REFLECTION OF THE FEATURES OF THE SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE SOCIAL SITUATION OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE SPEECH OF PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN

REFLECTION OF THE FEATURES OF THE SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE SOCIAL SITUATION OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE SPEECH OF PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN

Annotation. This study attempts to psychologically and psycholinguistically analyze the process by which a child experiences a social developmental situation and reflects this in speech. The primary criterion for a child's mastery of a social developmental situation is their ability to describe the essential characteristics of a social developmental situation in the form of a formalized speech utterance, generalizing it through language (according to Vygotsky). in the sign). The study of primary school children's speech aims to identify a set of specific linguistic features used to assess the child's entry into and mastery of social development. The absence of certain speech characteristics indicates difficulties in mastering the social developmental situation, while their presence indicates successful internalization. These two parameters can be attributed to the specific features of primary school children's subjective experience of social development. The applied aspect of the study is represented by the classification of speech features, which allow teachers, school psychologists, social educators, or parents to draw conclusions about the normality or non-normativity of mental processes occurring at a given age.

Keywords: social situation of development, speech mediation, speech markers, experience, primary school age.

P. Novikova

REFLECTION OF SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE SOCIAL SITUATION OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE SPEECH OF YOUNGER STUDENTS

Abstract. In the given research an attempt of psychological and psycholinguistic analysis of child's experience of social situation of development and its reflection in speech is carried out. Thus the main criterion of a child's mastering of the social situation of development is his or her ability to describe the essential characteristics of the social situation of development in the form of a formalized speech statement, its generalization by means of language (according to Vygotsky in a sign). The study of the speech of the younger schoolboy is aimed at the allocation of a set of certain linguistic means which are used for an estimation of a degree of entrance into and mastering of a social situation of development. The absence of certain speech features points to the experience of difficulties in the child's mastering of the social situation of development, and their presence indicates successful interiorization. Exactly these two parameters can be referred to the peculiarities of subjective experience of the social situation of development by a junior schoolboy. The applied aspect of research is presented by classification of speech features on which a teacher, school psychologist, a social teacher or a parent can draw conclusions about normativity or non-normativity of mental processes proceeding at the given age stage.

Key words: social situation of development, speech mediation, speech markers, experience, younger school age.

 

 

Introduction

One of the primary goals of a modern educational institution is to create psychological conditions in which a child (schoolchild) can acquire social experience consistent with their social development. School is a child's first and primary model of society. It is the school experience that helps a child understand the laws by which the adult world operates (various social roles, accepted norms and rules), and it determines the nature of future interpersonal relationships.

Researchers have identified two socio-pedagogical objectives of school as an institution of socialization: 1. children's acquisition of norms and values; 2. the formation of their own position and subjective attitude toward the established norms [8]. These two objectives reflect two aspects of a child's entry into society. A person must be able to integrate into existing social connections and obey established norms and rules. At the same time, the ability to compare existing normative systems and develop one's own life position is also very important. This implies the need to create psychological conditions for children to compare different value systems and choose from among these life positions.

The identified tasks also reflect two fundamental aspects of a child's entry into a social developmental situation. In accordance with the new developments that characterize a child's entry into a current social situation, the child must be able to engage with current events and obey existing norms and rules. The process of comparing existing normative systems with the child's own life position is crucial. Various images, rules, or modes of action, as well as language and speech, can serve as ways of understanding one's behavior.

The central idea of our study can be formulated in the following thesis: if a child, in the process of experiencing a social situation of development, has assimilated a new experience and internalized it, then this will be reflected in his speech. The methodological basis of this hypothetical position is L.S. Vygotsky's theory of the mediated development of higher mental functions [5], A.A. Leontiev's theory of speech activity [7], and L.I. Bozhovich's conceptual provisions on the social situation of development [1-2].

