Current Strategies of Scientific and Methodological Support of Teachers as a Mechanism for the Formation of a Unified Educational Space

This publication examines the features of the integration of universities into the system of scientific and methodological support for teaching and HR staff. The most significant areas of activity of scientific and methodological centers for supporting teaching staff, created on the basis of universities, are analyzed to improve the conditions for improving the professional skills of teaching and HR staff. The central issue of discussion is the definition of strategies for the activities of scientific and methodological centers oriented on solving problems within the framework of the formation of a unified educational space in the Russian Federation. Strategies for scientific and methodological support of teaching staff are considered based on the practical experience of universities in implementing educational and scientific projects in accordance with the criteria, which determines the increase of the innovative potential in organizations, the practical significance of the content and forms of scientific and methodological support, the formation of infrastructure for supporting teaching staff, problem specialization and expertise in the activities of scientific and methodological centers, as well as the development of the interaction with professional communities.

Introduction

The Framework for Developing a Cohesive Federal System of Scientific and Methodological Support for Educators and Administrative Personnel emphasizes the creation of a unified educational environment aimed at fostering the ongoing enhancement of professional competencies among educators and management staff within the Russian Federation. To achieve the goals set forth in the Unified Financial System Concept, a selection process for higher education institutions was undertaken. This led to the establishment of scientific and methodological centers dedicated to supporting educators, as sanctioned by the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation's Commission decision No. 2 on November 25, 2021. The federal initiative Modern School, part of the national project Education, governs the operations of these centers, which serve as significant scientific, innovative, and socio-cultural hubs across Russia's regions. According to the Unified Physics System Concept, the operational model of these centers is designed to ensure the integration of research into practical teaching methods and to provide a structured framework for the professional advancement of teaching staff.

Characteristics such as "a focus on the evolving dynamics of educator growth, implementation of monitoring and governance methods that facilitate the tracking of a specific developmental path, a proactive approach aimed at preventing challenges for professionals, ongoing collaboration among the support stakeholders, customization and adaptability, along with a multifaceted nature" define scientific and methodological assistance. This approach represents a relevant and necessary framework for orchestrating the professional advancement of teaching personnel [Bobrovnikova, 2014].

The guidelines, responsibilities, and methods of engagement among participants in scientific and methodological endeavors are refreshed to align with contemporary challenges, advancements in educational and digital technologies, resources for professional collaboration, and the accumulated experiences from partnerships with scientific and methodological institutions [Veidt, 2022].

Target. This article aims to synthesize the approaches employed by scientific and methodological centers as instruments for establishing an integrated educational environment within the education system of the Russian Federation.

Methods

By employing broad scientific methods such as analysis, synthesis, and generalization, this article examined the scientific and methodological literature, relevant regulations, and the findings from scientific and methodological centers to achieve its objectives. Additionally, empirical techniques were used to carry out a survey, which involved participation from the leaders of these centers.

Review

The plan for creating a cohesive educational environment demands substantial changes in the functions of the entities responsible for scientific and methodological support. These changes are executed through strategic initiatives, which call for modifications in the operations of the involved parties in the collaborative process [Vlasova, 2012].

In academic writings, the likelihood of moving towards changes within organizations is characterized as the typically evolved capacity for innovation 4].. When an organization has a robust capacity for innovation, it enables the backing, enhancement, and assessment of the extent to which strategic and project objectives are achieved, as well as the configuration and roles of its resources [Vlasova, 2012].

The concept of innovative potential, when viewed as a theoretical analytical category, illustrates the unique characteristics of the underlying methodologies of current processes. In contrast, the competency-oriented and system-activity frameworks provide the methodological foundation necessary for establishing a cohesive educational environment [Rubtsov, 2010].

In light of the variations in geographical positioning and demographic makeup, the realization of the intended strategy for creating a cohesive educational environment involves exploring suitable, practice-based technologies [Kozilova, 2020]. These technologies are essential for enabling the acquisition of specialized knowledge and the skills necessary for its application in both social and educational contexts—technologies that hold practical relevance.

Key features of a practice-based approach in the ongoing education of teaching professionals encompass the standardization of methods and technologies, the adaptability of effective practices aligned with professional benchmarks, and the partnership between higher education institutions and employers in developing and executing educational initiatives. [Filimonova, 2018].

Emerging technologies, guidelines, algorithms, and standards of professional practice necessitate a reconsideration of the dynamics of collaboration among pedagogical universities within the framework of the Unified Financial System. This is especially important in the pursuit of developing innovative principles for scientific and methodological support.

In light of these advancements, it becomes essential to reassess how educational institutions interact with one another and the best practices they adopt. The evolving landscape requires a collective effort to create and refine methodologies that align with contemporary demands.

As pedagogical universities engage in this process, they must prioritize the integration of new technologies and approaches that enhance educational outcomes. This dialogue is crucial for advancing the field and ensuring that the institutions remain relevant and effective in their mission.

