Development of schoolchildren's abstract thinking in teaching basic programming

The study considers the problem of schoolchildren’s abstract thinking development in teaching the Basic Programming course within the system of children’s additional education. The relevance of the problem is related to the need for generation of students’ professional approach to program design. The study presents a method for assessing the level of abstract thinking development which allows to identify the relationship between typical students’ mistakes in writing programs and the stages of their conceptual thinking development according to Lev Vygotsky’s theory (syncretes, complexes and real concepts). The potential of the given method is shown through the examples related to the development of “abstract data type” concept, the correct formation of which is a necessary condition for a programmer’s systems thinking. The paper provides methodological recommendations on abstract thinking development, which were elaborated during teaching the Basic Programming course at the Children and Youth Computer Center of the Saint Petersburg National Research University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics.