the traditional method.
Thematic blocks
The training system of Zankov suggests thatmaterial is arranged by the teacher in thematic blocks. They include units that closely interact with each other and depend on each other. Studying them simultaneously saves study time. In addition, it becomes possible to examine the units throughout a multitude of lessons. For example, with traditional planning, each of these two units is allocated 4 hours each. When they are combined into a unit, the teacher has the opportunity to touch each of them within 8 hours. In addition, due to finding links with similar units, a repetition of the material traversed earlier is carried out.
Creating specific learning conditions
We have already said that a big role in thisthe system is played by extra-curricular activities. But not only it. Zankov's laboratory staff, like the scientist himself, proceeded from the fact that certain learning conditions in the class favorably affect the development of all students, both weak and strong. Development in this case occurs individually. The pace of it can be different, depending on the abilities and inclinations of each particular student.
The current state of the Zankov system
More than 40 years have passed since the development of all theseprinciples. Nowadays there is a need to comprehend these ideas from the point of view of modern pedagogy. After studying the current state of the Zankov system, scientists came to the conclusion that the interpretation of certain principles was distorted in pedagogical practice.
Distortion of the value of "fast tempo"
The "fast pace" began to be understood mainlyas a reduction in the time that is devoted to mastering the material. However, pedagogical means and conditions, which Zankov used, were not carried out in due measure. And it was they who made the schooling more intense and easy.
Zankov proposed to intensify the processstudy of objects due to the fact that didactic units were considered in a complex manner. Each of them was represented in its various aspects and functions. Work consistently included the material that had been covered earlier. With the help of these tools, it was possible to abandon the "chewing" already known to students, which was practiced traditionally. Zankov strove to avoid repetitive repetitions that lead to spiritual apathy and mental laziness, and thus inhibit the development of the child. The words "fast paced" were introduced by him in opposition to this. By them is meant a qualitatively new organization of training.
Wrong understanding of the importance of theoretical knowledge
Another principle, according to which the leading roleshould be given theoretical knowledge, is also often understood by teachers in a wrong way. The emergence of the need for this was also due to the nature of the techniques used in the mid-20th century. At that time, primary school was considered a special stage of school education. It had a so-called propaedeutic character. In other words, she only prepared the children for schooling in high school. The traditional system, proceeding from this, formed the necessary skills of working with the material, mainly reproductively, with the material, which can be used in practice. Zankov also opposed this purely practical way of assimilating the first knowledge of schoolchildren. He noted the cognitive passivity inherent in him. Zankov pointed to the need for conscious mastery of skills, based on the work with theoretical data on what is being studied.
Increased intellectual load
In the modern implementation of this principle, bothshowed an analysis of the state of the system, there was a skew in the direction of overly early adoption of theoretical knowledge by schoolchildren. At the same time, their comprehension through sensory experience is not developed at the proper level. This leads to the fact that the intellectual load significantly and unreasonably increases. In the classes where the Zankov system is being taught, they began to select the most prepared for the school. Thus, the conceptual foundations of the system were violated.
Today, English is especially popular forschoolchildren according to Zankov's method. This is understandable, because this language is very much in demand today, and traditional methods of teaching it do not suit everyone. However, one must understand that if you choose English for schoolchildren according to the Zankov system for your child, you may be disappointed. The point is that this technique is not always used correctly. Modern teachers often distort the Zankov system. Russian language, mathematics, biology and other subjects are also taught by this method. The effectiveness of its use depends largely on the teacher.
