Lecturers of the Department of Russian Language and Literature spent three days immersed in the innovative educational technologies of the Skolkovo Foundation for the creation and management of projects.
On November 14-16, the School of Project-Based Learning Mentors was held at "Boiling Point – Chelyabinsk". The purpose of the school is to unite the professionals who are ready to work with school and university teams in the project-based learning format.
The event was held as part of the Academy of Mentors project, organized by the Skolkovo Foundation and the Circle movement under NTI (National Technology Initiative).
Lecturers of the Department of Russian Language and Literature Tatiana Semyan, Natalia Kundaeva, Evgeny Smyshlyaev, and Yulia Feoktistova were selected and were able to join the list of participants of the three-day intensive project aimed at developing the skills of project-based education mentors.
During the School, the invited experts and specialists of the Academy shared their experience and developments in the teaching and support of mentors of youth projects, and the participants of the School figured out how to launch project-based learning in their regions (organizations), what barriers need to be overcome, how to organize a system of education and methodological support for the project team, how to effectively form the necessary competencies among students being trained with the use of the project-based learning technology.
The participants of the School were divided into groups; each team had to develop a real project as per the instructions from real Chelyabinsk companies over the course of three days. Cases for project development were offered by representatives of PJSC Rostelecom and the "Smart House" project office, ChelPipe, and Neurotechnology company.
The experts who provided lectures and master classes at the School of Mentors included:
- Elena Klepikova, head of the academic programs at the Academy of Mentors Project Office of the Skolkovo Foundation;
- Yuriy Sergeev, metrologist of the Shiffers Institute;
- Maksim Ivanov, staff member of the Department of Project and Innovation Activity of ITMO University
- Rezeda Rybalko, head of projects of the Ural Club of New Education.
Head of the Department of Russian Language and Literature, Doctor of Sciences (Philology), Professor Tatiana Semyan noted that "The main function of the curator is not only to develop a successful project with students, but also to develop the students’ leadership skills, creativity, interdisciplinary communication, strategic thinking. The knowledge and skills we gained in the School of Mentors will allow us to better supervise the Virtual Museum of South Ural Writers project, which was created by philology students, programmers, and designers, and help them to form skills for independently solving complex project tasks."