The main trends and challenges of the education system development became the key issue of the conference “Foresight of Education” at the FinU.
On February 2, 2023, FinU hosted a plenary session of the International Scientific and Methodological Conference “Foresight of Education: Revival of Traditions vs Declared Innovation”.
The discussion platform gathered more than 2 thousand participants – representatives of education, science and business. The key discussion topics were the modern education transformation, the necessary competencies of young professionals, as well as the role of universities as drivers of regional development as well as of the national economy as a whole.
The conference plenary session was opened by the FinU Rector Stanislav Prokofiev. In his welcoming speech, he noted the relevance of the discussion topic and, speaking about traditions, quoted the Austrian composer Gustav Mahler, “Traditions are not the preservation of ashes, but the transfer of fire.”
“When changing the higher education paradigm, it is essential to understand what is important to transfer from the old system to the future, and what to abandon. The preservation of traditions is the transfer of fire, and today we must think about what kind of fire we will pass on to the next generations,” the Rector addressed the experts and the panel discussion participants.
In his speech, Stanislav Prokofiev also outlined the main activities of the higher school and the challenges facing modern education. Among the urgent tasks, the FinU Rector highlighted the need to study changes, “Within the educational paradigm transformation, it is important to form and develop trends, develop new solutions, referring to traditions, and, of course, involve students in this work.”
Speaking about working with students, Stanislav Prokofiev emphasized the critical importance of the educational component, and also noted that the principles of traditional moral values – citizenship, patriotism and an active lifestyle – should be incorporated into the education system.
The speakers of the plenary session were also rectors of the leading economic universities of the country – Rector of the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics Ivan Lobanov and Rector of St. Petersburg State University of Economics Igor Maksimtsev, who noted the importance and role of universities in the comprehensive development of the student’s personality, and also stressed the importance of practice-oriented education, expanding educational opportunities and the range of training specialists.
The discussion was attended by representatives of the largest employers in the field of finance, who, as part of their speeches, stressed the importance of cooperation with the higher school for high-quality training of highly qualified personnel.
Summing up the meeting, the experts noted the importance of such educational characteristics as fundamentality, continuity, flexibility, creativity and multidisciplinarity.
The plenary session of the scientific and methodological conference concluded with a solemn ceremony of awarding the winners of the essay contest for the Ruble Day, aimed at spreading and improving the level of financial knowledge.
The conference was continued by the FinU program of the Winter School of Pedagogical Excellence, as part of which more than 20 substantive discussions took place on trends in the development of the education industry, modern technologies and training formats, as well as psychological aspects of the educational process. The work of the educational platform will last until the end of February 2023.
