The role of symbols in higher professional education

Abstract

The article considers the peculiarities of knowledge translation in modern professional education, reveals the negative sides of scientificity of educational content. In particular, the separation of the subject and object of research characteristic of scientific consciousness can negatively affect the formation of the subject of professional activity in the process of professional education. After all, the subject of scientific research, in order to remain in scientific positions, should not be partial to the studied object, inextricably link his life with it. At the moment, higher school should not only transfer scientific knowledge to future specialists, but also educate them as professionals, linking their lives with their profession, as well as patriots, ready to defend their country. In this regard, since this year a new subject - "Fundamentals of Russian Statehood" - has been included in the curriculum. At the same time, students' mastering the content of this discipline as a purely scientific one may not lead to the formation of their patriotic position. In this regard, the authors of the article suggest that when teaching such disciplines to emphasize not on the scientificity, but on the symbolism of the content taught. In this connection, the article considers the differences between scientific and symbolic content of education, defines the concept of symbol, establishes the role of symbols in human life and education.
 Material and methods. When writing the article we relied on the works of A. F. Losev, in which he unfolds a dialectical understanding of the symbol and its role in people's lives. Following A. F. Losev, we use the dialectical approach to understand human existence and the role of symbols in it. Naturally, the education of people is inextricably linked to their existence, which means that it cannot do without symbols. Relying on the dialectics presented in the works of A. F. Losev, we designate this approach as dialectical-symbolic.
 Results. According to the results of our study, in the process of education it is necessary not only to transfer scientific knowledge to students, but also to familiarize them with appropriate symbols. Such familiarization will allow to form them as patriots of their country and as full-fledged subjects of professional activity.