 

The structure of the social situation of development

 

In psychology, the concept of the social situation of development (hereinafter referred to as SDS) was introduced by L.S. Vygotsky as a structural component of psychological age [6]. In his theory of the structure and dynamics of age, he formulated the position on the social environment as a source of children's mental development, in which learning plays a leading role. And the experiences associated with this act as an internal marker of the (un)favorability of the environment [3]. In L.S. Vygotsky's concept, human behavior is regulated and controlled by means of a sign, that is, it is mediated by signs. The main function of such a sign means is the objectification of one's behavior, including its transformation into a special cultural object, separated from the inner world of a person. As a result, it becomes possible to form a conscious attitude towards it, its understanding. The most universal sign system is language, which mediates all ongoing mental processes. Thus, the central line of development of a child's consciousness, according to L.S. Vygotsky, is the development of speech mediation. This idea is key to our research. The universal significance of speech is that it enables a person to understand their actions. By articulating what they do and why (out loud or silently), a person can become aware of their actions and reflect on their attitude toward them. Along with the stimuli coming from the environment, a child, through speech, creates another system of auxiliary stimuli that stands between them and the environment and guides their behavior. It is precisely through this second set of stimuli created through speech that a child's behavior rises to a higher level, gaining relative freedom from the immediate situation; impulsive attempts are transformed into organized behavior.

The study of the social situation involves an analysis of the role of the environment in the child's development, a study of the child's attitude to individual elements of the environment, and an assessment of his position in the social environment.

In formulating his position on the SSR, L.S. Vygotsky takes into account the child's selective attitude toward the surrounding reality and emphasizes the subjective nature of the child's interaction with the social environment (the subjective aspect of the SSR). Thus, the child not only experiences the influence of the environment, but worries social reality through the formation of attitudes towards the environment, an attitude which he then expresses in speech and behavior. The division of the subjective and objective aspects of the social situation of development proposed by L.S. Vygotsky was subsequently developed by L.I. Bozhovich, who studied the conditions and mechanisms of the transition of objective relations into subjective ones, possessing personal meaning for the child. L.I. Bozhovich defined the objective aspect of the social situation of development as the place of the child in the system of social relations, endowed with certain rights of the child and the demands made by the environment on his behavior and activities, a system of sanctions and social expectations [1]. Society develops a system of education, including the image of childhood, cultural expectations, social prescriptions and restrictions, which constitute the objective content of the social situation of development. The subjective attitude of the child to the social environment received the name in the works of L.I. Bozhovich internal position of the child and was defined as a system of needs and aspirations of the child, which develops into a special personality formation and becomes the driving force behind the development of new mental qualities at each age stage. L.I. Bozhovich understood mental development as a change in social position accepted and understood by the child himself.

For each age stage, the internal position is specific and has some characteristic features.

In terms of age structure, changes in SSR are determined by the child's acquisition of a new social position, hierarchy, and the role of social contexts, changes in the child's sensitivity to various social situations, and the increasing influence of the image of consciousness in constructing strategies for interaction with significant social environments. In preschool age, the internal position represents the child's generalized experience of relationships with significant social environments, and by the beginning of school age, it acquires cognitive components and features of awareness, becoming differentiated.

Based on the above, we can formulate the following cognitive benefit for our research. Awareness of one's own behavior presupposes its mediation, that is, the presence of a means by which a person can transcend the immediate situation and view themselves and their behavior as if from the outside, from the perspective of this means (speech sign, example, rule, norm, etc.). This frees them from the immediate situation and allows them to gain control over themselves and their behavior. A clear example of this assertion is the regulatory function of speech, when a person plans their own behavior and, before beginning an immediate action, creates a program for the upcoming activity through internal dialogue (e.g., "Don't worry, everything is fine" or "First I need to go straight ahead, then turn left and go out onto that street...").

 

The teacher as a new significant adult

By the time a child enters school, their entire system of relationships with the outside world undergoes a restructuring. In preschool, children have two spheres of social relationships: "child-adult" and "child-children." By the time a child enters school, the "child-adult" system changes: the effectiveness of play activities, as well as relationships within the children's group, no longer determine the nature of their relationships with parents; these relationships exist in parallel.

During the period of education at school, the «child – adult» system is differentiated (Fig. 1), and the role of the teacher becomes decisive in the system of these relations [10].

Fig. 1. The system of relationships between a child and a significant adult in primary school age

For a first-grader, the teacher represents an unquestionable authority, acting as the bearer of the norms and rules accepted in this new, as yet incomprehensible world. Therefore, at the very beginning of their education, young students are focused specifically on interactions with the teacher. At the beginning of their education, they perceive their classmates through the teacher and pay attention to them when the teacher evaluates them during lessons, highlighting their successes and failures. The teacher's attitude toward each individual child determines the nature of interpersonal relationships in the classroom from the very beginning. This is why, at the beginning of their education, students lack a moral appreciation of their classmates, lack genuine interpersonal relationships, and lack collective bonds. Connections and relationships begin to develop through learning and are refined throughout school life, as the teacher begins to assign students individual and group social tasks.

At the initial stage of school life, children establish contact with each other through a teacher, who, instead of parents, becomes the primary source of knowledge, norms and rules about the current social system for the younger student, therefore the success of learning new things during this period is largely determined by the degree of commonality of consciousness between the teacher and the student [9], which ensures not only more effective learning of general school skills and abilities by students, but also contributes to the creation of a comfortable, safe atmosphere of communication.

G.A. Zuckerman studied the role of cooperation with peers in the mental development of primary school students [4]. She obtained experimental data showing that children who work collaboratively in class assess their abilities and level of knowledge twice as well. Such children develop reflective actions more successfully than students who do not have the opportunity to collaborate during learning activities. Thus, acquiring skills for social interaction with a peer group and the ability to make friends are among the most important developmental tasks for primary school students.

In the second or third year of school, a student's relationship with the classroom changes. These changes are linked to a new attitude toward learning and the teacher: the teacher's personality becomes less important, but closer connections are established with classmates, with whom they learn together and participate in social activities.

As noted, by the second and third grades, the teacher becomes less significant for the child, but connections with classmates become closer and more differentiated – peers acquire individuality in the child's eyes, becoming a significant face in communication, shaping various communicative skills. Friendships are intensively established. One of the important developmental tasks at this age stage is acquiring skills for social interaction with a peer group and maintaining friendships. The child learns to establish communicative contact with peers, listen to them, understand them, accept them, and provide appropriate feedback. Furthermore, it is important for the child to recognize that communication with them is also important and interesting to someone else. This fosters the motivation for communicative self-improvement and the motivation to overcome communication difficulties that arise during communication.

According to L.S. Vygotsky, the social environment and social interactions act as a condition for the manifestation of the internal sociality (social essence) of the child. The process of translating the external into the internal is designated by L.S. Vygotsky by the term "interiorization" [5, p. 8]. Through communication, joint activities and social cognition, the child's external activity is transformed into internal, mental activity. And only after being internalized, knowledge, norms, modes of behavior and activity can then be externalized (presented to other people, included in joint activities with them). In Russian psychology, internalization is considered as the transformation of the structure of objective activity into the structure of the internal plane of consciousness. According to L.S. Vygotsky, every truly human form of the psyche initially develops as an external social form of communication between people and only then, as a result of interiorization, becomes a mental process of an individual. L.S. Vygotsky viewed the development of forms of verbal communication as a process of shaping higher, specifically social, instrumentally mediated mental functions. Speech, through which communication occurs, also reflects the experiences, images, and systems of relationships that characterize the social developmental situation for a particular individual.

But if communication as a process accompanies a person throughout their development, changing and restructuring, then a qualitatively new development for the primary school age period is a change in the dominant type of activity. At this age, the leading activity becomes educational, through which the child is introduced to the achievements of human culture and assimilates knowledge about them. D.B. Elkonin defined educational activity as one that focuses on mastering generalized methods of action in the realm of scientific concepts, which must be motivated by appropriate motives [12].

