Svyato Tikhonovsky University additional education. Higher theological education in Russia
Correspondent: Father Gennady, let me congratulate you on the launch of the new system platform distance learning!
Priest Gennady Egorov: Congratulations should be sent, first of all, not to me, but to all the teachers and staff of the Faculty of Additional Education, teachers of other faculties of our university, who specially redesigned their educational programs for the new system, as well as the company that developed the new platform, HyperMethod IBS.
- What are the advantages of the new distance learning system?
It cannot be said that the system has become fundamentally new, because we have been conducting educational programs based on LMS since 2004. The experience gained over the past years clearly shows that the main factor in ensuring the quality of distance education is the high qualification of the teaching staff and competent methodical work. However, a well-designed and well-designed platform makes it much easier for teachers to implement their methodological skills, and also allows students to more effectively use modern technologies to achieve excellent results. Therefore, the introduction of the eLearning Server 4G platform in the current academic year is a milestone event for us.
- What educational programs are available to those wishing to study via the Internet?
- Variety! These are the several-year professional retraining program "Theology", intended for people who already have higher education, and the six-month advanced training program "Fundamentals of Orthodoxy", which is very popular among teachers who are going to teach the subject of Fundamentals in schools. Orthodox culture. We also have a range of courses available in selected theological and related humanities disciplines.
- Is it currently possible to get a complete higher education via the Internet?
So far, this is not possible, but, since, with similar question we are being approached more and more often, we have set ourselves the task of responding to people's requests. The software introduced this year will help to solve this problem. Under the guidance of the Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Additional Education, Oksana Nikolaevna Shevchenko, under a special program aimed at mastering new system the first group of teachers of the Missionary faculty began to be trained. Subsequently, representatives of other faculties of PSTGU, primarily Bogoslovsky, will undergo the same training. We also plan to establish close cooperation with the Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Informatics. As soon as teachers who previously had no experience working at the Faculty of Additional Education master modern technologies of online learning on an equal basis with those who have been teaching classes using them for eight years, everyone will be able to enroll in our full-time programs. higher education.
- What courses, besides theological ones, can already be studied via the Internet?
- We have established cooperation with the department social work Missionary faculty. Now parishes, deaneries, dioceses are actively developing church social service. They began to turn to churches for help, the parishioners themselves organize various charitable events and programs, many of them began to realize that it was necessary to increase their professional level. The department of social work already had its own experience in preparing parish social workers via the Internet, because For several years now, joint courses, webinars of PSTGU and the Synodal Department on charity and social service have been held under the guidance of Bishop Panteleimon of Smolensk and Vyazemsky.
- Are there any reasons that contribute to the development of online learning in this area?
- The head of the department, Tatyana Valerievna Zaltsaman, repeatedly told me about the special advantages that distance education gives social workers. So, in particular, there is an opportunity to approach the formation of study groups more flexibly and differentiated, which cannot be done within the framework of the traditional educational process: for example, to form a group of parishioners of the same parish or social workers involved in solving the same problem, but in different regions, or gather only heads of social departments for seminars to discuss management and administration problems with them social projects. Also, one of the difficulties of traditional education in the field of social work is the need to tell students about the regional specifics of the manifestation of social problems and ways to overcome them, good practices in certain cities or villages. However, Moscow teachers do not always know this specificity, the difference between Moscow and regional practice is very significant. This contradiction is practically insoluble in the traditional education system, since it is not always possible to invite a teacher from another region to teach the whole course, but it is easily resolved within the framework of distance learning.
How do you feel about the distance learning system, which is being developed by the Educational Committee of the Russian Orthodox Church?
Our university also takes all possible part in the development of this system. The strategy for the development of the distance learning system of the Educational Committee differs from that which we use at the Faculty of Additional Education. There is nothing wrong with this, because the system being developed is based on the compiling experience of Russian Orthodox Christians. educational institutions. First of all, this is the experience of full-time and part-time education of the Moscow and St. Petersburg Theological Academies, the Russian Orthodox University takes part in the development, which also decided to implement its own distance education project last year, and is now conducting technical work to prepare for its launch. But for eight years up to the present day, the only active project of Orthodox Internet education has been the PSTGU programs, so the Educational Committee decided to rely on our pedagogical experience by applying it to another technical platform.
- What are the prospects for Orthodox Internet education in the future?
- It is no coincidence that His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia calls for the active use of the Internet for the preaching of Christianity. The influence of the network on modern social, political and scientific life cannot be overestimated. The Internet gives us and our students the opportunity to overcome traditional barriers, so the distance learning system allows us to convey theological knowledge to any place. the globe. Therefore, I believe that Orthodox Internet education will develop from year to year, and more and more people, especially from remote cities, will prefer it to traditional forms of education, in particular correspondence department. In conclusion, I invite everyone to visit the website of our Faculty of Additional Education: http://do.pstgu.ru/
Prepared by S. Kolotvin
From new school year The Faculty of Additional Education transferred the distance learning system to a new platform. Priest Gennady Yegorov, vice-rector of PSTGU for academic work, talks about Orthodox online education, which has recently become more and more popular.
— Father Gennady, let me congratulate you on the launch of a new platform for the distance learning system.
- Congratulations should be sent, first of all, not to me, but to everyone who worked on the project - the staff of the educational and methodological department, teachers and employees of the faculty of additional education and other faculties of our university, who did a great job over the summer, which made it possible to start classes in the new educational year on the new eLearning Server 4G platform developed by HyperMethod IBS.
— What advantages does the introduction of a new distance learning system give the university?
— We have been implementing educational programs based on the distance learning system since 2004. The experience gained over the past years clearly shows that the main factor in ensuring the quality of distance education is the high qualification of the teaching staff and competent methodological work. However, a well-designed and professionally designed platform makes it much easier for teachers to implement their methodological skills, and also allows students to more productively use modern technologies to achieve excellent results. Therefore, the introduction of a new platform in the current academic year opens up the prospect for us to become better and more efficient.
— What educational programs are available to those wishing to study via the Internet?
- Variety! These are the “Theology” professional retraining program designed for several years, designed for people who already have higher education, and the six-month advanced training program “Fundamentals of Orthodoxy”, which, among other students, is aimed at teachers who are going to teach the subject of the Basics of Orthodox Culture in schools. . We also have a range of courses available in selected theological and related humanities disciplines. I hope this list continues to grow.
— Is it currently possible to get a complete higher education via the Internet?
- So far, this is not possible for a number of reasons, both objective and subjective. But, as the issue becomes more and more relevant, we have already taken a number of actions aimed at resolving it. Developed special program teacher training aimed at mastering the new system. The first group of teachers of the missionary faculty has already started teaching. Subsequently, representatives of other faculties of PSTGU, primarily theological, will undergo the same training. Also in our plans is the remote implementation of programs of the Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Informatics. So there are all the prerequisites for the fact that distance programs of higher education at PSTGU are a matter of the near future.
— What courses besides theological courses can already be studied via the Internet?
- Through the distance learning system, we implement some language and psychological and pedagogical disciplines. Next in line are the disciplines of the department of social work of the missionary faculty. Now parishes, deaneries, dioceses are actively developing church social service. People began to turn to churches for help more often, parishioners themselves organize various charitable events and programs, and many began to realize that it was necessary to improve their professional level. The Department of Social Work already has experience in training parish social workers through the Internet, because For several years now, joint courses, webinars of PSTGU and under the guidance of .
- Are there any reasons that contribute to the development of online learning in this area?
- Undoubtedly. First of all, this is an opportunity to have a more flexible and differentiated approach to the formation of study groups, which cannot be done within the framework of the traditional educational process: for example, form a group of parishioners of the same parish or social workers involved in solving the same problem, but in different regions, or gather only heads of social departments for seminars to discuss with them the problems of managing and administering social projects. Also, one of the difficulties of traditional education in the field of social work is the need to tell students about the regional specifics of the manifestation of social problems and ways to overcome them, good practices in certain cities or villages. However, Moscow teachers do not always know this specificity, the difference between Moscow and regional practice can be very significant. This contradiction is practically insoluble in the traditional system of education, because it is not always possible to invite a teacher from another region to teach the whole course, but it is easily resolved within the framework of distance learning.
— How do you feel about the distance learning system being developed by the Russian Orthodox Church?
- Since there has not yet been an official presentation of this system, it is premature to discuss it. As far as I can imagine, this is a very large-scale and serious project. I can only say that our teachers are also invited to work in this system. Taking into account the number and territorial distribution of our theological schools, the task of introducing distance learning technologies is very difficult, and, apparently, will be solved in stages: from the introduction of individual elements of distance education to support the traditional educational process in seminaries to the deployment of a full-fledged multifunctional distance learning system. I think that our experience will be useful then. However, let's not get ahead of events.
— What are the prospects for Orthodox Internet education in the future?
