R. Yu. Zalilov, N. A. Lebedeva, D.K. Nomah

The Specifics of Social Adaptation of Foreign Students: The Innovative Model of Studies

 We studied the specifics of social adaptation of foreign students to the conditions of the educational process.
The innovative model of studies based on use of the Distance Education MOODLE technology and the personalized study map was examined.
We assessed the efficiency of using a multipolar command method for the following purposes: the fastest means of adaptation of students to the educational process, development of tolerant intercultural principles and the formation of professional competences in students.

Изучали специфику социальной адаптации иностранных студентов к условиям учебного процесса.
Была рассмотрена инновационная модель обучения, основанная на использовании дистанционной образовательной MOODLE технологии и персональной карты обучения.
Определяли эффективность применения мультиполярной командной методики для достижения целей: скорейшей адаптации студентов к учебному процессу, выработки толерантных интернациональных позиций и формирования у них профессиональных компетенций.

Keywords: social adaptation of foreign students, effectiveness of educational activities, team work, personalization of education, adaptation failure.

Ключевые слова: социальная адаптация иностранных студентов, результативность учебной деятельности, командная работа, персонализация обучения, срыв адаптации.

The issue of social adaptation of foreign students to the educational process in Russian universities is particularly relevant presently considering the increasing interest of foreigners in pursuing higher education in the Russian Federation. There are many specific factors that complicate the adaptation of foreign students to the educational process. This is primarily the language barrier, their level of basic education and the difference in socio-economic structures.

To accelerate the adaptation of foreign students to studies in Russian universities, the organization of the educational process is built around international and intercultural programs and which is implemented through a wide range of educational and cultural activities.

At the Yaroslav-the-Wise Novgorod State University, during first year of studies, foreign students who are mostly from the Middle East and Africa undergo a process of adaptation at the Preparatory Faculty where they have language studies, get acquainted with Russian culture and history. In addition, these students actively participate in various cultural events of the university. All these in the end will facilitate the process of acclimatization of the students to the university environment.

On the other hand, an annual research conducted by Medical Informatics and Technology Laboratory of the Institute of Medical Education, Novgorod State University (NovSU) showed that 75 % of foreign respondents have significant levels of difficulty in understanding speech and text materials in Russian; inability to express their own thoughts and to assimilate new academic materials.

Based on the analysis of the academic performance index, as the defining highlighter for social adaptation of students to educational activities [1], we can say that the adaptation of first year foreign students to the educational process has an extreme unbalanced character.

Another major challenge of foreign students is the process of getting acclimatized to the socio-cultural university community which is made up of 80 % of Russian students.

To curb the above stated problems, in the organization of the educational process, in the Institute of Medical Education, elements of personalized learning and teamwork-based teaching technologies are used.

To a large extent, personalized learning approaches can be realized by using the modules available on the Distance Education Platform for example “MOODLE".

Taking for instance the teaching of the course "Medical Informatics". This course uses the MOODLE resource involving theoretical-practical materials, assignments, quiz modules, courseworks, and most importantly lecture and practical lesson materials are available in Russian, French, and English.

Entrance tests and quizzes which are taken by students through the MOODLE online resource help to determine the students' theory and practical levels of preparation. This will aid the creation of an individual student study map which will be graded by how difficult a subject is for a specific student.

It should be noted that, the lectures are given in lecture halls in a multimedia format using this MOODLE resource directly from the internet. This allows the students to follow the lecture on the classroom screen or on their personal computers and smart phones via the internet from their seats. In the case where they need to verify or confirm something from the lecture materials, they can use the Russian-English-French versions of this MOODLE resource at any convenient time.

Increased practical learning efficiency can be achieved using methods as that of Multipolar Educational System [2]. The central core of the above mentioned multipolar system is a team made up of 2-3 people with an international composition. Each team has leaders and followers. One of the main tasks of the team leaders is to mentor and offer consultation to the followers, share with the teachers their roles and gain the teaching competence.