Comparing the play activity that was dominant in preschool age with the educational activity of primary school children, we can identify key differences between them. The most important of these are the mandatory nature of educational activity, its voluntariness, and its effectiveness. Educational activity is characterized by voluntariness, which ensures voluntary control of one's emotional states, motor activity, cognitive processes, relationships with others, etc. The voluntary nature of educational activity is possible with the voluntariness of all mental processes, which ensures independent goal formulation and its successful achievement. Voluntariness of mental processes is one of the main psychological neoplasms of primary school age, formed under the influence of educational activity as the leading activity at this stage of ontogenesis.

Thus, in the changed social situation of development, in addition to the corresponding psychological neoplasms, a new image of a significant adult (replacing parents) is formed in the child’s mind – a teacher, as a bearer of socio-cultural experience, setting the norms of behavior and requirements imposed by the educational institution, demonstrating examples to which one should focus.

 

A study of speech markers of subjective experience of school reality by primary school students

 Any activity, including orienting, requires an adequate reflection and reproduction of the surrounding reality, during which relevant knowledge about it is acquired. This thesis allows us to formulate the main proposition of the experimental work: The degree of mastery of the SSR determines the presence of a formed internal position of the student, which is characterized by a differentiated perception of the new social reality. This approach will allow us to identify the characteristics of the subjective experience of a primary school student in the current social situation of development.

The target group was third-grade students from Moscow educational institutions. A total of 52 children participated in the study. The pilot study included several stages: developing an interview structure, conducting individual interviews with the target group, expert analysis of the linguistic material, classifying speech markers, and conducting a comparative analysis. The interview structure included a series of open-ended questions, to which the child was required to formulate responses in response to a sequential presentation. During the interviews, responses were recorded via audio recording. The audio recordings were subsequently converted into written transcripts. During the expert analysis stage, the linguistic material was examined to capture the characteristic speech features (speech markers) of primary school students who had mastered SSR. As a result, the following speech markers were identified and classified:

1) connected contextual speech (represented by a series of logically sequentially connected a set of sentences, intonationally designed and united a single content or subject of the statement);

2) correctness of speech (compliance of speech with literary norms);

3) arbitrariness of speech (the ability to use words, phrases, syntactic constructions that would most accurately and fully convey the speaker’s intention [11]);

4) the presence of lexemes of one’s own invention in the dictionary;

5) the presence in speech of a certain assessment of the surrounding reality, expressed in the categories of «like/dislike»;

6) semantic accents in speech, focused on current areas of development (communication with peers, teacher; educational activities, cognitive activity);

7) absence of perseveration;

8) differentiation of social environment and accepted social roles.

Of course, the proposed list is not exhaustive, and in the future, we plan to continue studying the speech of young schoolchildren for speech markers that can be used to assess the child's psychological state in the current social situation. These markers, present in young schoolchildren's speech, allow us to conclude that the child adequately perceives the surrounding material and social reality, navigates it, is able to differentiate it, and select appropriate responses. Speech markers such as poor vocabulary, primitive utterance construction, disjointed speech, a semantic emphasis on playful activity (characteristic of the previous age stage of development), perseveration, and others, on the contrary, indicate an unformed personal position in relation to the current social situation of development. The reasons and conditions for which a child at each age stage does not master characteristic new formations and corresponding social experiences remain unexplored and represent an area for analysis.

At the final stage, a comparative analysis of speech markers characterizing various features of the subjective experience of the social situation of development by primary school students was carried out (Table 1).

Table 1.

