Handbook Of Research On Engineering Education In A Global Context 1522533958, 9781522533955, 1522533966, 9781522533962

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Handbook Of Research On Engineering Education In A Global Context
 1522533958,  9781522533955,  1522533966,  9781522533962

Table of contents :
Title Page......Page 2
Copyright Page......Page 3
Book Series......Page 4
Editorial Advisory Board......Page 6
List of Contributors......Page 8
Table of Contents......Page 12
Detailed Table of Contents......Page 20
Foreword......Page 37
Preface......Page 39
Acknowledgment......Page 47
Section 1: The Global Context......Page 48
Chapter 1: Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education......Page 49
Chapter 2: Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University......Page 57
Chapter 3: Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy......Page 70
Chapter 4: Engineers for Industry......Page 83
Section 2: Quality and Standards......Page 94
Chapter 5: The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities' Student Choice......Page 95
Chapter 6: Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees in Bologna Countries......Page 104
Chapter 7: Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards......Page 118
Chapter 8: CDIO Standards Implementation and Further Development in Russia......Page 128
Chapter 9: The Implementation of Modern Information Technologies in Educational Fields......Page 137
Chapter 10: Concept of Automated Support to Problem......Page 149
Chapter 11: CSRP......Page 163
Chapter 12: The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality......Page 174
Chapter 13: An Approach to Improvement of Master's and PhD Studies in Data Processing and Management Systems......Page 186
Chapter 14: Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University......Page 202
Section 3: Innovation in Engineering Education......Page 213
Chapter 15: Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education......Page 214
Chapter 16: The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education......Page 224
Chapter 17: A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses......Page 236
Chapter 18: Application of Interactive Technologies in Engineering Education in the Research University......Page 246
Chapter 19: The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center......Page 255
Chapter 20: Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties......Page 270
Chapter 21: The Use of Active Learning in Biotechnical Engineering Education......Page 281
Chapter 22: The Significance of Interdisciplinary Projects in Becoming a Research Engineer......Page 291
Chapter 23: Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation......Page 302
Section 4: Communication in Learning......Page 321
Chapter 24: New Trends in Teaching English at a Russian Technical University......Page 322
Chapter 25: Content- and Language-Integrated Learning......Page 333
Chapter 26: Developing Engineering Students' Language Skills......Page 344
Section 5: Technology-Enhanced Learning......Page 358
Chapter 27: Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies......Page 359
Chapter 28: Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research......Page 379
Chapter 29: The Concept of Teaching Course on Intelligent Information Systems......Page 394
Chapter 30: The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies......Page 406
Chapter 31: Development of Digital Game Environments Stimulating Creativity in Engineering Education......Page 416
Chapter 32: Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines......Page 427
Chapter 33: Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering Training......Page 438
Chapter 34: Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems......Page 452
Chapter 35: Integration of Moodle and Electronic University Systems at BMSTU......Page 466
Chapter 36: A Synthesis of Training Systems to Promote the Development of Engineering Competences......Page 478
Section 6: Employability and Entrepreneurship......Page 491
Chapter 37: The Elite Engineering Education System......Page 492
Chapter 38: Identifying Students' Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment......Page 501
Chapter 39: Conceptual Principles of Engineering Education Based on Evolutional-Activity Approach......Page 511
Chapter 40: Flexible Educational Program for Managerial Engineering Personnel in Innovation......Page 525
Chapter 41: Monitoring of Staffing Nanoindustry......Page 536
Chapter 42: Intense Training of Bachelors......Page 549
Chapter 43: Technology Entrepreneurship in the Concept of Development of the Innovative System of a Technical University......Page 563
Chapter 44: Special Role of the Entrepreneurial Education for the Development of Innovation Potential of Regions Through Small and Medium Enterprises......Page 572
Chapter 45: Disability and Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics......Page 581
Compilation of References......Page 592
About the Contributors......Page 635
Index......Page 653

Citation preview

Handbook of Research on Engineering Education in a Global Context Elena V. Smirnova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Robin P. Clark University of Warwick, UK

A volume in the Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) Book Series

Published in the United States of America by IGI Global Information Science Reference (an imprint of IGI Global) 701 E. Chocolate Avenue Hershey PA, USA 17033 Tel: 717-533-8845 Fax: 717-533-8661 E-mail: [email protected] Web site: http://www.igi-global.com Copyright © 2019 by IGI Global. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without written permission from the publisher. Product or company names used in this set are for identification purposes only. Inclusion of the names of the products or companies does not indicate a claim of ownership by IGI Global of the trademark or registered trademark. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Smirnova, Elena V., 1954- editor. | Clark, Robin P., 1964- editor. Title: Handbook of research on engineering education in a global context / Elena V. Smirnova and Robin P. Clark, editors. Description: Hershey, PA : Information Science Reference, [2017] | Includes bibliographical references. Identifiers: LCCN 2017016128| ISBN 9781522533955 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781522533962 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Engineering--Study and teaching. Classification: LCC T65 .H234 2017 | DDC 620.0071--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017016128

This book is published in the IGI Global book series Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) (ISSN: 2327-6983; eISSN: 2327-6991) British Cataloguing in Publication Data A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book is available from the British Library. All work contributed to this book is new, previously-unpublished material. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, but not necessarily of the publisher. For electronic access to this publication, please contact: [email protected].

Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) Book Series Jared Keengwe University of North Dakota, USA

ISSN:2327-6983 EISSN:2327-6991 Mission

As world economies continue to shift and change in response to global financial situations, job markets have begun to demand a more highly-skilled workforce. In many industries a college degree is the minimum requirement and further educational development is expected to advance. With these current trends in mind, the Advances in Higher Education & Professional Development (AHEPD) Book Series provides an outlet for researchers and academics to publish their research in these areas and to distribute these works to practitioners and other researchers. AHEPD encompasses all research dealing with higher education pedagogy, development, and curriculum design, as well as all areas of professional development, regardless of focus.

Coverage • Adult Education • Assessment in Higher Education • Career Training • Coaching and Mentoring • Continuing Professional Development • Governance in Higher Education • Higher Education Policy • Pedagogy of Teaching Higher Education • Vocational Education

IGI Global is currently accepting manuscripts for publication within this series. To submit a proposal for a volume in this series, please contact our Acquisition Editors at [email protected] or visit: http://www.igi-global.com/publish/.

The Advances in Higher Education and Professional Development (AHEPD) Book Series (ISSN 2327-6983) is published by IGI Global, 701 E. Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA 17033-1240, USA, www.igi-global.com. This series is composed of titles available for purchase individually; each title is edited to be contextually exclusive from any other title within the series. For pricing and ordering information please visit http://www.igi-global.com/book-series/advances-higher-education-professional-development/73681. Postmaster: Send all address changes to above address. Copyright © 2019 IGI Global. All rights, including translation in other languages reserved by the publisher. No part of this series may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means – graphics, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or information and retrieval systems – without written permission from the publisher, except for non commercial, educational use, including classroom teaching purposes. The views expressed in this series are those of the authors, but not necessarily of IGI Global.

Titles in this Series

For a list of additional titles in this series, please visit: www.igi-global.com/book-series

Handbook of Research on Media Literacy in Higher Education Environments Jayne Cubbage (Bowie State University, USA) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 396pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522540595) • US $255.00 (our price) Changing Urban Landscapes Through Public Higher Education Anika Spratley Burtin (University of the District of Columbia, USA) Jeffery S. Fleming (University of the District of Columbia, USA) and Pamela Hampton-Garland (University of the District of Columbia, USA) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 301pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522534549) • US $175.00 (our price) Preparing the Next Generation of Teachers for 21st Century Education Siew Fun Tang (Curtin University, Malaysia) and Chee Leong Lim (Taylor’s University, Malaysia) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 377pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522540809) • US $210.00 (our price) Promoting Ethnic Diversity and Multiculturalism in Higher Education Barbara Blummer (Center for Computing Sciences, USA) Jeffrey M. Kenton (Towson University, USA) and Michael Wiatrowski (Independent Researcher, USA) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 309pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522540977) • US $185.00 (our price) Innovative Practices in Teacher Preparation and Graduate-Level Teacher Education Programs Drew Polly (University of North Carolina - Charlotte, USA) Michael Putman (University of North Carolina Charlotte, USA) Teresa M. Petty (University of North Carolina - Charlotte, USA) and Amy J. Good (University of North Carolina - Charlotte, USA) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 720pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522530688) • US $275.00 (our price) Critical Assessment and Strategies for Increased Student Retention Ruth Claire Black (Imperial College London, UK) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 352pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522529989) • US $195.00 (our price) Strategic Learning Ideologies in Prison Education Programs Idowu Biao (University of Botswana, Botswana) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 307pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522529095) • US $195.00 (our price) Advocacy in Academia and the Role of Teacher Preparation Programs Ursula Thomas (Georgia State University, USA) Information Science Reference • copyright 2018 • 375pp • H/C (ISBN: 9781522529064) • US $195.00 (our price)

701 East Chocolate Avenue, Hershey, PA 17033, USA Tel: 717-533-8845 x100 • Fax: 717-533-8661 E-Mail: [email protected] • www.igi-global.com

Editorial Advisory Board Alexander I. Chuchalin, Tomsk Polytechnik University, Russia Xiaoli Ding, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China Gurgen Khachatrian, American University of Armenia, Armenia Obeyesekera Hemachandra Leelanath, International Tertiary Education (INTEC Asia) Campus, Sri Lanka Toyoharu Nawa, Hokkaido University, Japan Arun Patil, Deakin Engineering Education Research, Australia Peter Willmot, Loughborough University, UK Amanda F. Wu, Science and Engineering Institute (SCIEI), USA

List of Reviewers Ilya Abanin, IBM, Russia Alexander Afanasyev, Florida International University, USA Yury Bauman, Bauman State Technical University, Russia Sergey Belov, IBM, Russia Denis Borovikov, SoundCloud Limited, Germany Amine Dhraief, University of Manouba, Tunisia Oleg Eremin, ENSISA, France Denis Gladkov, Facebook Inc., USA Alexey Golovin, Dell EMC, Russia Yuriy Gritsenko, Tomsk State University of Control Systems and Radioelectronics, Russia Mikhail Guskov, Grand Ecole, France Alexander A. Kostyrko, Russian Railways Company, Russia Alexander S. Kostyrko, Rosoboronexport, Russia Michael Krasovskii, 1&1 Internet Co., Germany Ivan Maslov, PwC, Russia Vladimir Podolskiy, Technical University of Munich, Germany Rimma Shafikova, VGW, Australia Natalya Shmakova, Hokkaido University, Japan





Mikhail Shpak, New York University, USA Dmitry Stroganov, Moscow Polytechnic University, Russia Ivan Svirin, Intersectoral Bureau of Automation, Russia Igor Titov, Labicom Co., Russia Yuanqing Xia, Beijing Institute of Technology, China Anna Yakimets, KULeuven, Belgium Margarita Zharova, Radio Station Mayak, Russia

List of Contributors

Abrashkina, Irina / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia............................................................... 444 Aleksandrov, Anatoly A. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................ 89 Alekseev, Konstantin Pavlovich / National Research Nuclear University, Russia............................ 390 Alimov, Alexander / Volgograd State Technical University, Russia................................................. 368 Alyavdina, Natalia / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia....................................... 274 Andreev, Ark M. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................... 311,331 Andrews, Jane / Aston University, UK................................................................................................ 35 Baklikov, Vitaliy / Optimal Management LLC, UK.......................................................................... 138 Baryshev, Gennady Konstantinovich / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia............. 70,198 Berestov, Aleksandr Vasilyevich / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia..................... 70,198 Berezkin, Dmitry Valeryevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia..................... 311 Biryukov, Aleksandr Pavlovich / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia.............................. 70 Bloshenko, Tatiana Alekseevna / Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia......................................................................................................................... 222 Borisov, Sergey / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................................ 524 Borodkin, Artem / National Research University “MPEI”, Russia................................................. 358 Bozhko, Yuri Valentinovich / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia.................................. 198 Brechner, Miguel / Centro Ceibal University, Uruguay..................................................................... 22 Buldakova, Tatyana I. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................................. 243 Byrkin, Victor A. / National Research Nuclear University, Russia................................................... 488 Chernenkiy, Valeriy M. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................... 346 Chernikov, Alexander Sergeevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............... 418 Chibisov, Alexander Alexandrovich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia........... 418 Chistyakova, Tamara Balabekovna / Saint-Petersburg State Institute of Technology, Russia......... 430 Chuchalin, Alexander I. / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia........................................................ 80 Clark, Robin / University of Warwick, UK.......................................................................................... 35 Daneykin, Yury / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia................................................................... 444 Dotsenko, Olga Alexandrovna / Tomsk State University, Russia...................................................... 176 Dubkov, Michael Victorovich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia....... 501 Eliseev, Vladimir / National Research University “MPEI”, Russia................................................. 358 Fedorenko, Yuriy S. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia..................................... 346 Fell, Elena Vladimirovna / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia.................................................... 533 Filaretov, Gennady / National Research University “MPEI”, Russia.............................................. 358 Filosova, Elena Ivanovna / Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia.................................... 115 Gapanyuk, Yuriy E. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia..................................... 346 



Grekhov, Alexey M. / A. V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russia........................... 488 Grekhov, Maxim M. / National Research Nuclear University, Russia.............................................. 488 Gurenko, Vladimir / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia...................................... 254 Gusev, Juan Carlos Gonzalez / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia..................... 346 Gynnild, Vidar / Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway...................................... 1 Hanley, Gerard L. / California State University, USA....................................................................... 390 Ilyukhin, Aleksey Nikolayevich / Kazan Federal University, Russia................................................ 404 Jammoul, Samih M. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia..................................... 331 Juravleva, Ludmila Vasilievna / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................... 101 Kalistratov, Alexey Pavlovich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia...................... 379 Kapilevich, Leonid Vladimirovich / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia.......................................................................................................................... 533 Kassinopoulos, Marios Evangelos / Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus................................. 56 Khachatrian, Gurgen / American University of Armenia, Armenia................................................. 254 Kholomina, Tatiana / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia..................................... 453 Kireyeva, Alena Fedorovna / Belarus State Economic University, Belarus...................................... 222 Kirsanova, Galina V. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russian.................................. 285 Kiyasov, Nurlan Muratovich / National University of Science and Technology MISiS, Russia....... 390 Kochetkova, Tatiana Dmitrievna / Tomsk State University, Russia.................................................. 176 Kolesenkov, Aleksandr / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia................................ 126 Konashenkova, Nadezhda Aleksandrovna / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia.......... 198 Kostrov, Boris Vasilevich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia.............. 501 Kozlov, Ilya Andreyevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................. 311 Kucherov, Kirill / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia........................................... 254 Kurovskaja, Julia / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia........................................ 296 Kuzenkov, Oleg / Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia................................. 166 Kuzovlev, Viatcheslav Ivanovich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................. 379 Lakhvich, Dmitry S. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................................... 138 Lazarev, Vladimir A. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................... 285 Leontyeva, Elena Gennagyevna / Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain............................... 176 Likhomanova, Polina A. / National Research Nuclear University, Russia........................................ 488 Loginov, Alexander Anatolich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia..... 501 Lukianova, Natalia Aleksandrovna / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia.......................................................................................................................... 533 Malakhov, Andrey Anatiljevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................. 453 Maltseva, Anna / Tver State University, Russia................................................................................. 477 Margaryan, Tatiana / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................................... 274 Martynov, Vitaly Vladimirovich / Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia........................ 115 Moffat, David C. / Glasgow Caledonian University, UK................................................................... 368 Muratov, Evgeniy Rashitovich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia..... 501 Nawa, Toyoharu / Hokkaido University, Japan..................................................................................... 9 Nesterenko, Vladimir M. / Samara State Technical University, Russia............................................ 463 Neusypin, Konstantin A. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia......................... 89,207 Nikiforov, Michael Borisovich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia..... 501 Novikov, Anatoly Ivanovich / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia.......... 501



Odselmaa, Dorjsuren / Mongolian University Science and Technology, Mongolia......................... 188 Pesoshin, Valery Andreevich / Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia.................. 404 Pilyugina, Anna / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia........................................... 515 Platonov, Valeriy Nikolaevich / A. M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia............................................................................................................................. 390 Ponkratov, Vadim Vitalievich / Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia......................................................................................................................... 222 Pozdnyaev, Andrey Sergeevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................... 222 Proletarsky, Andrey V. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia........................... 89,207 Revunkov, Georgiy I. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................... 346 Rodko, Ilya Igorevich / Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia.............................................. 70 Romanova, Tatiana Nikolaevna / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................. 188 Sakál, Peter / Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Slovakia............................................ 115 Saubanov, Ruslan Rashitovich / Kazan Federal University, Russia................................................. 404 Saubanov, Ruzil Rashitovich / Kazan Federal University, Russia.................................................... 404 Semkin, Pyotr Stepanovich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia......................... 379 Serebraykova, Evgeniya / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia..................................................... 444 Seyed, Alireza Aghvami / Payame Noor University, Iran.................................................................. 358 Shabalina, Olga / Volgograd State Technical University, Russia...................................................... 368 Shakhnov, Vadim Anatolievich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................... 101 Shen, Kai / Beijing Institute of Technology, China....................................................................... 89,207 Shouman, Marwa Ahmed / Menofiya University, Egypt................................................................... 311 Skuratov, Alexey / Directorate of Scientific and Technical Programs, Russia.................................. 115 Smirnova, Elena / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................... 254,453 Soldatenko, Ilia / Tver State University, Russia................................................................................. 166 Soloviev, Mikhail / Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia................................................................ 444 Stojanovic, Radovan / University of Montenegro, Montenegro........................................................ 501 Sukhobokov, Andrey V. / Optimal Management LLC, Russia.......................................................... 138 Sukhobokov, Artem A. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................ 138 Suyatinov, Sergey I. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................... 233,243 Syuzev, Vladimir V. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................... 254,331 Taganov, Aleksandr / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia..................................... 126 Tarasov, Dmitry / Montenegrin Association for New Technologies (MANT), Montenegro.............. 501 Terekhov, Valery I. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia....................................... 346 Tikhonov, Ilya V. / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.......................................... 138 Tsibizova, Tatiana / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia....................................... 154 Vasiliev, Oleg S. / National Research Nuclear University, Russia...................................................... 488 Vishnevskaya, Tatiana Ivanovna / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................ 188 Vishnyakov, Nikolay / Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia..................................... 453 Vlasov, Andrey Igorevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia............................ 101 Vlasova, Vita / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia................................................ 515 Willmot, Peter / Loughborough University, UK................................................................................ 453 Yagudina, Liliya Ravilevna / Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia....................... 47 Yazenin, Alexander / Tver State University, Russia.......................................................................... 166



Zagidullin, Ravil Shamilievich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................... 418 Zaikin, Sergey Igorevich / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.............................. 379 Zakharova, Irina / Tver State University, Russia.............................................................................. 166 Zakieva, Elena Shavkatovna / Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia.............................. 115 Zaytseva, Alena Alekseevna / Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia............................... 115 Zhukov, Andrey Alexandrovich / Tomsk State University, Russia.................................................... 176 Zinchenko, Lyudmila / Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia.................................... 56 Zvezdin, Valeriy Valeryevich / Kazan Federal University, Russia.................................................... 404

Table of Contents

Foreword.......................................................................................................................................... xxxvi Preface............................................................................................................................................xxxviii Acknowledgment................................................................................................................................ xlvi

Volume I Section 1 The Global Context Chapter 1 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education: A Case Study........................................................ 1 Vidar Gynnild, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway Chapter 2 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University............................... 9 Toyoharu Nawa, Hokkaido University, Japan Chapter 3 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy..................................................................... 22 Miguel Brechner, Centro Ceibal University, Uruguay Chapter 4 Engineers for Industry: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Ideas.......................................................... 35 Robin Clark, University of Warwick, UK Jane Andrews, Aston University, UK Section 2 Quality and Standards Chapter 5 The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities’ Student Choice....................................................... 47 Liliya Ravilevna Yagudina, Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia





Chapter 6 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees in Bologna Countries: Case Studies From Cyprus and Russian Federation.............................................. 56 Lyudmila Zinchenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marios Evangelos Kassinopoulos, Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus Chapter 7 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards.............................. 70 Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Pavlovich Biryukov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Ilya Igorevich Rodko, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Chapter 8 CDIO Standards Implementation and Further Development in Russia................................................. 80 Alexander I. Chuchalin, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Chapter 9 The Implementation of Modern Information Technologies in Educational Fields............................... 89 Anatoly A. Aleksandrov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Proletarsky, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen, Beijing Institute of Technology, China Chapter 10 Concept of Automated Support to Problem: Modular Vocational Training........................................ 101 Andrey Igorevich Vlasov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ludmila Vasilievna Juravleva, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vadim Anatolievich Shakhnov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 11 CSRP: System Design Technology of Training Information Support of Competent Professionals.... 115 Vitaly Vladimirovich Martynov, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Peter Sakál, Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Slovakia Alexey Skuratov, Directorate of Scientific and Technical Programs, Russia Elena Ivanovna Filosova, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Alena Alekseevna Zaytseva, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Elena Shavkatovna Zakieva, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Chapter 12 The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality......................................................... 126 Aleksandr Kolesenkov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Aleksandr Taganov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia



Chapter 13 An Approach to Improvement of Master’s and PhD Studies in Data Processing and Management Systems................................................................................................................................................ 138 Artem A. Sukhobokov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vitaliy Baklikov, Optimal Management LLC, UK Dmitry S. Lakhvich, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Sukhobokov, Optimal Management LLC, Russia Ilya V. Tikhonov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 14 Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University......................................... 154 Tatiana Tsibizova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Section 3 Innovation in Engineering Education Chapter 15 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education: Possible Solutions Based on Best Practices in European and Russian Universities.................................................................................. 166 Ilia Soldatenko, Tver State University, Russia Irina Zakharova, Tver State University, Russia Oleg Kuzenkov, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia Alexander Yazenin, Tver State University, Russia Chapter 16 The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education.... 176 Olga Alexandrovna Dotsenko, Tomsk State University, Russia Andrey Alexandrovich Zhukov, Tomsk State University, Russia Tatiana Dmitrievna Kochetkova, Tomsk State University, Russia Elena Gennagyevna Leontyeva, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain Chapter 17 A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses........... 188 Tatiana Nikolaevna Romanova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Tatiana Ivanovna Vishnevskaya, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dorjsuren Odselmaa, Mongolian University Science and Technology, Mongolia Chapter 18 Application of Interactive Technologies in Engineering Education in the Research University......... 198 Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Yuri Valentinovich Bozhko, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Nadezhda Aleksandrovna Konashenkova, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia



Chapter 19 The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center............................... 207 Andrey V. Proletarsky, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen, Beijing Institute of Technology, China Chapter 20 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties: Using the Example of Solving a Task Concerning the Processing of Technogenic Mineral Resources............................................................................................................................... 222 Vadim Vitalievich Ponkratov, Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia Andrey Sergeevich Pozdnyaev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Tatiana Alekseevna Bloshenko, Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia Alena Fedorovna Kireyeva, Belarus State Economic University, Belarus Chapter 21 The Use of Active Learning in Biotechnical Engineering Education.................................................. 233 Sergey I. Suyatinov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 22 The Significance of Interdisciplinary Projects in Becoming a Research Engineer............................. 243 Tatyana I. Buldakova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey I. Suyatinov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 23 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer  Preparation........................................................................................................................................... 254 Vladimir V. Syuzev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kirill Kucherov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir Gurenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Gurgen Khachatrian, American University of Armenia, Armenia

Volume II Section 4 Communication in Learning Chapter 24 New Trends in Teaching English at a Russian Technical University................................................... 274 Tatiana Margaryan, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Natalia Alyavdina, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia



Chapter 25 Content- and Language-Integrated Learning: A New Approach to Teaching Engineering................ 285 Galina V. Kirsanova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russian Vladimir A. Lazarev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 26 Developing Engineering Students’ Language Skills............................................................................ 296 Julia Kurovskaja, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Section 5 Technology-Enhanced Learning Chapter 27 Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies............... 311 Ilya Andreyevich Kozlov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dmitry Valeryevich Berezkin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marwa Ahmed Shouman, Menofiya University, Egypt Chapter 28 Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research: Network Traffic Analysis as an  Example............................................................................................................................................... 331 Samih M. Jammoul, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir V. Syuzev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 29 The Concept of Teaching Course on Intelligent Information Systems................................................ 346 Valeriy M. Chernenkiy, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy E. Gapanyuk, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Valery I. Terekhov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Georgiy I. Revunkov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy S. Fedorenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Juan Carlos Gonzalez Gusev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 30 The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies....... 358 Artem Borodkin, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Vladimir Eliseev, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Gennady Filaretov, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Alireza Aghvami Seyed, Payame Noor University, Iran Chapter 31 Development of Digital Game Environments Stimulating Creativity in Engineering Education....... 368 Alexander Alimov, Volgograd State Technical University, Russia Olga Shabalina, Volgograd State Technical University, Russia David C. Moffat, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK



Chapter 32 Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines..................................... 379 Alexey Pavlovich Kalistratov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey Igorevich Zaikin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Viatcheslav Ivanovich Kuzovlev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Pyotr Stepanovich Semkin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 33 Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering Training............................................................................................................................................... 390 Konstantin Pavlovich Alekseev, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Gerard L. Hanley, California State University, USA Nurlan Muratovich Kiyasov, National University of Science and Technology MISiS, Russia Valeriy Nikolaevich Platonov, A. M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia Chapter 34 Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems.......................... 404 Valery Andreevich Pesoshin, Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia Ruzil Rashitovich Saubanov, Kazan Federal University, Russia Aleksey Nikolayevich Ilyukhin, Kazan Federal University, Russia Valeriy Valeryevich Zvezdin, Kazan Federal University, Russia Ruslan Rashitovich Saubanov, Kazan Federal University, Russia Chapter 35 Integration of Moodle and Electronic University Systems at BMSTU............................................... 418 Alexander Sergeevich Chernikov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ravil Shamilievich Zagidullin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Alexander Alexandrovich Chibisov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 36 A Synthesis of Training Systems to Promote the Development of Engineering Competences........... 430 Tamara Balabekovna Chistyakova, Saint-Petersburg State Institute of Technology, Russia Section 6 Employability and Entrepreneurship Chapter 37 The Elite Engineering Education System: Developing Professional Capabilities............................... 444 Evgeniya Serebraykova, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Yury Daneykin, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Irina Abrashkina, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Mikhail Soloviev, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia



Chapter 38 Identifying Students’ Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment............................................................................................................................................ 453 Andrey Anatiljevich Malakhov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Nikolay Vishnyakov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Tatiana Kholomina, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Peter Willmot, Loughborough University, UK Chapter 39 Conceptual Principles of Engineering Education Based on Evolutional-Activity Approach.............. 463 Vladimir M. Nesterenko, Samara State Technical University, Russia Chapter 40 Flexible Educational Program for Managerial Engineering Personnel in Innovation......................... 477 Anna Maltseva, Tver State University, Russia Chapter 41 Monitoring of Staffing Nanoindustry................................................................................................... 488 Maxim M. Grekhov, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Victor A. Byrkin, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Oleg S. Vasiliev, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Polina A. Likhomanova, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Alexey M. Grekhov, A. V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russia Chapter 42 Intense Training of Bachelors: Developers of Aircraft Computer Vision Systems............................. 501 Michael Victorovich Dubkov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Evgeniy Rashitovich Muratov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Boris Vasilevich Kostrov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Alexander Anatolich Loginov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Michael Borisovich Nikiforov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Anatoly Ivanovich Novikov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Dmitry Tarasov, Montenegrin Association for New Technologies (MANT), Montenegro Radovan Stojanovic, University of Montenegro, Montenegro Chapter 43 Technology Entrepreneurship in the Concept of Development of the Innovative System of a Technical University............................................................................................................................ 515 Vita Vlasova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Anna Pilyugina, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Chapter 44 Special Role of the Entrepreneurial Education for the Development of Innovation Potential of Regions Through Small and Medium Enterprises............................................................................... 524 Sergey Borisov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia



Chapter 45 Disability and Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics................................ 533 Elena Vladimirovna Fell, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Natalia Aleksandrovna Lukianova, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia Leonid Vladimirovich Kapilevich, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia Compilation of References...............................................................................................................xlvii About the Contributors....................................................................................................................... xc Index................................................................................................................................................... cviii

Detailed Table of Contents

Foreword.......................................................................................................................................... xxxvi Preface............................................................................................................................................xxxviii Acknowledgment................................................................................................................................ xlvi

Volume I Section 1 The Global Context Chapter 1 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education: A Case Study........................................................ 1 Vidar Gynnild, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway This chapter starts out by exploring why five higher education institutions failed to meet nationally agreed criteria for the approval of their quality systems. In order to achieve this, the review panels’ reports were examined with a particular view to data analysis and data application. The reports were readily available online and represented an excellent data source for research purposes. Panels found that institutional quality reports were descriptive rather than analytical, that quality procedures were unsystematic and conclusions often missing. Unfortunately, the panels failed to come up with radically new approaches that could potentially alter that situation. Rather, the recipe seems to be more of the same, in particular student evaluation of teaching. With this as a backdrop, this study provides conceptual tools that might change the actors’ approaches and thus empower those undertaking quality reviews locally. The alternative could otherwise be sustained frustration and wasted efforts. Chapter 2 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University............................... 9 Toyoharu Nawa, Hokkaido University, Japan Institutions of higher education all over the world are facing the pressure to internationalize their operations and academic programs, to enhance its competitiveness in an international education market. The first part of this chapter presents a review of national policy to incentivize the internationalization of higher education in Japan since 1980s. The second part introduces internalization initiatives of Hokkaido University in the last decade. Under the initiative of the president, university formulated its vision of “Hokkaido University, contributing to the resolution of global issues” in the “Future Strategy 



for the 150th Anniversary of Hokkaido University,” a blueprint for drastically reforming the university. In the 2014 fiscal year, a strategy to further internationalize education, “Hokkaido Universal Campus Initiative” was chosen by MEXT for the “Top Global University Project.” The author analyzes Hokkaido University’s internationalization progress, focusing on the strengths and activities of major projects and the changes in the overall management. Chapter 3 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy..................................................................... 22 Miguel Brechner, Centro Ceibal University, Uruguay This chapter describes how the government of Uruguay believes that all children have the right to have technology at their fingertips and that all children have the right to connectivity and access to the internet, that it is as important to have electricity and running water as to have access to the internet, and that it would have a high impact on the country’s technological deployment and, obviously, on education and teaching. The parts of the chapter are concerned with the technology and pedagogy relationship: how to improve pedagogy through technology, the importance of teaching English and math online with help of education inspectors and the teachers using modern platform—virtual classrooms, books in digital format, digital technology laboratories—that allows collaborative work, work on projects, logical thinking, an online assessment system. All these integrated tools transfer to the biggest investments which the author calls “global learning network.” Chapter 4 Engineers for Industry: Challenges, Solutions, and Future Ideas.......................................................... 35 Robin Clark, University of Warwick, UK Jane Andrews, Aston University, UK The need for a reliable supply of engineering talent is accepted globally, but in many parts of the world the many challenges mean that this is not easily achieved. Even if the graduate supply is a reality, often there are concerns about the quality of the engineers entering the workforce. This chapter will explore this landscape, and after identifying the many challenges, explore solutions and potential ideas for the future of engineering education and the university/industry collaboration. Section 2 Quality and Standards Chapter 5 The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities’ Student Choice....................................................... 47 Liliya Ravilevna Yagudina, Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia On the basis of its own hypotheses and analysis of foreign studies, the author determines how the informational and motivational functions of rankings have impact on Russian universities’ student choice. The analysis of the rankings position of universities and some of their key performance indicators (the foreign students number, the quality of applicants) showed there is not any direct correlation between them. According to the author, in order to maximize the effectiveness of rankings, it is necessary to improve the ranking methodology, to develop universities’ decision-making processes based on the rankings results, and to create customer culture on the rankings results using.



Chapter 6 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees in Bologna Countries: Case Studies From Cyprus and Russian Federation.............................................. 56 Lyudmila Zinchenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marios Evangelos Kassinopoulos, Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus Academic and professional recognition of engineering degrees is an important problem in higher education and human resources mobility. The chapter presents a review of academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus and Russia. Both Russia (non-EU-member country) and Cyprus (EU-member country) are Bologna countries, use similar education curricula, and will potentially follow the qualification framework in the European Higher Education Area. However, national qualification frameworks are different. The chapter discusses the academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus. Then the Russian system of engineering degrees is explained and the academic and professional recognition approach is clarified. Case studies for both countries are outlined. A comparison of the academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus and Russia is given. Chapter 7 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards.............................. 70 Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Pavlovich Biryukov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Ilya Igorevich Rodko, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia This chapter presents prognostic analysis results concerning the changes in the engineering competence requirements. It is noted that professional competences of future experts in this field are undergoing certain changes related to the need for operating complex systems and working in a team in uncertain contexts in order to support and ensure good management throughout the entire high-tech systems life-cycle. It has been established that certain technological areas of the National Technology Initiative (NTI), which is being implemented now, are not provided with the educational training programs by the adopted Federal National Educational Standards (FNES). This chapter also focuses on the role of Worldwide CDIO Initiative international engineering standards of education in the development of new engineering competence assessment tools to enhance the national system of educational standards and includes National Research Nuclear University MEPhI’s own educational standards in higher education as an example. Chapter 8 CDIO Standards Implementation and Further Development in Russia................................................. 80 Alexander I. Chuchalin, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Russian experience in the implementation of CDIO (conceive, design, implement, operate) standards for modernization of BEng programs focused on graduate training for complex engineering activity are considered. The CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” for managers and faculty staff at Russian HEIs is described. Further development of the CDIO concept for MSc and PhD engineering programs design are discussed taking into account the priorities of innovative and research engineering activities. The FCDI (forecast, conceive, design, implement) standards focused on MSc program graduate training for innovative engineering activity and FFCD (foresight, forecast, conceive, design) standards focused on PhD program graduate training for research engineering activity are presented.



Chapter 9 The Implementation of Modern Information Technologies in Educational Fields............................... 89 Anatoly A. Aleksandrov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Proletarsky, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen, Beijing Institute of Technology, China As known to all, we are living in an information society today. Learners can acquire knowledge, skill, and ability by participating in teaching, training and learning systems. As the basis of teaching, training, and learning system, the management system is significantly important in the management of online materials and intercommunion between students and teachers. In order to construct more effective systems of management, virtual organizations should be considered with latticed structure, which can easily adapt to external environment changing and may even inspire more innovations in the fields of education. Chapter 10 Concept of Automated Support to Problem: Modular Vocational Training........................................ 101 Andrey Igorevich Vlasov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ludmila Vasilievna Juravleva, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vadim Anatolievich Shakhnov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia The chapter deals with the concept of training for technicians, able to adjust to ongoing changes in the manufacturing environment. It is proposed to apply the systematic approach with a targeted use of collected methods and acmeological planning in a learning process when extra time is found owing to interdisciplinary integration and increased self-learning. Such planning is done with crosscutting design and problem-modular training with cross-rated instruction materials and learning outcomes. Education information systems are recommended as tools (like those based on modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment according to shareable content object reference model standard) together with automated information systems for self-learning, business and role plays with methods to rate career guidance and multimedia aids as learning tools. Chapter 11 CSRP: System Design Technology of Training Information Support of Competent Professionals.... 115 Vitaly Vladimirovich Martynov, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Peter Sakál, Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Slovakia Alexey Skuratov, Directorate of Scientific and Technical Programs, Russia Elena Ivanovna Filosova, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Alena Alekseevna Zaytseva, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Elena Shavkatovna Zakieva, Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia This chapter proposes a new model of managing educational institutions’ activities to provide staffing needs: customer synchronized resource planning (CSRP). It describes a technology that rebuilds the learning process in order to reduce the time needed to prepare staff adequately with the competencies required by employers as requested by the economy sector. At present the development of an open system for the educational institution is being carried out. This system is able not only to create an educational program dynamically, which allows us to get the right number of specialists with the desired competencies in the minimum period, but also to rebuild the agency’s management system for new tasks: to generate the necessary training materials, make changes in the timetable, and rebuild the educational portal by adding new data.



Chapter 12 The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality......................................................... 126 Aleksandr Kolesenkov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Aleksandr Taganov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia The chapter has considered research and instructional methodology aspects for development of methodological, informational, and instrumental, ensuring of the education quality management system which are necessary to be taken into account in modern conditions. Mathematical bases of the geoinformation system application for monitoring of the education process realization quality have been developed. Model, method, and algorithm for quality assessment of the educational process realization in institutions have been unfolded. A way of representing some fuzzy production rules in solving application tasks of fuzzy modeling and executing the process of approximate reasoning on educational risks has been introduced. A fuzzy production system of educational risk analysis on the basis of using modified fuzzy Petri nets has been realized. Analysis of possibilities to apply suggested approaches for monitoring of institutions at various levels has been conducted. Chapter 13 An Approach to Improvement of Master’s and PhD Studies in Data Processing and Management Systems................................................................................................................................................ 138 Artem A. Sukhobokov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vitaliy Baklikov, Optimal Management LLC, UK Dmitry S. Lakhvich, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Sukhobokov, Optimal Management LLC, Russia Ilya V. Tikhonov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia To make Master’s and PhD theses more influential on the evolution of the software industry, and to make them even more effective and successful, the authors propose that they be directed towards developing cognitive systems and expanding the functionality of integrated big data platforms. Within this field, the authors propose that their themes be organized in the form of the following dual model: for each thesis that develops an emerging new cognitive component inside a core big data platform, there is another thesis that develops a corresponding cognitive component/module within the application layer that uses that component of the core big data platform. Chapter 14 Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University......................................... 154 Tatiana Tsibizova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia This chapter is about different aspects of creating university-based professionally orienting environment. Issues of students’ professional self-determination in transition from secondary education to high school are considered. The author suggests to arrange resource center as a training and research innovative complex for solution of youth’s problems with early professional orientation, their motivation, for recruitment and selection of the most prepared for further study. As a result of the center’s usability there is a developing trend towards form and direction diversity in scientific, educational, and industrial integration, growing university penetration into secondary school, and high school scientific research’s impact into industry.



Section 3 Innovation in Engineering Education Chapter 15 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education: Possible Solutions Based on Best Practices in European and Russian Universities.................................................................................. 166 Ilia Soldatenko, Tver State University, Russia Irina Zakharova, Tver State University, Russia Oleg Kuzenkov, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia Alexander Yazenin, Tver State University, Russia Engineering education tends to be more and more attractive to Russian students in response to the growing demands of the labor market in this area. However, there is a serious problem of high percentage of dropouts during first year of study in STEM courses (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) and mathematical disciplines are the most typical reason for that. This problem is addressed by international TEMPUS project MetaMath whose aim is modernization of the Russian education system in accordance with international trends and Russia’s cultural and educational traditions as well as needs of business and industry. The purpose of this chapter is to describe research results and analysis of modernization experience of educational programs based on the produced methodology. Chapter 16 The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education.... 176 Olga Alexandrovna Dotsenko, Tomsk State University, Russia Andrey Alexandrovich Zhukov, Tomsk State University, Russia Tatiana Dmitrievna Kochetkova, Tomsk State University, Russia Elena Gennagyevna Leontyeva, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain Problem-based learning takes a well-deserved place in the educational programs of leading universities in the world. Meanwhile it is known that this approach has been well developed for training students of economy and medicine. There are certain difficulties in setting targets as well as in teaching methods in basic technical subjects, in particular in the mathematical courses. The chapter presents an analysis of the peculiar features of problem-based learning in a research university for basic courses of the first two years of study. The discipline “Numerical Methods and Mathematical Modeling” is given as an example of the application of this approach. The main topics are proposed and lesson plans are provided. The information support of the courses is carried out in the learning management systems. The elements of this approach have been put into practice of training course and it was shown that the material was achieved much better. Chapter 17 A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses........... 188 Tatiana Nikolaevna Romanova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Tatiana Ivanovna Vishnevskaya, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dorjsuren Odselmaa, Mongolian University Science and Technology, Mongolia This chapter suggests a method for practicum on software engineering methodology course using a project-oriented approach. The chapter features basic organization principles of the approach and examples of methodical support for laboratory works based on these principles, and provides recommendations



on choice and use of methodologies and technologies of software engineering for the development of distributed information systems. The experience of using this technique for teaching students studying for a Master’s degree in Software Engineering in Bauman Moscow State Technical University is presented. Chapter 18 Application of Interactive Technologies in Engineering Education in the Research University......... 198 Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Yuri Valentinovich Bozhko, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Nadezhda Aleksandrovna Konashenkova, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia The chapter describes the problem of application of interactive technologies of engineering education in the contemporary world-class research university: National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI” (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute). The results of the ongoing process of transformation of engineering education in compliance with the CDIO (conceive-design-implement-operate) international and Russian federal national educational standards are discussed. The pilot projects on the modernization of engineering educational programs have demonstrated that interactive technologies are effective in fixing sustainable results of developing and monitoring the students’ project-implementational and other engineering skills. Chapter 19 The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center............................... 207 Andrey V. Proletarsky, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen, Beijing Institute of Technology, China Research directions for carrying out scientific works are presented within the Avionics Engineering Center at Bauman Moscow State Technical University. The structure of Avionics Engineering Center is illustrated and prospective areas of working are highlighted. Methods on implementation of perspective scientific research and educational programs are developed for innovative development of the Avionics Engineering Center. Symbiosis of new developed programs allows training and getting a set of better quality specialists and innovative technologies in the defense and aerospace industry. Chapter 20 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties: Using the Example of Solving a Task Concerning the Processing of Technogenic Mineral Resources............................................................................................................................... 222 Vadim Vitalievich Ponkratov, Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia Andrey Sergeevich Pozdnyaev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Tatiana Alekseevna Bloshenko, Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia Alena Fedorovna Kireyeva, Belarus State Economic University, Belarus Practice-oriented models are essential when teaching economics to engineering students. This chapter will discuss how to set and solve the applied scientific task of processing technogenic mineral reserves. Tools will be offered relating to engineering geological, economic, and mathematical sciences, as well



as to form a group of students with various specialties. Experiments will aim to find solutions to these tasks with a generalized gradient method. This chapter will use evolutionary algorithms to calculate ad valorem MET rates. Technogenic raw materials are of economic interest to extract valuable components and produce finished goods. Often, the content of valuable components in technogenic deposits (TD) exceeds the content in natural fields. While secondary mineral resources harm the ecosystem, it is impossible to prevent environmental risks due to the lack of subsoil use. Differentiated rates will be selected based on maximum MET capacity on all valuable components extracted from deposits provided that each deposit is considered an investment project for the stated problem. Chapter 21 The Use of Active Learning in Biotechnical Engineering Education.................................................. 233 Sergey I. Suyatinov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia This chapter presents information-computing complex of modular type to perform interdisciplinary laboratory work. The object of the study is a complex biosystem – the human body. Feature of informationcomputing complex is the developed hardware and software for identification and study of systems and processes. Unique biosignal sensors allow to record electrocardiograms and sphygmograms in the process of laboratory work, to realize various algorithms of digital processing of signals and to use them in the process of structural and parametrical identification of cardiovascular system. Other sensors estimate an individual’s psychophysiological state in different conditions. Thus, the student becomes the object of the research. This, undoubtedly, increases their motivation to assimilate new knowledge. Chapter 22 The Significance of Interdisciplinary Projects in Becoming a Research Engineer............................. 243 Tatyana I. Buldakova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey I. Suyatinov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia The chapter presents the importance of interdisciplinary projects for modern engineer education. The components of the educational process influencing the quality of engineer education are allocated. The importance of the “learning through research” principle is noted. Examples of projects centered on the creation of information-analytical systems in various subject domains, and also, professional tasks which were solved by students are given. The conclusion is drawn that experience in the development of systems in one area can effectively be used in the development of systems in another area. The features of the project centered on the creation of a remote monitoring system of the human state, and the protection of the transferred physiological data are considered. Chapter 23 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer  Preparation........................................................................................................................................... 254 Vladimir V. Syuzev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kirill Kucherov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir Gurenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Gurgen Khachatrian, American University of Armenia, Armenia In this chapter, a spectral method of deterministic signals simulation is proposed. The target is to solve the teaching methodological problem of individual tasks creation for students: future engineers in the field of real-time control systems’ development and research. The tasks are related to the correlation



theory. The method of simulation algorithms tuning with the help of specified spectrally correlation of signal characteristics and their parameters in the harmonic Fourier and Hartley basis is presented. To expand the set of task’s variants for the independent student self-preparation the task of signals simulation has been formulated mathematically and solved in arbitrary complex and real systems of orthogonal basic functions. The requirements have been underlined on how teacher can teach basic functions for the practical applications. During such kind of decision task, the student will be able to counts the multiplicity, precision, and computational complexity of the resulting spectral simulation algorithms.

Volume II Section 4 Communication in Learning Chapter 24 New Trends in Teaching English at a Russian Technical University................................................... 274 Tatiana Margaryan, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Natalia Alyavdina, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Today, English for specific purposes (ESP) in its various aspects is taught all over the world. In Russia, ESP is a requirement of tertiary education. Educators must develop students’ language proficiency relative to professional communication, with respect to the new Federal State Educational Standard. The academic staff of the Linguistics Department at Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) skillfully combines traditional teaching approaches and modern techniques. This chapter discusses modern trends in teaching ESP at Russian technical universities and looks into current approaches in this field. The chapter may contribute to a better understanding of primary challenges in ESP, which must be considered when implementing the Federal State Educational Standard. Chapter 25 Content- and Language-Integrated Learning: A New Approach to Teaching Engineering................ 285 Galina V. Kirsanova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russian Vladimir A. Lazarev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Content- and language-integrated learning (CLIL) has been considered from the perspective of communicative competence development in the context of teaching professionally oriented English language in a technical university. The chapter outlines the main aspects underlying CLIL and describes the experience of teaching English to students majoring in Photonics in the format of “binary” classes involving two teachers: of English and of physics of lasers. Classes have been designed for 3rd- to 4thyear students who had mastered basic linguistic-cultural communicative competences and went on to continue using English in professionally oriented situations. This way of team teaching contributes to the development of communication skills in the students’ professional area and facilitates the assimilation of curricular material by students.



Chapter 26 Developing Engineering Students’ Language Skills............................................................................ 296 Julia Kurovskaja, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia At present, language training is part and parcel of engineering education in Russia. A modern engineer must have both a communicative competence in the professional sphere and an intercultural view of the world. Accordingly, the topic of the assessment of foreign language textbooks for technical universities is highly relevant. This chapter is dedicated to this issue. The analysis of foreign language textbooks for technical universities is conducted through a cognitive-linguistic approach, using its toolkit, namely the diagnostic matrix. The diagnostic matrix is based on criteria that allow analyzing training materials, carrying out their diagnostics from the point of view of the specifics and regularities of the formation of students’ language picture of the world. This pedagogical research innovation will allow pedagogical science to effectively solve issues related to the elaboration of pedagogical semiology as a new area of pedagogical knowledge. Section 5 Technology-Enhanced Learning Chapter 27 Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies............... 311 Ilya Andreyevich Kozlov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dmitry Valeryevich Berezkin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marwa Ahmed Shouman, Menofiya University, Egypt This chapter will describe an approach to monitoring and forecasting the development of innovative educational technologies based on text stream analysis. The approach will involve detecting educationrelated events in the stream of text documents, constructing situations, determining possible scenarios of further development of situations, and generating recommendations for successful introduction of detected innovations into the educational process of the university. The authors will propose a multicriteria model of an event reflecting its key aspects. The chapter will describe an event detection method based on incremental clustering, as well as a scenario generation method based on the principle of historical analogy. The authors will discuss several experiments to evaluate the quality of the methods. Chapter 28 Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research: Network Traffic Analysis as an Example.............................................................................................................................................. 331 Samih M. Jammoul, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir V. Syuzev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Information technology and telecommunication is considered a new and quickly evolving branch of science. New technologies and services in IT and telecommunications impose successive changes and updates on related engineering majors, especially in practical qualification that includes using software facilities. This chapter aims to join the efforts to spread the use of open source software in academic education. The chapter consists of two main sections. The first presents the trend of using open source software in higher education and discusses pros and cons of using open source software in engineering education.



