Application of LMS Moodle for distance learning foreign languages at university

The article deals with the application of the Moodle system for teaching the subject of foreign languages (English language) at the distance learning department of Petroleum engineering at Samara State Technical University (Russia). The paper provides an outline of the course structure, tools for practical classes, independent work and the forms of assessment procedure. The course content is presented and divided into modules in a logical way according to the main education programme. The tool chosen for instruction for practical classes has been the Page tool. Tasks for independent work are provided via the Assignment tool. The efficiency of the course has been analyzed according to the data provided by the system: students` online activity in the course, fulfilled assignments and assessment reports based on the quiz results. The research has proved that the tools chosen for the course to be relevant to the subject. Analysis has shown that the learning materials and files with exercises are easily accessible. Moodle system has been considered to be appropriate for distance learning of students with a low level of language proficiency

Медиаобразование в дефиците и в наличии: общая картина и частный случай

Представлен обзор ряда проблем, с которыми сталкиваются разработчики курсов медиаобразования: отсутствие надежных критериев измерения уровня медиакомпетентности, слабый уровень подготовки учителей, обеспечивающих медиаобразование, недостаточное внимание к данному компоненту общей и профессиональной подготовки в стандартах высшего образования ряда стран, включая Российскую Федерацию. Особое внимание уделяется вопросу сопряжения курсов и дисциплин, участвующих в формировании медиакомпетентности в университетах и вузах

Technical assistance, neo-colonialism or mutual trade? The experience of an Anglo/Ukrainian/Russian social work practice learning project

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union there has been a steady stream of Western consultants ready to work in Eastern Europe and Russia and share professional and academic expertise and experience. Social work, unknown as a discrete discipline or profession in the Soviet Union, has been a growth area with funding from a variety of sources to help promote East-West partnerships.Social work theory and practice emphasises critical appraisal of policy and embraces issues of power, discrimination and oppression. Social work educators should therefore be especially alert to the complex ethical questions which these kinds of collaborations raise, and adept at finding practical solutions or workable compromises. This article explores these ethical and political issues with reference to a project to develop social work practice learning in a Russian oblast' (region). The project was an ambitious partnership of British, Ukrainian and Russian educators, involving numerous Russian social work and related agencies, and four Russian universities and colleges in one oblast'. The authors use a series of vignettes to help the reader achieve insights into these East-West transactions. The article concludes with a discussion of different interpretations of these dealings, using three prisms: technical assistance, neo-colonialism and mutual trade

Promoting international cultural and academic collaborative communication through technologies of open course ware

In the diverse cultures of an increasingly transnational world where\ud academic literacy in English or Englishes is required for advancement in\ud universities, communication technologies play critical roles. This paper integrates\ud scholars from diverse cultures through online technology which allows for\ud participants from several universities to develop their awareness of diverse\ud cultures and academic English across disciplines. This research addresses the issue\ud of how online collaboration among scholars can develop their technological,\ud cultural and academic literacies which are essential to their academic progress. By\ud creating electronic discussion forums that include scholars from universities\ud worldwide it is possible to engage in transcultural dialogue regarding how diverse\ud cultures view technology as a means to advance academic and cultural literacy.\ud Through combining the wealth of academic Open Course Ware (OCW) through\ud the consortium and linkages with international universities it is possible to create\ud credit courses for students in each of their home universities thereby overcoming\ud the major limitation of OCW by providing access to credit for OCW courses

Report on the Implementation of Work Package 4 “Selection and Testing New ICT Tools” in the Framework of the IRNet Project

This article, prepared by an international team of authors – researchers from different scientific areas, connected with ICT, e-learning, pedagogy, and other related disciplines – focuses on the objectives and some results of the IRNet international project. In particular, this article describes the research tools, methods, and some procedures of the Work Package 4 (WP4) “Selection and Testing New ICT tools”: Objectives, Tasks, Deliverables, and implementation of research trips. Researchers from partner universities have analysed the results of WP4 in the context of the next stages and Work Packages of the IRNet project – International Research Network

Building professional discourse in emerging markets: Language, context and the challenge of sensemaking

Using ethnographic evidence from the former Soviet republics, this article examines a relatively new and mainly unobserved in the International Business (IB) literature phenomenon of communication disengagement that manifests itself in many emerging markets. We link it to the deficiencies of the local professional business discourse rooted in language limitations reflecting lack of experience with the market economy. This hampers cognitive coherence between foreign and local business entities, adding to the liability of foreignness as certain instances of professional experience fail to find adequate linguistic expression, and complicates cross-cultural adjustments causing multi-national companies (MNCs) financial losses. We contribute to the IB literature by examining cross-border semantic sensemaking through a retrospectively constructed observational study. We argue that a relative inadequacy of the national professional idiom is likely to remain a feature of business environment in post-communist economies for some time and therefore should be factored into business strategies of MNCs. Consequently, we recommend including discursive hazards in the risk evaluation of international projects