The experience of the transition of a law university to distance learning during the pandemic: an analysis of students’ and teachers’ opinions

Introduction. The spread of coronavirus infection COVID-19 has led to a forced and rapid transition of educational institutions, including law universities, to distance learning, which has become its predominant and even exclusive form in some periods. The research purpose is to study the features of the transition from traditional to distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the opinions of students and teachers at a law university. Materials and methods. The survey was attended by the teaching staff and students of Kutafin Moscow State Law University. In June 2020, eighty (80) teachers and sixty-five (65) students and in December 2020 – one hundred and thirty (130) teachers and four hundred and sixty-three (463) students took part in the survey. The survey was conducted remotely using Google Forms. Methods of mathematical statistics were used: descriptive methods (percentages, graphical data presentation), Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. Research results. The forced large-scale transition of practicing lawyers to the work with digital technologies in the context of the spread of coronavirus infection revealed the lack of digital competencies in many of them and demonstrated the need to prepare law students for future work in the digital environment. A two-stage survey of teachers and students at a law university made it possible to reveal a significant change in attitudes towards the electronic educational environment and distance learning technologies. An improvement in the quality of education in the second period was noted by 43.0% of students and 41.5% of teachers. Due to the transition to learning with the use of distance learning technologies, teachers began to communicate more often with students and colleagues (r = 0.203; p < 0.05), as a result of which the emotional perception of the educational process in many teachers changed for the better (r = 0.236; p < 0.01). Discussion and conclusion. Learning with the use of distance learning technologies allows students to form new digital competencies that are necessary and in demand in the modern world. In this case, an important role is given not only to remote lecture- and seminar-type classes, but also to remote academic training, which is close to real conditions of the activities of practicing lawyers.

Online Education in the Republic of Karelia in the New Realities of Society Development

Purpose of the study. Studying the regional experience of using online educational platforms during the period of distance learning for schoolchildren and identifying the features of new realities on the formation of human capital.Materials and methods. Assessment of the organization of the distance learning process in the municipalities of the Republic of Karelia, Petrozavodsk and Kostomuksha urban district during the first and second waves of transition to distance learning for schoolchildren. A survey was conducted at the end of each period among teachers, children and parents on the organization and implementation of the learning process.Results. A study of the results of an online survey of teachers in the Republic of Karelia revealed a number of features and difficulties in the introduction of distance learning technologies for schoolchildren in the new realities of an isolated educational process: the level of proficiency in distance learning technologies at the beginning of the Covid-2019 pandemic among teachers in Karelia was quite high - 68.3%, 72.8% of them had the experience of independent study of forms and technologies of distance learning, 27.9% of the interviewed teachers completed advanced training courses. Of the large number of educational platforms operating within the framework of providing online access to teaching and testing resources, teachers are most often used in their work: Uchi.ru, Yaklass.ru, Google class, Russian electronic school. Only 4.5% of the respondents admit that they did not teach online lessons, including due to the lack of Internet in their settlement.Based on the results of the questionnaire survey among parents, new risks in the development of the education system emerged, and the identified trends make us think about what can be changed and done now so that the education of children during distance learning would be a joy for children, parents and teachers.Conclusions. Evaluating the experience of using online education in Russian schools during the massive transition to distance learning, one can note both objective difficulties and problems in organizing the educational process in distance mode, and positive effects that involuntarily manifested themselves in the development of specific narrow skills of digital literacy among the population, acquaintance with new programs and digital tools, mentoring among the participants in relations, exchange of effective practices and experience.Nevertheless, almost all studies note that general education schools and teachers, in general, who had practically no experience of online learning before the massive transition to distance learning, were able to quickly navigate the new situation and master new forms of communication with students. At the same time, a positive synergistic effect was the formation of the skill of productive communication between children and adults, interaction and mutual assistance in the process of mastering ICT technologies.

Using Distance Learning in the Process of Professional Training in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Due to the threat of the spread of coronavirus, in order to organize and conduct classes, as well as to ensure the continuity of the educational process during the quarantine period, educational institutions are recommended to conduct classes in the mode of remote support of the educational process. Distance learning is a form of education using computer and telecommunication technologies that provide interactive interaction between teachers and students at different stages of training, as well as independent work with information network materials. The article reveals the importance of using distance learning technologies at the present stage of development of information and communication technologies in the process of training future teachers. The place and role of distance learning technologies in the higher education system is determined. It is noted that with the development of the technical capabilities of the teaching methodology and technology, the means of the teacher's educational activity change. It became possible to use new organizational forms of the educational process, using information and communication technologies. The idea of ​​what a postmodern person should be like, what competencies should have, is changing.

THE ROLE OF DISTANCE LEARNING TECHNOLOGIES IN THE FORMATION OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE IN TEACHING A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

The article discusses ways of implementing the educational process for students of universities in an electronic informative educational environment. This direction is promising for the formation of communicative competence in teaching a foreign language.

Methodology and features of assessing the economic effect of implementing digital educational environment models in secondary vocational and higher education systems

Problem and goal. The active introduction of e-learning and distance learning technologies in the educational process, the reform of traditional models of learning and education have become priority areas of reforms and initiatives in various national education systems in the 21st century. Given that public spending is the main source of funding for education in the OECD countries, assessing the economic impact of implementing a digital educational environment at different levels of education under pressure on public budgets has become a key issue for national governments and educational organizations, as well as the subject of special research. In Russian practice assessment of the economic effect of the full-scale use of e-learning and distance learning technologies in the implementation of educational programs of secondary professional (training of middle-level specialists) and higher education have not yet been carried out. For these purposes, a methodology has been developed, which, however, needs to be tested. Results. The study identified a list of costs required to ensure the full use of e-learning and distance educational technologies in realization of educational programs of secondary vocational (training of mid-level professionals) and higher (including graduate school) education; the methodlogy for assessing the economic effect of these measures is justified, and calculations are made based on this methodology. Conclusion. The developed methodology has shown its effectiveness and needs further research and quantitative analysis.