The second section presents network traffic analysis as an example of recent effective research topics and provides a set of open source tools to perform the research’s practical steps. The research example with the suggested tools is valid as practical lab work for telecommunication and IT-related majors. Chapter 29 The Concept of Teaching Course on Intelligent Information Systems................................................ 346 Valeriy M. Chernenkiy, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy E. Gapanyuk, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Valery I. Terekhov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Georgiy I. Revunkov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy S. Fedorenko, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Juan Carlos Gonzalez Gusev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia This chapter proposes the concept of hybrid intelligent information system (HIIS) as a “glue” concept that helps to unite disparate sections of a course on intelligent information systems. The chapter discusses a generalized structure of HIIS based on modules of consciousness and subconsciousness. The authors show that a HIIS may be implemented using a multiagent approach based on holonic organization. They provide a formalized model of metagraph and a review of methods to describe holonic agents based on the metagraph approach. Thus, a HIIS allows one to combine different approaches which are taught in a course on intelligent information systems. Chapter 30 The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies....... 358 Artem Borodkin, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Vladimir Eliseev, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Gennady Filaretov, National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Alireza Aghvami Seyed, Payame Noor University, Iran The chapter considers a task of teaching undergraduate students practical skills using artificial neural networks to solve problems of information processing and control systems. It represents and proves the methods of teaching, based on the gradual increase in the complexity of tasks to be solved by students. The developed complex of laboratory works includes classical problems and methods of their solutions, as well as original methods for solving problems of automatic control. The technology base of the laboratory works are both well-known programs and software package developed by the authors. In addition to the practical experience in the use of software packages, students obtain experience in conducting comparative studies of traditional and neural network methods for solving control problems. Chapter 31 Development of Digital Game Environments Stimulating Creativity in Engineering Education....... 368 Alexander Alimov, Volgograd State Technical University, Russia Olga Shabalina, Volgograd State Technical University, Russia David C. Moffat, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK Teaching for creativity is one of the most challenging problems in engineering education. Two approaches are mostly applied in teaching creative skills: using creative problem-solving exercises and emerging people into a creative environment for stimulating their creativity. One of the most important requirements



to creative digital environment is creativity of its non-player characters (NPC). The chapter discusses the advantages of applying a multi-agent (MA) approach to achieve creative behavior of the NPCs. The agent architecture is based on a behavior tree model, extended with three additional classes of nodes, implementing agent reactions and adaptive action planning according to agent priorities. The proposed agent architecture is implemented in a typical survival action game where all players, represented as agents, should explore the world to find resources. The assessment of the quality of agents’ behavior shows that all the agents successfully demonstrate rational and adaptive behavior in the complex dynamical environment. Chapter 32 Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines..................................... 379 Alexey Pavlovich Kalistratov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey Igorevich Zaikin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Viatcheslav Ivanovich Kuzovlev, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Pyotr Stepanovich Semkin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia The chapter reveals the issue of implementing snapshots for maintaining virtual machines used for students’ lab stands. Hence, implementing that backup/restore method means significant reduction of the amount of effort required for lab stands maintenance. The actuality of this chapter is in the increasing appliance of virtualization methods in the educational process, as it currently is not very developed due to the lack of a systematic approach to the development and application of new technologies. The object of study is the practical part of the course “Network Software” of the Department IU5 in BMSTU. The subject of research is the process of preparing a virtual stand for lab works. The purpose of research is to prove the significance of applying virtualization technologies such as using snapshots in the educational process. Chapter 33 Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering  Training................................................................................................................................................ 390 Konstantin Pavlovich Alekseev, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Gerard L. Hanley, California State University, USA Nurlan Muratovich Kiyasov, National University of Science and Technology MISiS, Russia Valeriy Nikolaevich Platonov, A. M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia This chapter considers the current state, types, and relevance of modern virtual laboratories, virtual practices, and training in higher engineering education. The four types of virtual laboratories are considering. This work also offers examples of virtual scientific and engineering processes simulation laboratories and virtual remote laboratories, virtual practices, and internship. It analyzes the experience of universities and companies in the virtual laboratories, virtual practices, and internship. Particularly interesting for online learning platforms are the virtual laboratories of edX and the National Platform for Open Education. Finally, the chapter provides recommendations on the development of shared knowledge centers for collective use of virtual installations and laboratories, on ways of remote participation in collaborative work with real unique installations, and on participation in the distributed research unique installations and data processing tools. The authors also indicate directions of the development of supportive virtual internship programs for students.



Chapter 34 Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems.......................... 404 Valery Andreevich Pesoshin, Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia Ruzil Rashitovich Saubanov, Kazan Federal University, Russia Aleksey Nikolayevich Ilyukhin, Kazan Federal University, Russia Valeriy Valeryevich Zvezdin, Kazan Federal University, Russia Ruslan Rashitovich Saubanov, Kazan Federal University, Russia The chapter reveals methodology of decision of actual task on development of the automated system of creation of tests and testing on the platform ASP.NET MVC framework for listeners of machine-building production, according to the program of the advanced training at the refresher courses for working specialties. The algorithms and architecture of the system conforming to the declared requirements are developed. The domain analysis is carried out, and also the main business processes proceeding during a full cycle of examination are considered. Chapter 35 Integration of Moodle and Electronic University Systems at BMSTU............................................... 418 Alexander Sergeevich Chernikov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ravil Shamilievich Zagidullin, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Alexander Alexandrovich Chibisov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia The free platform Moodle was integrated with protected University Administrative Information System Electronic University (UAIS EU) of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, which serves to support the administrative work for control of educational process. The following main problems were solved: creation of unified data representation in the two systems; creation of students’ and training courses’ databases in Moodle based on data from UAIS EU. As result unique software was developed, new quality of service was obtained, namely different sides of University activity such as teaching, learning, and administrative control of educational process were automated and joined together; the time required for information processing and administrative decision-making was reduced; the number of errors in the systems due to the influence of a human factor was reduced. The results obtained can be used to simplify the work of teachers and enhance the performance and operational efficiency of the administrative system at any university. Chapter 36 A Synthesis of Training Systems to Promote the Development of Engineering Competences........... 430 Tamara Balabekovna Chistyakova, Saint-Petersburg State Institute of Technology, Russia In the chapter, topical issues of development of the competence-based bilingual educational programs for training of specialists of an engineering profile, capable to solve at the international level complex scientific and technical challenges taking into account requirements of professional standards are considered. The special attention is paid to methodology of synthesis of training systems including virtual laboratories, computer simulators, and systems of imitating modeling for the practical-oriented training of specialists. The method of estimates of acquired professional competences on the basis of models of control of knowledge is offered, to implementation of scenarios and the analysis of protocols of training that allows to increase safety and efficiency of productions due to growth of qualification of personnel of industrial enterprises.



Section 6 Employability and Entrepreneurship Chapter 37 The Elite Engineering Education System: Developing Professional Capabilities............................... 444 Evgeniya Serebraykova, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Yury Daneykin, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Irina Abrashkina, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Mikhail Soloviev, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia The chapter describes the experience of complex educational environment that is based on the concept of Elite Engineering Education Programme adopted by Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU). The chapter focuses on the methods and tools that are used to improve personal, professional, and interpersonal capabilities which are considered to be necessary for modern engineers to adapt to the current volatile global technological environment. Also, it gives the statistics on the results of the students’ training. The curriculum is presented in detail. Chapter 38 Identifying Students’ Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment............................................................................................................................................ 453 Andrey Anatiljevich Malakhov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Nikolay Vishnyakov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Tatiana Kholomina, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Peter Willmot, Loughborough University, UK The chapter is devoted to the development of an analytical methodology of forming future engineers’ meta-competences (interdisciplinary, meta-creative, and meta-cognitive) when he/she works on unique scientific equipment. The authors research a hypothesis about the possibility of estimating quality of education and identifying competences in engineering courses by measurement of students’ activities as well as outcomes. An example is described of the criterion revealing during laboratory work with a scanning probe microscope “Nanoeducator.” The experiment is a part of a multifunctional scientific complex for the development and research of thin films. Results of the parameter evaluation are shown in graphs using MATLAB software. This chapter is a new direction towards discovering methods and algorithms to define and evaluate future engineers’ meta-competence. Chapter 39 Conceptual Principles of Engineering Education Based on Evolutional-Activity Approach.............. 463 Vladimir M. Nesterenko, Samara State Technical University, Russia The concept of education using an evolutional-activity approach is presented. This approach resolves the problem of continuous self-development of specialists in their professional activity. The conformity of their evolution to individual and social changing needs is supported by development of skills for reliable generation of a new valuable knowledge in the right time and in the right place of the professional space. This new knowledge becomes a basis for generation of time- and energy-effective engineering solutions, including unique ones. The novelty of the proposed approach comes from the establishment of an



axiomatic basis. The core categories of the basis are activity classes. The whole conceptual framework and fundamental laws are represented as consequences of initial axioms and postulates of the basis. This approach allows the higher education pedagogy to overcome the conceptual crisis, which resulted from the variety of existing conceptual frameworks. Chapter 40 Flexible Educational Program for Managerial Engineering Personnel in Innovation......................... 477 Anna Maltseva, Tver State University, Russia This chapter raises the issues of development of continuous education of managerial engineering personnel in industrial companies. The case of designing implementation of the additional education program for the course “Innovation Management” with flexible learning paths was considered. This case was created on the basis of the Foresight study’s results of current and future development challenges facing LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika.” The results of the survey of the audience—heads of structural enterprise’s subdivisions—were shown. They demonstrated the need for organizational learning, as well as the most appropriate forms and instruments of its implementation. Chapter 41 Monitoring of Staffing Nanoindustry................................................................................................... 488 Maxim M. Grekhov, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Victor A. Byrkin, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Oleg S. Vasiliev, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Polina A. Likhomanova, National Research Nuclear University, Russia Alexey M. Grekhov, A. V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russia Leading organizations of the national nanotechnology network (NNN) monitor staffing and develop mechanisms for coordination of educational processes of enterprises of the nanotechnology industry. To estimate the current state of training for nanotechnology industry in the leading universities of the Russian Federation, a study of their publications indexed in the Scopus database in 2012, 2014, and 2015 years in the subject area of “nano” was made. As a result of analysis, the universities, which form the background for the production of highly qualified specialists in the field of nanotechnology, were determined. Chapter 42 Intense Training of Bachelors: Developers of Aircraft Computer Vision Systems............................. 501 Michael Victorovich Dubkov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Evgeniy Rashitovich Muratov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Boris Vasilevich Kostrov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Alexander Anatolich Loginov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Michael Borisovich Nikiforov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Anatoly Ivanovich Novikov, Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (RSREU), Russia Dmitry Tarasov, Montenegrin Association for New Technologies (MANT), Montenegro Radovan Stojanovic, University of Montenegro, Montenegro Long-term practice to employ the university graduates to work in industrial enterprises as well as the analysis of the “adaptation” process of a young specialist to the production process show that during the first two years he has to learn new areas of expertise. Teaching of these disciplines within the frames



of main educational program is limited by student workload and is hardly advisable due to the narrow specifics. More detailed preparation is possible for the students enrolled in the university according to the enterprise targeting with the future specialty. The chapter considers in detail target preparation of specialists in technical vision systems for aircraft industrial enterprises. A number of original scientific results received by the authors being used in academic process are given. Chapter 43 Technology Entrepreneurship in the Concept of Development of the Innovative System of a Technical University............................................................................................................................ 515 Vita Vlasova, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Anna Pilyugina, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Issues of scientific and technological development of economy determine the need for changes to the management system in the organizations of scientific and educational services, including higher education. Scientific, technical, educational, and innovative activities of technical universities are designed to promote the development of students’ technological entrepreneurship. The chapter examines different (institutional, mental, interuniversity, etc.) student entrepreneurship development barriers. It identifies the key stakeholders (their role and motivation), in accordance with the levels of their involvement in the process of promotion of entrepreneurship in the university environment. It presents the approaches to the formation of a system of stimulation and a complex of activities, which are held at the platform of the technical university. Chapter 44 Special Role of the Entrepreneurial Education for the Development of Innovation Potential of Regions Through Small and Medium Enterprises............................................................................... 524 Sergey Borisov, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia The specificity of the situation in global economy is that the speed of technological development is very high, so it is necessary to adapt quickly to changes. The share of small and medium-sized enterprises to gross domestic product is 20% in the Russian Federation and 60-70% in Western countries. This chapter presents the results of the assessment and monitoring of the status of small and medium-sized enterprises, which has been conducted by the business community. The chapter describes the mechanism of increasing the interest of the local government in the development of small and medium-sized enterprises. Also, it highlights the special importance of relations between enterprises and universities for training, in order to meet the challenges of innovation development in the regions. The opening of the Department of Innovative Entrepreneurship at the Bauman Moscow State Technical University is a logical and actual sphere of development. Finally, the chapter introduces the concept of the School of Technological Entrepreneurship.



Chapter 45 Disability and Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics................................ 533 Elena Vladimirovna Fell, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Natalia Aleksandrovna Lukianova, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia Leonid Vladimirovich Kapilevich, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia & Tomsk State University, Russia According to official statistical data, people with disabilities are underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) occupations and students with disabilities are underrepresented in STEM degree courses. This chapter surveys official reports produced by British and American authorities, as well as a number of media sources, in order to substantiate this claim. The authors’ aim is to uncover the reasons behind disabled students being underrepresented in STEM courses and to sketch the vision for the future of disabled young people who may be interested in perusing careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Compilation of References...............................................................................................................xlvii About the Contributors....................................................................................................................... xc Index................................................................................................................................................... cviii

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Foreword

Dear Readers, Handbook of Research on Engineering Education in a Global Context is written by participants of the International Scientific Congress “Science and Engineering Education (SEE2016)” held in 2016 within the walls of one of the oldest engineering institutions in Russia, the Bauman Moscow State Technical University. I was privileged to greet the members of the SEE2016 Congress together with my colleague, Cosmonaut Alexey Ovchina, when we were both on Board the International Space Station (ISS). I know that the participants of the Congress discussed the need to explore changing the approaches used to prepare engineers for their future roles in society. This affects all countries of the world, so the focus was on concrete and practical steps for improving the system of engineering education globally. Speakers from Russia, Great Britain, Norway, Japan, China, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Germany, Ecuador, and France noted how rapidly the demands on the engineering profession are changing and looking for approaches to help employers achieve global technological breakthroughs in the engineering field that will enhance the economy, industry and wider society. The SEE2016 Scientific Congress provided an important opportunity for colleagues from across the globe to discuss systemic, cross-cutting issues and innovative ideas contributing to the preparation of the engineering personnel for the future. In our time the technological way of life is changing so quickly that it is sometimes difficult to look beyond the horizon and see where the jumps may occur in the next 10 - 20 - 50 years. This is perhaps best understood when it comes to space. A miracle of science and engineering that saw the first flight of Yuri Gagarin into space. These days the participants of the Congress are communicating directly with astronauts who are aboard the International Space Station – an event that is both stunning but already quite familiar. On the ISS all things are created through engineering work and thought. I graduated from Bauman University and I am sincerely glad that the demand for engineering degrees is again high and rising. I am glad that both in Russia and globally, universities are preparing students for both the traditional and the most advanced engineering professions. After all, engineers are not only changing the world, they are creating the future – new homes and buildings, smart phones and computers, unique materials and medical technology, aircraft, space stations.... It is so important that we meet the current demand for young people to enter the engineering professions, professions which will directly affect our tomorrow. Among the authors of the chapters in this book there are those who teach young people, preparing them to enter the engineering professions, there are the representatives of industrial companies and there are those who determine public policy. All of them share a passion for the engineering profession and are, to varying degrees, people who are creative, talented, enthusiastic and seeking new solutions in science, engineering and technology education.  

Foreword

This is an important book – a collection of chapters concerning latest thinking, conceived by people involved in the training of engineers. I wish the authors good luck on their journey of discovery and understanding and with this book – may there be more. For good readers like us, please enjoy and be stimulated. Finally to all, many long years of life! Oleg Ivanovich Skripochka Independent Researcher, Russia

Oleg Ivanovich Skripochka is a cosmonaut, engineer, member of the Group of Cosmonauts of the Russian Scientific Center “Energia,” hero of the Russian Federation.

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Preface

Engineering is receiving increased attention in all corners of the world. Governments and industry see engineering as the mechanism to address the global challenges faced by our planet. It is also the means to ensure prosperity and the well-being of the people inhabiting the Earth. As we constantly hear, these challenges are many, but then so too are the opportunities. To realize the opportunities and address the challenges, it is important that we develop a passionate and knowledgeable workforce, at ease with engineering and science thinking, a workforce that can be creative and then turn that creativity into practical and tangible action. Underpinning the development of this workforce is the need to explore the approaches and thinking we adopt when considering engineering education. Globally, engineering education has become the subject of much activity, whether considering practice or research. Meetings such as the SEE2016 Scientific Congress held in Moscow in the summer of 2016, that stimulated this book, are occurring across the world on a regular basis – ASEE in the USA, SEFI in Europe and A2E2 in Australia are national events that sit alongside global conferences such as WEEF, Frontiers in Engineering Education and the research focused REES meeting. Ideas abound, yet often these events and the associated publications in the field are not always as ‘joined up’ as perhaps they should be. To that end, this volume tries to acknowledge these forerunners in the field, but aims to add to the dialogue and the innovative thinking by presenting a group of papers that are new to the existing community. In presenting this new material, we intend for the volume to be a form of outreach in that the authors hope to share and connect in a way that will lead to future collaboration. There is still so much to explore in this field, so uncovering new approaches and thinking is always welcome. The book is organized in 6 sections, each of which will be familiar to readers at the top level, although what is explored in individual chapters will hopefully offer some new material for readers to consider. The 6 sections are as follows: 1. The Global Context 2. Quality and Standards 3. Innovation in Engineering Education 4. Communication in Learning 5. Technology-Enhanced Learning 6. Employability and Entrepreneurship

 

Preface

The opening section focuses on the Global Context with four chapters, each of which considers one of the four subsequent sections, with Communication in Learning being common to all. The first paper from Norway explores the approach to Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education. The emphasis of the paper is the need to embed quality in a way that is empowering and based around consultation rather than imposition. Quality needs support and nurturing rather than a ‘big stick’ approach if real and sustainable results are to be realized. With a robust quality environment in place, innovation in programme design and delivery can thrive and be encouraged. To that end, the second paper from Japan looks at innovation from a holistic viewpoint. In the demanding market that is Global Higher Education, exploring new ways to enter and become established in that market place are essential for all universities. The globalization approach of Hokkaido University presents a unique case study of how a clear strategy has been implemented with targets identified and an ambition for long term sustainability central to management thinking. Introducing and making available technology at the earliest stages of a child’s education is the focus of the third paper from Uruguay. The author discusses a wide ranging project whose aim was to make IT and the Internet available to as many young people as possible. Today, this access has almost become a ‘right’ if a community or country is to consider itself truly inclusive and able to providing the best educational starting point for its children. Moving to the other end of the educational spectrum, the final paper in the initial section from the UK explores what is needed to be successful in the engineering profession and how universities can best prepare their students for a successful career after study. Again the theme of inclusion, accepting diversity and the global nature of work are implicit within the ideas explored and evidence presented. The five sections that follow explore each of these areas in greater detail. The range of chapters explores each section from various different perspectives – some are very much rooted in practice, whilst others are exploring novel ideas about how to gain greater understanding that can then impact learning and the wider student experience. At the start of each section, the chapters will be summarized such that the reader can see how they fit together to tell a coherent story. In viewing the author listing, the reader will be very aware that a large proportion of the contributions are from authors within Russia. This is perhaps to be expected given that the book was stimulated by the SEE2016 Scientific Congress. This is perhaps though, more importantly, a real benefit of this book. For too long many practitioners, researchers and authors in the field of Engineering Education within the Russian Federation have been unknown to the wider Engineering Education community. Their work, approaches and thinking have not been visible. That is what makes this book so important as it starts the process of making the work of these people more available to the global community. Another important feature of this volume is the amount of high level input in the submissions, Rectors and Vice Rectors are represented throughout the contributions in a way that is not perhaps as common in other Engineering Education books available today. As editors we sincerely hope that this volume will help to create and foster some new relationships and innovation in the field of Engineering Education. We also hope that this will be a starting point for further global collaboration and sharing. Russia has long had a reputation for the creation of capable and technically excellent engineers, so it would seem sensible to explore the ways in which this process takes place such that others can learn. At the same time, new approaches to engineering pedagogy being implemented in other parts of the world has the potential to enrich the Russian approach to Engineering

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Education. One of the best and most visible examples of this would be the enthusiastic way in which Russian universities have explored and adopted the CDIO (Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate) Framework. This particular example is explored in a couple of the contributions in this volume. In compiling these volumes our target readership is very much those who are teaching and researching in the area of engineering education, those in industry and policy making roles interested in the latest thinking around how universities prepare engineering students for subsequent employment and in particular those worth a passion for engineering education who wish to gain a truly global perspective. We hope you find something of value and interest in the book, and we strongly encourage you to reach out beyond the book to form new connections that will take this field, we know is important and want to see develop, to new heights.

SECTION 1: THE GLOBAL CONTEXT This section serves as an opening to the book by setting the scene for the sections that follow. The Engineering Education space comprises many different facets. The opening chapter from Gynnild explores the challenges of implementing a robust quality system. With increasing attempts to measure the student learning and quality of the student experience in universities across the globe, having an effective and organic quality assurance system to guide programme development and operation is essential. The chapter is most helpful in that it not only explores the features of a good system but also the ways in which the implementation and operation of that system can be comprised if the key stakeholders in the process are not involved and consulted. Innovation is implicit in much Engineering Education today. This is often most obvious at the practitioner level, something that is explored more fully in Section 3 of the book. In the second chapter in this section, Nawa takes a more overarching viewpoint and considers the innovative challenge of developing a globalization strategy for Hokkaido University in Japan. It presents the different levels of complexity in producing such a strategy and then taking it forward into an implementable form. Key to the success of the work has been the development and adherence to clear goals and their associated measures. By adopting this approach, Nawa suggests that the model for change becomes sustainable and can promote further growth and innovation. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education as a whole is increasingly developed on a technological foundation. In early years education the exposure to and familiarization with technology is an essential feature that prepares students for their subsequent learning and ultimately for the workplace. Brechner presents a case study from Uruguay, Project Ceibal, in Chapter 3 that demonstrates that, with a strong commitment, the introduction of IT and Internet access in schools on a wide scale can have important benefits for both students and the wider society. These are most often seen in the educational abilities of the students but also in the way it acts as a way to promote inclusiveness across the whole of society. The final paper in this section ‘closes the loop’. By that we mean it looks at what happens within the university and beyond that ensures engineering graduates are able to enter the workforce and become productive members of that community. The arguments put forward by Clark and Andrews suggest that engineering degree courses need to be designed and delivered with a very clear eye on what industry

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and society need. The chapter also reflects on the changing nature of learners – a diverse, technology literate and demanding group of people that require engineering educators to be creative, engaging yet thorough in their learning and teaching practice. With scholarship and research to guide them, these practitioners are constantly introducing new thinking into the field. Together these papers set the scene for the subsequent sections. Taken as a whole the volume thus captures the vibrant and progressive state of the engineering education field.

SECTION 2: QUALITY AND STANDARDS Quality and Standards are the guiding lights when it comes to the implementation of credible Engineering programmes. On the one hand universities strive for accreditation to ensure that the learning meets the demands of the profession, yet equally in this modern era, the attractiveness of the educational approach is also a key consideration. The opening chapter in this section by Yagudina explores the role of university rankings in aiding student choice as to where to study. The paper argues that although of value and recognized by both universities and potential students, the understanding of what they are conveying and the methodology used to generate them needs further consideration. The recognition of engineering degree programmes is the focus of the next chapter in this section, in particular a comparison of case studies from Cyprus and Russia. Kassinopoulos and Zinchenko explore the EU / non EU differences. In particular the authors note that despite sharing similar guiding principles and standards, the application in each case is different. This highlights that despite the desire to promote global mobility amongst engineering students and graduates, barriers still exist. Fundamental to the development of the guiding standards is a clear definition and understanding of the professional engineering competence requirements. Berestov et al take a forward looking approach to what industry needs and will need in the future. They suggest that the CDIO framework in Engineering Education is a valuable starting point, something that is developed further in the subsequent chapter by Chuchalin. The extension of the CDIO thinking to Masters and PhD education in engineering is an interesting development explored in Chuchalin’s paper. Until now the main focus across the world has been on Bachelor’s education, so this chapter adds a new level of experience to the CDIO conversation. When considering innovation in Engineering Education, a book would be remiss if it did not explore the value and importance of Information Technology (IT) in the facilitation of effective learning approaches and the management of student records. Considering a more structured approach to this element of Engineering Education is the subject of the chapter by Aleksandrov et al. Their ‘scientific’ approach suggests that efficiencies can be gained when compared to the less rigorous approaches that are often adopted in universities. It is not just IT that needs consideration, the training and preparation of staff is an often overlooked aspect of learning and teaching. Vlasov et al look at a specific area by considering technician training and how technology can be a helpful component of developing the needed vocational skills. Martynov et al take this approach to a higher level by considering the overarching management information system that drives the interconnection of staff training, educational design and resource planning. These preceding three chapters have been included in this section as they all take a higher level, institutional view of the use of technology in Engineering Education. A subsequent section of the book (Section 4) looks at the application and technology of technology in learning in much greater depth.

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Quality assurance and quality enhancement are both equally important in engineering education. Kolsenkov and Taganov propose a ‘scientific’ approach to quality assurance that makes use of GIS (Geographical Information System) data and has the potential to facilitate improved decision making by managers when considering the operation of courses and of the wider university. Quality enhancement is the theme of the chapter by Sukhobokov et al when they consider the improvement of Engineering Masters and Doctoral programmes. The key driver for the improvement is the fast pace of change within industry that necessitates a proactive and future-looking approach to change within the university. The concluding chapter in this section explores the challenge of helping students to transition from the school environment into that of the Technical University. Tsibizova explores the various elements that if addressed proactively can enable students to settle into the university and start to develop as novice engineers from the earliest point in their tertiary educational journey. Although not a quality process or standard explicitly, ensuring a consistently high level of understanding and practice in this sensitive area of university operations can ensure students progress and the problem of student retention is overcome.

SECTION 3: INNOVATION IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION As engineers and engineering educators we are by our very nature creative individuals and teams. It is thus not surprising to find, in a volume such as this, a large number of case studies showcasing exciting and innovative developments in Engineering Education. Innovation can take many forms so the diversity of material in this section of the book explores a range of possibilities. The section opens with an exploration of a challenge for engineering educators across the world, that of the mathematics competencies of engineering students. Mathematics is often cited as a key cause of student drop out from engineering courses. Exploring the findings of a European Union funded project, Soldatenko et al offer suggestions for the ‘modernisation’ of the engineering curriculum with respect to the mathematics requirements. The opening chapter is followed by two examples of Problem and Project Oriented Learning approaches that cover mathematics (Dotsenko et al) and software engineering (Vishnevskaya et al). In each case the authors explain not only the approach itself but also the supporting requirements for success and the challenges that can be presented. Accepting and actioning these requirements successfully has the potential to promote learning and help student motivation. A key feature of the Problem and Project Approaches to Learning is student interaction in the learning process rather than passive engagement. The third chapter in this section explores a range of interaction possibilities, often making use of technology (Baryshev et al). Returning to an earlier argument, CDIO is considered to be a fundamental driver of the changes taking place. Disciplinary innovations in avionics (Proletarsky et al), economics (Ponkratov et al) and biotechnology (Suyatinov) teaching make use of some of these ideas promoting student interaction in the learning process. A common theme in each case study is the relevance of learning and the efforts that go into defining authentic problems and involving industry in the education. Interdisciplinarity is explored in the contribution from Buldakova and Suyatinov. In the modern era, whether working in industry or within the academic environment, the ability to work across disciplines is an essential element of an engineering student’s education. The authors propose active ‘learning through research’ approaches as a way to realise the necessary skills and awareness in this space.

