Innovative Approaches in Economic Education: Need for Implementation and Prospects for Use

Abstract

The presented study examines the problems and prospects of using innovative methods in the training of economists with higher education.Aim. The study identifies the peculiarities of economic education in the context of the digital transformation of the economy (strategic factor) and restrictive epidemiological measures (tactical factor), and assesses the feasibility and necessity of using innovative methods in the training of economists.Tasks. The authors analyze modern problems of higher economic education in Russia, systematize innovative methods that can be used in higher economic education, and assess the prospects for their use and the practical effects of their implementation.Methods. This study uses the methods of systems and interdisciplinary approaches to the examination of socio-economic phenomena and processes, specific methods of innovative, structural, and comparative analysis, and the results of the authors’ empirical generalizations.Results. It is established that the Russian education system is in a state of permanent reform, which, however, does not fully solve its problems, often generating new ones instead. At the same time, the chosen vector of transformations does little to affect the actual training process. Despite the declared attention to improving its quality, reforms are mainly focused on institutional, organizational, financial, and other system-wide aspects. As a result, the higher education system as a whole and university education of economists in particular face a number of challenges. These challenges exacerbated and clearly manifested in the spring semester of the 2019-2020 academic year due to the implementation of measures aimed at preventing the spread of the new COVID-19 coronavirus infection in Russia. It turned out that many universities are not technologically and methodologically prepared to implement educational programs in the context of distance learning, i.e. they do not fully meet the requirements of the digital age. In this regard, the authors propose to enhance the use of innovative teaching methods in the training of economists with higher education. This study describes the content and advantages of such methods over traditional ones.Conclusions. A summary of the results of this study makes it possible to conclude that it is necessary to enhance the use of innovative methods in the economic training of students. Organizational changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in recent months confirm the correctness of this standpoint. At the same time, attention should be paid to the rational combination of traditional and innovative teaching methods, as well as the global trend of digitalization of socio-economic processes.