Comparative table of speech markers of the development of the SSR

 

The SSR was developed	The SSR is not developed
My friends... I also like math... Well, I like all subjects... I also like the food in the cafeteria.	My friends and I wanted to play a lot of fun right away... well, we play board games right away... we play board games there...
I like the subjects at school... I like drawing, technology, physical education, mathematics, the world around us, and literature... as for the subjects, I like extra classes in mathematics and art.	I don't like stupid games... like when we play with those iron cars, uh, like, trying to hit your leg or something... yeah... I think that's a stupid game... I don't like it when I get Cs... uh... and also, like at Arlen's, the girls sometimes... yeah, there she is, sitting there... and that's it...
Well... I like subjects... drawing, technology, physical education and music (well, I don't really like it), well, I don't know what else... friends	I like that I can buy something at the cafeteria and go to the cafeteria after five classes.
I would subtract about 15 minutes from the lesson so they have time to study, and I would make the break 5 minutes shorter and add that they can play on their phone during breaks... or on a tablet.	If I were a teacher, then... I would do it this way and give everyone A's for the year...
Homework...well, because in math they assign 4 numbers and 50 problems...yeah, not enough at all...well, it's still a lot...and maybe one problem, but they're incredibly difficult...I don't like a couple of people at school.	Uh, well, the thing is that there's a big gym at the school, well, there's a long break, you can buy something in the cafeteria... well, it's a big area, a big yard... big classrooms
At school I like the teachers, studying – English, Russian, physical education	I would tell the class they can sit wherever they want, I would explain things in class so that everyone would understand and keep up. I would write more slowly so that everyone could follow along.
I don't really like Russian and I don't really like English...I don't really like the extracurricular activity at our school, the zoo club.	When my mom picks me up... after school we'll go for a walk to the playground... I like school, but walking is more fun...
Well, I like my homeroom teacher... I also like my classmates except for Yu, I, and M.	Well, I like school in general... well, school itself is quite interesting, I like it because there is something interesting about it, I generally like learning something interesting new, that's why I like school
Literature...also math and the surrounding Russian...technology...and in the future, chemistry...precisely the subjects where you don't need to write a lot, like in Russian, but where you do...all sorts of facts there...	Well... I'd fix something in the classroom... put in some decent desks... maybe change the curtains so the classroom looks nice. So it's pleasant to come in.
Well... I like subjects... drawing, technology, physical education and music (well, I don't really like it), well, I don't know what else... friends	If I were a teacher...uh...I would watch the children...nothing else would come up.

 

The following cognitive benefits can be derived from the above comparative analysis. The speech characteristics of a primary school student can be determined by the nature of their experience in the current social situation. Speech developed in accordance with current social conditions will be an objective indicator of the normal course of mental processes and successful acquisition of sociocultural experience. The presence of certain "difficulties" in a child's speech will be an objective indicator of deviations from the normal course of mental processes and unsuccessful acquisition of the social developmental situation.

 

Conclusion

Speech and the language it encompasses are an effective means of reflecting the subjective experiences of primary school children. Mental processes developing within the age norm are adequately expressed in normative speech. Mental development that deviates from the age norm also results in normative deviations in speech. The speech markers of the SSR in primary school children identified during the experimental study allow us to assess: a shift in the dominant activity type from play to study; achievement motivation; a change in the reference group; the formation of a new internal position; and changes in the child's relationship with others.

A generalized analysis of the research results generally confirms the proposed hypothesis that the degree of mastery of the social situation of development by a primary school student can be judged by his desire to talk about school, academic subjects, teacher, classmates, as well as interaction with peers, which is reflected in specific speech markers.

We plan to continue this research and examine the relationship between psychological characteristics such as anxiety, self-esteem, overall life satisfaction, and motivation, and their manifestation in the active vocabulary of primary school students. The results of this study will enable the development of diagnostic tools for professionals supporting the educational process to diagnose emerging difficulties.

 

