Keyword: «критическое мышление»

Improving the quality of education in the field of natural sciences is an urgent problem in modern schools and requires the continuous development and application of methodological techniques and tools, including those aimed at developing students’ cognitive motivation. The purpose of the study: to identify the most common biological “myths” and to use them in the educational process as a basis for problematization of learning. To conduct the study, a questionnaire was developed that included biological statements aimed at assessing biological knowledge and belief in scientific “myths.” The collection of information was carried out with the use of the most reliable sources of scientific information: educational and methodological manuals, modern publications in peer-reviewed specialized journals. The study involved 81 people, including school students studying biology at basic and advanced levels, as well as participants of a youth conference. The data was recorded in a self-test format during a heuristic conversation with a demonstration of an illustrative materials’ set and self-assessment using a developed “truth-doubt-misconception” scale. Data processing and graphical visualization were performed in Microsoft Excel. The work resulted in identification of the most frequent biological “myths” popular among the surveyed groups of respondents with assumptions about possible causes and principles of their distribution. A lesson methodology has been developed that combines survey using provocative questions and self-testing during a heuristic conversation. The tested approaches to problematization of learning showed their effectiveness during a control survey in 12 months. The options for the regular use of problematic provocative questions in teaching biology at different levels are proposed as a further development of this work. The research results demonstrate the relevance of continuous updating educational materials according to modern scientific data. It is also important to diagnose students’ fallibility. In addition, the process of monitoring according to the proposed scheme can provide an independent motivating basis for in-depth study of the subject.