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THE ROLE OF HUMANITIES KNOWLEDGE IN THE CONTINUOUS EDUCATION SYSTEM
T.T. Evseeva
Among other things, the Law "On Education in the Russian Federation" contains a tenet about creating conditions for personal self-realization and selfdetermination. Without a system of humanities knowledge, it is impossible for a person to build up his or her world view, or to understand his or her place, tasks and goals. Traditionally, the humanities are aimed at interpreting the inner man, his or her behavior, culture, and society. The humanitarian aspect of education has acquired a special significance today. The world is changing rapidly, the speed of these changes grows exponentially, and people have adapted to those changes, both as personalities and as specialists. In order to make it possible, it is necessary to lay a solid foundation of the humanities on whose basis a person can develop and improve him- or herself on a permanent basis. In-depth study of such sciences as philosophy and cultural studies must become the foundation for permanent selfdevelopment, as the stimulus for one's self-realization in society is not only on the career level, but also exists in respect of one's conscious political and social stance. This is the condition for building civil society, and for forming democratic institutions within the social medium.
No matter who a person is: an engineer, a manager, a programmer - society requires that he or she take an active role in social life, and have an active social stance. This is the basis for the stability and successful development of the state. The purpose of humanities education is to ensure that every person is included in a sphere of social life. Humanitarization must lay the foundation for permanent selfeducation, to form the demand for this, and real potential on the level of world views and methodology.
The concept of permanent education does not have an exact definition to this day. Most authors concur that the concept does not reflect long-standing realities, but rather the idea of the goals of modern education, of the ways to change educational practice for the better so that it would correspond to a person's interests at various stages of life, and in various spheres of personal realization. On one hand, the concept of continuous education reflects the multistage nature of knowledge acquisition. On the other hand, it points out the integrity of education, the existing need for permanent self-improvement and knowledge acquisition, and for the permanent enrichment of a person's spiritual world. Let us indicate the factors that cause the educational process to be continuous. (a) educational level enhancement with the purpose of improving one's competitiveness in the job market; (b) expansion of the services sphere, presupposing the need for interpersonal communication skills; (c) understanding the global problems of the present day and the necessity of their solutions; (d) the need for professionals who, apart from their dedicated knowledge, have for example, a good command of foreign languages; (d) a growing share of production facilities connected with information technologies; (d) augmentation of intercultural and international ties: the existence of a large number of transnational corporations, and cooperation with
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foreign firms. This list is far from complete; however, it reflects the main tendencies of changes in the economic sphere.
The humanitarization of education, allowing a professional to aim at continuous education, becomes a necessary requirement. Continuous education is a precondition of a professional's competency. During the last years of the realization of the concept of continuous education, several programs and projects took shape. The best known and most significant one for Russia is the Bologna process; participation in it is necessary for our country in order to improve the status of the Russian educational system, and the demand for it both in our country and abroad. In connection with this, it is necessary to perform adjustments in accordance with the Bologna process requirements in the humanities education system as well, with due regard for Russian national traditions. The tasks set by the Bologna Process presume the augmentation of higher educational institutions’ graduates' ability to find jobs in the territory of the European Union, as well as enhancing its citizens' horizontal mobility, and improve the status value of European education in the situation of increased competition, first of all, with corporate universities. Besides, it is also meant to switch students' preferences from the Asian markets in favor of Russia, Ukraine and a number of other countries in this region. The Bologna process envisages: (1) the creation of a system of comparable higher professional education degrees; (2) the introduction of a two-stage higher education system under which first-stage graduates will be recognized at the European level as having sufficient skill levels (the level of a bachelor's degree); (3) the adoption of a system of student loans and stimulating students, teachers, researchers and education managers within the European educational environment.
The solution to the problem of Russia becoming a part of the world educational environment brings into focus the issues of relationships between professional and general education, as well as those of the content of higher professional education. The main problem with reforming the higher professional education system existing in the country to cater to the needs of both the Russian and European job markets, is the fact that the balance between general and professional education that came into being during the past decades has been upset in the favor of the narrow professionalism which is in demand today. This can be viewed as a necessary cost of maintaining national economy in a competitive state. Orientation towards both the domestic and European job markets will entail cutting compulsory general education class hours, including lectures; this will inevitably have an impact on the quality of education, although the opportunities for self-directed, interactive learning will be increased. One of the aspects of our country's becoming a part of the world educational environment is the possibility of turning higher educational institutions into open educational centers for the most diverse social strata. This will entail a substantial alteration of the principles of the educational activities’ management and organization. The question: "For whom are universities intended, the most successful school graduates or for people from all social strata?" becomes relevant again.
The modernization of the Russian education being underway at present means a greater concentration of the knowledge acquisition process itself. The possibility of getting new knowledge enriches a person's world. Now, the
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disciplines that were earlier considered as supplementary, accessory ones, have taken on a new meaning. Social sciences and humanities arm a modern professional with such necessary knowledge as business rhetoric, professionally oriented psychology, and ethics. These skills help a higher school graduate to become a successful professional with fewer problems, and they help one's career growth.
The well-known social philosopher Pierre Bourdieu used the concept of "cultural capital" - that is, cultural and linguistic competence. It is acquired in the process of studying humanities that engender a need for reading books, attending theaters and museums, and interest in cross-cultural communication. In connection with the things said above, it is very important to bring the following to attention: Humanities in the narrow sense of the word allows one to get specific knowledge that is necessary for a professional in the field of humanities, and useful for other specialists. But the complex of humanities in the broad sense allows one to acquire intellectual, legal and political competence apart from skills and abilities. Society requires a graduate professional to have three kind of competence: Firstly, a social one: the ability to act in the society; secondly, a communicative one, connected with the realization of efficient communication; and thirdly, a substantive one, directed at the ability to analyze and act from the standpoint of culture. As well as dedicated knowledge and abilities, this set of competences is also in demand.
Thus, the social environment requires a specialist to be culturally competent, and the specialist is ought to have this set of competences in order to be a successful and highly-paid professional. The enhancement of the social and humanities complex in the system of education will allow a higher school graduate to have the necessary stock of knowledge that will permit him or her to be in demand in the job market thanks to his/her being involved in the process of permanent self-education.
Translated from Russian by Znanije Central Translations Bureau
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