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The final chapter in this section explores the value of practical classes and how the activity design is best approached when developing tasks that are most beneficial when considering student independent working. The particular example relates to a course in Digital Signal Processing and Syuzev et al introduce an analytical approach that is both novel and thought provoking.

SECTION 4: COMMUNICATION IN LEARNING The chapters in this section focus on language proficiency and communication skills. Often the ability of engineers to communicate with colleagues, customers, suppliers and authorities in different parts of the world is vitally important in order to convey technical information or an engineering opinion. Miscommunication can have serious consequences in terms of misunderstanding, incorrect actions or putting people’s safety at risk. English is a global language in the technical domain and, as such, being able to converse confidently in English in an engineering role is something that universities take very seriously in many parts of the world. The examples in the two chapters are from Russia, but they could be contextualized to other countries quite easily. Margaryan and Alyavdina explore new approaches to English language teaching in a technical university, whereas Kirsanova and Lazarev focus on the embedding of strong technical communication skills in particular engineering courses. The development of both competence and confidence are stated aims in each of the scenarios presented. The concluding chapter in this short section focuses on foreign language learning in engineering education. In many countries, foreign language learning is not considered an important feature of engineering education, so is not included. In this example the inclusion is, quite rightly in the view of the Editors, required. This particular work by Kurovskaja explores the use and value of foreign language technical textbooks in helping to develop confidence in the ‘new’ language. With confidence and competence, the students can bring a versatility and new dimension to whatever role they undertake on graduation.

SECTION 5: TECHNOLOGY-ENHANCED LEARNING The pace of change when considering educational technologies is rapid. It is important though that the value to learning is appreciated and understood by both the practitioner and the university. In this section that focuses on Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL), the opening chapter examines approaches that can be taken when considering the monitoring and forecasting of educational technology development and implementation (Kozlov et al). The power of this work is not only in the understanding it offers but also the enhanced decision making potential for management within the higher education environment. The complexity and diversity of the TEL landscape is captured in the chapters that follow. Jammoul et al explore the use of Open Source Software in both the teaching and research settings. A particular feature of the work that the authors identify is the way in which OSS can promote collaboration and sharing in learning. As intelligence becomes more embedded within software solutions in all walks of life, it would seem beneficial to enable student learning using such ‘intelligent’ approaches. An approach to teaching Intelligent Information Systems is presented by Chernenkiy et al in which they highlight the need

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to connect the different concepts rather than have the student view them as separate. This is achieved using a technology based solution. Borodkin et al offer a methodology that uses neural networks as the base tool for teaching the solution of real world problems in the laboratory. In a more refined example, Alimov et al use the digital game environment as way to engage students in learning and in particular the development of creative thinking skills. Virtual laboratories (Kalistratov et al) and broader thinking about the role of virtual working in Engineering Education (Alekseev et al) present both the challenges and opportunities of the virtual space. The potential for overcoming the most basic of issues, such as a lack of money for equipment for a ‘real’ lab, demonstrates the power of considering virtual solutions. Teachers have the opportunity to set up a host of scenarios for students to interrogate with minimal additional work or cost. The use of technology to facilitate student assessment is explored by Pesoshin et al. The chapter explores an approach to both the design and implementation of automated testing approaches. A very different challenge is discussed in the following paper. The use of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) in universities is commonplace as they have become the foundational technology platform to facilitate student learning. In the contribution by Chernikov et al, the ability to link one such platform, Moodle, with the wider university IT systems is explored. The benefits being the accuracy and consistency of the information made available to both students and university staff at all times. The final chapter in this section brings the earlier examples together by considering the synthesis of the professional competences of the engineer with the range of virtual and technological learning opportunities they experience during their education (Chistyakova). This analytical paper offers an opportunity for Programme Leaders to ensure that students are gaining the appropriate experience from their TEL in order to be ready for their future careers.

SECTION 6: EMPLOYABILITY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP In this final section, the lens is firmly on what happens after graduation. In the first section, Clark explored the range of approaches being taken within the UK in order to develop the needed employability skills in graduates. Here the authors go deeper and present detailed ideas for how to make this happen. We then extend this into the area of entrepreneurship and the authors discuss how this can be promoted within engineering education. Serebraykova et al present a case study of a model employed to ensure the development of professional capabilities in graduating students. The model called the ‘Elite Engineering Education Programme’, promotes both personal and interpersonal capabilities as well as those most readily associated with the needs of an engineering job. The idea of competences is developed further in the chapter by Malakhov et al where the consideration is that of meta-competences and how they can best be developed in the laboratory environment. In the personal space, Nesterenko proposes an approach that considers the individual’s responsibility for and awareness of their development. Understanding how they evolve as professional engineers is a feature that can help individuals ‘stand out’ in a competitive job market. Another differentiating factor can be a level of competence and ability in management thinking and skills. Maltseva explores this opportunity with a particular focus on innovation management, an area that is particularly relevant to engineers. The following two chapters present case studies in particular disciplines – the nano industry xliv

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(Grekhov et al) and the aerospace industry (Dubkov et al). The holistic view of the first chapter contrasts with a more analytical exploration of the computer vision systems segment of the modern aircraft industry in the latter. Technology entrepreneurship is the focus of the paper by Vlasova and Pilyugina. The authors identify the need to properly define ‘technology entrepreneurship’ such that the education for engineers can be developed appropriately. Having said this, the importance of a business and management element within the learning is strongly emphasized, with all being developed in an engaging and active learning environment. Borisov considers how the ‘technical entrepreneurs’ discussed in the preceding chapter can then engage with Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SME’s) to promote regional growth and prosperity. Although diversity has not been explicitly discussed throughout the book, it is implicit in much of the work presented. The authors state at various points their awareness of student cohort diversity and the focus on developing inclusive learning and teaching strategies. The final paper in the book though discusses the issue directly with an exploration of the characteristic of disability and how more needs to be done to overcome the underrepresentation of disabled people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) careers (Fell et al). The authors argue that by simply discussing the issue and raising awareness, positive steps can be taken in moving forward. Elena Smirnova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Robin Clark University of Warwick, UK

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Acknowledgment

The editors would like to acknowledge the help of all the people involved in this project and, more specifically, the authors and reviewers who took part in the review process. Without their support, this book would not have become a reality. First, the editors would like to thank each one of the authors for their contributions. Our sincere gratitude goes to the chapter’s authors who contributed their time and expertise to this book. Second, the editors wish to acknowledge the valuable contributions of the reviewers regarding the improvement of quality, coherence, and content presentation of chapters. Most of the authors also served as referees; we highly appreciate their double task.

 

Section 1

The Global Context

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Chapter 1

Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education: A Case Study

Vidar Gynnild Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway

ABSTRACT This chapter starts out by exploring why five higher education institutions failed to meet nationally agreed criteria for the approval of their quality systems. In order to achieve this, the review panels’ reports were examined with a particular view to data analysis and data application. The reports were readily available online and represented an excellent data source for research purposes. Panels found that institutional quality reports were descriptive rather than analytical, that quality procedures were unsystematic and conclusions often missing. Unfortunately, the panels failed to come up with radically new approaches that could potentially alter that situation. Rather, the recipe seems to be more of the same, in particular student evaluation of teaching. With this as a backdrop, this study provides conceptual tools that might change the actors’ approaches and thus empower those undertaking quality reviews locally. The alternative could otherwise be sustained frustration and wasted efforts.

INTRODUCTION The Universities and Colleges Act (§ 1-6) stipulates that all higher education institutions in Norway should have a satisfactory internal quality assurance system. Within the framework of national regulations, local institutions enjoy freedom to tailor their system according to professional profile and a range of other factors. To help ensure that systems meet set quality standards, the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT) is mandated to review institutions’ quality systems using specified criteria (Universities and Colleges Act, § 2-1). NOKUT is a professional, public body, which in addition to its supervision mission, aims to stimulate quality efforts more broadly. It therefore serves as both a supervisory body and resource unit for higher education. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch001

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 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education

To carry out the statutory mandate of the Ministry, NOKUT makes use of expert committees to evaluate institutional quality systems. This started in 2003, while NOKUT in its second phase of evaluation from the spring of 2009 changed its practice by placing greater emphasis on the institutions’ use and benefit of quality assurance systems. However, the responsibility of the expert committees is still to judge whether or not systems may be approved based on criteria set by NOKUT. The external panel review consists of an evaluation of the quality system and the institution’s active use of it. This is a challenging because there is a widespread distrust to such undertakings among academic staff. Furthermore, there are concerns over the bureaucratic nature of some of the current quality initiatives, sometimes with little evidence of real improvements in student learning, as exhibited in the following quote: “While forces of accountability are strong, those devoted to improvement, including the promotion of innovation, are fragmented” (Newton, 2001, p. 222). Given the fact that institutional quality initiatives occupy significant resources, it is surprising to note that this domain often remain both under-researched and under-theorized. While there is an abundancy of good intentions around, there is less of evidence to inform policy decisions and practical interventions; “… in reality, we can point to very little research into how ‘quality policy’, or other areas of strategy designed to improve learning and teaching have been used, how this has impacted on academic practice (Newton, 2002, p. 1-2). This study aims to bring evidence of the application of data for quality enhancement purposes. The Norwegian quality framework features five criteria to guide review panels’ examination of quality systems; however, this study places an emphasis exclusively on the last two of them: • • • • •

Stimulus to establish a quality culture, if commitment to quality is encouraged by the institution; Whether the objectives, responsibilities, processes and actors that are part of the quality system are clearly described, and how the quality assurance system is tailored to meet the institution’s needs; Securing and evaluating the quality of study programs based on data from multiple sources, and whether there are quality assurance procedures for new study programs; Analysis, assessment and reporting: whether data are being analyzed, assessed and presented to the responsible boards and management level; Use of knowledge for improvement: if improvement measures are rooted in a proper quality analysis.

To ensure reasonably professional judgments, each review panel recruited people with varied backgrounds and competencies. The following items exhibit competency requirements: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

2

Experience with quality work or evaluation; At least one should have experience at managerial level of higher education; At least one should be linked to a relevant institution abroad; There should be one student with experience from governing bodies or student unions; There should be at least one panel member with professorial competence.

 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education

DATA AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS This is a qualitative study of external review panels’ assessments of five higher education institutions’ self-reporting on own quality systems. These institutions differ in terms of student enrolment and disciplinary focus; however, they are all tertiary institutions and as such exposed to regular reviews of their quality systems. I do not elaborate on the nature of the various institutions since this falls outside the focus of the study. The five external review reports varied in length from 25-42 pages and formed the exclusive data source of the study. The following research questions guided the research: • • •

Which issues relating to item d and e referred to above caused the committees’ concern? What advice did the committees provide to enhance institutions’ educational quality? What conceptual contributions might help in promoting educational development?

In analyzing the data, I utilized a dual approach. First, I wanted to capture key themes in conclusions, including arguments underpinning them. Second, I wanted to check for potential patterns that might be inherent in data gathered from the institutions. Are there unresolved educational issues that keep reoccurring across institutions, and how could they possibly be dealt with conceptually to remedy the situation? In terms of research findings, conclusions of this study are fully valid for the sample; however, given the limited number of cases, we are not in a position to generalize findings uncritically. The author still does not believe this reduces the educational value of the study, as the fact that knowledge cannot be formally generalized “… does not mean that it cannot enter into the collective process of knowledge accumulation in a given field or in a society” (Flyvbjerg, 2010, p. 227).

Analysis and Discussion A major concern for the review panels appears to be whether or not institutions have made use of the evaluations, while other means of data collection are not mentioned. Yet another salient feature is that reports are descriptive rather than analytical and the authors do not seem capable of bringing new perspectives and helpful conceptual tools. Recommendations appear to be more of the same, implying “fine tuning” of current practices rather than “radical change” to spark motivation for more productive ways of learning and teaching. Table 1 provides an overview of the panels’ judgment of two aspects of quality for five institutions. A key issue is the need for conceptual tools and expertise to enrich and improve conceptual approaches to quality enhancement. Our data indicate that institutions involved in this study need a more scholarly approach to basic steps in undertaking successful quality enhancement projects. There is a strikingly poor match between the rhetoric and capabilities demonstrated on the ground in order to turn ideals into realities. First, there are apparent challenges of method. Evaluations may or may not be useful depending on the skills of those designing them. Standards and criteria inherent in such studies require methodological insights as well as disciplinary knowledge. In an ideal world, there would be a clear connection between data collection, data analysis and implementation of measures to change the situation to the better:

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Table 1. Aspects of quality as presented in five expert panel reviews Inst.

Analysis, Reporting, Evaluation

Application of Data for Improvement

1

The committee believes that the screening process at the institutional level weakens the flow of accumulated and analytical data to the Board.

There is no comprehensive analysis at the institutional level to securely implement additional measures.

2

Many of the indicators are not based on analysis or discussion of potential measures to be implemented.

When there is insufficient quality of the reporting system, decisions on quality issues are simply not possible.

3

The reports from faculties to Rector contain little, if any, analysis of teaching and learning, but rather indicate challenges to obtain such data. This hampers any further analysis.

It emerged that the system generates some information that is not communicated. … It is not clear what has been done to follow up on matters that were seen as issues last year.

4

The reports draw few conclusions and point to few measures that could be implemented to improve quality. Reports, analysis and assessment appear as sporadic and unsystematic. There is no indication that the reports have made a difference whatsoever.

The main impression of the review panel is that it is unclear how data generated by the system is used to improve the quality of the education. The college needs to improve this area in the future.

5

The system generates an abundance of data, but satisfactory analysis is missing. Reports contain at best inadequate analysis of the quality. Reports are mostly duplicates of faculty reports.

This institution has not brought evidence that any measure has been implemented. An informal quality culture is in itself positive ... but the quality system is not implemented at all levels.

Readers get the impression that the distinction between description and analysis is not sufficiently present, and that institutions have been unable to help academics to gather insights into essential relationships in the learning-teaching environment. The reporting appears descriptive with little, if any, analysis and therefore less interesting conclusions (Review Panel’s Report, Institution 2). In this study, a series of unfortunate circumstances in combination prevent productive use of resources. Expectations to the effects of the quality systems did not materialize, and there is an urgent need to come up with valid explanations in order to remedy the situation. One obvious issue to start with is not to confuse means and ends in the system. Teaching is always a means towards an end, never an end in itself, and there is no one-to-one relationship between teaching and learning. A corollary would be to adopt a focus on learning rather than on teaching, which would have implications for data collection and analysis. Furthermore, as long as there is no evidence of impacts on learning, teachers cannot be sure if implemented measures have had any positive effect. Student satisfaction studies messes up the issue by making “happiness” rather than learning gain the success criterion. The worst scenario would be just adopting a purely instrumental approach to comply with externally imposed quality requirements; however, with little if any positive outcomes. In such circumstances, frustration and anger may pave the way for negligence or even outright resistance. Anecdotal evidence suggests that lack of trust in quality systems as well as missing evidence of observable effects make it hard to pursue the same track. A more technical approach attending to “deviations” from guidelines may not remedy the situation. This may avoid serious errors, but does not necessarily need to be effective to improve learning, if that is an issue. Finally, it is surprising to see that the panel reports frequently make use of the construct of “quality” without further explanation. This gives the impression that the construct refers to something attractive and valuable, yet still being unable to explain in further depth. It is therefore of interest to examine the committees’ advice on how quality systems should be remedied to meet criteria. Table 2 gives an overview for each institution.

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 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education

Table 2. Review panels’ advice to the respective institutions Institution

Selected Quotes to Describe the Nature of Recommendations

1

Re-introduce the learning environment committee; make explicit the quality assurance system; student involvement should be strengthened; consider the introduction of a deviance system; the QA system should be made more transparent.

2

Examine current QA system; introduce student evaluations of education; provide information on the QA system, including expectations; continue work to produce annual quality reports; consider evaluation of entire study programs; consider indicators of workplace relevance.

3

System description is unsatisfactory; better routines for student evaluations are required; mandatory course evaluations should be implemented and reported.

4

Quality reports should be improved; clear roles and responsibilities of QA are missing; evaluations, analysis and measures need more attention; must clarify the purpose of extensive reporting; must link QA efforts to more explicit follow-up measures.

5

Analysis of quality is fragmented and unsatisfactory; too much responsibility of QA is assigned to one person.

Table 2 exhibits major advice from the review panels to each institution. The main message is that diverse issues are in need of attention. Unfortunately, the panels provide no conceptual models to aid thinking and action at the institutions. Due to the word limit, I will only provide a few approaches that might be helpful in cases such as those demonstrated in Table 2. The point is that basic conceptual approaches of phenomena fundamentally impact analysis and ensuring actions. It is therefore crucial to get the process right from the very beginning. The construct of “teaching” is often taken for granted based on tacit knowledge; however, it is vital to remember that different interpretations have implications for the execution of roles and responsibilities in quality programs. A conceptual distinction is made between “teaching in a narrow sense”, for example lecturing, and “teaching in a broad sense” which would imply a radically different teacher role, primarily as a designer of learning methods and environments (Barr & Tagg, 1995). Not only do different interpretations of the same construct have practical implications, they also build on different theories of learning. While “lecturing” is based on transmission theories of learning, teaching in a “broad” sense relies on constructivist theories of learning. It is the design of learning environments that makes the difference to students, not the teacher’s lecturing skills. Many quality programs are designed as if their creators have been unaware of this distinction. Teaching in a “narrow” sense appears as self-evident, and consequently, data gathering instruments are designed to suit this model, while teaching in a “broad” sense represents a far greater potential for improved learning. The two routes also mark the difference between an individualistic and a systemic approach to learning and teaching. Even self-proclaimed outcomes-based institutions in reality often focus on “teaching” rather than on ”learning” in their quality programs, with severe implications for the design of data gathering instruments, and subsequently on data analysis and implemented measures. If the targeted area is “teaching”, student satisfaction studies of offerings sounds like the right thing to do. If the targeted area is “learning”, a sensible measure would be to conduct a gap analysis in order to identify the correspondence between intended learning outcomes and students’ real achievements.

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 Quality Assurance in Norwegian Higher Education

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTION Yet another conceptual tool might be helpful in cases such as those discussed in this study. This is presented in a matrix featuring key dimensions of quality assurance and quality enhancement programs. The four quadrants, each with unique requirements focus on “learning” or “teaching” in combination with a specified purpose as either “quality assurance” or “quality enhancement”. The matrix could be used to check the focus and purpose of current instruments as well as to devise instruments for future purposes. The interpretation of dimensions suggested in the matrix is not entirely straight forward and calls for a scholarly rather than a managerial approach. As already stated, everyday terms such as “teaching” and “learning” may take on different meanings and do not make sense unless people agree on their interpretations in local settings. One just needs to be conceptually aware of focus and purpose by clarifying issues of “why”, “what”, “how” and “when”. A different intervention model would be to start with the identification of a problem (Simmons & Gregory, 2003). The approach here is explanation rather than evaluation. The purpose is to establish an understanding of why certain issues keep re-occurring. Awareness is the first step after which an explanatory understanding of an observed issue has to be established. In theory, a broad range of variables in the teaching-learning environment could be taken into consideration; however, some are of course more influential likely than others. The point is to address key explanatory variables and thereby pave the way for targeted interventions for specified purposes. Unfortunately, the extensive use of student evaluation instruments based on Biggs’ theory two of teaching (Biggs,1999) confuses means and ends. What counts is what the students do, not their degree of satisfaction with teaching.

CONCLUSION This study demonstrates the importance of sound conceptual frameworks capable of identifying targeted areas in relation to “focus” and “purpose”. Conceptual shortcomings have important consequences for data analysis and follow-up initiatives. It is noteworthy that, even though the review panels bluntly disapproved the institutions’ quality programs, they were less able to help failing institutions out by suggesting innovative approaches to better handle issues. The general recipe seems to be more of the same that did not work in the first place. A generic challenge in evaluation relates to “standards” and “criteria”. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably but refer to different realities. If quality programs are imposed by external decisions without proper involvement of key players internally, institutions run the risk of failing support from academic staff and students. In the worst case, quality initiatives with the best of intentions inadvertently may do a disfavor to their institution. One way to avoid this is for academic staff to become more reflective and grounded in the selection of conceptual approaches. This requires key players to become more scholarly in their approaches than was the case in this study. This applies to senior managers as well as those serving on external review panels.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT This is a revised version of an article first presented at the 8th International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation, 16-18 November 2015, Seville, Spain.

REFERENCES Barr, R. B., & Tagg, J. (1995). From Teaching to Learning: A New Paradigm for Undergraduate Education. Change, 27(6), 12–25. doi:10.1080/00091383.1995.10544672 Biggs, J. (1999). What the Student Does: Teaching for enhanced learning. Higher Education Research & Development, 18(1), 57–75. doi:10.1080/0729436990180105 Flyvbjerg, B. (2010). Femmis for ståelser om case-studiet. In L. Tanggaard & S. Brinkmann (Eds.), Kvalitative metoder. København: Hans Reitzels Forlag. Gynnild, V. (2014, August 25). From ‘quality assurance’ to ‘quality enhancement’: Addressing the transition from ‘teaching’ to ‘learning’ in engineering education. Paper presented at the iCEER2014 International Conference on Engineering Education and Research, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Newton, J. (2002). Views from Below: Academics coping with quality. Quality in Higher Education, 8(1), 39–61. doi:10.1080/13538320220127434 Simmons, O., & Gregory, T. (2003). Grounded Action: Achieving Optimal and Sustainable Change. Forum Qualitative Social Research, 4(3). Universities and Colleges Act. (2005). Retrieved from http://lovdata.no/

ADDITIONAL READING Aleksandrov, A. A., Neusipin, K. A., Proletarsky, A. V., & Fang, K. (2012). Innovation development trends of modern management systems of educational organizations, In Proc. 2012 International Conference on Information Management, Innovation Management and Industrial Engineering (pp.187-189). EU Commission project. “Changing Pedagogical Landscape” Retrieved from http://www.changingpedagogicallandscapes.eu/ (Access date 06.01.2018) International Education support platform Retrieved from http://www.icef.com/en/educator/overview/ (Access date 06.01.2018) Matzdorf, F., & Greenwood, J. (2015). Student choice, league tables and university facilities. Retrieved May 2, 2017, Retrieved from http://shura.shu.ac.uk/10423/1/EuroFM2015_StudentChoicesLeagueTab les%26Facilities_final.pdf

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Trifan, L. Project Management for the Implementation of an Internet of Things Platform, Edulearn15, 7th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies, 4-8 Iulie 2015, Barcelona, Spania, ISBN 978-84-606-8243-1, ISSN: 2340-1117, pp. 6024-6030, [ISI], indexed IATED Digital Library, Google Scholars, [Vis] Zabotkina, V. I., & Makolov, V. I. (2016, October-December). Implementation of ESG for international joint education programmes. Integra Educativa, 20(4), 446–455.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Conceptual Approaches: Conceptual approaches to quality enhancement means more scholarly approach to basic steps in undertaking successful quality enhancement projects. Higher Education: An optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completion of secondary education. Quality Enhancement: One of four quadrants in a matrix featuring key dimensions of quality assurance and quality enhancement programs.

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Chapter 2

Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University Toyoharu Nawa Hokkaido University, Japan

ABSTRACT Institutions of higher education all over the world are facing the pressure to internationalize their operations and academic programs, to enhance its competitiveness in an international education market. The first part of this chapter presents a review of national policy to incentivize the internationalization of higher education in Japan since 1980s. The second part introduces internalization initiatives of Hokkaido University in the last decade. Under the initiative of the president, university formulated its vision of “Hokkaido University, contributing to the resolution of global issues” in the “Future Strategy for the 150th Anniversary of Hokkaido University,” a blueprint for drastically reforming the university. In the 2014 fiscal year, a strategy to further internationalize education, “Hokkaido Universal Campus Initiative” was chosen by MEXT for the “Top Global University Project.” The author analyzes Hokkaido University’s internationalization progress, focusing on the strengths and activities of major projects and the changes in the overall management.

INTRODUCTION Our world is undergoing a sea change due to the rapid advance of globalization and growth of the internet, enabling people in any corners of the world to instantly connect with others and obtain information. This is growing the importance of the knowledge economy and technology, and thus have always challenged in all countries over the world in the past two and three decades. The idea of internationalization is considered as a positive phenomenon for many people yet questionable for many others, but no one doubts that this new situation is somehow linked to new forms of technology and economy. Many higher education institutions have been tried to internationalize their operations and their academic offerings to enhance its competitiveness in an international education market, by ensuring the delivery of a culturally-enriched educational experience. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch002

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

The first part of this article focuses on how Japanese universities have been reformed to internationalize higher education in Japan. A national policy is also reviewed to examine how the government tried to initiative internationalization. The last part of this article introduces a recent initiative of Hokkaido University since 2008, which aims to internationalize higher education. The author analyzes the Hokkaido University’s internationalization progress with a focus on the strengths and issues of major projects and activities and changes in the overall management.

THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION IN JAPAN Internationalization in higher education in Japan started in the 1980s (Horie, 2002). One of the measures to progress internationalization and multiculturalism in higher education institutions is to promote the international mobility of students. In 1983, Japanese Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (Monbusho, later MEXT) announced a plan to have 100,000 international students studying at higher education institutions in Japan by 2000 (MEXT, 2008). The objective of this plan was to accelerate mutual understandings and deepen friendship between Japan and other countries, strengthen intellectual power over the global society, and contribute to internationalization of economic and social systems. The plan was successful in terms of increasing the number of international students (from 10,428 in 1983 to 64,011 in 2000). However, the plan paused due to the limited capability and attractiveness of Japanese education. One of the main causes is the difficulty of learning Japanese. Furthermore, many stakeholders have started to point out that improvement in the quality of education by internationalization is more important than increase in the number of international students. In 2008 the Japanese government set a goal of attracting 300,000 international university students by 2020, following the ‘Global 30’ plan in 2009 aimed at transforming 30 universities into world-class institutions of higher education (Yonezawa, 2011). The ‘300,000 international students plan’ and the ‘Global 30’ plan have focused more closely on supporting universities to expand their English-taught degree programs. From 2011, in order to rather enhance the international compatibility and competitiveness of higher education in Japan and to provide prioritized support for the world-class and innovative universities, MEXT launched three projects: the Re-Inventing Japan Project was launched in 2011 to establish collaborative relationship initially and mainly with Chinese, Korean and North American universities; the Go Global Japan Project, originally titled the ‘Project for Promotion of Global Human Resource Development’, was launched in 2012 to develop 42 target universities’ international education offerings and to increase the number of Japanese students studying abroad (MEXT, 2012); ‘Top Global University Project (TGUP)’, titled in Japanese as the Super Global University Project, launched in 2014 is a largeinvestment initiative designed to enhance the international compatibility and competitiveness of higher education in Japan and to provide prioritized support for the world-class and innovative universities that lead the internationalization of Japanese universities (MEXT, 2014). The TGUP has provided funding for 13 ‘Type A: Top Type’ universities, which have been identified as having the potential to become top 100 ranked world universities and 24 ‘Type B: Global Traction Type’ universities, viewed as innovative universities that can lead the internationalization of Japanese society. MEXT has indicated that all policies are interconnected; the Go Global Japan Project has been directly linked to the TGUP. Hokkaido University was chosen as one of the 13 Type A universities.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

INTERNATIONALIZATION OF HOKKAIDO UNIVERSITY AFTER 2008 In the 2009 fiscal year, Hokkaido University cooperated with the International Association of Universities (IAU, headquartered in Paris), which studied Hokkaido University’s internationalization strategy and sent a final report detailing the IAU’s advice: ‘FINAL REPORT: Collaborative Review of Hokkaido University’s Internationalization Strategy’ (hereafter, the IAU-ISAS Report 2009). As a result, the IAU began its ‘Internationalization Strategy Advisory Service’ (hereafter, ISAS), and, by April 2016, had performed ISAS for sixteen universities in nine countries. The University has incorporated many of the useful suggestions detailed in the IAU-ISAS Report 2009, and during the second period of its 6-year mid-term management plan, which began in the 2010 fiscal year, accelerated its internationalization efforts. In preparation for its 150th anniversary in 2026, Hokkaido University set itself the goal of achieving the vision ‘Hokkaido University, contributing to the resolution of global issues’. Additionally, in March 2014, under the initiative of the president, it formulated the ‘Future Strategy for the 150th Anniversary of Hokkaido University’, a blueprint for drastically reforming the University. In the 2014 fiscal year, while working on internationalization, a strategy to further internationalize education, ‘Hokkaido Universal Campus Initiative’ (hereafter, HUCI) was chosen by MEXT for the ‘Top Global University Project’. The amount of money to be given to the University by MEXT from the 2014 to 2023 fiscal year is approximately 2.4 billion yen in total. HUCI is an implementation strategy for achieving internationalization and education reform, which the Future Strategy outlines. Under HUCI, the University is embarking upon a 10-year university reform up until 2023. Based on their strengths and characteristics, HUCI will establish ‘Universal Campus’, a framework to offer education in various parts of the world in collaboration with universities and research institutions that have achieved remarkable outcomes for the resolution of global issues as well as people who have demonstrated outstanding leadership in such activities. The ‘1-4-4 Reform Plans’ are the backbone of HUCI. 1. One plan to reinforce governance: establishment of the Office of Institutional Research to support quick decision-making by the President as well as a framework to ensure various decisions; 2. Four educational reform plans: development and implementation of degree programs and shortterm programs to provide education in collaboration with universities across the world; and 3. Four system reform plans: functional enhancement to effectively achieve educational reform while introducing

MAJOR CHANGES IN POLICIES AND IMPLEMENTED STRUCTURES Expansion of the President’s Mandates and the Strengthened Governance of the University’s Administration The president’s budgetary and hiring discretion were expanded to promote inter-disciplinary and international research and education that highlights the strengths and distinct qualities of the University. Furthermore, the entities of the central governing body, such as the Institute for the Advancement of Higher Education, the Office of International Affairs, and the Office of Promotion of Industry-Academia

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Figure 1. The ‘1-4-4 Reform Plans’

Collaboration, were strengthened. This was a part of a plan to conduct a university-wide initiative and provide services to undergraduate/graduate schools and faculties. To ensure the execution of the Future Strategy, the ‘Headquarters for Enhancing Institutional Capacity’ was created in 2014. The first two research themes selected under the framework of the Global Institution for Collaborative Research and Education (hereafter, GI-CoRE) were ‘radiation therapy’ and ‘zoonosis control’. With regard to the former, the ‘Global Station for Quantum Medical Science and Engineering” was established in collaboration with Stanford University (USA) in 2014 and, regarding the latter, the ‘Global Station for Zoonosis Control’ was established in collaboration with the University of Melbourne (Australia), University College Dublin (Ireland), and King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (Saudi Arabia) in the same year. As the third initiative, the ‘Global Station for Food, Land and Water Resources’ was established in 2015. In 2014, the GI-CoRE was established directly under the control of the president. Within the GI-CoRE, a team is created for each interdisciplinary research theme, with a system for attracting global top-level research units to work with faculty members of the oversea universities. Each team is named a ‘Global Station’. The University will institute a new educational entity based on achievements in research and education as well as professional connections obtained through the activities of each Global Station.

Strengthening of Functions That Support International Activities In July 2010, the Executive Office for International Exchange, which was mandated to plan international exchanges, was reorganized as the ‘Office of International Affairs’ (hereafter, OIA). It has two characteristics:

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Figure 2. Implementation system

• •

It not only plans, but also carries out plans for campus internationalization and international exchange activities. It consists of both faculty members and administrative staff and facilitates collaborative work between them.

The Office of International Affairs standardized and consolidated the duplicated international administrative duties that existed across faculties, such as a help-desk for international students and the English translation of the University’s rules and regulations. Concurrently, it plans and conducts multiple cross-faculty educational programs, as study-abroad programs. They rapidly increased the number of international exchange agreements.

Increasing the Number of Japanese Students Studying Abroad The Japanese government’s policy focused on not only accepting more international students, but also sending more Japanese students abroad. Requests from industries to produce more graduates who can succeed on a global stage had an impact on the transition seen upon this policy. In response, the University set a target of expanding the number of Japanese students studying abroad. It also began to build a structure to cooperate with alumni, who are active on the global stage, and provide career education.

Internationalization of Faculties The internationalization initiatives introduced by the University’s central governing body, such as the OIA and the Executive Office for Education Reform, affected the faculties. The Faculties/Graduate Schools of Engineering, Fishery Science, Letters (Literature), Medicine, Science, and Veterinary Medicine have all created their own departmental offices for international affairs and hired full-time staff to support the international activities of their faculty members and students. 13

 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Research Development The University established the ‘Research Development Section’, which plans research strategies.

MAJOR ACTIVITIES FOR ACHIEVING THE 2ND MID-TERM MANAGEMENT PLAN BETWEEN 2010 AND 2015 Expansion of the President’s Mandate and Strengthened Governance of University Administration To ensure the execution of the Future Strategy, the ‘Headquarters for Enhancing Institutional Capacity’ was created in 2014. In 2011, an award was created to recognize faculty members with outstanding achievements in education and research. In 2015, a total of 100 awards (including the President’s Award for Research and the President’s Award for Education), amounting to a total prize money of 33 million yen, were allotted. These awards are expected to function as incentives for faculty members to pursue international activities. In particular, the President’s Award for Research gives an incentive to publish research papers in prestigious journals.

Staffing The University developed a new human resource system, hired international faculty members using the University’s financial resources, and increased incentives for faculties that hire international faculty members. The University proactively translated an information handbook for new faculty members as well as basic university-wide documents, such as rules and regulations related to the employment of international faculty members, into English, and published them on its website. It also established ‘international officer’ positions that specialize in international affairs, and hired seven persons at the OIA. Among them, two were granted tenure, including a psychological counselor who is bilingual in Japanese and English.

Education System Quality Assurance of Education The University upholds the four basic philosophies of ‘frontier spirit’, ‘global perspective’, ‘all-round education’, and ‘practical learning’. Based on these, in 2013 the university clarified the diploma policy and the curriculum policy for undergraduate and graduate programs. Additionally, the admission policy for the undergraduate programs was made clear. The three policies for the undergraduate programs show that the University nurtures internationally minded individuals who will contribute to the development of society. The University introduced a new GPA system that meets international standards. Moreover, a graduation accreditation system using either the GPA or the common achievement test was established.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

The undergraduate and graduate schools introduced an academic quarter system to provide an environment that enables the students to study abroad without repeating a year. ‘Manual of Credit Transfer from Overseas Universities’, was created newly, which is actively promoting the use of the University Mobility in Asia and the Pacific Credit Transfer Scheme and the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System. Consequently all students in undergraduate and graduate schools could transfer the credit between HU and overseas universities.

Nitobe College Nitobe College, which is a program that requires undergraduate students to study abroad, was established in line with the University’s new policy to rapidly increase the number of outbound Japanese students. This is a minor program for leadership training named after Inazo Nitobe, who was among the second cohort from Sapporo Agricultural College and served as an Under-Secretary-General of the League of Nations. The OIA opened two courses that lead Japanese undergraduate students, including students of Nitobe College, to study overseas. One is ‘Fellow Study Program’ that offers a practical training program for global leader by alumni that have active careers in international society, which is held four times a year, and the other is ‘Short-term Study Abroad Special Program’, which is held twelve times a year.

Modern Japanese Studies Program An undergraduate program, ‘Modern Japanese Studies Program’ (hereafter, MJSP), was established for international students who wish to learn the Japanese language and modern culture. The MJSP is the University’s first undergraduate program that does not set Japanese language ability as a requirement for taking the entrance examination. Adopting the ‘Central English Program Unit’ (hereafter, CEPU) method proposed in the IAU-ISAS Report 2009, in 2013 the University established a CEPU of ten native English-speaking faculty members. The CEPU largely contributed to the establishment and the initiation of the MJSP. Along with the MJSP, many of the graduate schools have implemented the following admission systems for their internationalization process: • • • •

Online application service Enrollment in April and October An entrance examination that does not require travel to Japan Application guidebooks translated into English

Student Exchange The ‘Hokkaido University Short-term Exchange Program’ (HUSTEP) and the ‘Japanese Language and Culture Studies Program’ established a six-month program, in addition to the existing year-long program, with the aim of increasing the number of incoming exchange students from partner universities. Moreover, these two programs introduced a system in which the exchange students can earn credits from the University.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Some undergraduate and graduate schools of the University established double degree programs and joint certificate programs that enable students of the University and the partner universities to engage in short-term learning of specialized subjects at overseas counterpart universities.

Internationalization of Research The Research Development Section improved the database of the University’s researchers in regard to their research performance and analyzed the quality of their research. As the result, an evidence-based research management and planning system was established. Various data on international research competitiveness were provided to the heads of faculties. The data include: • • • • • • •

Time-series data on numbers of published papers, international joint co-authorships, and citation indices for each research faculty Numbers of published papers, international co-authorships, and a citation index for each academic discipline in a faculty World ranking by academic discipline The following initiatives were taken to enhance the dissemination of research works in English: Seminars to improve research paper writing in English Financial support for participating in international academic conferences, and for conducting international joint research Financial support for the use of proof-reading services for paper submission to international academic journals above a certain level

THE MAJOR RESULTS AND IMPACTS OF HUCI ACTIVITIES Staffing The number of international faculty members has increased from 66 on May 1, 2009 to 117 (4.8% of all 2,427 full-time faculty members) on the same day in 2015.

Education System Courses offered in English accounted for 3.1% of courses in undergraduate schools in the 2013 fiscal year and 17.2% in graduate schools. In the 2015 fiscal year, the percentages increased to 4.3% and 20.9%, respectively.

Number of Students Studying Abroad The number of Japanese students who availed of study abroad programs to earn course credits in the 2013 fiscal year was 276 in undergraduate schools (2.4% of all undergraduate students) and 115 in graduate schools (2.2% of all graduate students). In the 2015 fiscal year, the number increased slightly to 369 (3.3%) and 142 (2.8%), respectively.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Number of Incoming Students The number of international students reached 1,875 (10.4%) as of November 1, 2015, surpassing the 2015 target of constituting 10% of the overall student population. The numbers of incoming international students were 1,840 in the 2013 fiscal year, 2,069 in 2014, and 2,412 in 2015, demonstrating an annual increase.

Internationalization of Research The number of research papers that were recorded in the Web of Science Core Collection as being published in academic journals reached 3,082 in 2015, demonstrating a 10% increase on the number for 2009. The number of research papers that were published in the past five years, from 2010 to 2015, in academic journals with an impact factor score of 8 or more reached 886, demonstrating a 21% increase on the first period of the mid-term management plan, which ran from 2004 to 2009.

ISSUES AND OF FUTURE ACTIONS AND STRATEGIES TO THE SUCCESS OF HUCI In 2010, the International Association of Universities (IAU) conducted a review of internationalization programs and strategies at Hokkaido University as part of its Internationalization Advisory Strategy Service (ISAS). Hokkaido University was the first university to participate in ISAS and between 2010 and 2016, approximately a dozen universities from all over the world partnered with the IAU to conduct similar reviews. In 2016, the IAU revised and expanded the ISAS program, creating ISAS (2.0). ISAS (2.0) is a more diversified service, enabling institutions to focus their review and to earn learning badges for different aspects of advancing strategic internationalization. Having launched its Future Strategy in 2014 and having succeeded in securing one of the Top Global University grants from MEXT, Hokkaido University invited the IAU acknowledged the effectiveness of HU’s measures towards its internationalization. Enhancing HU’s global visibility and stature will be both a result and a driver of the HUCI. It’s ability to attract partners and program participants will, to a large extent, depend on its visibility and reputation. As such, HU has recognized the need to market itself internationally and to ensure that its faculty and staff make international publications and attend international conferences. Hosting international events is also a means to increase the university’s global presence. Successful programs build visibility both on a national and international level over time. However, the Expert Panel also pointed out various issues of the HUCI, of which I would now like to briefly introduce and discuss how to solve them.

Changing Financial Environment The Expert Panel reported that since HU was awarded funding by MEXT as a Top Global University, the financial circumstances of the University have changed considerably. The HUCI would be jeopardized because of competing priorities and the resulting reduction in the investment of HU’s own resources for the initiative. Furthermore, since funding for the HUCI will annually decline over the life of the initia-

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

tive, financial constraints will undoubtedly have an impact on the overall morale of University personnel and attempts at reform. HU furthermore faces the major challenge to sustain activities started by the HUCI beyond the period of funding provided by MEXT. This will require faculty and staff to pay for their own activities, and for the university to fund HUCI programs from new sources of revenue. Thus, we are currently searching for new possibilities and funding resources from collaborations between the university and industries, in particular from private enterprises. To further increase international connectivity, we should consider making greater use of technology. Classrooms can be connected with those of partner institutions fairly inexpensively using synchronous or asynchronous media for joint projects or discussion boards. Skype and other platforms can also be used to connect classrooms in real-time. Similarly, HU may explore how technology can help amplify student experiences before, during and after attending our summer schools at HU (e.g. the Hokkaido Summer Institute) and overseas universities (via our Learning Satellites).

Communication and Consultation Following the competitive nature of the Top Global University Project, the proposal for the HUCI was developed in a short time frame and leadership at HU moved quickly towards the implementation of measures outlined in the initiative, seeing the rapid launch of new programs. However, the Expert Panel pointed out that faculty members and administrators perceived the initiative as ‘top down’, without sufficient consultation before the launch about issues related to both design and implementation, and that unrealistic targets were set by the top without consultation as to their achievability by the areas responsible for their delivery. We believe that executive leadership should consider conducting a series of meetings at each faculty and with selected administrative units to discuss future directions of the HUCI. These might take the form of regularly scheduled meetings or as a special series of events attended by deans, faculty members, and staff. The purpose of these sessions would be the two-way exchange of ideas by senior leaders to review the HUCI, its underlying rationale, philosophy and activities, and to provide an update on its progress. At the same time, the senior leaders would emphasize the HUCI as a means of enhancing the quality and visibility of HU rather than as a goal in itself. Documents and presentations might include a description of the rationale behind the HUCI, how it furthers the accomplishment of the Future Strategy, and its most important lines of attack. Given the significance of the faculties in advancing internationalization, the senior leaders should ask each faculty to develop its own plan in alignment with the HUCI. Although it is expected that not all faculties will progress in all areas, they will still have different strengths and interests that can contribute to the HUCI. It is particularly important for those individuals in charge of internationalization efforts to share information - their experiences, successes, and challenges - regularly perhaps in scheduled (e.g. quarterly) sessions. The Faculty Development and Staff Development Sessions could also be utilized to focus on these same issues. Another idea would be to have a venue in which people could meet for coffee or drinks to create interconnectedness among those facing similar issues and challenges.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Integration, Complexity and Synergy Per the report issued by the Expert Panel, the HUCI sets very ambitious targets. To achieve them, HU will need to step up its activities, going from ‘boutique’ programs and initiatives tailored to a small group of participants to larger more extensive ones. This will require a thorough examination motivating participation yet addressing obstacles in addition to developing future strategies. Simply increasing the number of actions and initiatives may advance internationalization, but unless they mutually reinforce each other and are a part of a larger strategy, their impact will remain limited and possibly unsustainable. Moreover, such actions contribute to the HUCI being seen as a separate project burdening faculty and staff workloads and thus contributing to their reluctance to fully participate in the initiative. Thus, the university must make great efforts to integrate HUCI programs with currently ongoing work of the faculties. The HUCI also includes a number of different activities involving international partners and specialized academic fields. The proliferation of topics and partners may reduce the visibility and impact of the HUCI. Thus, we will narrow down the programs and partnerships associated with the HUCI to align with the University’s distinctive strengths. This will lead to the university building an even stronger reputation in these fields of expertise and allow for the concentration of resources.

System Reforms for Education Nitobe College, a distinctive honors program offered by the university, has the potential to be quite successful and to grow. However the Expert Panel pointed that some students drop out of Nitobe College because they cannot fit their participation in the College with the requirements of their undergraduate school. To make Nitobe College a success, we need to consider how to align the requirements of undergraduate schools with the elements of Nitobe College. In other words, adjustments need to come from both sides - the faculties and Nitobe College. The Expert Panel also drew attention to the fact that some faculty members voiced concerns that the quality of courses, and thus the quality of education programs, has been diminished by being taught in English because some students have a low English proficiency level. Furthermore, many Japanese students are reluctant to take courses offered in English. We therefore should encourage faculty members, staff, and students to continue their efforts to gain a higher English proficiency. Since a small minority of students study abroad, HU needs to focus on amplifying its on-campus experience to accomplish the goal of producing “globally competent” students. To achieve this, the university should also identify the skills, knowledge, and learning outcomes they would like every HU graduate to process, and make the necessary reforms towards that goal.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

CONCLUSION This article presents an overview of internationalization strategies within Japan’s institutions of higher education, and outlines the changes occurring in Japan’s higher education since the 1980s. Hokkaido University has accomplished a great deal towards achieving its goals outlined in the Future Strategy in the two years since the launch of the HUCI. Its current challenges are to consolidate its gains, widen its circle of supporters and participants, and make the necessary adjustments to ensure the sustainability of the HUCI. This is why Hokkaido University was awarded the IAU Learning Badge for Assessing Strategy and Monitoring Achievements from the IAU. Hokkaido University has developed a sound strategy for internationalization, has had targets and indicators assigned for monitoring purposes, and has been reassessing its progress and tactics as and when necessary. The issues surrounding the globalization of the higher education system in Japan serve as a useful case study on the attempts and challenges faced by many regions in designing and implementing policies to further their national agenda.

REFERENCES Horie, M. (2002). The internationalization of higher education in Japan in the 1990s: Aeconsideration. Higher Education, 43(1), 65–84. doi:10.1023/A:1012920215615 MEXT. (2012). Selection for the FY2012 Re-Inventing Japan Project. Retrieved from http://www. mext. go.jp/en/policy/education/highered/title02/detail02/sdetail02/sdetail02/1374092.htm MEXT. (2014). Selection for the FY2014 Top Global University Project. Retrieved from http:// docplayer. net/16379288-Selection-for-the-fy-2014-top-global-university-project-we-hereby-nnounce-theselectionof-universities-for-the-top-global-university-project.html Yonezawa, A. (2011). The “global 30” and the consequences of selecting “world-class universities” in Japan. In N. C. Liu, Q. Wang, & Y. Cheng (Eds.), Paths to a world-class university: Lessons from practices and experiences. Rotterdam: Sense Publishers. doi:10.1007/978-94-6091-355-6_3

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS IAU: The International Association of Universities (IAU) founded in 1950, is a worldwide membership-led non-governmental organization. It comprises more than 650 higher education institutions and organizations in some 130 countries. IAU is an official partner of UNESCO. Its permanent Secretariat, the International Universities Bureau, provides Policy Statements on issues of global importance for higher education. Each Statement is the product of extensive drafting and international consultations. Recently the Statements have been formally adopted by the General Conference of the Association, though in the past some emanated from international Round Tables or meetings of the Administrative Board.

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 Globalization of Japanese Higher Education and the Case of Hokkaido University

Inazo Nitobe: Inazo Nitobe (1862-1933) was agricultural economist, writer, educator, diplomat, and politician. In 1877 he entered the newly founded Sapporo Agricultural College in the northern island of Hokkaido and graduated in 1881. In 1884, he went to study in the United States, first at Allegheny College in western Pennsylvania, and then at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. After earning his doctorate in agricultural economics in Germany, he returned to Japan in 1891 to assume an assistant professorship at the Sapporo Agricultural College. He served as a professor of law at Kyoto Imperial University and Tokyo Imperial University, Headmaster of the First Higher School (the preparatory division for the Tokyo Imperial University), and the first president of Tokyo Women’s Christian University. He was an Under-Secretary General of the League of Nations from 1919 to 1926. He was a prolific writer and exerted a powerful influence on Japanese intellectuals and students. He wrote many books in English and is most famous in the West for his work Bushido: The Soul of Japan. GPA: Grade point average, which is a measure of a student’s academic achievement at institutions such a college or university; calculated by dividing the total number of grade points received by the total number attempted.

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Chapter 3

Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy Miguel Brechner Centro Ceibal University, Uruguay

ABSTRACT This chapter describes how the government of Uruguay believes that all children have the right to have technology at their fingertips and that all children have the right to connectivity and access to the internet, that it is as important to have electricity and running water as to have access to the internet, and that it would have a high impact on the country’s technological deployment and, obviously, on education and teaching. The parts of the chapter are concerned with the technology and pedagogy relationship: how to improve pedagogy through technology, the importance of teaching English and math online with help of education inspectors and the teachers using modern platform—virtual classrooms, books in digital format, digital technology laboratories—that allows collaborative work, work on projects, logical thinking, an online assessment system. All these integrated tools transfer to the biggest investments which the author calls “global learning network.”

INTRODUCTION Plan Ceibal was created in Uruguay in 2006 and its implementation started in 2007 (Plan Ceibal, 2006, 2007). It was not designed as an ICT programme or a laptop programme, but as an inclusion programme. From the first day, we in government believed that all children have the right to have technology at their fingertips and that all children have the right to connectivity and access to the Internet. In a school, it is as important to have electricity and running water as to have access to the Internet. Besides, all students should have the same devices throughout the national territory. Our focus was always on inclusion. We were aware that by the time this was established, it would have a high impact on the country’s technological deployment and, obviously, on education and teaching. In a very short synthesis, our vision is to have a good Internet connection in schools, work with computers and use “the cloud” as the main basis for services. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch003

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy

I would like to share where we are, how we are and what we are doing.

