Studying the attitude of students of pedagogical areas of preparation for digital transformation in a university

Abstract

The problem of research. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a sudden transition to distance learning and an intensive development of the university's digital environment, and therefore it is important to assess how successful the rapid digital transformation has been from the point of view of students as one of the stakeholders. The study raises the question of students' understanding of the digital university phenomenon and assessment of interaction with teachers and administration. Materials and research methods. The aim of the study was to identify students' attitudes towards digital transformation at the university and assess the digital environment of their university. Anonymous survey was conducted among 2-3 year students of bachelor's degree in pedagogical areas of training of Moscow State Pedagogical University and Udmurt State University on November 2-14, 2020. 126 respondents took part in the survey. Results and discussion. The study showed that students interpret the concept of “digital university” differently. Comprehension can be classified into four blocks: learning format; digital environment; digital resources; web portal (digital platform). To the question "Can you say about yourself that you are studying at a digital university?" 40% –answered negatively, 33% – positively and 27% – gave their own answer. The survey revealed an generally acceptable level of student satisfaction with the experience of force majeure transition to distance learning during a pandemic. Among the most frequently used digital technologies in the learning process, students noted: Zoom, the information and analytical system of the university, Google Classroom, Moodle, online educational resources of third-party platforms, etc. Students believe that universities need to strengthen technological equipment to improve the quality of educational interaction in the digital environment educational process – 60%; to ensure the continuity of the digital qualification improvement of teachers – 60%; to create an accessible digital educational environment – 49%. 85% of respondents in the future associate their professional activities with the active use of digital technologies. Findings. The results of the study allow us to formulate a number of conclusions. First, students have different understanding of what a “digital university” is, which leads to discrepancies. Secondly, the attitude of students to the digital environment of the university is at a satisfactory level, since only a third of the respondents answered that they can state that they are studying at a digital university. Third, students rate the digital skills of teachers more highly than university administrators. Fourthly, among the most important difficulties faced by students during the period of pandemic distance learning, there were reasons related specifically to the educational process: an increase in the volume of independent work; the unpreparedness of teachers for the transition to full-fledged digital technologies; insufficient educational and personal self-realization in the context of digital learning; decrease in team-group work skills.