Innovative activity as a driving force for the development of educational system

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ARTICLE:

INNOVATIVE ACTIVITY AS A DRIVING FORCEFOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

Potenko L. O., Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of Law and Social Sciences and Humanities Department State Higher Educational Institution Banking University Cherkasy Institute

Summary

innovative teaching technology

The main goal of this scientific research is to highlight the role of applying innovative teaching technologies to the educational process. The article has given a brief overview of the problem of implementation and adaptation of innovative educational technologies as an important professional competence of each teacher or educator. We have placed particular emphasis on the expediency of using different terms to analyse transformations, innovations in education as well as the role of innovative teaching in the process of foreign language learning.

Key words: novation, innovation, innovative teaching, innovative educational technologies.

Statement of the problem. In the modern educational process the problem of innovative teaching methods is sure to be among the most important problems in the field of pedagogical and research activity. One of the key factors of innovative development of any country is the adoption of innovative technologies into the system of education. The Law of Ukraine “On Higher Education” stipulates along with other basic tasks of higher education institutions “ensuring the organic combination of educational, scientific and innovative activity in educational process” [18]. Educational innovations are characterized by novelty in the field of pedagogical, socio-economic and scientific researches aimed at the qualitative improvement of the educational process that comprises also educational technologies, scientific and methodological developments, etc. There is no doubt that the use of modern innovative technologies in higher education contributes to personal development, provides adaptation of the innovative techniques to the European educational standards.

The aim of the article is to investigate the application of innovative educational technologies to the process of teaching and learning; to analyze innovative technologies as a new set of forms, methods and tools which bring substantial changes in the outcome of the pedagogical process.

Background to the research problem. The research problem of applying innovative approaches to teaching and learning has been an object of many scientific papers: G. Baranova, L. Danylen- ko, I. Dychkivska, V. Kumarin, O. Kuznetsova, M. Lyakhovytskyi, I. Pidlasyi, O. Savchenko, G. Selevko, O. Tarnopilskyi, J. Edge, S. Mann, and others. The peculiarities of introducing pedagogical innovations to vocational-pedagogical education are studied by A. Dubasenyuk, V Gribanov, R. Gurevych, L. Horuzha, V. Khymy- nets, O. Shapran, S. Vitvytska and others.

Educational innovation spans the areas of learning, teaching, curriculum and time and space configurations. The use of innovative technologies is the opportunity to work and learn collaboratively, explore, analyze, engage in discussion, and otherwise learn in new and innovative ways. We share the standpoint of scientists that “updating is a law of educational development” where “development is an attribute of the innovative university system of education which is characterized by flexibility, variability, and dynamism” [10, p. 166].

Discussion. The organization of innovative searches is aimed, in our view, at seeking the actual scientific and pedagogical theme, the clear formulation of the purpose and tasks of the creative activity of each teacher. A teacher has to concentrate attention first of all on the pedagogical innovations directed towards updating content, principles and teaching methods. In our experience, the priority pedagogical methods are: a) person-oriented learning; b) developmental training; c) development of critical thinking; d) differentiated instruction; e) integrated training; f) interactive learning; g) modular training; h) informative training [17].

Innovation (from Latin word “innovation” - novelty, change, renovation) is the efforts to create, to develop, to use and to spread something new with the stable task-oriented change that brings new elements into environment and entails changes of the system from one condition to another. Innovative technologies in education are the production (invention) of a new component for the system of education. Researchers insist on a clear distinction between the terms “novation” and “innovation” paying attention to the fact that in order to denote the replacement of something new there is the normative English word “novation”. Innovation, meanwhile, implies such a novelty, which is carried out in the system at the expense of its own (“in” - inside) resources, reserves. Analysing transformations, innovations in education, scientists advise to determine whether these transformations are made at the expense of internal, not yet used reserves of the pedagogical system, and whether these novelties are innovations in the full sense of the word [16, c. 3]?