INTERNET AT THE STUDENT’S PLACE OF STUDY Uruguay is a small country (Wikipedia, 2018). If I look at the figures from Argentina and Colombia – fortunately Costa Rica, which is also a small country, Colombia overwhelms me with 8 million devices and I’d rather not hear how many there are in Argentina. In Uruguay, we have 566,000 beneficiaries (Plan Ceibal, 2015). This means all public-school students between first and ninth grade, or between the first class of elementary or primary school and the third class of secondary school, depending on how this is defined in different countries. We cover all students and all teachers, with 80% of them having Internet availability greater than 95%, and with 98% of students accessing the Internet at their place of study. We developed this basic infrastructure strongly since 2007. The work in the field of technological deployment (Croteau & Bergeron, 2001) allowed us to have optical fibre in all urban educational centres, with high-quality video conferencing equipment in those places, and access to the Internet in neighbourhoods requiring priority care or deprived neighbourhoods, in housing complexes, in hospitals, in public squares; i.e., wherever there is a Ceibal student, there is access to the Internet (see Figure 1). The Internet is fundamental for the development of this plan, we believe in “the cloud” and we are working increasingly on “a centralised cloud infrastructure”. Figure 1. Deployment of WiFi and video network Source: Plan Ceibal (2016)

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 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy

We deliver tablets in the first, second, and third grade of elementary schools; laptops which work both as a laptop and tablet in the third grade; and common laptops in the first grade of secondary school or seventh grade.

COMPUTER ACCESS PER STUDENT In terms of computer access per person, it started to grow in 2007, and today we have no digital divide between the richest and the poorest (see Figure 2). If I would have to synthesise something in a graphic about Uruguay and Plan Ceibal, I would choose this one. Next, we are going to see computer access by age range and by quintile; what the access to technology was like in 2007 (see Figure 3). Clearly, between the ages of 6 and 13 there was a difference from 9 to 90%; between 14 and 24 years, from 9 to 86%. If you look at what it is like today (see Figure 4), there is clearly no digital divide, but equity. This is the best synthesis of our definition. Where we do have a great difference, is among those over 65, because where it says that 44% have access to technology in the poorer sections of the population, this refers to computers held by the children of Plan Ceibal in homes where there are grandparents aged over 65. Just as a side comment, in 2016 we started a programme to deliver tablets to retirees over 65.

Figure 2. PC access, according to per capita income quintiles. Total for the country, in percentage of households Source: ECH-INE, 2016

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 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy

Figure 3. PC access by age group, according to per capita income quintiles. Total for the country, in percentage of the population, 2007 Source: ECH-INE 2007

Figure 4. PC access by age group, according to per capita income quintiles. Total for the country, in percentage of the population, 2017 Source: ECH-INE 2007

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 Plan Ceibal as Where Technology Accelerates Pedagogy

TECHNOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY The essential issue, as I understand it, lies in the discussion of technology and pedagogy. I’ve spent all my live in the world of ICT, but, if truth be said, I would like to hear less the term “ICT” and much more the term “pedagogy”. The main question is always: Why has technology had so much influence in our lives and so little influence on the educational world? When we started Plan Ceibal, there was no iPhone and there was no iPad. When we think about how technology has influenced our lives and how little it has influenced education, we should ask ourselves why. I have no doubt that one of the main reasons is that what matters to technology sellers, is selling technology. They don’t care what technology is used for. Over the last 20 years, there have been different programmes, here and there. With a few exceptions, notably that of Costa Rica, where they always knew clearly what they wanted to do with technology, in other parts of the world digital blackboards were implemented, with an expenditure of billions of dollars that made no sense at all. Technology is not an instrument to solve the problem, but is an instrument that will help others to solve the problem. This issue with technology and pedagogy is so important, that technology wants everybody to adapt to it, when it should be the other way around. It is technology that should adapt to the world. At this meeting, there has been much talk about training. How many of us use Facebook? How many Twitter? How many WhatsApp? How many training courses did WhatsApp provide? Just imagine a world where everybody would have to receive training to use Twitter or WhatsApp. That’s something absolutely crazy. Why should people be trained to use a platform? Why is it necessary to receive training to use a computer? We have lived too many years influenced by the world of engineering. I am proud to be an engineer. But now we are starting to live in a world where technology is part of an art. My mother is 90 years old and she uses Skype. Can we afford to have people who aged 90 without Skype? They use the computer to talk to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Technology simply has to adapt to teachers, not teachers to technology. We must improve the ability of teachers to use and understand technology, and not just train them to use a computer or some specific software. If the software is not easy to use, it shouldn’t be used. Just like that. We have to look for software that is easy to use. And this is my vision of how we have to focus on technology.

HOW TO IMPROVE PEDAGOGY USING TECHNOLOGY There are two fields in technology. One field that is clearly a solution to the problem and which cannot be solved if there is no technology; and another field that is an accelerator of pedagogy, which is what we should be discussing today: how to improve pedagogy using technology. But not how we are introducing ICT in schools. There should be no discussion about the fact that schools need to have devices and access to the Internet. There can be some discussion on who should do it. I propose to have a specialized agency for technology and pedagogy innovation in charge of the solution of this problem.

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Teaching English I would like to mention some examples, and we should think whether we are talking about technology to solve a problem or whether we are talking about technology to improve pedagogy. And as we delve deeper into this issue, we will realise the action to be taken and who should take it. Here are some examples. In Uruguay, we don’t have sufficient English teachers. So, we asked ourselves: how are we going to solve the problem of teaching English? Well, we decided to put optical fibre into schools, and to employ a remote teacher who is in Uruguay but in a different city, in Argentina, in the Philippines, in England and in Colombia, where we have people teaching via video conference. But not by means of a web software. It is a virtual class. The video conference is of such high quality that teachers interact with their students from their remote location. The local teacher, who doesn’t speak English, because most Uruguayan teachers don’t know English, works with that teacher; one class session is face-to-face and two class sessions are conducted with the use of computers. In 2012, we tested this system with 1,000 students; in 2013, we had 25,000 students; in 2014, 50,000; in 2015, 77,000; and in 2016, 80,000 (see Figure 5). Figure 5. Teaching of English Source: Plan Ceibal, 2016.

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In addition, the face-to-face programme has about 32,000 teachers. For the first time ever, 93% of fourth, fifth and sixth grade of students in Uruguayan elementary public education are learning English. We wouldn’t be able to do this without the video conferencing technology and the English teaching methodology we agreed upon with the remote teachers. In this case, technology clearly solved a problem for which there was no solution. What are the results? We tested the students last year, and both those who have face-to-face classes and those who have remote classes, learn English. Let’s look at the graphs: 57% of kids in the sixth grade are close to A2 in English standards, 22% are in A1+, and 15% in A1- (see Figure 6). I say it once again, technology helped us solve a problem. We had to be very innovative, but now we have universalised the teaching of English in this way. Of course, we had to build the optical fibre and video conferencing infrastructure for this. There is no new pedagogy to teach English. We teach English using the old method. Let’s see another approach: we purchased an adaptive math platform with 100,000 activities, covering from the third to the ninth grade. What is happening in this case? Students go to school, the teacher gives them assignments to do, and the teacher doesn’t have to prepare math exercises anymore because students log in to the platform. As they move on the platform, things become more difficult. As exercises get more difficult, the platform helps students and if necessary, lowers the level of difficulty to the level of student understanding. At the end of the day, the teacher receives from each student what they did, where they stopped and what their difficulty was. This is obviously a very modern platform; we hired a German company that adapted it to Uruguay working with Uruguayan teachers. Figure 6. Levels reached in the adaptive test. In percentage of students who took the test, 2014

Source: Plan Ceibal, 2014

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Teaching Math In 2016, more than 150,000 students worked on the platform and submitted almost 40 million exercises. Let’s take a look at the ownership graphs (see Figure 7). They are mind blowing. We organise a math proficiency competition twice a year. The prizes to motivate the students: in 2014, it was to go to the World Cup; in 2013, to see the games of the qualifying round. Current prizes are for the educational centres, for the children as a group. In 2016, the number of people using the platform has increased by almost 65% compared to those using it in 2015. The adoption of technology is slow, but is faster when it is easy to use. This takes the burden of preparing exercises off the teachers’ shoulders and also gives them the ability to see the level of each of their students concerning problem solving. In other words, customising education without technology is absolutely impossible. The only tool that allows teachers to have a vision about the difficulties faced by each one of their students, and even more so when classes are numerous, is technology. This is technology, not new pedagogy. It is math exercises in a dynamic that allows the student to do them at home, at the club, allowing them to ask questions and seek help, but it is nothing new. We worked with education inspectors and the teachers, but without gigantic training being necessary.

Figure 7. Growth of the use of the Adaptive Mathematics Platform (PAM) Source: Plan Ceibal, 2016.

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Virtual Classroom Another clear example is the management of the virtual classroom. We have a Facebook-like tool where students work, where discussions take place, where homework is left for them to be done... and none of us received training on how to upload photos to Facebook. It takes a little while to learn how to do it, but you learn. And in our case, it is the same. This platform manages classroom content, homework, educational materials, and again, the growth achieved in one year compared to the previous one is mind blowing. Why? Because as technology starts to be quite transparent and simple to use, teachers, who are the backbone of any change, take ownership. Not to mention the kids pushing forward (see Figure 8).

Books in Digital Format Another very clear example of technology not changing pedagogy is the use of books. What do I mean by this? Books in digital format. Ceibal bought the rights to the texts, to almost all texts and most of the reading books, and all members of Plan Ceibal have access to the texts for free. The level of downloads has increased sharply. Why did it increase? Not because the books improved. Because the software to read the books improved. Previously, it was a bother to read a book, so that nobody read. Today, the

Figure 8. Growth in the use of CREA 2: Schoology Source: Plan Ceibal, 2016.

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software has improved and people can read it. We made several calls for tenders, we did not find any software, we built software based on open software, which improved the reading performance. Good software is crucial. Easy-to-use software is crucial. Now, what is our strategy with the software? We have a clear mandate: to reduce the divide and to support the education system in everything related to technology to respond to its needs. Thus, our mandate is not to be a software producer. Our mandate is to make software available as soon as possible. When good software exists abroad or at local level, we make a call for tenders, and if the software features all that is necessary and the price is appropriate, we purchase it. When no software exists, then we create it ourselves or have it created by somebody. Half of the products we have today are made in Uruguay by Uruguayan companies, and the other half was purchased by us in different parts of the world.

Digital Technology Laboratories There is a tool we call “LabTeD”, the digital technology laboratories, that allows collaborative work, work on projects, logical thinking. What is it? It is robotics; programming; video games; physics, chemistry and science sensors, audio-visual management and 3D printing. What started just as a project, today it has a very large scope. We have delivered 4,600 robotics kits, which means that in most middle schools or high schools, there is one robotics kit every four students. It started out being voluntary, and today there are many thousands of students working on this. The development has been such, that for the first time ever, we are in midst of a pilot project in the whole department of Maldonado to change the traditional computer science or office automation syllabus from what was in the past, to work of this kind. This actually is a change in pedagogy. This actually is a change in the way to work with students. We conducted a series of evaluations and there is great motivation among teachers. It doesn’t relate to the computer science teacher alone; it involves all of them, the computer science, physics and chemistry teachers, discovering the virtues of collaborative work or networking. The level of enthusiasm about this is great. We organised programming courses with thousands and thousands of students who enrolled to learn. This is a change in technology that accelerates the change in pedagogy.

An Online Assessment System Another example is an online assessment system. We have an online assessment system where teachers can bring together immediately all the results of their class, where they can see the issues their students have, where they can see what caused the error. The level of participation is very high, and although it started on a voluntary basis, today it is used by practically the entire public and private education system. Plan Ceibal platforms are also available for private education. The online assessment is used by practically more than 80 percent of the teachers in public and private education.

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FUTURE RESEACH DIRECTION: GLOBAL LEARNING NETWORK And finally, one of the biggest investments we are making is called “Global Learning Network”, an experiment we are doing in seven countries, with 100 educational centres per country. These countries are the United States, Canada, Uruguay, the Netherlands, Finland, Australia and New Zealand. The idea is to work together. To find out how technology can accelerate pedagogy. Michael Fullan, the renowned educator and reformer of several learning projects in different countries, is leading this project. We are facing a great dilemma. We all want to educate a student with critical, collaborative thought, having good communication, having a didactic use of ICT, being a good, creative, imaginative citizen, and with character. But, where are the rubrics to measure this? How are we going to measure whether somebody is collaborative? We can continue making speeches, our politicians live by making speeches. But somebody has to do the actual work. This project is working on that and it is something very complicated. To have students work in teams, on projects about various topics and to share these topics with other countries in the world and see where the technology did help and where it did not. But technology shouldn’t be the core. It should be extremely peripheral. I have no doubt at all that this is a gigantic challenge. Finally, from the point of view of the provision of services, technology has to help in a number of fields, including digital planning, access to a wealth of historical information on learning. Currently there is a very large collection of data to work on, and we must be able to detect student issues well in advance. An electronic attendance list, which is something trivial, takes time; but in Uruguay, this is something already being done. There are two more points to be added. One is costs. We spend about USD 100 per student per year on the programme. This includes the laptop and exchanging the laptop, but if you look at the percentages (see Figure 9), USD 37 of the USD 100 correspond to the laptop’s depreciation; USD 14 to the network; USD 8 to video conferences; USD 16 to laptop support and logistics; i.e. technical support costs money, support areas; servicing the devices costs money. Figure 9. Implementation and sustainability Source: Plan Ceibal, 2015.

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CONCLUSION Finally, what are the challenges? We are talking about what we did. Today, the biggest challenges account for much of what nobody is doing. We are very concerned because reading comprehension is a big problem in Uruguay, and I believe in all of Latin America, and no good adaptive platform for reading comprehension exists. We believe that instead of discussing some general software issues, we should be thinking at regional level why, if we undoubtedly are the region with the most laptops in schools, there is no reading platform where the student starts reading a book and the book adapts to the student’s understanding ability. This is not just a dream, it is something possible to achieve. It requires a very complex software development which will take money and time, but it is a necessity which at least we in Uruguay have and are working very hard on it. What for? To find areas where technology will help to improve that understanding. Because today, when a child goes to class and is not able to read as well as the child sitting next to them, we are facing a difficulty that technology does not solve. It will solve it when it adapts to the child. Technology provides adaptive platforms, not matter what grade a child is in, allowing students to understand what they need to understand and to produce what they need to produce, something that is very clear in the case of mathematics. There are many challenges, especially concerning educational platforms. Above anything, improving “the quality of the cloud”. Although today we have optical fibre available, it is not enough. We need to improve on interaction. This implies having laptops and tablets with the best WiFi chips because otherwise video won’t work as it should. Students use video, video and more video, and this consumes bandwidth and computer video chip capacity. Although we have already been working for eight years on this, we hope to be here still a few more years and contribute to greater equity and better learning in our country.

REFERENCES Ceibal, P. (2006). What is Plan Ceibal? Retrieved 18.12.2017 from https://www.ceibal.edu.uy/en/ institucional Ceibal, P. (2014). Plan Ceibal over the years – 2014. Retrieved 18.12.2017 from https://www.ceibal. edu.uy/en/institucional Ceibal, P. (2015). Plan Ceibal over the years – 2015. Retrieved 18.12.2017 from https://www.ceibal. edu.uy/en/institucional Ceibal, P. (2016). Plan Ceibal over the years – 2016. Retrieved 18.12.2017 from https://www.ceibal. edu.uy/en/institucional ECH-INE. (2007). Uruguay Investment and Promotion Agency, 2007. Retrieved from http://www.uruguayxxi.gub.uy/ ECH-INE. (2016). Uruguay Investment and Promotion Agency, 2016. Retrieved 18.12.2017 from http:// www.uruguayxxi.gub.uy/ Wikipedia. (2018). Uruguay. Retrieved 18.12.2017 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uruguay

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ADDITIONAL READING Croteau, A.-M., & Bergeron, F. (2001). An information technology trilogy: Business strategy, technological deployment and organizational performance. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems. 10. 77-99. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/222693883_An_information_technology_trilogy_Business_strategy_technological_deployment_and_organizational_performance

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Global Learning Network: New project of the Plan Ceibal. On-Line Platform: The basic hardware (computer, servers, network) and software (operating systems, web-applications) for collective project work over the internet. Pedagogy Relationship: Special kind of personal relationship between adult and child or adult and student that is different from other personal relationships. Plan Ceibal: The program created in Uruguay in 2006 as an inclusion program. Technological Deployment: A part of technology trilogy (together with business strategy and organizational performance) based on the strategic impact of the information system department, the technological architecture, the information system performance evaluation and technological scanning, contributes directly to organizational performance for the strategic activities’ analyzer, while it contributes indirectly to organizational performance.

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Chapter 4

Engineers for Industry:

Challenges, Solutions, and Future Ideas Robin Clark University of Warwick, UK Jane Andrews Aston University, UK

ABSTRACT The need for a reliable supply of engineering talent is accepted globally, but in many parts of the world the many challenges mean that this is not easily achieved. Even if the graduate supply is a reality, often there are concerns about the quality of the engineers entering the workforce. This chapter will explore this landscape, and after identifying the many challenges, explore solutions and potential ideas for the future of engineering education and the university/industry collaboration.

INTRODUCTION The current environment in which engineering educators are operating is both complex and demanding. The particular context explored within this paper is the UK, although a more global perspective will be taken wherever possible. The needs of industry are a primary driver when it comes to developments in engineering education, but increasingly the policies of government and the forces of the tertiary education marketplace are adding to this complicated picture (Perkins, 2013). This paper will discuss some of the ways in which UK higher education institutions are addressing these challenges. Although the primary focus of the work will be the present, the paper will conclude with some more strategic thinking, contemplating what can be done to create a more robust foundation on which to build future innovation. Throughout, the key theme will be the employability of the engineering graduates being created and nurtured within the engineering education process.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch004

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Engineers for Industry

BACKGROUND Tertiary education, not just in the UK but across the globe, is in a state of continual change – whether that be rationalisation to balance budgets as has happened over much of Europe in recent years, the changing demands of students or the need to innovate to ensure the development of industry ready graduates. This paints a complex picture and engineering educators are firmly situated at the centre of this change. If we consider the UK, all of the previously mentioned forces are acting on the higher education sector along with pressure to ensure that the student experience is of the highest quality. In the UK this is captured by the annual National Student Survey that all final year students in every university are asked to respond to (HEFCE, 2017a). The results of this survey are crucial as they contribute a significant amount to the University League Table rankings that are published annually and in this last year the award of recognition by way of the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) (HEFCE, 2017b). In order to create a ‘Sustainable Future for Higher Education’ (UK Government, 2010), legislation led to undergraduate student fees being raised from £3000 per year of study to £9000. With the arrival of the TEF, these fees will now increase further and this was demonstrated in 2017 when fees were raised to £9250. The Government White Paper that introduced the TEF in May 2016, ‘Success as a Knowledge Economy’ (UK Government, 2016), made many proposals all with the aim that “universities should produce well equipped students ready to contribute to society and business”. Clearly employability is at the forefront of current UK Government thinking when it comes to the value and impact of Higher Education. This was taken further in the autumn of 2017 when the UK Government published its future plans for the TEF (UK Government, 2017). Although still called the TEF, the full title going forward is ‘Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework’ thus placing the future destination of university graduates firmly at the centre of the evaluation exercise. The TEF has been perceived in some circles as yet another measure and a way to interfere in university learning and teaching. Taking a more optimistic and constructive view, it really should be seen as an opportunity. With the framework subjecting learning and teaching to a similar level of scrutiny as is already done for university research, the value of teaching professionals and the contribution they make is sure to rise.

STEM (SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, MATHS) GRADUATES So, in thinking about STEM graduates, exactly what does industry want? In one word – everything! They want a sound technical background but also a wide range of interpersonal, personal and business skills to supplement that STEM understanding. Also, they are not always consistent. Sometimes one area is valued more than another and this will vary from company to company. Despite the ‘demands’ industry often places on universities and the criticism that is sometimes levelled at them concerning the quality of the graduates being produced, industry engagement in the educational process can be very variable. It is almost as though there is a reluctance to get too involved, as in it not being their responsibility.

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The UK Institution of Mechanical Engineers produced a report in 2011 (IMechE, 2011), of which the key messages are still as relevant today as when the report was written, in particular the recommendations. The recommendations are split into those for government, those for employers and those for the profession. Focussing on those for employers, they are all about investing in skills, engaging in dialogue with education providers and promoting engineering as a fulfilling career. The key message being ‘work together’ as the results will be of greater value to all involved. It sounds simple, but the collaboration between industry and universities is not occurring as widely as it should and, when it does occur, the effort needed for success is considerable. Within many UK universities with a clear focus on employability, this challenge has been tackled from both the student viewpoint and from the industry position. One particular project conducted as part of the UK National HE STEM Programme produced two toolkits for use by students (Andrews et al., 2012) and universities / industry (Clark & Andrews, 2012a) to promote greater awareness and engagement. The student toolkit captures the key characteristics employers are asking that students possess on graduation, in addition to their technical knowledge. Each skill is identified, explained and ways to develop it presented. Examples include team working, problem solving and global citizenship. In that way students and course leaders are given easy to follow guidance on what needs to be embedded within the engineering and applied science study programmes. The universities / industry toolkit explores the features of strong engagement with respect to the learning and teaching space and identifies actions that each can consider in order to foster even stronger relationships. In many UK universities there is an aim to have the majority of STEM students experience an industry placement of some type combined with greater industry input to course design and development. That way, the graduates produced will be ready for industry. As has been stated earlier, this is not trivial and it does require each side to acknowledge the need to work together and this is where the second piece of work I wanted to share with you comes in. Following a study of the literature and a series of interviews with industry representatives, the universities / industry toolkit resulted in the development of an Engagement Model (Figure 1). Although when looking at the model the different elements around developing networks, strengthening relationships and managing the employer / academic interchange more effectively appear to be straight forward, actually realising a positive outcome requires a major effort if the effects are to be sustainable.

INNOVATIVE ENGINEERING EDUCATION For effective and innovative engineering education to be realised, the starting point requires the need to take a holistic view. Although the main focus of this paper is higher education, it is important to see engineering education as a series of steps towards the ultimate goal of becoming an engineering leader in industry. This means the need to value the inspiring of young children when they are 4 years old as much as the engagement with upskilling of mature engineering professionals. At primary level (4-11 years old) both boys and girls tend to be equally engaged in engineering activity when they are introduced to it. The problem is that many children don’t experience this opportunity. Primary Engineer (Primary Engineer, 2017) is a key provider in the UK and work exploring the impact of the experiences they offer suggests that there is a solid foundation on which to build (Clark and Andrews, 2010). The clear need is to spread the activity more widely and ensure a smoother transition from primary to secondary education.

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Figure 1. Universities/industry engagement model

In the UK it is these transition points and the consequent changes in learning and teaching approach that prove most problematical. The Institution of Mechanical Engineers ‘When STEM?’ report (IMechE, 2010) suggested very clearly that the primary to secondary transition needs particular attention as from 12 years on, interest in STEM subjects, particularly amongst girls, drops quite markedly. The typically dry delivery, lack of practical opportunities and shortage of qualified teachers all compound this problem. The challenge of engaging girls in engineering is explored further by Clark and Andrews (2016). Moving into university, issues around understanding exactly what engineering is, grasping the idea of independent learning and the socialisation need are all dominant. ‘Belonging’ is highlighted as a key consideration, something that comes through strongly in the ‘What Works’ Programme Report, the results of a major study on transition into university conducted in the UK (Thomas, 2012). One particular approach which has proven helpful in addressing the student retention and progression challenge in higher education is that of peer mentoring. This is where typically 2nd year students are paired with 1st years and they support the students as they transition into university, initially socially and later academically. The study conducted, the largest undertaken looking solely at peer mentoring, involved 6 universities and adopted a multiple case study approach, employing surveys, interviews and observations. The result was the Transition + Peer Mentoring Model shown in Figure 2 that identifies the key features of an effective peer mentoring approach within a university. The features of the model allow institutions to tailor their process to meet their needs and environment but encourage them to consider each of the features proactively such as the need to train and support the mentors, to take care in matching and ensure that each mentor has no more than 3 to 5 mentees. The model has been used by several institutions both within the UK and globally (Clark et al, 2013).

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Figure 2. Transition + peer mentoring model

Approaches such as peer mentoring are important considerations when it comes to considering the quality of the student university experience. This can then impact the National Student Survey results referred to earlier. With good results an institution can demonstrate to potential students that it is a great place to come and study, but more importantly, the data can feed into the universities continuous improvement plan. In recent years, the scores for the ‘assessment and feedback’ part of the survey have been low nationally. Consequently, many universities have clear objectives to address this particular area of what they do. In order to ensure the ‘Teaching on my course’ rating of the survey is high, innovation in learning and teaching is widely encouraged in most institutions. The Royal Academy of Engineering report from 2007 entitled ‘Educating Engineers for the 21st Century’ (RAEng, 2007) suggested that project and problem based learning should be important elements of a relevant engineering degree programme. The PrBL and PBL literature is extensive but it can be argued that there is a need to take a slightly broader view of this proposal by suggesting to colleagues that variety and activity in learning is important, alongside the consideration of authentic or real world learning experiences. Staying with one ‘novel’ approach can often be as problematical as retaining a wholly didactic approach to learning and teaching. One particular active learning approach adopted within the Mechanical Engineering and Design programmes at Aston University is the use of the CDIO framework. CDIO stands for Conceive Design Implement Operate and is very much based on the engineering design process. Students work in teams and create an artefact to satisfy a brief – cars, wind turbines and valves are three such examples. In addition to promoting innovative and self-motivated student learning opportunities, the CDIO framework provides guidance for staff on what they should be considering.

