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THE ROLE OF CONSTANT EDUCATION IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE INNOVATION ECONOMY
O. L. Petrenko
At present, Russia is dealing with the task of "innovation-renovation.” A part of this task is the development of the innovation economy, which is often referred to as the knowledge economy or the intellectual economy. It is ongoing, for the innovation economy means that its improvement is mainly carried out by means of generating new knowledge, human intellect and the development of information technologies, not only the development of the means of material production [4].
Among the aspects of the formation of the innovation economy is a growth of volume of knowledge and, subsequently, a growth in the complexity of the tasks connected with knowledge accumulation and knowledge transfer, which is already a part of education. We should note that in the context of the task of "innovation -renovation,” the range of knowledge to be taught is much broader than the skills set and knowledge base associated with traditional scientific and engineering curricula. An inability to train specialists required for further technical, social and economic progress has become one of the most serious and formidable causes of the emerging crisis. In the modern world, according to the Education Committee of the European Council, there are a number of factors exacerbating the discrepancy between the possibilities of educational establishments and the requirements of the society. Among these factors are: a) the accelerated growth of technologies and their fast penetration into daily life, leading to an inability to predict the skills set and knowledge base that today's young people will need in 10-15 years; b) the fast change of the geographical location of the sources of economic growth, which makes it necessary to maintain high labor-market mobility and the ability of its participants to effectively change occupation in order to avoid, with minimal losses, any consequences of numerous social and economic micro-crises; c) the deep layers of population involved in global economic processes and the necessity of providing highly mobile specialists is growing; d) unequal income distribution, widening gaps between the representatives of the formerly similar social strata because of migration processes and technical development to a different extent [3].
A method of solving these problems is the provision of constant education. The idea of constant education was shown to be effective at the Lisbon summit (March 2000). Successful transition to the knowledge-based
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economy and society, should be supported by constant education, or "lifelong learning.” The concept of constant education becomes the basic principle of the educational system and human participation in it. A less well-known term is "lifewide learning”, which underlines not only the continuity of the educational process, but also the variety of its forms -formal, non-formal and informal [2]. An acceptance of non-formal and informal educational models and a recognition of their roles in modern life indicates that such forms of education are appropriate to the tasks of the modern society, in particular, to the tasks of the development of an innovation economy. However, we must not think that non-formal and informal educational processes emerge and develop on their own and that they don't need organization, planning or support. The experience of using of these forms in real social and economic structures has to be learned and summarized for the effective development of these educational forms and for their further distribution to succeed. Besides, new methods of applying positive experiences, i.e. the procedures that allow for effective use of these forms of education, have to be developed.
Russia has experience of setting up different forms of constant education that can be successfully used today. A conceptual basis for innovation education can be taken from a principle enunciated in the late-1950s by Academician M. A. Lavrentyev: "science - people - production” (the famous formula known as "Lavrentyev’s triangle”) [1]. The essence of this principle is the following: teaching is carried out in the process of new knowledge creation by means of integrating scientific research, the educational process and production, and in order to provide practical application of the received knowledge. We should remember that in a triangle, each of the corners is connected to the other two. In "Lavrentyev’s triangle” these connections mean that science sets the tasks, which are important for practical purposes, and estimates results from a practical point of view, while people are educated in the process of scientific research for the needs of practice and, subsequently, the criteria of success in education are not primarily based on the results of study in theoretical courses from a curriculum, but mostly on the significance of a student’s contribution to real scientific and manufacturing activities.
A good example of the realization of constant education in a scientific institution can be found in the "system of the Institute of Physics and Technology” developed in the late-1940s and the beginning of the 1950s. In the framework of the system, students, starting from the fourth course, continued their studies in a practical manner with teams from the scientific and manufacturing organizations that constituted the departments of the
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Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology. In the course of this work they obtained practical skills in their specialty as well as some social and communicative skills, due to which by the end of their studies they had become competent specialists, able to work effectively in teams on a common task. We should note that generally the Russian system of higher education doesn’t help students to obtain such skills and they need to continue their studies after the graduation.
Such an educational system creates a strong motive for further lifelong learning with usage of different forms and methods apart from those found in educational establishments. Moreover, people do not perceive it as learning out of necessity, but as a normal part of life in the modern world.
References
1. Добрецов Н. Л. Треугольник Лаврентьева: принципы организации науки в Сибири // Вестник РАН. - Т. 71. - № 5. - М., 2001. - С. 428-436.
2. Меморандум непрерывного образования Европейского союза // URL:http://www.znanie.org/docs/memorandum.html .
3. Петренко А. К., Петренко О. Л., Кулямин В. В. Роль научных организаций в подготовке ИТ-специалистов: труды ИСП РАН. - Т.15. -
М., 2008. - С. 41-49.
4. Цветков В. А., Моргунов Е. В., Илларионов Н. В. Инновационная экономика как форма постиндустриального развития // Промышленная политика Российской Федерации. - 2008. - № 1. - С. 24-40.
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