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

Abstract

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.