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Education Sciences
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Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges
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Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges

A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Higher Education".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (21 September 2021) | Viewed by 34667

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Tatiana Evtushenko

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Higher School of Applied Linguistics and Translation Studies，Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University, 195251 St.Petersburg, Russia
Interests: cross-cultural communication; science discourse; corpus linguistics; pragmatics; metadiscourse analysis; second language acquisition; methods of esp /eap teaching; punctuation
Dr. Daria Bylieva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Social Science, Institute of Humanities, St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, St. Petersburg, Russia
Interests: e-learning, communication; higher education; students; social media; net communication; academic dishonesty; game; serious game; educational game; interenet
Dr. Elena S. Klochkova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Humanities, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, St. Petersburg, Russia
Interests: language education; second language acquisition; English for specific purposes; academic writing; strategies for teaching academic writing; cross-cultural communication
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue “Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges” provides a selection of papers from the 2021 conference “Professional Culture of the Specialist of the Future” held at Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University.

The contributions to this issue are based on the talks and presentations at the conference and focus on contemporary trends and challenges in education. Rapid changes in the modern society and environment induce transformations of educational approaches and teaching strategies. Modern specialists are supposed to have a wide range of various competences and skills which include not only expert knowledge and hard skills but also soft skills, in particular language skills and communication abilities as well as social intelligence and metacognitive skills. Such soft skills would contribute to the professional and personal development of prospective specialists and help them keep pace with the technological development.

The present issue discusses the advances in humanities and social sciences contributing to the comprehensive training of specialists majoring in different disciplines—social sciences and humanities as well as engineering, information technology, physics, life sciences, and many others.

- Innovative learning strategies in foreign language education.

The management of innovation is critically important in foreign language education.  Educational reforms in this field indicate that an enhanced understanding and implementation of principles and methods of innovations would make a major contribution to the discipline. The wider field of learning strategies in foreign languages teaching create a basis for innovation in theory and practice.

- Pedagogical design in online learning environment.

Educational contexts and technological resources are important dimensions of the online learning environment. The entire educational endeavor greatly depends on the learning content presentation in the special pedagogical matrix. Therefore the design of the educational track is an important element which determines implementation of the educational goals.

- Modern methods and approaches in higher education.

Methods and approaches are the main components in educational planning and contribute a lot in educational design implementation. Comprehension of modern methods and approaches in higher education could provide identification of the best practices transforming pedagogical reality in its different aspects of development.

- Cross-cultural communication in digital environment.

The past two decades have witnessed an explosion of interest in the use of digital technologies to enable different types of communication, including cross-cultural communication. Computer-mediated communication and collaboration (including the use of video conferences, collaborative blogs, web forums, collaborative Google documents, etc.) are increasingly used along with face-to-face communication and in some cases are a substitute for it. The digital environment presents not only opportunities but also new challenges for the participants of cross-cultural communication and therefore requires specific competences to deal with novel communicative situations.

- Research in social sciences and humanities

The modern education system should combine a variety of functions: to get professional knowledge and skills, to extract negative impulses and destructive behavior, to awaken personal creativity and imagination, to teach responsible roles in society, to provide communication abilities, to develop a global view of the world, and to train operational efficiency and proficiency to make a decision. These aspects are important for cultural socialization of young people in terms of their preparation for future professional activities. Productively designed content of education determines the most important steps of the socialization of a democratic person who is able to perceive different points of view and can solve various professional tasks.

- Applied Linguistics and second language acquisition

Applied Linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which mediates between theoretical linguistics and the practice of language learning and second language acquisition. The integration of theoretical findings and the practice of language learning can enhance the current approaches, techniques, and tools used in foreign language education. Dealing with issues such as the role of communicative situations, sociolinguistic contexts, linguistic and cultural backgrounds, cognitive approaches to the language structure, etc. can contribute to the development of effective learning strategies.