Modern native and non-native scholars and educators consider educational innovations as “the process of creating, widening and using new tools to solve those pedagogical problems that have been still solved in a different way (O. Savchenko)” [6]; “the process of updating or improving the theory and practice of education that optimizes the achievement of its goal” [4]; “complex, purposeful process of creating, distributing and using novations” [19]; “current, significant and systemic novations that arise on the basis of various initiatives, and innovations that are becoming perspective for the evolution of education and have a positive effect on its development” [7, p. 21]. Innovation is “an object or practice perceived as new by an individual or individuals, which seeks to introduce improvements in relation to the desired goals, and that is planned and deliberate” [15, p. 13].

We hold the same position that “the basis of the innovative teaching model is common activity of both a student and a teacher in the form of a dialogue, interpersonal interactions and intensive immersion in the subject” [11, p. 116]. In particular, innovative teaching of a foreign language focuses on creating conditions for students to take an active part and initiative position in educational activities, the rejection of reproductive methods of learning, and the transition to modelling real life situations, the introduction of interactive activities, etc. [10] Productive learning contributes to the formation of students' critical thinking and the ability to apply the knowledge gained in specific situations.

However, in many cases “the learning mode tends to be passive and the learners play little part in their learning process” [14]. It has been found in most universities by many teachers and students that the conventional lecture approach in classroom is of limited effectiveness in both teaching and learning. In such a lecture students assume a purely passive role and their concentration fades off after 15-20 minutes. Some limitations which may prevail in traditional teaching method are:

Teaching in classroom using chalk and talk is “one way flow” of information.

Teachers often continuously talk for an hour without knowing students response and feedback.

The material presented is only based on lecturer notes and textbooks.

Teaching and learning are concentrated on “plug and play” method rather than practical aspects.

The handwriting of the lecturer decides the fate of the subject.

There is insufficient interaction with students in classroom.

More emphasis has been given on theory without any practical and real life time situations.

Learning from memorization but not understanding.

Marks rather than result oriented [3].

In the past two decades the focus of innovation has shifted. It now consists not so much in merely mastering content and perfecting specialised learning but in enabling schools in particular to provide positive learning experiences, to increase willingness and ability to learn, to promote stable personalities and to offer social experiences all with the use of emerging technologies. The function of teaching has become more important than subject-based educational reform [2, p. 270].

One of the key issues confronting policy makers, academics, teacher educators and teachers is how to plan, implement, evaluate and sustain effectively innovation from the policy to the classroom levels [15, p. 13]. There is a viewpoint that a new idea is in itself not an innovation: “Innovation demands concentration on process; it demands that we pay as much attention to how we teach or train as to which topics get covered along the way or the tools that we employ” [5, p. 5]. M. Fullan [8] has viewed innovating to comprise three broad phases:

initiation (deciding to go ahead with an innovation),

implementation (attempting to put the innovation into practice), and

institutionalisation (seeking to achieve sustainability).

The day when education no longer needs to reframe - redesign - reinvent itself is certainly not on the horizon; and indeed, that day may never come, as no organisation remains successful when it stops learning, growing and innovating. Being an innovative organisation means much more than acquiring the latest technologies or trying a new approach. It means systematically structuring in programs and practices that promote healthy change, and new and improved approaches and the ongoing creative and productive advancement of both individuals and the organisation as a whole [9, p. 19].

When compared to the more traditional teaching methods, innovative teachers have pushed the pedagogical boundaries with their approach to teaching and learning. The emphasis in innovative teaching with emerging technologies is placed on the learners, their community and the technologies they employ to enable their development. A commonly overlooked trend in education technology is the use of Internet, websites and social media. Basically, computer-assisted instruction improves classroom efficiency and allows for one-on-one attention in larger classrooms.

The use of educational technologies is an important professional competence of each teacher. Innovative teachers have to take into account the infrastructure and resources as specific to their context when planning and executing innovative projects. “The role of educational technologies in teaching and learning has evolved and changed dramatically over time but little is understood of how this knowledge manifests itself in practice and how it is replicated and shared in practice. Pioneering, innovative teachers have developed personal theories that may potentially inform future practice once articulated and disseminated” [2, p. 8].