Distance Learning Technologies in Teaching Russian as a Non-Native Language in Primary School

The article studies distance education technologies in teaching Russian as a non-native language in primary schools. Modern Russian schools are multicultural, because their students have not spoken Russian since childhood together with Russian-speaking classmates. Most of them study in primary schools (grades 1-4). The relevance of the research is determined by the current situation in the world, where distance learning has become an integral part of the educational process, and also by the lack of knowledge of the online resources potential in teaching Russian as a non-native language at school. The aim of the study is to determine the possibilities of including distance technologies in the practice of teaching Russian to foreign-speaking primary school students. The material is scientific and educational literature on the issue, as well as Internet resources for students studying Russian as a foreign and non-native language. The authors used methods of analysis, synthesis, evaluation, forecasting, and survey. The results of the research are detecting the features of distance-learning technologies in modern schools: online resources are used in fragments, the technical capabilities of schools are not used or are not used enough, materials on Russian as a non-native language are not presented on the used platforms, and schoolmasters do not have experience in using distance learning technologies in teaching Russian to foreign speakers and also determining the directions for improving online teaching of Russian as a non-native language to primary school students: interconnected teaching of speech activities, the use of distance learning technologies for students individual work on the program, presenting generalized material of lessons, language and speech exercises, as well as materials for monitoring. The conclusion contains findings about the educational potential of distance technologies: massive opportunities for generalizing and revising lesson material, language skills automation and speech skills training, interconnected training of speech activities, cognitive activity intensification and compensation for the lack of classroom time for teaching Russian as a non-native language.

State and prospects of distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

Problem and goal. In Russian society, the simultaneous and mass transition to distance learning of educational organizations in March 2020 in connection with a new coronavirus infection caused a sharp discussion about the effectiveness and consequences of this format of training, as well as about the prospects for its use after the COVID-19 pandemic. In the current conditions, the education system is faced with the task of training specialists in the face of the uncertainty of the future and the accelerated digitalization of the economy. The purpose of the research is to analyze the main factors influencing the development and spread of distance learning in the coming years, as well as the possible short and long-term consequences of switching to distance learning in higher education institutions. Methodology. The analysis of the scientific literature and practical activities, as well as experienced teaching, was used in the study. Results. The content and form of education will significantly transform in the long term. Today the necessary digital competencies cannot be acquired within the framework of the traditional educational process (lectures, seminars, exams in oral form), without the systematic use of information technologies in the educational process. Information technologies will be in high demand by graduates and will allow them to be prepared for the practical use of IT in the workplace. In addition, it can significantly improve the effectiveness of training because it allows to implement an individual learning trajectory, personalize training, remove restrictions on the time and place of training, and increase the visibility and interactivity of the educational process. Conclusion. Online education, e-learning using distance learning technologies in the long term will meet the demand of students and society for training in an uncertain future. Thanks to information technologies, conditions are created for active cognitive and educational activities of students, individualization of training is provided, turning the student into an active and equal participant in the educational process, including by refusing to provide ready-made differentiated knowledge, which leads to the formation of the reproductive nature of thinking in students.

HIGHER EDUCATION IN UKRAINE IN THE CONVENTION OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: NEW CHALLENGES AND PROSPECTS

The article is devoted to the analysis of the problems of introduction of distance learning in higher educational institutions of Ukraine. The article presents the results of an anonymous survey of research and teaching staff and students of higher education institutions on the use of distance learning technologies in the conditions of national quarantine, conducted by the State Education Quality Service of Ukraine. According to the results of the survey, conclusions were made about the degree of effectiveness and further prospects for the introduction of new teaching methods in a pandemic. In order to identify achievements, possible difficulties and determine the main trends in the further development of distance technologies, the State Service for the Quality of Education of Ukraine conducted an anonymous survey of scientific and pedagogical workers and students of higher education institutions on the use of distance learning technologies in conditions of national quarantine. The survey was conducted from 23.04. to 05.05.2020. 28 391 respondents took part in the survey - 22367 students and 6024 scientific and pedagogical workers. As a result of the research, conclusions were drawn that the distance learning technologies in Ukraine and in the world are rapidly developing and are a promising tool for the provision of educational services. Thus, the introduction of quarantine during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic revealed not only new problems in higher education in Ukraine, but also new challenges and opportunities for higher education institutions from three points of view: for students, this is an experience of self-discipline and self-education; for teachers - the use of new methods and tools of distance learning; for structural divisions of universities, this is practical testing of the technical capabilities of distance learning; defining a clear distance learning strategy, where students not only gain knowledge, but also cooperate with teachers in a feedback mode; awareness of the need to quickly master the volume of home education.

Modular Design in Distance Learning

The current epidemiological situation requires new distance learning techniques, and modular design seems to be a good systematic approach to the formation of standards for distance learning. Modular approach makes it possible to provide students with knowledge and develop competencies in the current challenging social conditions. The authors analyzed the distance learning technologies used by various academic organizations during the pandemic, as well as some distance learning platforms for advanced training courses. The analysis showed that modular competence-based distance learning technologies are widely introduced in the domestic academic environment. Modular academic disciplines consist of interrelated modules and presuppose a large amount of programmed self-learning. The article also contains an analysis of particular distance learning techniques and introduces new various technologies of blended learning. The materials can be used to develop new distance learning and blended courses.