Dr. Tatiana Evtushenko
Dr. Daria Bylieva
Dr. Klochkova Elena
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soft skills
  • language and communication skills
  • cross-cultural and socio-cultural communication
  • international students
  • productive methods in education
  • innovative approach
  • social sciences and humanities
  • digitalization of educational environment
  • higher education
  • blended learning
  • e-learning

Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 5156 KiB  
Article
Self-Regulation in E-Learning Environment
by Daria Bylieva, Jon-Chao Hong, Victoria Lobatyuk and Tatiana Nam
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(12), 785; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11120785 - 02 Dec 2021
Cited by 23 | Viewed by 5209
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the accelerated spread of e-learning around the world. In e-learning, self-regulation becomes more relevant than ever. Reducing the influence of traditional features of the face-to-face learning environment and increasing the impact of the e-environment place high demands [...] Read more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to the accelerated spread of e-learning around the world. In e-learning, self-regulation becomes more relevant than ever. Reducing the influence of traditional features of the face-to-face learning environment and increasing the impact of the e-environment place high demands on students’ self-regulation. The author’s self-regulation e-learning model emphasizes the position of e-learning at the intersection of the electronic environment and the learning environment. We observe a collision of the concepts of these two environments. The Internet is a more common environment that provokes the use of unacceptable tools and hints, which is a logical consequence of such behavior to pass the test, and not to gain knowledge. Therefore, the most important thing is that students have their own goals and strategies, and use the large resources of the electronic environment for development, and not for cheating. The authors conducted a survey (N = 767), which showed that students rate their self-efficacy of online learning higher in the e-environment than in the offline learning environment. Self-regulation indicators are the highest in the field of environment, and the lowest when setting goals and in time management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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14 pages, 312 KiB  
Article
How Higher Education Institutions Are Driving to Digital Transformation: A Case Study
by Andreia Filipa Teixeira, Maria José Angélico Gonçalves and Maria de Lourdes Machado Taylor
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(10), 636; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11100636 - 13 Oct 2021
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 3727
Abstract
In recent years, the rapid development of technological innovation has transformed the business world. Digital transformation improves the economic positioning of companies, contributing to society and the environment, but beyond technological evolution, it also brings social and cultural changes. With the new trends, [...] Read more.
In recent years, the rapid development of technological innovation has transformed the business world. Digital transformation improves the economic positioning of companies, contributing to society and the environment, but beyond technological evolution, it also brings social and cultural changes. With the new trends, companies saw the need to train people with digital skills and higher education institutions (HEIs) were forced to change their teaching methods to keep up with the new demands of the labour market. In this context, it is intended to identify the influence that HEIs play in the digital development of regions, in this case, the influence of Public Polytechnic Institutes of Porto in the development of the Metropolitan Area of Porto. The methodology adopted to answer the objectives of this study and research questions formulated, was an exploratory study, using semi-structured interviews and questionnaires. The results obtained allowed us to verify the positive influence of HEIs in the digital development of the Metropolitan Area of Porto. As well as identify the motivations that lead companies to participate in digital transformation initiatives, identify the skills needed to meet the demands of the labour market and identify the efforts made by HEIs to keep up with the digital evolution of society. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
23 pages, 1842 KiB  
Article
Regulation of Digital Behavior Models for Knowledge Transfer: Organizational Concerns of Remote Learning
by Nadezhda N. Pokrovskaia, Veronika L. Leontyeva, Marianna Yu. Ababkova and Fabrizio D’Ascenzo
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(10), 592; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11100592 - 28 Sep 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2709
Abstract
Research on behavior regulation was carried out after several months of social isolation, provoked by the pandemic, between the months of February and March 2020. In spring 2020, many higher education institutions began to introduce digital tools of education, remote learning, and distance [...] Read more.
