Psychological and Pedagogical Aspects of Teaching English in a Higher Education Institution Through Digital Technologies

The use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in Russian higher education has received a new powerful impetus in the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent reorientation of global economic processes and digitalization of modern society. The transition of the absolute majority of educational institutions to the new format of education has made it possible in a short time to significantly expand the arsenal of ICTs used by teachers and increase the level of digital competencies of the teaching staff, but, at the same time, it has revealed a whole range of problems associated with distance learning, which, if solved promptly, determines the success of the digital transformation in education. One of the areas requiring the most careful attention of specialists is the impact of e-learning format on the psycho-emotional state of students. The aim of this study is to at least partially compensate the lack of information on the above-mentioned issues and to highlight the issue of the use of ICT in teaching English in higher education, as well as to analyse the main psychological and pedagogical challenges caused by the digitalization of the educational sphere. The study used the methodology of learning needs analysis (LNA) using questionnaire survey of students. Based on the results of the LNA, the areas of effective use of ICT in English language teaching as well as the current problem areas were identified. As a result, the team of authors made recommendations for further implementation of ICTs in the educational process of teaching English to future international relations specialists.

1. Budanov V.G. Novyi tsifrovoi zhiznennyi tekhnouklad – perspektivy i riski transformatsii antroposfery. Filosofskie nauki = Russian Journal of Philosophical Sciences, 2016 no. 6, pp.47-55. (In Russ.).
2. Dubrovskii D.I. Elektronnaya kul'tura – kto protiv? Filosofskie nauki = Russian Journal of Philosophical Sciences, 2017, no. 2, pp.50-57. (In Russ.).
3. Lumpieva T.P., Volkov A.F. Pokolenie Z: psikhologicheskie osobennosti sovremennykh studentov. Available at: https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/psihologicheskie-osobennosti-sovremennogo-studenchestva (Accessed: 10.09.2022) (In Russ.).
4. Maslanov E.V. Tsifrovizatsiya i razvitie informatsionno-kommunikatsionnykh tekhnologii: novye vyzovy ili obostrenie starykh problem? Tsifrovoi uchenyi: laboratoriya filosofa = The Digital Scholar: Philosopher‘s Lab, 2019, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 6-21. (In Russ.).
5. Sychev A. Pokolenie Z: te, kto budet posle: interv'yu s Markom Sandomirskim. Available at: https://zenon74.ru/interview/pokolenie-z-te-kto-budet-posle (Accessed: 02.09.2022). (In Russ.).
6. Tul'chinskii G.L. Tsifrovaya transformatsiya obrazovaniya: vyzovy vysshei shkole. Filosofskie nauki = Russian Journal of Philosophical Sciences, 2017, no. 6, pp.121-136. (In Russ.).
7. Khalin V.G., Chernova G.V. Tsifrovizatsii i ee vliyanie na rossiiskuyu ekonomiku i obshchestvo: preimushchestva, vyzovy, ugrozy i riski. Upravlencheskoe konsul'tirovanie = Administrative Consulting, 2018, no. 10, pp. 46-63. (In Russ.).
8. Kaplan J. Humans need not apply: A guide to wealth and work in the age of artificial intelligence. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2015. 256 p.