It is no coincidence that His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia calls for the active use of the Internet for Christian preaching. The influence of the network on modern social, political and scientific life cannot be overestimated. The Internet gives us and our students the opportunity to overcome traditional barriers, since the distance learning system allows us to bring theological knowledge to any part of the globe. Therefore, I believe that Orthodox Internet education will develop from year to year and will attract more and more people, especially from remote cities, which have traditionally been forced to be content with distance learning only.
One of the important activities of the University is the introduction of distance technologies in educational process and broad development e-education for the needs of the Russian Orthodox Church.
If you are already registered with Distance learning system PSTGU("SDO PSTGU") - to enter you can go to.
Online learning: yesterday, today, tomorrow
Long before the advent of the Internet, distance learning already existed in Europe and the United States in forms such as "correspondence learning" (based on postal services) and learning via radio and television. These methods are still practiced, but are characterized either by the lack of full feedback (in the case of television and radio broadcasts), or by excessive intervals in it (mail). Meanwhile, it Feedback and the full interaction of all participants are of fundamental importance in the educational process, and therefore it is with the invention and spread of the World Wide Web that a breakthrough in the field of distance learning and its full development throughout the world as a whole and, in particular, in Russia are associated.
In the mid-2000s, distance learning emerged at St. Tikhon's University as an innovative tool for receiving theological education. The first faculty implementing distance learning programs was the Faculty of Additional Education. To date, the faculty continues to successfully develop and implement using remote technologies (the Internet) areas of additional training and advanced training courses in the field of philosophical and theological and theological and practical sciences, including professional retraining programs "Theology", "Fundamentals of Orthodoxy", courses "Russian Religious Philosophy", "Liturgical Rule and Hymnography" and many others, numbering more than one generation of graduates. .
In the near future, due to its unique capabilities, distance learning will be introduced in one form or another at all faculties of PSTGU, in addition to the already successfully operating theological programs that exist within the framework of additional education. Distance learning at PSTGU is designed to become an effective tool not only for distance learning, but also for traditional forms of daytime (full-time) and evening (part-time) education.
An important advantage of distance learning is its availability, regardless of geographical location not only the student, but also teachers - not only residents of any cities and regions will be able to teach and learn remotely Russian Federation(where the Internet is available), but also far beyond its borders, in other countries - Orthodox people around the world will be able to access a qualitatively new Orthodox-oriented distance learning. The ability to study remotely and receive education for people with disabilities is extremely important.
Online learning at PSTGU optimally combines independent work of students with the multimedia materials offered in LMS and information resources and group work with fellow students in a virtual classroom, as well as live dialogue with the teacher and a variety of testing mechanisms and independent work for control and verification (self-examination) of acquired knowledge and skills. The greatest emphasis is placed on the interaction between the student and the teacher, and not on software testing and memorizing dry material from electronic textbooks.
The new generation of remote educational technologies, also called “e-learning” (“e-Learning”), meets the highest world standards in this area - the interaction between the student and the teacher is carried out both in real time (“online learning”) and in a time-distributed mode of maximum convenience for all participants in the process (“offline training”). The basis for such a multidisciplinary approach is a set of Web 2.0 tools and technologies, including the usual “forums” and “chats”, as well as innovative “Web conferencing” with video and audio support, providing the effect of presence in the classroom.
Despite the complex technologies used in distance learning, the educational methodology itself is very easy to use, perceive and present information and therefore is not focused on IT specialists, but on ordinary users of personal computers - from people who are just mastering the possibilities of modern telecommunications, to experienced experts. This means the availability of education in remote form for a wide range of users with almost any software. For full-fledged work, a stationary or portable computer (laptop) with any modern browser and peripherals is enough (and in the future, distance learning will become fully available on portable devices).
Admission
Get acquainted with the information for admission to distance learning at PSTGU, the list of existing educational programs, the start and end dates of training, as well as to register in the system, you can pass on .
Login to the Distance Learning System for registered users is carried out at .
Contacts
Coordination and centralized support of the work of the SDO is carried out by Department of distance learning UMU PSTGU.
The department is located at address: Moscow, Ilovayskaya st., 9, building 2, room. 313
Telephone department: +7 (495) 646 71 49.
Email: [email protected]
The beginning of the 21st century is marked by the rapid growth of distance education. Today, millions of students around the world receive education or improve their skills using the Internet. Orthodox education did not remain aloof from this process either. Every year there are more and more opportunities to study theological disciplines and even get a degree in theology remotely. What can the Russian-language segment of the Internet offer to an inquisitive Orthodox believer at the moment?
