DEVELOPMENT OF COGNITIVELY UNIVERSAL EDUCATIONAL ACTIONS OF STUDENTS IN BIOLOGY LESSONS

ABSTRACT

Due to the development of the modern educational system, heads of such institutions have to decide whether to develop their students’ universal educational skills or not. Universal educational actions (UEA) are a set of ways of thinking and actions that help students learn effectively to achieve success in life. Here we focus on analyzing trends that are now occurring in the teaching world, examine the advantages of introducing UEA into the curriculum, and provide examples of their implementation in the framework of biology lessons. It is hoped that the study will inform the readers about the peculiarities of training students in order for them to have UEA and make them aware of the strategies that may help professors themselves enhance the process of teaching.

Keywords: students, skills, educational actions, biology, ability, help analyze, knowledge, learn.

This article will analyze in detail methods of developing universal educational actions for students, as well as examples of their use within the framework of this subject.

The relevance of this research lies in the fact that currently educational organizations focus not only on the theory and methodology of teaching material directly related to a particular subject, but also on the development of students' knowledge and skills that can be useful and applied beyond the scope of the subjects studied and will extend to all areas of academic and extracurricular life.

Universal educational actions (UEA) are a set of ways of thinking and actions that help students learn effectively to achieve success in life. The introduction of UEA into the educational process is aimed at the development of universal cognitive and meta-subject skills that will be useful not only in studies but also in everyday life.

Also, one of the important elements of the UEA is analysis. The student should be able to analyze information, highlight the main points, evaluate its reliability, and use it in their work. Analytical skills help students not only in their studies but also in everyday life. The ability to analyze information, highlight the main things, and evaluate reliability helps people make informed decisions and cope with complex tasks. For example, in everyday life, analytical skills can be useful when choosing products in a store, choosing a car, or choosing high-quality sources of information to explore new topics.

Another important element of UDA is self-regulation. Self-regulation is the ability to control your actions, emotions, and thoughts. This skill helps students control their activity and the effectiveness of the educational process, as well as cope with stress and emotional experiences. For example, when completing a task, a student may encounter difficulties and experience negative emotions, but thanks to self-regulation, they will be able to remain calm and continue working on the task.

Communication is a key element of the UEA. Good communication skills help students work effectively in a team, exchange information, and solve problems. The ability to express their thoughts and ideas competently and clearly helps them to successfully present their works and projects, as well as to speak confidently in public. In addition, the presence of communication skills significantly facilitates interaction with others and helps establish useful contacts at work and in personal life.

Reflection is the ability to analyze your actions and find ways to improve them. Reflection helps students be aware of their strengths and weaknesses, as well as assess their progress and set new goals. Creating conditions for reflection encourages students to develop independently and improve the quality of their learning activities. Independence is the ability to work without outside help. The student should be able to single-handedly make work plans, choose the necessary methods and strategies, as well as monitor their progress. Independence helps students develop responsibility, initiative, and determination, which are important qualities in any sphere of life.

Let us turn to analyzing how these skills may be integrated into the process of teaching biology and recall the examples of their implementation. Teaching biology in schools is of great importance for the formation of universal educational actions in students, as they help students better understand the world around them and better assimilate new knowledge.

One of the important cognitive universal educational actions that develop in biology lessons is the skill of observation. Students learn to observe living organisms, their behavior, and the processes occurring in living systems. Observation is one of the main methods of scientific research and allows students to gain a deeper understanding of biological processes and phenomena. For example, students can observe the growth of plants or the behavior of animals and draw conclusions about the influence of external factors on them.

Another important universal educational action that develops within the framework of biology lessons is the analysis and synthesis of information. Students learn to analyze various biological phenomena and processes, as well as synthesize the information received. These skills help students better understand biological processes and the connections between them. For example, students can study the interaction of plants and animals in an ecosystem, analyze their interaction, and draw conclusions about the importance of preserving biodiversity. [1, p. 24]

The implementation of universal educational actions helps the school students to develop the cognitive and meta-subject skills, that will be valuable not only in terms of studying, but also in everyday life. Universal educational activities include the abilities of logical and systematic reasoning, self-discipline, intercommunication, introspection, and self-reliance. They assist students with getting the hang of new information and knowledge, resolving toilsome tasks, coping with stress in grueling situations and emotional experiences,  as well as developing their cooperative skills and perceptiveness, empathy, objectiveness, emotional intelligence that are indispensable for group tasks, that require cooperating, approving one’s point of view, and being broad-minded and adventurous, therefore accepting other participants’ of the team positions and standpoints.

In biology lessons, students develop problem-solving skills related to biological phenomena. They learn to analyze problems, find solutions to them, and make decisions based on their knowledge. For instance, while studying ecology, pupils become familiar with the most crucial environmental problems and get acquainted with the ways of dealing with them. They learn not only the concepts of critical thinking, but also the basis of problem-solving. These skills help students use biological knowledge in everyday life and learn how to solve problems related to the environment. For example, knowledge of biology can help students understand environmental problems and give recommendations on nature conservation.

What is more, the results of mastering the program of any subject of the school course can be divided into 2 groups: meta-subject and subject.

Meta-subject results are understood as universal methods of educational activity—cognitive, communicative, and ways of regulating one's activities, including planning. Control and correction. The requirements for meta-subject learning outcomes include several criteria according to which, according to the results of mastering a certain subject as well as passing the entire training course, a student should be able to build personal connections with people around him, plan and organize his educational activities, structure, collect, and find the information he needs, as well as apply various types of communication.

In short, the meta-subject results of mastering the biology program by the school graduates are:

- mastering the components of research and project activities, including the ability to see the problem, raise questions, hypothesize, define concepts, classify, observe, conduct experiments, draw conclusions, structure material, explain, prove, and defend your ideas;

- the ability to work with different sources of biological information: to find biological information in various sources, to analyze and evaluate information, to transform information from one form into another; the ability to choose target and semantic attitudes in their actions and actions in relation to wildlife, their health, and others;

- the ability to adequately use speech tools for discussion and argumentation of one's position, to compare different points of view, to argue one's point of view, and to defend one's position.

Subject results are understood as the results that are achieved by students in the process of studying the subject.

The subject results of mastering the biology program by graduates of the main school are (in the cognitive sphere):

- providing evidence of human kinship with mammalian animals; the relationship between humans and the environment; the dependence of human health on the state of the environment; the need to protect the environment;

- compliance with measures to prevent diseases caused by plants, animals, bacteria, fungi, and viruses; injuries; stress; HIV infection; bad habits; impaired posture; vision; hearing; infectious diseases; and colds;

Thus, biology lessons are an important component in the development of the universal educational actions of students. In biology lessons, students learn to observe, analyze, and synthesize information, as well as solve problems related to biological phenomena. These skills help students better understand the world around them and use their knowledge in everyday life. Biology is one of the most fascinating and interesting subjects that allows students not only to broaden their horizons but also to contribute to the preservation of nature and the environment.

References:

1. Korneeva, N.Y. (2015). “Формирование универсальных учебных действий (УУД) на уроках биологии в контексте ФГОС» [Formation of universal educational actions (UEA) in biology lessons in the context of the Federal State Educational Standard] 2018. – 41 [in Russian].