Features of distance learning in the modern conditions of a Russian university: based on the materials of a survey of students

Abstract

Introduction. Distance learning is a forced and extreme condition due to the spread of COVID-19. The higher school is looking for ways to improve the process of education for young people and opens up new opportunities for the transition to distance learning through the introduction of innovative technologies. The purpose of the study is to find out the pros and cons of distance learning, using the analysis of data obtained through a sociological survey of students. Materials and methods. The material of the research was the answers of 122 students of the Stupino branch of the Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University) from 1 to 3 courses of the full-time department by filling in Google forms. Results. 42.6% of teaching students positively assessed the importance of switching to the remote platform of the LMS MAI, although only a third of the respondents would like to study remotely next semester. Motivation and involvement in the learning process in the new environment is present in 44.3% of respondents, and 63.9 % of students believe that learning a foreign language at a distance makes it difficult to understand new material. In addition, 73.3% of respondents believe that humanities are easier to study remotely, as opposed to technical subjects. In the organization of the educational process through distance learning, 45.1% of the surveyed students discovered new opportunities to continue learning the language. It should be noted that a third of respondents (32.8%) believe that in the near future, higher education can be fully transferred to distance learning. The method of principal components revealed that the attitude of students to distance learning is not related to the motivation to learn. Conclusion. The drastic reformatting of the educational process with limited internal and external resources of the universities intensified their mobilization in an emergency implementation of distance learning technologies, but not in the systematic use of tools online training, require a much longer preparation time and testing on the students in order to develop a competitive and developing educational system, and natural is not always an orderly and systematic approach.