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In addition to employers recognising the impact of this approach on graduates, the evaluation of the impact has suggested that students are also able to see and realise the benefit of a more active and authentic approach to engineering education (Clark & Andrews, 2012b; Clark & Thomson, 2015). Another area where innovation in engineering education is readily apparent is the development of more flexible work based learning opportunities that cater to working professionals who desire or are required to take their education to the next level. Bespoke company programmes are becoming increasingly popular, often based on a blended approach of block release and on-line materials. One particular programme in the UK is a work based MSc in Professional Engineering that is part of the UK Engineering Council Gateways initiative (Glew & Elsworth, 2010; Clark et al, 2014). The programme has not only operated for UK based students, company cohorts from overseas have also enrolled. A typical comment from a student on one of these overseas programmes is given in the quote below: An important fact is that learning is both an active and a reflective process. What really stands out from my learning experience is the lifelong learning. Up until I left university, I had always thought that university was going to be the end of my educational years. I have now learnt that going to university was not just to learn how to be an engineer, but also to learn how to learn.- Student, BP Angola A final area that needs consideration is that of diversity and in particular in the UK, the gap in attainment between white students and those from a black minority ethnic background. The work conducted in this area suggests that there is still much to do to realise some real improvements. Where courses involved BME students in co-creation activity and where BME attainment was specifically discussed, some promising results have been demonstrated. Sadly the subject is one that is often not discussed as it makes teachers and management uncomfortable. The important conclusion is that if you have student diversity, embrace it and respond to it if you want all of your students to be successful (Andrews & Clark, 2015).

MAKING ENGINEERING EDUCATION WORK With so much happening in higher education, with the unique challenges of the STEM subjects and with the pressure on staff to do their discipline research, it is important to find a way to engage staff in the teaching improvement process, but in a way that is accessible to them. The starting point has been Biggs Constructive Alignment (Biggs, 2011) that suggests the need to ensure a coherency between the learning outcomes a teacher wants to achieve, the teaching method employed and the assessment approach. This has now been extended to suggest that the coherency needs to take into account what happens to a student before they enter university and how their university experience will connect with the career path they wish to follow on leaving university. This is captured in a model developed by the paper authors called the RVS model (Clark & Andrews, 2014). In communicating with staff, the simple equation R+V+S = Student Success has been very effective. To add some explanation: R = relationships – between staff and students, students and student, staff and staff etc V = variety, in other words doing different things in the class and not just lecturing S = synergy, which captures the extended alignment idea.

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The premise is that for engineering educators, by focussing on the R, V and S they will become effective teachers and create engaging and innovative learning experiences for students. At the same time, they are embracing some important ideas from the pedagogical literature without having to read, distil and interpret for themselves, something that is of considerable value in the current environment. In order to support this further, Aston University has established a research centre, ASEC – Aston STEM Education Centre, to promote scholarship in learning and teaching, a way to share and network, to provide evidence for decision making and for individuals, a way to gain professional recognition and promotion (ASEC, 2017). The paper authors were the founders of ASEC which was an extension of a smaller Engineering Education Research Group. In the wider UK, from a Special Interest Group first set up in 2009, there is now a thriving independent UK and Ireland Engineering Education Research Network that has close to 100 members and it will hold its 5th Annual Symposium in London in November 2017. It has been a long journey to recognition for the participants, but the Network website is now firmly established and hosted by the Royal Academy of Engineering (EERN, 2017). Looking further afield, in Europe there is SEFI (European Engineering Education Society), globally we have REEN (Research in Engineering Education Network) and several countries have their own national Engineering Education Societies. In Europe, EU projects have been a valuable way of strengthening the networks and bringing institutions together. With the establishment of Centres and Networks, there is now, more than ever, an opportunity to share, collaborate and learn. All of this suggests that a degree of recognition for the work on innovative engineering education is being realised. The exchange of ideas across institutional and national boundaries can only make the community stronger and help us understand our respective challenges and thinking better.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Looking forward, the drive to produce ever more capable graduates, relevant courses and stronger industry links has become the path to follow. Engineering Education has reached a crucial point in its evolution and the ways of the past are increasingly no longer relevant. In moving towards a new vision, a ‘Learning Future’, a significant culture change is needed. The culture change is one that will affect all of the stakeholders in the engineering education process as we strive to put the student truly at the centre of the learning experience. We can do this by creating a defined but flexible framework within which students can determine their own learning programme. Similar to work based learning, blended learning and other more innovative pedagogies, a student will not only define the subjects they want to study, but also the way they want to study. This will require learners to be truly independent such that flipped pedagogies and flexible learning and assessment can be introduced and be successful. At present, student engagement concerns can make the implementation of some novel approaches to learning and teaching problematical. Initially there will be much work to be done, not only with staff and students, but with industry, professional bodies, schools and parents to explain the value of this new approach and to engage them in its development.

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In working towards a realisation of this vision, it is important to identify priority projects that will lay the foundation for a successful and sustainable implementation of this new framework. Examples might include, but not limited to, learning analytics, greater industry engagement, the redefinition of assessment and looking at how we can best measure the impact of learning. The ultimate goal, support by scholarship and research undertaken in Centres such as ASEC, is to provide opportunities for all – learners, industry and the wider society.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Having explored the landscape it becomes clear that the main direction for future research must be focused on a greater understanding as to what works and what doesn’t work when considering innovation in engineering education. If we are willing to accept that the innovation is needed to make the subjects more attractive to potential students and more relevant to what engineering graduates need to know, understand and demonstrate to be effective in industry, then we must ensure that we are studying and measuring the impact of this innovation. In order to do this we must embed the idea of Engineering Education Research in our Engineering Schools and Departments across the globe. To be effective, the work undertaken in this space needs to be valued and recognised. With visibility and the promotion of sharing, a multitude of small scale interventions and action research projects can become a global understanding that has the potential to benefit students, universities and industry to the fullest extent. To take steps in this direction will require commitment from senior university leadership and funding from national and international bodies to support the work. Until now this has been lacking for many, with work taking place as a result of a grass roots commitment to bring about change.

CONCLUSION Working in Engineering Education and Engineering Education Research requires passion, a passion that says it is ok to think out of the box if you want to benefit your students and the industry they will be working in. A passion that will encourage a person to persist. The Einstein quote - “If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it”- should drive us towards ever more novel approaches and away from conventional engineering education teaching. Wherever we are in the world, the higher education environment is challenging. In this paper it has been demonstrated that much work and creative thinking is taking place and that because of this, Engineering Education and Engineering Education Research has a bright future. The May 2017 event ‘New Approaches to Engineering Education’ at the IET in London is one such event that has sought to challenge the status quo (IET, 2017). Whatever steps we take, we must consider industry, we must be student focused and we must be flexible and innovative. If we do this, then everyone will win.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The authors would like to thank those colleagues, too numerous to mention, that have stimulated the thinking and work presented in this chapter.

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REFERENCES Andrews, J., & Clark, R. (2015). BME SDG Final Report. York, UK: Higher Education Academy. Andrews, J., Clark, R., & Higson, H. (2012). Enhancing Employability: Making the Most of University. Report for National HE STEM Programme. ASEC. (2017). Aston STEM Education Centre. Retrieved 11/8/17 from http://www.aston.ac.uk/eas/ research/groups/asec/ Biggs, J. B. (2011). Teaching for quality learning at university: What the student does. McGraw-Hill Education. Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2010). Researching Primary Engineering Education: An Exploratory Study from a UK Perspective. European Journal of Engineering Education, 35(3), 585–595. doi:10.1080/03 043797.2010.497551 Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2012a). Innovation in the Academic / Vocational Interchange: Developing and Achieving Good Practice in Employer Engagement. Report for National HE STEM Programme. Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2012b). Engineering the Future: CDIO as a tool for combating retention difficulties. In M. Rasul (Ed.), Developments in Engineering Education Standards: Advanced Curriculum Innovations (pp. 143–155). IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-0951-8.ch008 Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2014). Relationships, Variety & Synergy [RVS]: The Vital Ingredients for Scholarship in Engineering Education? A Case-Study. European Journal of Engineering Education, 39(6), 585–600. doi:10.1080/03043797.2014.895707 Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2016). A Community Based Participatory Research Study into Why Some Girls Don’t ‘Do’ Engineering. International Journal of Engineering Education, 32(6). Clark, R., Andrews, J. & Gorman, P. (2013). Tackling Transition: The Value of Peer Mentoring. Journal of Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning, 14, 57-75. Clark, R., Glew, B., & Andrews, J. (2014). Developing the Engineering Talent Pipeline using Work Based Learning. Engineering Leaders Conference. Clark, R., & Thomson, G. (2015). Exploring the Form and Impact of a CDIO Implementation – A Case Study. European CDIO Meeting. EERN. (2017). UK and Ireland Engineering Education Research Network. Retrieved from https://hefocus.raeng.org.uk/research-network/ Glew, B., & Elsworth, T. (2010). Development of a work-based learning MSc course which incorporates the development and demonstration of professional engineering competence standards. Engineering Education Conference 2010, Birmingham, UK. HEFCE. (2017a) NSS Results 2017. Retrieved from http://www.hefce.ac.uk/lt/nss/results/2017/ HEFCE. (2017b). Teaching Excellence Framework. Retrieved from http://www.hefce.ac.uk/lt/tef/

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IET. (2017). New Approaches to Engineering Higher Education. Retrieved from http://www.theiet.org/ policy/panels/education/22-05-17.cfm IMechE. (2010). When STEM? Institution of Mechanical Engineers. IMechE. (2011). Meeting the Challenge: Demand and Supply of Engineers in the UK. Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Perkins, J. (2013). Review of Engineering Skills. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/ uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/254885/bis-13-1269-professor-john-perkins-review-ofengineering-skills.pdf Primary Engineer. (2017). Retrieved from http://home.primaryengineer.com/ RAEng. (2007). Educating Engineers for the 21st Century. London: Royal Academy of Engineering. Thomas, L. (2012). What Works – Final Report. Retrieved from http://www.phf.org.uk/publications/ works-student-retention-success-final-report/ UK Government. (2010). Securing a Sustainable Future for Higher Education. Retrieved from https:// www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-browne-report-higher-education-funding-and-student-finance UK Government. (2016). Success as a Knowledge Economy: teaching excellence, social mobility and student choice. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-successas-a-knowledge-economy-white-paper UK Government. (2017). Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework Specification. Retrieved from https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teaching-excellence-and-student-outcomesframework-specification

ADDITIONAL READING IET. (2017) New Approaches to Engineering Higher Education http://www.theiet.org/policy/panels/ education/22-05-17.cfm Accessed 11/8/17 Johri, A., & Olds, B. (Eds.). (2014). Cambridge Handbook of Engineering Education Research. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; doi:10.1017/CBO9781139013451 The Proceedings of the IET Conference offer an insight into the latest UK thinking in terms of innovation in Engineering Education. The collection of papers explores a range of topics of relevance to the ongoing debate. UK and Ireland Engineering Education Research Network (2018) Proceedings of the 5th Annual Symposium – ‘Time for Change’ https://hefocus.raeng.org.uk/network-events/ Accessed 28/2/18 The Proceedings of the UK & Ireland EERN Symposium held in London in November 2017 offer a clear and up to date account of the pressing research issues being explored by the UK and Ireland Research Community. The collection again offers insight into a range of topics currently of interest.

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Trevelyan, J. P. (2014). The Making of an Expert Engineer. London: CRC Press/Balkema - Taylor & Francis. doi:10.1201/b17434 Wankat, P. C., & Oreovicz, F. S. (2015). Teaching Engineering (2nd ed.). West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University Press. Williams, B., Figueiredo, J. D., & Trevelyan, J. P. (Eds.). (2013). Engineering Practice in a Global Context: Understanding the Technical and the Social. Leiden, Netherlands: CRC/ Balkema. doi:10.1201/b15792

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Employability: The employability of engineering graduates once they complete their course of study is a key consideration across the globe and one that needs to be explored within the engineering education process. Engineering Education Research: Increasingly there is an awareness that, in order to promote greater understanding of the value and impact of innovation in engineering education, a more scholarly / research-based approach is needed. To that end, institutional. national and international groups have formed to promote and conduct engineering education research (EER). Industry Collaboration: The collaboration between industry and universities is essential if we are to ensure that graduating students can contribute fully when they start their careers. Unfortunately, the collaboration not occurring as widely as it should and, when it does occur, the effort needed for success is considerable. The university / industry toolkit explores the features of strong engagement with respect to the learning and teaching space and identifies actions that each can consider in order to foster even stronger relationships. Innovative Engineering Education: The generic used term for new approaches to engaging students in the study of engineering subjects. It covers all aspects of the education process from design and implementation to assessment and reflection. SEFI (European Engineering Education Society): The European Engineering Education Society offers a community of practitioners and scholars who have a mutual interest in the development and greater understanding of engineering education. STEM: The term used to describe the combined subjects of science, technology, engineering, maths. This term is used most often in schools but increasingly in the tertiary education space.

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Section 2

Quality and Standards

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Chapter 5

The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities’ Student Choice Liliya Ravilevna Yagudina Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT On the basis of its own hypotheses and analysis of foreign studies, the author determines how the informational and motivational functions of rankings have impact on Russian universities’ student choice. The analysis of the rankings position of universities and some of their key performance indicators (the foreign students number, the quality of applicants) showed there is not any direct correlation between them. According to the author, in order to maximize the effectiveness of rankings, it is necessary to improve the ranking methodology, to develop universities’ decision-making processes based on the rankings results, and to create customer culture on the rankings results using.

INTRODUCTION To improve the quality and relevance of training and teaching, which is the primary mission of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), requires new collective efforts to be exercised by the EHEA countries against the backdrop of the current transformation of higher education (Yerevan Communique, 2015). Expansion and growing diversity of stakeholders in the education system, as a result of academic and career mobility of students, graduates and teachers, makes the tasks faced by the universities more challenging in terms of identifying the consumers’ requirements, assuring education quality, reporting and providing open and transparent information about the quality level. Development of an independent assessment of quality as an institutional component of national education systems is a part of the most important issues involved in renewal of the EHEA.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch005

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities’ Student Choice

The author assumes that an independent education quality assessment would be an effective component of national system for education quality assurance, if it were to perform guaranteeing, informational, motivational, educational, and consultative functions. This chapter focuses on researching implementation of informational and motivational functions of such type of education quality assessment as ranking. Relating to higher education rankings, the content of these functions looks as follows. The informational function consists of informing consumers about the relative, comparative level of the universities’ reputations, satisfying the needs of each individual person and society as a whole so that to provide the information they are interested in. Under the conditions, where universities are becoming rightful players in the global market, rankings are designed to furnish information for the processes of potential consumers’ educational choice. Some researchers doubt the value of implementing this particular function of rankings to develop transparency and openness of the education system, in view of those undesirable consequences, which they produce, due to their inability to provide reliable and up-to-date information (Rauhvargers, 2011). The motivational function of ranking consists, firstly, of the ability to motivate universities to enhance the reputational characteristics and to reinforce the universities accountability to society. Capability of rankings to influence the development of the education quality remains controversial; they are often criticized for simplistic approach to the issues of universities’ activities, for resorting to this approach instead of thorough and scrupulous work on quality control; rankings are also criticized for pressure on universities which causes the latter to lose their individuality and national diversity. Indeed, it has to be admitted that rankings are more of a reputational management tool rather than a quality management one. Secondly, the motivational function of ranking lies in its capability of impacting the consumer preferences of the players in the market for educational services. This very impact is what this paper is devoted to.

BACKGROUND Studies targeted at comparative analysis of the impact of rankings on higher education show that, there are many things in common in the way people in different countries react to rankings, make management decisions and act on them. Governments exploit the motivational function of rankings to promote universities in the world education market, making them more competitive and seeking to achieve recognition of the national educational system abroad, ensuring them with appropriate funding. E. Hazelkorn underlines exclusively motivational function of rankings which play the role of social accountability, compelling universities to stick to and adopt the best practices, and based on the researcher’s empirical study in Germany, Japan and Austria, there is an opinion that rankings serve as both overt or covert factors causing changes in the higher education system (Hazelkorn, 2009). With respect to universities, the informational function of rankings is expressed, on the one hand, in providing information base for the universities themselves in identifying the best practices, and on the other hand, a university position in ranking enables the stakeholders to ascertain this university potential as a possible partner.

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According to the university presidents’ opinion poll in 2006, nearly 50% of the universities exploited their ranking position for advertising purposes, while 63% of the respondents said that rankings were especially helpful in recruiting students (Hazelkorn, 2011). The websites of the universities which occupy winning positions in the rankings of various levels demonstrate that such results are widely used to represent the university. In studies dealing with impacts of rankings on access, choice and students’ opportunities it was noted that a positive influence making the total number of applicants at the universities grow in Canada (Mueller & Rockerbie, 2005), Germany (Helbig & Ulbricht, 2010), the U.K. (Matzdorf & Greenwood, 2015), the U.S. (Espinosa, Grandall, & Tukibayeva, 2014) and other countries. Chevalier & Jia (2016) concluded that one standard deviation in ranking results causes an increase in the number of applicants by an average 4.3%. Though the research undertaken by Higher Education Research Institute of California evidences that the choice of a university is more impacted not by the university position in rankings but by parents’ advice, the reputation of the university among the peers, etc., they found that the importance of rankings was generally on the rise. The number of students, who regarded the ranking results as a very important factor in shaping their decision on the choice of the university, had risen between 1995 and 2006 by 56.2%; at the same time, there was not such a significant change observed in the growth of importance for other important factors (Higher Education Research Institute University of California [HERI], 2007). Subsequent studies undertaken by Matzdorf & Greenwood (2015) also demonstrate dependence of students’ choice on the position of the university in the league tables: 42% (Definitely agree) and 41% (Mostly agree) of the students polled agreed with the statement “My choice was strongly influenced by League Tables”. The majority of the studies are focused on establishing the factors which influence reference to these rankings, and their authors arrive at the conclusion that rankings do influence decision making of highly talented students and that such decisions are caused by gender, nationality (ethnicity), country of origin, social and economic status of the family, applicants’ aptitude and the chosen path of studies. It can be considered as unambiguously established by empirical research that there is a linkage between ranking of a university and quality of applicants for enrollment: applicants with high aptitude tended to choose universities under the influence of rankings (Clarke, 2007; Ehrenberg, 2002; Griffith & Rask, 2005; Yonezawa, Akiba & Hirouchi, 2009; HERI, 2007). Rankings are also primarily needed to students from high income families (Clarke, 2007; Federkeil, 2002; McDonough, Antonio, Walpole, & Perez, 1998). More and more foreign students tend to choose universities under the influence of ranking results. This correlation was experimentally hit upon by a number of researchers; for example, foreign applicants in the U.K. were more sensitive to the information about the quality of education in comparison with local students: a single standard deviation in ranking results causes an increase in the number of applicants by an average 7.4% (Chevalier & Jia, 2016). Therefore, an overview of the results yielded by previous research enables the author to isolate the following key tendencies in the impact of rankings on consumers:

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• •

During the last decade, on the whole, one has been able to observe growing importance attached to rankings when consumers of educational services decide as to where it would be best to get a university degree; Implementation of motivational function performed by rankings depends on the family income, the level of education results at the previous level of education, an applicant’s place of residence at the time that he or she makes the choice.

THE RESEARCH STUDY Methodology The main section of the work is devoted to investigation of the tendencies defined above in the impact of rankings with respect to Russian universities. Data was analyzed mainly from the following sources: • • • • •

Results from the QS World University Rankings; Informational and analytical materials based on the results of Monitoring of efficiency of higher education institutions (HEIs) conducted by The Ministry of Education and Science of Russia; Ranking of the Higher School of Economics (HSE) and Novosti Russian Information Agency (RIA Novosti); National Ranking of Universities (Interfax Agency); Results from the survey carried out by the author (532 responses). First year students studying for a bachelor degree at universities in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Kazan took part in the survey. Without claiming for universality of the survey, given such an insignificant number of respondents, nevertheless, the author believes that this sampling is sufficient to identify the key trends in the matter under consideration. The survey consisted of closed (structured) questions.

Study Findings The first task of the survey consists in determining the students’ awareness of existing education rankings and analyzing motivation of students’ choice of education caused by rankings. The question aimed at finding out former university applicants’ awareness of existing different rankings of education would be justifiable. Analysis of responses allow to state that the Ranking of the HSE and RIA Novosti as well as National Ranking of Universities (Interfax Agency) are the most popular ones among Russian university applicants; Figure 1 demonstrates that 29.15% and 22.92% of the respondents respectively are familiar with them. 55% of those polled indicated that the university position in rankings impacted the choice of the institution for receiving education, and besides this, the majority of them, in their choice, relied on the data provided by the Ranking of the HSE and RIA Novosti and by National Ranking of Universities (26.76% of the students in each case). The answers are summarized in Figure 2. The respondents were less informed about world university rankings. Perhaps, it can be explained both by the lack of interest to education abroad and by orientation of rankings on different consumer audiences, defining the originality of ranking criteria list.

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Figure 1. Students’ awareness of the existing education rankings

Figure 2. The impact of higher education rankings on Russian university applicant’s choice

The second task of the survey is devoted to determining the motivational potential of rankings with respect to foreign students and the students with a high average of points earned in the Unified State Test. Proceeding from the assumption that when choosing the university, an applicant has available ranking results for the previous year, commonly announced in autumn, the author determined the impact of Russian universities positions in rankings on the choice of foreign students by comparing universities position in QS World University Rankings for 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and the universities indicators in terms of Е3 “International activities” in the Monitoring of efficiency of HEIs for 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 (monitoring data bank contains information about performance results of organizations, begin-

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ning from 2012). The Е3 “International activities” indicator is the specific gravity of foreign students’ proportion, studying for a bachelor degree, master degree, pursuing post-graduate studies in the total number of students (adjusted contingent). An array of universities under analysis comprised 11 Russian educational organizations, which have been featured in the QS rankings since 2011. The results of the analysis give to the author every reason to speak about the lack of direct correlation between ranking position of a Russian university and specific gravity of foreign students, though a number of universities do demonstrate steady growth of this indicator (Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk State University, Higher School of Economics, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, Ural Federal University). It is obvious that use of such an indicator as the number of foreign students enrolled for the first year to the university in the survey could have yielded more accurate results, however this indicator was not available in public open data bases. Underlying the following analysis was the hypothesis, resting on the results of the above mentioned surveys, conducted in foreign countries and consisting of the fact that change in ranking position of the university was the motivating factor in the choice of university made by applicants with high aptitude, in the case those with a high average of points earned at the UST. Due to the fact that in this particular research the author dealt with Russian students choosing an institution for training for a bachelor degree, the results of the National Ranking of Universities were used in these analysis. Based on E. Hazelkorn’s statement regarding the changes in quality of new enrollees caused by the change of the university position in rankings by 10 or more points (Hazelkorn, 2014), the author made the analysis grounded on the data of the Russian universities included in the top hundred universities in the National Rankings of 2014/15 academic year and those that rose up by 10 and more positions in the rankings between 2013/14 and 2014/15 academic years. Short period under study is stipulated by the condition that National Rankings before 2013/2014 academic year included only classic and national research universities that had no drastic change in positions. Data on other categories of universities did not appear in National Rankings until 2013/2014 academic year. In this respect, we determined the influence of university ranking on the average points earned at the UST (publicly funded enrollments) in 2014, 2015 based on the data provided by the Monitoring of the quality of enrolled students by universities carried out by the HSE and Novosti Russian Information Agency. Only 13 universities proved to meet such criteria and the link between the position of the university in the rankings and the increase in the average number of points earned in the Unified State Test was observed only in 61.54% of the cases. In order to make the obtained results more accurate, the author expanded the selection of educational institutions by including the universities quoted in the National Rankings for 2014/15 academic year in the top hundred positions and those that rose by 5-9 positions in the rankings between 2013/14 and 2014/15 academic years. The number of the universities under analysis increased to 23 and the link between the position of the university in rankings and the increase in the average number of points earned in the Unified State Test constituted 60.87% of all the cases.

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 The Impact of Rankings on Russian Universities’ Student Choice

SOLUTIONS AND RECOMENDATIONS Thus, the results of this survey allow the author to make a conclusion that such ranking methodology under the conditions of existing culture of perceiving rankings, the informational function of the rankings is implemented in the most complete manner due to its visibility and ease of interpretation which enable the consumer to obtain the results of universities assessments as an output finished product. The most effective implementation of this function is possible in case there is certainty about specific target audience for each particular kind of rankings or, vice versa, in case of development of such information systems that recognize diversity of social cultural environment and social procurement and that perform the function of constructing independent rankings. Implementation of the latter, enabling the development of the basis for an individual educational path before entering the educational process, would also allow the motivational potential of the rankings to be enhanced with respect to applicants’ choice of an institution for the studies. The results of the research are not sufficient for an unambiguous confirmation that the motivational function of rankings is implemented in line with worldwide trends as a whole, though even in the current conditions it makes sense to talk about the emerging tendency that a university ranking position can influence the choice of Russian university applicants with high educational performance results. In order to maximize the efficiency of rankings through effective implementation of their informational and motivational functions, it could be suggested that, firstly, ranking methodologies should be improved to make them more receptive to the consumer’s needs, secondly, the mechanisms for integration of rankings into the universities’ system of reputational management should be developed, and thirdly, communication policy should be formulated to call the attention of stakeholders to rankings as well as the culture of utilizing the ranking results by their end users.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS It is clear that for a more accurate determination of trends it is necessary to continue the analysis of subsequent years. The author will continue to follow this research using the coming results of Rankings and Monitoring mentioned above. Of course, it is desirable to supplement the study with a survey of foreign students and students with high scores received at the Unified State Exam.