Therefore, adapting to these changes is imperative for fostering a robust educational environment that can effectively support the needs of students and educators alike. Ultimately, this transformation will lead to improved practices that can better serve the objectives of teacher training and educational development.

One mechanism for addressing the aforementioned tasks should be the establishment of independent expertise in educational and methodological developments [Pakhalyan, 2021]. In the process of creating a single educational space, the study of development quality and verification established the task of developing a single system of scientific and methodological expertise. Thus, scientific and methodological centers become coordinators in the establishment of federal registers of educational and methodological products, gain profile specialization in the field of independent evaluation, and develop their own expert potential for scientific verification of professional activity methods and technologies [Sorokova, 2023].

Professional pedagogical communities play an important strategic role in the creation of a unified educational space by identifying teachers' professional deficiencies and the need for professional development. Timely coordination and involvement of professional communities in the scientific and methodological interaction process [Pogodin, 2011] improve the quality of best practice dissemination; contribute to the development of open registers of recommended educational and methodological developments; and provide advisory support on issues of adaptation and implementation of developments in teachers' practical activities.

Scientific and methodological centers follow target guidelines to integrate into a single educational space. These guidelines include creating conditions for research on existing problems in teacher education using a unified applied research methodology.

Disseminating the best pedagogical practices for psychological and pedagogical support in education;

Creating an integrated information and educational space that ensures resource consolidation and effective use, as well as the development of competencies in best practice areas.

Results and Discussion

Let us consider in greater detail the key characteristics of the organization of the activities of scientific and methodological centers through individual strategies that provide the increase in the innovative potential of organizations, the practical significance of the content and forms of scientific and methodological support, the formation of the infrastructure for supporting teaching staff, problem specialization and expertise in the activities of scientific and met The data provided reflect the outcomes of scientific and methodological centers' activities from 2022 to 2023, as well as indicators of the analysis of scientific and methodological center reports.

Innovative Potential as the first strategy

Scientific and methodological centers have well-defined development goals, as outlined in their work programs and plans. Currently, university activities have enabled the provision of material, technical, personnel, and scientific-methodological conditions for the development of network partnerships and the transfer of developments:

• Half of the scientific and methodological centers reported a significant increase in employer involvement in training teachers.
• In order to pool resources and achieve high results in the transfer of developments, more than 72% of scientific and methodological centers have established consortia with scientific and educational organizations (72.2% of scientific and methodological centers for supporting teaching staff);
• 72.2% of the scientific and methodological centers for assisting teaching staff have developed technologies and innovations ready for use in the social and educational spheres;
• In the interests of the educational system, a scientific research and development infrastructure has been established (66.7% of scientific and methodological centers for teaching staff support).

Simultaneously, the analysis allowed us to identify individual characteristics of organizational changes in the functions of scientific and methodological centers, such as:

• Activation of the teaching staff's (henceforth referred to as the teaching staff's) research activities and methodological proficiency;
• Consolidating the efforts of university scientific schools, forming research projects, and organizing joint activities of teaching staff;
• Participation in the activities of scientific and methodological centers by students, postgraduates, teachers, and lecturers from various regions with experience in interdisciplinary collaboration;
• Organizing collaborative events with educational organizations to engage students in relevant teaching practices;
• Arranging master classes, didactic sessions, professional competitions, and other activities aimed at educating new teachers and students about the best teaching practices;
• Development of practice-oriented courses within the context of students' future professional activities as teachers in the pedagogical and psychological-pedagogical fields.

Practical Relevance as the second strategy

Scientific and methodological centers' activities are focused on the analysis and search for solutions to modern pedagogical challenges that specialists face.

It was feasible to verify the important role that universities played in reaching the following outcomes by looking at the developments and other outputs of the work of scientific and methodological centers' practical relevance and applicability (Figure 1):

• More than 72% of scientific and methodological centers carry out projects aimed at enhancing the technologies utilized to deliver targeted assistance, and more than 61% carry out projects in the area of targeted methodological and consulting assistance to teachers;
• In the context of further professional education, sets of guidelines, rules, and instructions derived from 61.1% of scientific and methodological centers are utilized;
• Fifty percent of scientific and methodological centers have reported that the use of scientific and methodological products in the educational process has improved the teamwork skills of teaching staff.

The results  obtained help us to specify the tasks of expanding the activities of methodological and scientific centers that are focused on resolving issues in the area of enhancing the practical significance of actions taken within the framework of creating a single educational space:

• Support in creating demand for the application of scientific and methodological centers' advancements;
• To encourage the growth of teaching teams' motivation to use science-based technologies in the classroom;

Ensuring that educational institutions from both general and secondary vocational education participate in collaborative efforts to support teachers scientifically and methodologically.