In a general sense, the word "remote" means only that the student and student are separated from each other by a certain distance (or time) that does not allow them to communicate face to face. Questions that once Christians passed on to their mentor, receiving a written answer to them, can also be considered as distance education. Therefore, we can say that distance learning has existed in the Church since apostolic times.
However, today the term "distance education" means, as a rule, studying proccess, carried out with the help of telecommunication networks, primarily the Internet.
Education in the field of Orthodox theology has two target audiences - students of theological schools (that is, future clergymen) and lay people who want to improve their theological level. Projects for both audiences appeared in Russia almost simultaneously. At the end of 2003, a distance learning project was launched for theological schools on the basis of Sretenskaya Seminary, and at the beginning of 2004, the St. Tikhon Orthodox Theological Institute (now PSTGU) organized the first distance courses. Therefore, we can say that the history of Orthodox distance education has been going on for ten years. How has the situation changed over the years?
Acquaintance with the projects presented on the Internet today allows us to assert that three main directions are developing steadily. This is, firstly, a distance learning system for theological schools. Secondly, systematic long-term and short-term distance learning in the field of Orthodox theology for the laity. And, finally, thirdly, individual Orthodox educational projects aimed primarily at self-education.
Education,but not education
The last group includes several well-known portals where Orthodox literature of various purposes is laid out - from liturgical books to fiction, calendar-darei with lives and readings from Holy Scripture, programs offering quotes "for every day", etc., as well as multimedia materials. In the strict sense of the word, such projects cannot be classified as educational, due to the fact that education - and especially spiritual education - involves interaction between the teacher and the student. This interaction should be obligatory (hence, organized by the teaching party), systematic and built according to methodologically justified schemes. When the educational process is reduced to the form of “ask a question”, then no educational interaction is obtained: the student himself initiates communication and, therefore, does not go beyond the knowledge or ignorance that he already has. Only a teacher can pose a task or problem that is still unknown to the student and thereby create conditions for his development. Therefore, the portals mentioned above would be more correctly attributed to information resources of an educational orientation.
A good example is the well-known portal "Azbuka Veri" (http://azbyka.ru), which, in addition to materials for self-education, also offers tests for self-control. The Synodal Missionary Department operates the "School of the Orthodox Missionary" (http://orthomission.ru). Also last year, the site of electronic textbooks of the Educational Committee of the Russian Orthodox Church (http://mpda-dl.ru) was launched, which offers everyone electronic textbooks in the disciplines of the preparatory department of the MTA with tests on each topic.
Flagships for seminarians
Of greatest interest are the other two categories of remote educational projects, which allow you to directly and purposefully influence the development of the level of spiritual education, expand and deepen it. The largest educational undertaking aimed at improving the quality of teaching and learning in the entire network of seminary educational institutions of the Russian Orthodox Church is the project of the Study Committee. It is implemented with the participation of OJSC Rostelecom (http://www.uchkomportal.ru). Its prototype was the attempts made back in 2005 by the Sretensky Seminary to broadcast lectures by leading teachers and authoritative specialists to remote seminaries. But these were separate lectures, not connected by a single educational program. Now, under the auspices of the Educational Committee, this idea has received not only its continuation, but also development. In addition to broadcasting live lectures on various subjects studied in seminaries, the organizers provide an opportunity for students to “ask a question”, to which the lecturer will answer either during the lesson or after the lecture; lectures are recorded with the possibility of access for those who, for various reasons, could not “attend” the lesson, “feedback” and other kinds are organized, allowing inspectors from Moscow and St. Petersburg to observe the examinations and defenses theses in any seminary of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The organizers plan to develop the system further and expand the capabilities of the WebTutor platform used (developer - WebSoft company). In addition to broadcasting and recording lectures, it allows you to post electronic educational materials and tests. It is also possible to connect not only seminaries, but also individual users, which in the future may be useful to support distance learning.
Another project for the use of distance learning for seminaries that needs attention is the student support system developed at the St. Petersburg Academy and Seminary (http://learn.spbda.ru) and implemented on an open platform popular in Russian universities. Moodle (this platform is free, but requires the school to have its own programmers to set it up).
Both projects, in addition to being directly aimed at improving the quality of training of future clergy, are united by their corporate nature. Only seminary students can study with their help: one (as in the SPDAiS project) or a network of seminaries (as in the Study Committee project). Such closeness is, of course, both necessary and justified. Both projects are a kind of flagship in Orthodox distance learning, the content and methodology of which are equal to all others.