Literature

1. 1. Bozhovich L.I. Schoolchildren's attitudes to learning as a psychological problem // Problems of personality formation: selected psychological works. Moscow: Institute of Practical Psychology; Voronezh: MODEK, 1997. Pp. 55-91
   2. Bozhovich L.I. Speech and practical intellectual activity of the child (experimental and theoretical study). Cultural-historical psychology, No. 1. pp. 65-76; No. 2. pp. 121-135; No. 3. pp. 101-113.
   3. Vasilyuk F.E. Psychology of experience (analysis of overcoming critical situations). Moscow: Moscow University Publishing House, 1984. 200 p.
   4. Introduction to School Life: A Program for Adapting Children to School Life: A Teacher's Manual / G.A. Tsukerman, K.N. Polivanova. Moscow; Moscow Institute for Education Quality, 2010. 120 p.
   5. Vygotsky L.S. Development of higher mental functions. From unpublished works. Moscow: Publishing House of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences, 1960. 500 p.
   6. Vygotsky L.S. The problem of age // Vygotsky L.S. Collected Works: in 6 volumes. Vol. 4. Pp. 256-258
   7. Leontiev A.A. Fundamentals of the Theory of Speech Activity. Moscow: Nauka, ed. A.A. Leontiev, 1974. 368 p.
   8. Methodology of educational work / Ed. by V.P. Sergeeva. Moscow: Academy, 2010. P. 274.
   9. Myskin S.V., Makeeva G.A. Adaptation aspects of the social situation of adolescent development in the context of training in a secondary vocational education organization [Electronic resource] // Psychological and pedagogical research. 2021. Vol. 13. No. 2. Pp. 89-104.
   10. Novikova P.L. Speech markers of psychological adaptation of primary school students to the social situation of development // Organizational psycholinguistics [Electronic resource]: electronic scientific journal / ed.-in-chief S.V. Myskin. Issue No. 4 (16). Moscow: OOO "Agency of Social and Humanitarian Technologies", 2021. pp. 23-38.
   11. Ushakova O.S., Strunina E.M. Methods of speech development of preschool children: Textbook and methodological manual for educators of preschool educational institutions. Moscow: Humanitarian publishing center VLADOS, 2004. 288 p.
   12. Elkonin D.B. Selected psychological works. Moscow: Pedagogy, 1989. 560 p.

References

1. Bozhovich LI. Schoolchildren's attitudes to learning as a psychological problem // Problems of personality formation: selected psychological works. Moscow: Institute of Practical Psychology; Voronezh: MODJeK, 1997, pp. 55-91.
2. Bozhovich LI. Speech and practical intellectual activity of a child (experimental-theoretical research). Cultural-historical psychology, no. 1, pp. 65-76; no. 2, pp. 121-135; no. 3, pp. 101-113.
3. Vasiljuk FE. Psychology of experience (analysis of overcoming critical situations). Moscow: Moscow University Publishing House, 1984. 200 p.
4. Introduction to school life: a program for children's adaptation to school life: a teacher's manual / G. A. Cukerman, K. N. Polivanova. Moscow; Moscow Institute for Education Quality, 2010. 120 p.
5. Vygotskij LS. Development of higher mental functions. From unpublished works. Moscow: Publishing House of the Academy of Pedagogical Sciences, 1960. 500 p.
6. Vygotskij LS. Problema vozrasta // Vygotskij LS Sobranie sochinenij: v 6 t. V. 4. S. 256-258
7. Leont'ev AA. Fundamentals of the theory of speech activity. Moscow: Nauka, ed. A. A. Leont'eva, 1974. 368 p.
8. Methods of educational work / Ed. V. P. Sergeev. Moscow: Akademija, 2010. P. 274.
9. Myskin SV, Makeeva GA. Adaptation aspects of the social situation of adolescent development in the context of training in the organization of secondary vocational education [Electronic resource] // Psychological and pedagogical research. 2021. Vol. 13. No. 2. P. 89-104.
10. Novikova PL. Speech markers of psychological adaptation of primary school students to the social situation of development // Organizational psycholinguistics [Electronic resource]: electronic. scientific journal / chief editor SV Myskin. Issue. No. 4 (16). M.: OOO "Agency for Social and Humanitarian Technologies", 2021. P. 23-38.
11. Ushakova OS, Strunina EM. Methods of speech development of preschool children: Study-method manual for educators of preschool educational institutions. Moscow: Humanitarian publishing house Vlados, 2004. 288 p.
12. Jel'konin DB. Selected psychological works. : Pedagogika, 1989. 560 s.