Figure 1: Assessment of practical significance

The infrastructure established by universities to support the development of graduates' practical training will help to achieve these goals:

• The scope of implementing the findings and products of scientific research has been greatly expanded and qualitatively altered by the development of a regulatory framework for planning scientific and methodological projects;
• The process of interaction among universities in the context of collecting data from representative samples for the purposes of standardization procedures has been tested and is being implemented;
• Teachers' research activities in the areas of work of scientific and methodological centers are intensifying, with a significant increase in the volume of publications on research topics.
• Establishing the mentoring institute to assist aspiring educators

Interrelation of Scientific and Methodological Focus of Developments as the third strategy

In order to replicate scientific and methodological findings in the educational system, scientific and methodological centers conduct focused work that necessitates adherence to evidence-based principles. In order to rely on the principle of evidence, scientific schools must evaluate its relevance to the stated problem. In the framework of the evidence-based approach, Figure 2 presents data on the evaluation of the connection between the scientific and methodological focus of the advancements of the scientific and methodological centers.

Figure 2: Evaluation of the correlation (percentage) between the developments' scientific and methodological focus 

The primary focus of the Academy of the Russian Ministry of Education's Navigator of Methodological Developments is the advancements of scientific and methodological centers, which should be independently examined and verified. The unified assessment methodology permits the dissemination of developments that satisfy the following requirements on the resources of this federal register: the topic's relevance to the Russian educational system, the type of scientific and methodological development's conformity with the content presented, and the potential for use within the context of methodological and educational events.

Alongside the scientific and methodological centers' active work in this field, organizational conditions were prepared and developed, such as:

• establishment of a centralized area for the sharing of scientific expertise and real-world experience in cooperation with educational institutions;
• establishment of scientific and methodological expert bodies to support experiments in the verification expertise field in line with the areas of endeavor of scientific and methodological centers;
• formalization of collaboration with regionally supported scientific and methodological subjects;
• evaluating scientific and methodological outputs on a regular basis using a standardized evaluation methodology;
• carrying out critical research on matters pertaining to teachers' professional development;
• raising the degree of methodological proficiency among students and faculty in carrying out research and project-related tasks.

Specialization and Expertise as the fourth strategy

The development of high qualifications and competencies in the chosen field of knowledge is facilitated by the thematic areas of activity that each scientific and methodological center specializes in. Universities develop into leading authorities with notable advantages in a particular field under the framework of this strategy.

In the chosen thematic areas of activity, let us introduce a few essential components that illustrate the multifaceted nature of the interaction between scientific and methodological centers and the subjects of the creation of a single educational space (Fig. 3).

Figure 3: Present-day interaction tactics (%)

We can assess the resource potential of scientific and methodological centers in addressing issues like these thanks to the current system of interaction between these centers and subjects of scientific and methodological support [Rasporyazhenie Ministerstva prosveshcheniya].

• establishing circumstances that will draw university experts to expert activities in a range of fields;
• growth of the university's partner organization network;
• application of a single methodological foundation for the design of online courses, the development of assessment materials, and the execution of customized advanced training initiatives.

Professional community support as the fifth strategy

We can provide interdisciplinary scientific and methodological guidance because of the vast experience that many universities have gained in supporting educators in both urban and rural areas. This strategy stresses the efficient distribution and use of educational materials within the context of continuing teacher preparation and is customized to match the unique requirements of educational institutions.

During 2022–2023, the following metrics can be used to demonstrate the creation and maintenance of a favorable environment that supports educators' professional development and knowledge and experience sharing through the efforts of scientific and methodological centers:

• 724 events targeting participants from the Unified Federal System were held, resulting in 106,900 engagements;
• At the municipal and regional levels, 863 events (including consultations) were conducted for experts in methodological services;
• 22,594 students were enrolled in 417 additional professional education programs that were created within the purview of scientific and methodological centers.

Figure 4: Categories of Pedagogical Staff.

In conclusion

The core principles of the National System of Professional Growth of Teaching Staff of the Russian Federation set the strategic framework for the functioning of scientific and methodological centers within the Russian educational system and specify the goals of establishing a unified learning environment.

These centers' targeted efforts, which address the needs and interests of participants in the unified educational framework, have been validated by research, especially in a number of crucial areas:

• Recognizing and tackling urgent problems that educators working on scientific and methodological projects face in order to find solutions;
• Promoting cooperation between academic institutions and local resources for teachers, strengthening the function of professional associations, and enabling frequent sharing of best practices;
• Assembling project teams within the university that are skilled at incorporating cutting-edge scientific ideas and technological advancements into the field of individualized instruction.

Developed through reputable scientific schools and university resource platforms, scientific and methodological centers have a range of resources that enable them to offer scientific and methodological assistance in many important fields. These focal points are integrated into the centers' long-term plans, influencing each university's strategic choices in creating a cohesive educational environment.

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