For the laity
The last component of Orthodox distance learning is systematic long-term and short-term distance learning for the laity. The pioneer in this area is the Orthodox St. Tikhon humanitarian University, who, almost simultaneously with the Sretensky Seminary, opened the first distance learning programs for the laity (http://pstgu.elearn.ru). PSTGU has developed a short-term one-semester catechism program "Fundamentals of Orthodoxy" and a long-term educational program theological training "Theology", designed for several years of study, which has been successfully implemented completely remotely for ten years already (students come to the university in person only to pass the final certification). Over time, the educational program was transferred from the outdated VirtualUniversity platform to the more modern eLearningServer (developed by Hypermethod). Tools such as webinars, wikis, blogs, student peer assessments, and more are now available. In addition to the theological programs proper, courses on general cultural topics were also implemented.
Simultaneously with the training of students at PSTGU, the systematization of the experience gained and targeted research in the field of adult education in general, spiritual education for adult laity and the very possibility of spiritual education using distance learning tools were carried out. The results were articles, methodological developments suitable for use in theological educational institutions, as well as in the implementation of distance learning in the field of the humanities and, above all, ideological disciplines. The authors of this article also developed a training course for "remote" teachers (advanced training), which has already been carried out several times, including for teachers of theological schools, and completely remotely.
Among the educational projects of theological education for the laity, one should name the remote department of the Higher Theological Courses of the Moscow Theological Academy (http://dist.kursmda.ru) and the Higher St. Vladimir Orthodox Theological Courses (Kyiv). The purpose of creating a remote department of the Higher Theological Courses of the MTA, stated on the website, is "to familiarize everyone with the basics of the Orthodox faith, with the essence of Orthodox Christianity remotely via the Internet." The target audience of the project is not well defined; offered educational programs - several short-term courses from different areas and different levels.
The Higher St. Vladimir Orthodox Theological Courses offer an educational program that, as stated, consists of "more than 20 academic disciplines taught by specialists from theological and secular educational institutions." As an audience, "persons of the Orthodox confession (from 15 years old) (regardless of their social status, place of residence and citizenship)" are designated.
Mission
The courses at the Patriarchal Center for the Spiritual Development of Children and Youth (http://pravkurs.ru) (Orthodox Internet Courses, PIK) deserve special attention. The mission, goals and objectives of the project are detailed on the project website, and the target audience is outlined. Unlike the previous ones, this project sees the communication of those who have already gained certain experience as the basis of all activities. church life with those who have just come to the threshold of the Church. The content side of education is secondary to this main task. PIK is a basic level course focused not on systematic theological education, but on missionary-catechetical activity. Distinctive feature PIK - orientation to a well-defined audience and a proper study of the educational concept.
In accordance with the mission of the project, the available free Moodle platform is used as a distance learning platform. It is safe to say that PIK is an original development that fully complies with the declared mission and covers a certain target audience.
Recently, several more Orthodox educational institutions have announced the launch of distance learning projects. The RPU of John the Theologian developed distance learning courses “in the areas of church service” together with the Yakutsk and Ulan-Ude dioceses, as well as the distance learning course “Fundamentals of the Orthodox Worldview”. From the 2014/2015 academic year, the Poltava Theological Seminary (http://orth-mission.org.ua/today/distancyonnoe) plans to start distance learning for part-time students.
Thus, ten years after the first experiences of Orthodox distance learning, a great deal of experience has been accumulated in the use of educational and educational projects of various levels, intended both for students of theological educational institutions and for everyone who wants to join the experience of the Church through education. We can say that it is quite wide - every Orthodox Christian now has access to the type of church education that he needs at the moment, at a particular stage of his spiritual and church life.
Considering the size and geography of the Russian-speaking audience, the constant attention to the topic by the hierarchs, as well as the ongoing development of information and communication technologies, one can expect a serious development of existing and the emergence in the near future of new interesting projects in the field of Orthodox distance learning.
Reference. Archpriest Gennady Egorov - Candidate of Psychological Sciences, Associate Professor. Graduated Faculty of Physics Moscow State University, Faculty of Theology PSTBI. Founder and first dean of the Faculty of Additional Education, where the distance learning system was developed and launched. Currently - Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs of PSTGU and Head of the Department of New Technologies in liberal education the same university.
Melanina Tatyana Vladimirovna - Candidate of Technical Sciences, Head of the Educational and Methodological Department of PSTGU. A graduate of one of the first sets of the distance professional retraining program "Theology" at the Faculty of Additional Education of PSTGU. As Deputy Dean of the FDO, she stood at the origins and took an active part in the organization, development and implementation of distance learning.
Tatyana MelaninaArchpriest Gennady Egorov