The task of the teacher is to set up partner relationships between the subjects of the system, control inter-team interactions, create a conducive psycho-emotional atmosphere, and form a more positive motivation in students to improve their IT-competences. The teacher, during the learning process, continuously monitors the incoming afferent responses from the students. In a case where the degree of training and individual characteristics of a student do not allow him or her to execute the assignments at the same level as the rest of the team members, he or she is put on an active supervision mode; it means this student does not carry out the computer assignments, but monitors and remember how these tasks are carried out by the other members of the team. This student is given further training following the personalized study map.

With this approach, unbalanced situations are not observed, there is no discomfort in the study of the discipline but rather, there is a feeling of moral satisfaction and even pleasure in the whole learning process. This is the psycho-physiological basis, a necessary condition for the attainment of positive results in activities.

This method of teaching is consistent with the systemic approach developed by the P.K. Anokhin Institute of Normal Physiology [3].

Group work for students is a very important experience, as the ability to work in teams, to set goals, to think rationally, to apportion tasks between group members and to make effective decisions are very important for medical doctors in attaining professional competencies.

A survey carried out among first year dentistry students to evaluate teamwork methods and international interactions showed the following results: 88.7 % of students stated that teamwork contributed to a better performance of practical assignments, and only two students (from 71 respondents) expressed a preference for individual work.

40 % of the 60 Russian student respondents wished to work in international teams, while a third of Russian students chose the teams consisting only of Russian citizens. On the other hand, almost all foreign students wished to work in international teams.

Up to 20 % of Russian students initially had a negative attitude towards working in international teams, but with time, they have adapted to an international learning environment, which eventually leads to the establishment of partnership and friendly relations.

One of the ways of raising the level of motivation towards education using this teamwork method is a joint defense of coursework. The final results of the coursework’s assignments are presented by the foreign member in the team, and all the other members express keen interest to his skills because his score will be recorded as the score for the whole team.

Learning in international groups helps in the growth of communicational culture of students, tolerance and cross-cultural interactions. Furthermore, it helps in sharing and joining intellectual resources for great results and it also aids in effective understanding of academic materials. Also, foreign students sharpen their language skills in expressing themselves in Russian whilst the Russian students raise up their skills in foreign languages for instance French, English and even Arabic. Most often friendly international relations established in the teams are reserved in the subsequent years of study.

A longitudinal research of the academic performance of foreign students showed that before the implementation of the Multipolar Educational System method – 42 % students got unsatisfactory grades, after its implementation, their success rates shot up. Unsatisfactory marks became a thing for persistent absentees and students without any motivation to study. In this case, we can say these students are experiencing an adaptation failure.

This is in line with the basic provisions of the previously deduced "success model" [4] which establishes that, the result of the educational activity of a student depends greatly on their level of motivation, psycho-physiological and individual statuses, and on a lesser degree on the physiological support of these activities.

In conclusion, we realized that, the innovative model of studies, based on the use of the Distance Education MOODLE technologies and personalized map studies, improves absorption of educational materials, enables access to the course content and test assignments at a convenient time from any internet platform. Putting students in a team-based Multipolar Educational environment allows them to unite with other students and use mutual aid arrangements to develop tolerance and international competence. Additionally, teamwork leads to a speedy adaptation of students to the educational process and the formation of professional and IT competences.

1. Бадиков В. И., Быкова Е. В., Климина Н. В. Теория функциональных систем П. К. Анохина в изучении психофизиологических показателей результативной деятельности студентов // Вестник РАМН. – 1997. – № 12. – С. 45–49.

2. Залилов Р.Ю., Вебер В.Р., Лебедева Н.А. Последипломная подготовка врача общей практики в медико-кибернетической области и информационных технологиях. // Вестник Российского Университета Дружбы Народов, Серия «Медицина», №2, 2009 – С. 15-20.

3. Судаков К. В. Индивидуальная устойчивость к эмоциональному стрессу. – М.: Горизонт, 1998. – 267 с.

4. Залилов Р.Ю. Построение "модели успешности" результативной деятельности студентов с применением компьютерных и статистических технологий // Информационно-образовательные технологии в медицине, В. Новгород, 2002 – С. 57-63.