The impact of World University Rankings on BRICS students' choices of universities (the case of the Ural Federal University)

World rankings affect universities’ positions on the global education market. The survey (2017-2018, UrFU) of Chinese students (n = 20) and experts (n = 4) found that for students the quality of education and their parents’ / friends’ opinions were the key factors in their university choice. Experts believe, however, that the role of rankings will grow and that high ranking positions will be used by universities to attract investment and improve their status

Flipped Learning in Higher Education: Problems and Contradictions

Introduction. The development and implementation of innovative teaching methods into the educational practices of foreign and Russian universities require a sufficient level of preparedness for change both from university lecturers and university students. This paper presents university lecturers’ perceptions concerning the concept of flipped learning and students’ orientations towards the idea of independent learning realised by means of flipped learning. Materials and Methods. The survey was carried out using a questionnaire focused on 2-4-year students specialising in humanities and a semi-structured interview with lecturers working at Ural Federal University. Results. The study revealed many problems associated with the implementa tion of flipped learning model in higher education. According to the lecturers interviewed, for this model to be successfully implemented, the following conditions should be provided: the existing system of teaching workload allocation should be modified; technical staff supporting the implementation of the model should be appointed; workshops and master classes should be held for specialists implementing or using the flipped learning model in their practical work. The results of the survey show that students experience difficulties in adapting to flipped learning. The students do not have enough independent learning skills. Discussion and Conclusions. We believe that successful implementation of flipped learning model in higher education is possible. This approach can be realised through the use of information systems and programs, meeting the needs of students. Students should study methods of independent analysis from the beginning of training. The authors examined lecturers’ and students’ attitude towards flipped learning and the obstacles to the implementation of this approach in the higher education system. The research results can be useful for university managers focused on consolidating their universities’ positions by introducing innovative educational technologies, as well as for researchers interested in the technologies of mixed learning

Digital fears experienced by young people in the age of technoscience

With the advance of technoscience, digital technologies have started to reshape the traditional array of social fears experienced by younger generations by triggering the appearance of new, digital fears. In this article, we undertake a sociological analysis to investigate the concept of digital fears both theoretically and empirically. Our survey conducted among Russian young people aged 18-30 in 2020 (N = 1050, Sverdlovsk region, Russian Federation) showed that fear is a distinctive characteristic of the social well-being of this generation. Moreover, fear tends to become more pronounced both quantitatively (i.e., the frequency of emergence) and qualitatively (i.e. the emergence of new types). The identified digital fears of young people allowed us to draw their typology. Depending on the specifics of digital threat, the following types were distinguished: those associated with impact and control, crime and security, communication and activity, technology and innovation, and social inequality. We show that the expanding range of social fears leads to the formation of catastrophic thinking in young people, thereby affecting the level of social well-being and distorting the image of the future

Short-Term Student Mobility: Motivation, Expectation and Barriers

The article analyses short-term student mobility. In the context of internationalisation of higher education and the development of the global market of educational services universities develop and implement short-term programmes of student mobility in order to recruit international students. These programmes are less restricted than full time programmes, which allows them to meet the needs and expectations of students. International experience gained as a result gives them the opportunity to choose their path in postgraduate education in institutions abroad. A questionnaire survey of the Chinese students participating in the short-term student mobility programmes (n=31) is reported. In addition, a number of interviews with the staffwhose work is connected with teaching overseas students (n=5) was conducted in 2019. The findings of this research may demonstrate that Chinese students intend to become familiar with an additional set of common cultural competences. In other words, their interest in Russia, its history, culture, traditions and customs is becoming a strong motivation in choosing a university and a short-term educational programme. It could be the case that low language proficiency, bureaucracy, (namely, difficulties in acquiring the necessary paperwork and being accommodated in a hall of residence) become hurdles on the way to completing such a programme successfully. While developing programmes, host universities should be guided by common cultural competences in order to promote further development of short-term student mobility