BARRIERS IN DEVELOPMENT OF SMART EDUCATION: SOCIO-CULTURAL PECULIARITIES OF RUSSIA

Abstract

Smart Education is the most advanced stage of the evolution in education associated with new information and communication technologies. The world is forming a new technical and technological reality. Digital media technologies (smartphones, wi-fi connections) penetrate into open spaces of cities and towns (parks, gardens, etc.). Modernity dictates the need for a person to acquire such knowledge and skills that should allow him not only working effectively, but also spending his free time productively. This situation is not entirely new, but it makes researchers find solutions for further implementation of smart technologies in the education system in order to search for the most appropriate answers to this challenge. Russia needs to accelerate the transition to education of the future, which involves the modernization of all educational processes. The presented research touches upon the issue of the development of Smart Education in Russia. The paper reveals the current state and identifies the key barriers in the development of smart education in the world. The empirical basis of the work is a sociological survey conducted in March-June 2018. The survey used the technique of semi-formalized interviews with representatives of five groups of stakeholders: government officials, heads of organizations, teachers, students and researchers. The educational system of Tomsk (Russia) affects the interests of all above mentioned stakeholders. The survey was aimed at the determination of the role of Smart technologies in education, their importance, barriers and prospects of implementation. The article presents the results of a sociological study that revealed the position of stakeholders in relation to various aspects of the socio-cultural environment that has an impact on the formation of smart education in Russia. The evaluation of the results of the implementation of smart city and smart education projects in Europe, America and Asia shows the presence of private success, which has not led to the formation of unambiguously positive examples of their implementation. Synergy, which unites the efforts of many participants of these projects, has not yet led to the realization of the ultimate goal – significant indicators in improving the quality of life of citizens. The comparative analysis of barriers to further development of smart education identified in the studies of foreign authors with the assessment of Russian stakeholders shows the existence of significant differences between them. The introduction of smart technologies in the life of Russian society is catching up. This leads to a rather superficial nature of acquaintance of Russian society of smart education and a lack of reflection on the barriers to its implementation.