Research on behavior regulation was carried out after several months of social isolation, provoked by the pandemic, between the months of February and March 2020. In spring 2020, many higher education institutions began to introduce digital tools of education, remote learning, and distance teaching. The reaction during the first weeks and months was negative, but the experience of this remote regime of work and learning continued into the autumn semester due to COVID-19. This experience included the perceptions of new organizational approaches that were needed to regulate digital behavior as a specific type of strategy and choices made in the virtual space. This need was expressed in an understanding of the improvements to be implemented in the organization of educational processes at traditional institutions to efficiently apply the remote learning regime. Between December 2020 and March 2021, six focus groups were conducted to investigate if the regulation of behavior for remote work and learning (work for university administrative staff and academic teachers; studying for students) differed, with informal interviews also conducted to check the validity of the opinions formulated. The hypotheses of the lack of responsibility, and of iterative accomplishment of shorter and simpler tasks, were supported with the data obtained. The hypothesis on an imbalanced vision of mutual interests, and of the assessments of gains and costs of the remote activity, was confirmed. The hypothesis of the externalization of motivation was neither confirmed nor rejected, contradictory opinions were obtained, and, thus, further quantitative study is required. The conclusions based on the obtained results included support for improving the regulation mechanisms required to organize knowledge transfer when digital tools are applied at traditional educational institutions. To enhance the remote regime of learning, redesign and reorganization is necessary when considering the assistance needed by teachers and learners. Specific organizational efforts need to be implemented to restructure the teaching to shorter sequences, to stimulate the creativity of both teachers and learners (due to the readiness to experiment and the lack of critics, and constant access to online bases), and to identify the borders of the “sandbox” to clearly define and articulate the common rules of behavior. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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11 pages, 842 KiB  
Article
The Educational Technology of Monological Speaking Skills Formation of Future Lawyers
by Nadezhda Almazova, Oksana Sheredekina, Maria Odinokaya and Natalia Smolskaia
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(7), 330; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11070330 - 02 Jul 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2338
Abstract
In modern higher education, there was a change in the educational paradigm, when the emphasis shifted to the formation of competencies. The goal of the competence approach is to improve the quality of education, which is impossible without the use of educational technologies [...] Read more.
In modern higher education, there was a change in the educational paradigm, when the emphasis shifted to the formation of competencies. The goal of the competence approach is to improve the quality of education, which is impossible without the use of educational technologies that guarantee a steady effective result. The priority of teaching foreign languages to future lawyers is the foreign speaking skills formation in general and the monological ones in particular. The introduction of educational technology in the process of monological speaking skills formation, including a set of methods and techniques such as peer review, discussion, working with the text, etc., took place over the course of the pedagogical experiment. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis allowed us to determine the difference in the level of the monological speaking skills formation in experimental and control groups at all stages of the experiment conducted. The effectiveness of the developed technology is determined by the significance of the adaptation stage, the use of the peer review method, which implements the potential of students’ metacognitive skills, and the possibility to change the role while evaluating students’ answers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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16 pages, 620 KiB  
Article
The Use of Monologue Speaking Tasks to Improve First-Year Students’ English-Speaking Skills
by Irina Karpovich, Oksana Sheredekina, Tatyana Krepkaia and Larisa Voronova
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(6), 298; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11060298 - 16 Jun 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 7505
Abstract
A significant number of studies are devoted to the psychological and social adaptation of students to the educational process at university. This research contributes to the solution of the problem of first-year students’ academic performance in the framework of studying a foreign language [...] Read more.
A significant number of studies are devoted to the psychological and social adaptation of students to the educational process at university. This research contributes to the solution of the problem of first-year students’ academic performance in the framework of studying a foreign language by working with monologue speaking tasks. The study offers an analysis of the improvement of academic performance in this particular type of language activity. The study took place at Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University, Russia, and involved 274 first-year students enrolled in undergraduate programs. Mixed qualitative and quantitative methods were applied to collect and analyse data for the study. The research included the qualitative content analysis of monologue speaking tasks. Results of the study make it possible to conclude that the use of monologue speaking tasks paired with peer interaction and peer assessment can improve first-year students’ English-speaking skills. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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15 pages, 1115 KiB  
Article
Productive Method as the Basis for Soft Skills Development in Engineering Foreign Language Education
by Olesya Dmitrievna Medvedeva and Anna Vladimirovna Rubtsova
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(6), 276; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11060276 - 02 Jun 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3280
Abstract