The innovative process has been linked to senior, well experienced, confident teachers willing to initiate, conceptualize and promulgate new approaches [13]. Technology can help facilitate innovating at the local context by bringing new ideas to educators, documenting and sharing practices, and connecting with other schools and professionals around the globe. There are several key drivers pushing technology as a key component for educational system change, and these serve as central reasons that educators and education stakeholders should consider the growing relevance and implications of technology and technology-based school innovations:

Technology can perform several key functions in the change process, including opening up new opportunities that improve teaching and learning - particularly with the affordance of customisation of learning to individual learner needs;

The skills for an adult life include technological literacy, and people who do not acquire and master these competencies may suffer from a new form of the digital divide, which will impact their capacity to effectively operate and thrive in the new knowledge economy;

Technology is an integral part to accessing the higher-order competencies often referred to as 21st Century Skills, which are also necessary to be productive in today`s society [9, p. 1-2].

J. Groff has noted that “first-order” innovations are prevalent among many technology-rich learning environments, being implemented under the notion that by leveraging many of these tools together produces a dramatically different educational climate. Other technologies are more “disruptive innovations”, appearing on the periphery of the educational landscape and are just beginning to see their full potential. These “second-order” innovations are slowly gaining attention and traction in the field, and will likely see increased development and application over the next decade [Groff, p. 5]. First-order innovations include blogs, wikis; social networking sites; virtual learning environments (VLE); laptops, netbooks and tablet PCs; interactive whiteboards; Web apps; digital cameras, scanners, projectors; e-Learning; digital portfolios. Second-order innovations include augmented reality (AR); simulations; digital games, console games; remote-response systems; mobile/handheld computing programming applications; pico projectors; electronic books.

While technology alone may be engaging and motivating, deep and lasting learning certainly requires more than just exposing students to such innovations. More and more research is not only demonstrating that student-inquiry leads to lasting learning and higher performance, but it is the pedagogy necessary to access 21st century skills like collaborative problem-solving and critical thinking [1]. Such pedagogies are often also referred to as project- or problem-based learning. While technology is certainly not mandatory in order to access this kind of pedagogy, it most certainly helps, and in three distinct ways: tools, means, and mechanism. Technology and other innovations enable the educational process to be adapted to the needs and environment of students and can also help programs shift to a `learner-cantered' approach to education.

In the past, technology has predominately been used to source and consume information, whereas today's learners have become particularly adept at creating and collaboratively developing content for a wide variety of purposes, for example so-called Web 2.0 tools such as blogs, forums and wikis.

Technology has a significant role to play in enhancing the delivery of English language teaching and learning in the primary sector. More and more, it is a certain type of individual teacher who takes the initiative and implements technology into their classrooms. Generally, these teachers are using readily available, free online tools and are finding out how to use them through social networks and online communities of practice [12, p. 46].

The range of technologies now available can support teachers in a variety of ways both inside the young learner classroom, but also increasingly in the home environment and while learners are on the move about their daily lives. However, creative practitioners will always be able to see the potential for an idea and are particularly adept at customising approaches to meet the individual needs of their learners [12, p. 39].

Conclusions

Most of the educational innovations have been developed as pedagogical innovating technologies. Nowadays there are immense possibilities for greater and wider-spread changes of the quality of education with the use of present-day technological advancements as well as with the implementation of innovative educational programmes. The use of educational technologies is an important professional competence of each teacher. Innovative educational technologies represent a completely new way of teaching and contribute to personal development.

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Анотація

Основною метою наукового дослідження є висвітлення ролі застосування інноваційних освітніх технологій у навчальному процесі. У статті наведено короткий огляд проблеми впровадження та адаптації інноваційних освітніх технологій як важливої професійної компетенції кожного викладача чи педагога. Ми приділили особливу увагу доцільності використання різних термінів для аналізу трансформацій, інновацій в освіті, а також ролі інноваційного викладання у процесі вивчення іноземної мови.

Ключові слова: новація, інновація, інноваційне навчання, інноваційні освітні технології.

Аннотация

Основной целью научного исследования является освещение роли применения инновационных образовательных технологий в учебном процессе. В статье приведен краткий обзор проблемы внедрения и адаптации инновационных образовательных технологий как важной профессиональной компетенции каждого преподавателя или педагога. Мы уделили особое внимание целесообразности использования различных терминов для анализа трансформаций, инноваций в образовании, а также роли инновационного преподавания в процессе изучения иностранного языка.

Ключевые слова: новация, инновация, инновационное обучение, инновационные образовательные технологии.

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