The modern world requires engineering specialists with excellent hard skills as well as soft skills that contribute to better communication, creativity, and self-realisation of a person. The authors discovered that modern educational standards are starting to focus on soft skills development, proposing requirements [...] Read more.
The modern world requires engineering specialists with excellent hard skills as well as soft skills that contribute to better communication, creativity, and self-realisation of a person. The authors discovered that modern educational standards are starting to focus on soft skills development, proposing requirements for educational programs that contain competencies covering soft skills. To fulfil such needs, there is the productive method of foreign language teaching that implies interactive technologies and masters foreign language communicative competence and soft skills at once. Therefore, the study aimed at developing a technology of soft skills development in engineering foreign language education using the productive method and checking its effectiveness. The authors designed a questionnaire and investigated engineering students’ opinions on a need to develop soft skills, which revealed high relevance of the topic, and the possibility of their development while studying a foreign language, which proved the productive method’s prospects. Based on findings received and literature analysed, we implemented case studies, problem-based learning, and essay writing in the technology and designed assessment criteria. Testing of the technology was performed by a pedagogical experiment, where qualitative and quantitative methods were applied. To critically analyse the results, we used Cronbach’s alpha, which revealed good reliability of the questionnaire, and t-test showed high efficiency of the technology that improved students’ soft skills. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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11 pages, 4147 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Online Environment and Digital Footprint Functions in Higher Education Analytics
by Elena Pozdeeva, Olga Shipunova, Nina Popova, Vladimir Evseev, Lidiya Evseeva, Inna Romanenko and Larisa Mureyko
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(6), 256; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11060256 - 25 May 2021
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 4954
Abstract
The article is devoted to learning analytics problems associated with the digital culture development in the university educational space and with the student activity control in the vocational training process. The empirical basis of the study was a series of surveys conducted by [...] Read more.
The article is devoted to learning analytics problems associated with the digital culture development in the university educational space and with the student activity control in the vocational training process. The empirical basis of the study was a series of surveys conducted by the Center for Sociological Research of the Peter the Great Polytechnic University in 2018–2020. To systematize the information on the traces of students’ activity in the digital space, the method of constructing a personal mental map, reflecting the cognitive characteristics of the student’s interactive actions in the network, was used. Because of the analysis of the mental maps, the general structure of the personal digital footprint was identified, which is significant for analytics of the student’s academic history and self-assessment of his activities in professional development. In conclusion, the constructive role of digital technology in assessing and modeling the educational process is emphasized. The study of students’ digital footprints on the university platforms, supplemented by the study of their activity in social networks, allows the development of educational modeling aimed at creating a more adequate set of competencies and soft skills of the graduate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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18 pages, 2108 KiB  
Article
Scenario-Based Instruction: The Case of Foreign Language Training at Multidisciplinary University
by Nadezhda Almazova, Anna Rubtsova, Nora Kats, Yuri Eremin and Natalia Smolskaia
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(5), 227; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11050227 - 11 May 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2737
Abstract
Strong communication skills, in varied professional settings, have become an absolute necessity for young professionals. Therefore, university educators are challenged to provide novice specialists with the effective foreign language training that could bring the real professional world into the classroom. This study suggests [...] Read more.
Strong communication skills, in varied professional settings, have become an absolute necessity for young professionals. Therefore, university educators are challenged to provide novice specialists with the effective foreign language training that could bring the real professional world into the classroom. This study suggests an innovative method for teaching communication skills to students, through the use of real-life scenarios, drawn from the professional context. The core objective of the research was to define whether the scenario-based instruction could effectively enhance the development of professional communication skills of students in the context of university foreign language training. The data were collected through active observation and critical incidents technique, analyzed and summarized by means of descriptive statistics. The results of the study indicate the efficacy of scenario-based communication training in higher education. However, scenario-based instruction requires careful assessment of learners’ needs and expectations, thoughtful selection and design of teaching materials, and the development of an active learning environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Humanities and Social Sciences in Higher Education: Trends and Challenges)
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