CONCLUSION The survey and the analysis of rankings positions of Russian universities and some of their key performance indicators (foreign students’ number, the quality of applicants) led to the conclusion that there is no any direct correlation between them.

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In view of their inherent limitations, the universities rankings cannot be regarded as a fully-fledged type of independent assessment of education quality and their applications must be as follows: formulation of priority activities for educational systems and identification of the best practices, assurance of educational institutions accountability to the society and their communications, increased motivation for universities to achieve their key performance indicators. In order to maximize the effectiveness of rankings, it is necessary to improve ranking methodology, to develop universities decision making process based on the rankings results and to develop customers culture on using rankings results.

REFERENCES Chevalier, A., & Jia, X. (2016). Subject-Specific League Tables and Students’ Application Decisions. Manchester School, 84(5), 600–620. doi:10.1111/manc.12124 Clarke, M. (2007). The Impact of Higher Education Rankings on Student Access, Choice and Opportunity. Higher Education in Europe, 32(1), 59–70. doi:10.1080/03797720701618880 Ehrenberg, R. (2002). Reaching for the brass ring: The U.S. News & World Report Rankings and competition. The Review of Higher Education, 26(2), 145–162. doi:10.1353/rhe.2002.0032 Espinosa, L. J., Grandall, M., & Tukibayeva, M. (2014). Rankings, Institutional Behavior, and College and University Choice Framing the National Dialogue on Obama’s Ratings Plan. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from www.acenet.edu/news-room/Documents/Rankings-Institutional-Behavior-and-College-andUniversity-Choice.pdf Federkeil, G. (2002). Some Aspects of Ranking Methodology - The CHE Ranking of German Universities. Higher Education in Europe, 27(4), 389–397. doi:10.1080/0379772022000071878 Griffith, A., & Rask, K. (2005). The influence of the U.S. News and World Report collegiate rankings on the matriculation decision of high-ability students. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://digitalcommons. ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1029&context=cheri Hazelkorn, E. (2009). Attitudes to Rankings: Comparing German, Australian and Japanese Experiences. In Addressing Critical Issues on Quality Assurance and University Rankings in Higher Education in the Asia Pacific. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://arrow.dit.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1002&c ontext=cserart Hazelkorn, E. (2011). Globalization and the Reputation Race in Rankings and the Reshaping of Higher Education: the Battle for World Class Excellence. Palgrave MacMillan. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://arrow.dit.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=cserbk Hazelkorn, E. (2014). The Effects of Rankings on Student Choices and Institutional Selection. In Access and Expansion Post-Massification: Opportunities and Barriers to Further Growth in Higher Education Participation. London: Routledge. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http://arrow.dit.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi ?article=1015&context=cserbk

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Helbig, M., & Ulbricht, L. (2010). Perfekte Passung: Finden die besten Hochschulen die besten Studenten? Gefälligkeitsübersetzung: Perfect fit: do the best universities find the best students? Retrieved May 2, 2017, from www.wzb.eu/sites/default/files/u128/scan_perfekte_passung_0.pdf HERI. (2007). College Rankings & College Choice: How important are college rankings in students’ college choice process? Los Angeles: Higher Education Research Institute University of California. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from https://www.heri.ucla.edu/PDFs/pubs/briefs/brief-081707-CollegeRankings.pdf Matzdorf, F., & Greenwood, J. (2015). Student choice, league tables and university facilities. Retrieved May 2, 2017, http://shura.shu.ac.uk/10423/1/EuroFM2015_StudentChoicesLeagueTables%26Faciliti es_final.pdf McDonough, P., Antonio, A., Walpole, M., & Perez, L. (1998). College Rankings: Democratized College Knowledge for Whom? Research in Higher Education, 39(5), 513–537. doi:10.1023/A:1018797521946 Mueller, R., & Rockerbie, D. (2005). Determining demand for university education in Ontario by type of student. Economics of Education Review, 24(4), 469–483. doi:10.1016/j.econedurev.2004.09.002 Rauhvargers, A. (2011). Global university rankings and their impact. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from http:// www.eua.be/Libraries/publications-homepage-list/Global_University_Rankings_and_Their_Impact. pdf?sfvrsn=4 Yerevan Communique. (2015). Paper presented at Ministerial Conference, Yerevan. Retrieved May 2, 2017, from www.ehea.info/Uploads/SubmitedFiles/5_2015/112705.pdf Yonezawa, A., Akiba, K., & Hirouchi, D. (2009). Japanese university Leaders’ perceptions of Internationalization: The Role of Government in Review and Support. Journal of Studies in International Education, 13(2), 125–142. doi:10.1177/1028315308330847

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Monitoring of Efficiency of Higher Education Institutions: (Conducted by The Ministry of Education and Science of Russia) The annual monitoring of HEIs implies the evaluation of HEIs based on a list of the key performance indicators, such as the Unified State Test score of enrolled students, graduates’ employment, scientific results, international activity, financial sustainability, and academic staff salaries. National Ranking of Universities (Interfax Agency): A special project of the information agency “interfax,” created with the support of The Ministry of Education and Science of Russia to develop and test new mechanisms of an independent assessment of Russian universities. Ranking of the HSE and RIA Novosti: Ranking of Russian higher education institutions based on the average Unified State Test score of enrolled students conducted by Higher School of Economics and Novosti Russian Information Agency. Unified State Test (Edinyi Gosudarstvennyi Eksamen): High school final and University entrance exam taken upon completion of 11th grade in Russia. Universities’ Ranking: A listing which compares universities by various combinations of various factors.

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Chapter 6

Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees in Bologna Countries: Case Studies From Cyprus and Russian Federation Lyudmila Zinchenko Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marios Evangelos Kassinopoulos Cyprus University of Technology, Cyprus

ABSTRACT Academic and professional recognition of engineering degrees is an important problem in higher education and human resources mobility. The chapter presents a review of academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus and Russia. Both Russia (non-EU-member country) and Cyprus (EU-member country) are Bologna countries, use similar education curricula, and will potentially follow the qualification framework in the European Higher Education Area. However, national qualification frameworks are different. The chapter discusses the academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus. Then the Russian system of engineering degrees is explained and the academic and professional recognition approach is clarified. Case studies for both countries are outlined. A comparison of the academic and professional recognition systems features in Cyprus and Russia is given.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch006

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

INTRODUCTION The subject of academic and professional recognition of engineering degrees is an important issue not only in the European Higher Education Area (Rauhvargers, 2008; Bologna, 2014) but also in the whole engineering academic community (Marginson, 2009; Allen, & Van der Velden, 2011; Chung, 2011; Teichler, 2013). In some countries like US (Froyd, Wankat, & Smith, 2012) this problem is solved and controlled at a satisfactory level. Unfortunately in the Bologna Area the problem of recognition is still under an interesting but long discussion and a general policy applied to all Bologna countries is not established yet while the legal framework for the recognition was elaborated by the Council of Europe and UNESCO. This obstacle directly affects negatively the international student mobility and employability of graduates in the Bologna community (Kassinopoulos, 2004). This paper deals with the academic and professional recognition of engineering degrees in two European-Bologna countries Cyprus and Russia with different national qualification frameworks. Cyprus is a very small country E.U. member, with a high number of engineering degree holders, most of which have received their degrees abroad in foreign universities. Russia is the largest country in the world, non E.U. member with many high ranking universities offering high quality engineering courses. The great majority of engineering degree holders are graduates of Russian or Soviet Union Universities. Cyprus shows extremely high shares of outgoing mobile students (over 50%) as well as high levels of incoming mobile students (over 30%). It should be noted that Greece is the main country destination in the student mobility. In opposite, Russian higher educational system demonstrates low shares of incoming mobile students (in average, 5%) and outgoing mobile students (in average, 1%). Table 1 illustrates our case studies countries indicators. Therefore, it seems to be interesting to compare recognition systems in the two countries. Table 1. The case study countries indicators Indicator

Cyprus

Russia

Area

9 251 km2

17 098 242 km2

EU member

Yes

No

Bologna country

Yes

Yes

Human population

1,100,000

146,500,000

Human population density

120, 8/km2

8, 4/km2 (max 4626/km2, min 0.07/ km2)

Student population

31,000

4,766,000

Official languages

Greek Turkish

Russian

Number of Universities in the TOP 300 Universities list

N/a

2

BSc duration

4 years

4 years

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

In this manuscript first it will be explained in detail the academic and professional recognition system in both countries, and then it will follow a comparison and discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the two systems. The discussion will include as an example the methodology applied for the design of an Electrical Engineering course in a new University in Cyprus, which was based on the local requirements for Academic and Professional recognition. Then the methodology of Electrical Engineering curriculum design in Bauman Moscow State Technical University will be discussed. This will be followed by a comparative analysis and discussion of the two systems and finally the overall conclusions will be formulated.

BACKGROUND One of the important issues presently under discussion among the Bologna stakeholders is the recognition of qualifications which is directly related to the European Qualification Framework for lifelong learning (EQF LLL) (The European Qualifications Framework 2014) and the Qualifications Framework in the European Higher Education Area (QF-EHEA) (Bologna, 2014). The EQF LLL and QF-EHEA serve as instruments in comparing the national qualification systems. Knowledge, skills and competences are the main criteria to indicate the learning outcomes in each qualification. The eight EQF levels cover all possible qualifications starting from lower studies to the most advanced PhD level. The QF-EHEA assists for the classification of academic qualifications and describes the three cycle systems (Kassinopoulos, 2007). The first cycle qualification QF-EHEA requires 180-240 ECTS credits and corresponds to the 6th level EQF LLL, the second cycle QF-EHEA corresponds to 90-120 ECTS credits and links with the 7th level EQF LLL. The third cycle corresponds to the 8th level EQF LLL. The Salzburg II Recommendations have been published in 2010 but no specific number or range of ECTS credits is defined for the 3rd cycle (EUA Council for Doctoral Education, 2014). As a part of the European Commission-funded Lifelong Learning programme the European Area Recognition Manual is available online (The EAR Manual, 2014). More information about each EHEA country recognition system can be found via the ENIC Network (ENIC-NARIC, 2014). It is noted that knowledge can be acquired with formal, non-formal and informal studies and as it has been seen qualifications can be classified at various levels. The recognition of non- formal and informal studies and the classification of these studies is a problem that is not solved yet in all Bologna countries (Sadler, 2013). It is reminded that first cycle degrees BSc according to Bologna Process are awarded to successful graduates after 3 or 4 years studies associated to 180 or 240 ECTS credits respectively. In some countries like France and Greece this formula is not respected for engineering degrees and these are awarded after five years studies which are associated to level 7 EQF LLL (Master level-second cycle). Some countries like Portugal use also an integrated master curriculum. In this case an engineering master degree is granted after a 5-years study cycle. In the paper we will discuss only the recognition system of engineering studies BSc qualifications at level 6 EQF LLL (first cycle degrees QF-EHEA) acquired after formal studies in two Bologna countries, Cyprus and Russia.

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

CYPRUS RECOGNITION SYSTEM The first university in Cyprus was established in 1992, and before this date only certain colleges were offering higher studies at the technician engineering diploma level. As a result most of the Cypriot students were studying abroad and after their graduation they were returning home with engineering degrees from a variety of universities from different countries around the world. Most of them were studying in Greece, UK, U.S. and other European countries. Even after 1992 when more state and private universities were established, Cypriots continued to follow higher studies abroad, others by tradition for better quality degrees, others because they could not find place in the local universities and others for specialized studies not offered in Cyprus. This created a serious problem of recognition of these foreign degrees, especially for graduates wishing to work in the public administration. In order to solve efficiently this problem, the local government established by law a governmental Council responsible for the academic recognition of local and foreign degrees, applying a strict and detailed recognition methodology which is briefly explained in the next paragraphs. The name of this Cypriot Council for the Academic Recognition of Study Degrees is KYSATS (Cypriot Council for the Academic Recognition of Study Titles 2014). The responsibility for the professional recognition of the local and foreign Engineering degrees was given by law to another professional body named ETEK (The Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber) (Technical Chamber of Cyprus, 2017). ETEK is a Public Law Body with an elected Governing Body and is the statutory Technical Advisor of the State and the umbrella organisation for all Cypriot Engineers. The Chamber is governed by a thirty-member council elected directly by ETEK members for a three years term of office. Features of academic and professional recognition are discussed in more detail below

CYPRUS ACADEMIC RECOGNITION SYSTEM The council of KYSATS is appointed by the council of Ministers and it consists of 7 members. One professor of the main local university (chairperson), a representative from the office of Attorney General, a representative of the Minister of Education and four other professors, one from a local university and three others from different universities and different countries. The council term is three years and it is renewable. The recognition by KYSATS takes one of the following two forms, a) Recognition of Equivalence and b) Recognition of Equivalence and Correspondence (Kassinopoulos, & Dodridge, 2004). Both forms are explained below.

Recognition of Equivalence For this recognition it is examined if the structure and organisation of the foreign institution is Equivalent to a reference model of university. It is granted to a degree after examination of the degree provider institution and the academic program offered. More specifically the council examines the length of studies, the entry requirements, the evaluation methodology of students and the learning and teaching procedures. As reference for comparison, is taken the University of Cyprus or other local state Institution. It is required also that the whole program of study should have been accomplished in an accredited institution and in the case of transfer students a substantial part of the academic program has been completed at the institution which awarded the Degree.

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

The content of the academic program under evaluation is not examined in detail in the Recognition of Equivalence. It is examined only the level of knowledge and whether the learning outcomes reflect the level of the qualification of the degree. The skills and competences are examined in detail in the second step of the examination which is the recognition of Correspondence.

Recognition of Equivalence and Correspondence This recognition is provided to a degree which has already satisfied the recognition of equivalence and is directly related to the examination and comparison of the content of the study program of the degree under examination. More specifically it is examined whether the study program under examination corresponds with the study program of a local state university, which is taken as reference. The recognition is granted to the applicant if in addition to the requirements for Equivalence, the program under examination includes at least the two thirds of the course taken as a criterion for comparison, including the core courses. In this examination it is also examined the level of the skills and competences including practical work and experience provided by the academic program of the foreign university as well as the correspondence of the Learning Outcomes (LO) with the local reference institutions program LO. In the case that the program under evaluation does not fully satisfy the recognition requirements the applicant may be required to attend and pass exams on an additional number of courses which do not exceed 10 semester subjects. Otherwise the application is rejected. For the cases in which a corresponding program for comparison is not offered in the local state universities, the reference program is taken from a state university in Greece or from a recognized institution from another EU country. It is noted that once the engineering degree of a specific university is approved, all engineering degrees originated from that university are immediately recognized. So KYSATS holds a list for all universities the degrees of which have been recognised so far. This is very helpful for prospective students wishing to study abroad and interested to find a suitable university which offers degrees recognized in Cyprus.

CYPRUS PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM The license to work as a professional Engineer in Cyprus is acquired by the membership at ETEK. The basic requirements, for a graduate to become member of ETEK are: • •

To hold a university degree or other comparable qualification in any field of Engineering which permits him/her to practice the profession in the country in which it was obtained and Is recognized by the Chamber in accordance with the Law or the regulations pursuant to the ETEK Law.

The main criteria and the framework regarding the recognition by ETEK of an Engineering degree are given below. The university which awarded the engineering degree is a recognized Institution in the local country and the degree is granted with a full academic recognition (Recognition of Equivalence and Correspondence) in Cyprus. The duration of study should be at least four years. In case that the applicant has done

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

a part of his/her studies in a Higher Education Institution non university level, at least two years out of four should have be done in a university. The engineering degree holder should have followed successfully at least 12 semester-subjects (or 6 year-subjects) of the basic branch of studies for which the application is done. The choice of the subjects to be taken is defining not only the recognition but also the specialization of the prospective engineer. More information and an example will be discussed in the next paragraphs. There are also other criteria which refer to postgraduate studies and other special cases with equivalent degrees, but this paper is limited to first cycle degrees only. It is noted also that in the case of local engineering degree program recognition, ETEK besides the approval or rejection of a program, gives advises (not requirements) regarding the introduction of other subjects like Economics and Management and other comments regarding the proposed subjects.

CASE STUDY: DESIGN OF AN ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING PROGRAM IN THE CYPRUS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY In this paragraph the case of the design of an Electrical/Electronic Engineering program in the new Institution Cyprus University of Technology will be discussed. Graduates can acquire a degree with professional recognition in the fields of Electrical Engineering, or Electronic Engineering or both. The ETEK requirement as it is explained below in more detail, states that the professional recognition with the specialisation of say Electrical Engineer is provided to a graduate of an Engineering school who has followed successfully 12 semester subjects with the following combination: 4 semester subjects of the branch of Electrical Engineering (column A in Table 2), 4 semester subjects of any branch of Electrical or Electronic engineering (columns A or B in Table 1) and finally 4 semester subjects common to Electrical and Electronic engineering braches (columns A or C in Table 2). It is noted that column C includes subjects which are considered common to Electrical and Electronic engineering. To clarify this requirement ETEK provides a list of subjects of these 3 groups. An indicative list is provided in Table 2. An analogous requirement exists for the recognition of the specialisation of Electronic Engineering. The study program was first designed in a way to respect the academic recognition requirements and the Bologna process principles. Later a pool of elective subjects was defined in a way to give the possibility to students to choose the combination of subjects required by ETEK for the specialisation(s) they wanted to follow. It is obvious that membership to ETEK which is equivalent to the professional recognition in one of the two specializations Electrical or Electronics Engineering (or both) is granted to the graduate who has taken an appropriate combination of the subjects offered by the program.

RUSSIAN RECOGNITION SYSTEM The first Russian university was established in 1724. The first technical Russian University (now National Research University Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU)) was established in 1830. In 1915 the department of Electrical Engineering of BMSTU has been founded. The first private University in Russia was established in 1991. Now 18 Russian Universities are in the QS World University Rankings list.

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

Table 2. Subject classification list of ETEK N0

Course

A- Electrical

B- Electronic

C - Both

1

Circuit / Circuit Analysis

X

2

Electronics

X

3

Electromagnetic fields and Waves

X

4

Control Systems

X

5

Numerical Analysis

X

6

Digital Logic

X

7

Tele/Communications

X

8

Introduction to Photonics

X

9

Digital Signal Processing

X

10

Power Electronics

X

11

Advanced Electronics

X

12

Power Systems Analysis

X

13

Electrical Machines /Drives

X

14

Electrical Power

X

15

Generation/Transmission

X

16

Electrical Services

X

17

Power Electronics Renewable Energy Systems

X

As a result of this long tradition in engineering education, most engineering degree holders are graduates of Russian Universities or former Soviet Union Universities. A distinguishing feature of the first cycle qualification is that all BSc curricula in Russia allow the continuation of education at the next cycle. Mainly BSc diploma holders continue their education and acquire MSc and Dr diplomas that correspond to 7th and 8th level EQF LLL. The first cycle qualification BSc in Russia corresponds to 240 ECTS credits (4 years) and second cycle qualification MSc to 120 ECTS credits (2 years). It should be noted that exams between cycle qualifications are mandatory that allows exploiting a soft recognition of diplomas issued by different Russian Universities. During last decade due to more active cooperation between Russian and foreign Universities an increase in mobility for study purposes has been achieved and some Russian citizens graduated Universities abroad and returned to Russia. This created a problem of recognition of their foreign degrees. Now the Federal Centre Glavexpertcenter (Glavexpertcenter 2014) that was established in 1997 is the sole entity responsible for recognition of diplomas and degrees that were obtained from Universities abroad. Glavexpertcenter performs recognition of equivalence and correspondence only.

RUSSIAN ACADEMIC RECOGNITION SYSTEM Academic recognition in Russia is discussed in more detail below. Foreign engineer degree holders can be classified as follows. The first group of engineering degree holders hold dual diplomas from a Rus-

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

sian University and from a foreign University that is a partner University of the correspondent Russian University. This is possible thanks to specially designed curricula that allow receiving dual diplomas. An academic and professional recognition for this group is similar to recognition of Russian University diplomas and degrees. The second group of engineer degree holders hold diploma from high ranking foreign Universities that have been included in one of the academic rating systems: Academic Ranking of World Universities, QS World University Ranking, The Times Higher Education World University Ranking among 300 Top Universities (List TOP 300). From 2012, all engineering degrees granted by these Universities are immediately recognized according to the Federal Law. The duration of studies for these top universities is not examined. There are bilateral agreements between Russian Federation and some countries about mutual recognition of diplomas and degrees. These foreign diplomas are recognised automatically according to these agreements. The rest of engineer degree holders have to apply to Glavexpertcenter to recognize their diplomas or degrees. During the recognition process experts compare the curriculum of a foreign university with a corresponding curriculum according to Federal Standards for Higher Education issued by Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation. If an application is unsuccessful the applicant may be requested to pass additional exams. Each application is examined independently and it is not generated a list of universities the degrees of which have been recognised.

RUSSIAN PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM Initial professional recognition in Russia requires only a Russian and /or foreign diploma with academic recognition. Only some engineering specializations require an additional certificate, for example, for high voltage construction etc. However, these certificates are not issued by Russian Universities. Both Russian graduates and foreign graduates have to apply to special training centres to receive these additional certificates. It is mentioned that additional tests can be required for some positions, e.g. in the public administration. However, these tests are in law subjects and not in engineering. Further steps in professional engineer recognition are possible. However, they vary significantly from an employer and may not be recognized by another employer. It should be noted that sometimes BSc degrees are not recognized by an employer as an engineering diploma. It hinders a professional recognition for the first cycle qualification and forces BSc diploma holders to continue their education to reach MSc level. Finally, the professional recognition system in Russia is under progress and some more actions are required to harmonize this area.

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

CASE STUDY: DESIGN OF AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING PROGRAM IN BAUMAN MOSCOW STATE TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY The curricula design for Electrical Engineering degree by the Department of Design and Technology of Electronic Devices, BMSTU is discussed in this part of the paper. Usually curricula content, competences, skills, knowledge and learning outcomes are dictated by the Federal Standards for Higher Education issued by Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation. However, 38 Russian Universities including Lomonosov State University, Saint Peterburg State University, National Research Universities and Federal Universities can design their own curricula. Nevertheless, they have to correspond to the Federal Standards for Higher Education. According to the Federal Standards the structure of the curricula contains three main parts (Shakhnov, Vlasov, & Zinchenko, 2012). The first part includes human and social courses that are either mandatory such as Foreign Language, History, Economics etc. or optional courses such as Russian Language, Political Science etc. This part is designed to enhance the global competence (Rajala, 2012). The second part contains courses that are general for engineering education (Rajala, 2012). It includes Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Informatics etc. The third part covers professional education in the field of Electrical Engineering. The courses such as Circuit Theory, Circuit Design, Technology, Material Science etc. provide required professional skills, competence and knowledge. An important part of engineering education in the mentioned above curricula is Practical Training (14 ECTS credits) that is planned during 2 months after the third year. It should be noted that this Practical Training course introduces students to real engineering tasks and provides a smooth transfer from University to professional activity. It is in line with the 3D global engineer approach (Chang, Atkinson, & Hirleman, 2009; Rajala, 2012) and provides training in professional competence. The designed curricula are linked with ECTS credits that simplify their recognition at the international level as 240 ECTS credits BSc in EE curricula.

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION IN CYPRUS AND RUSSIA The recognition systems in Cyprus and Russia explained previously represent very close similarities regarding the academic recognition and partly a different approach regarding the professional recognition. A comparison and further discussion of the two systems are given below.

ACADEMIC RECOGNITION COMPARISON The specific requirements for the academic recognition of local and foreign degrees are directly related to the quality of the Institutions offering the degrees and to the correspondence of the content of the

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

program of study compared with a reference model. In Cyprus, the main requirements are the evaluation of the quality of the Institution offering the degree under examination and the comparison of the academic program with the program of a main local university taken as reference. In Russia the academic recognition is directly granted to institutions included in the List TOP 300 ranked universities and for the others it is given after evaluation by the Federal Centre Glavexpertcenter. The evaluation is based on the reference program of Federal Standards for Higher Education. This evaluation has been proved in general very efficient and no major academic or practical problems have been met so far. In Cyprus engineering programs at BSc level with 3 years studies are not recognized as a degree level. This is an important problem in practice because in order to work in the Cyprus administration or in public education a 4-year recognized degree is required. On the contrary, in Russia a 3-years degree is recognized if this diploma is granted by a University from the List TOP 300 mentioned above. However, some European Universities, that are not in the List TOP 300, propose engineering degrees with 3 years curricula as well. In this case a diploma holder has to apply to GlavexpertCenter. In general the mentioned problem can be overcome by mutual exchange of students between Russian and European Universities and dual diploma curricula design. Table 3 summarises similarities and differences between BSc recognition in Cyprus and Russia.

PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION COMPARISON The professional recognition of an engineering degree in Cyprus is provided by an official Professional Body (ETEK) and is granted to engineering degree holders if the following three main requirements are satisfied: • • •

Professional Recognition in the country offering the engineering degree (for foreign degrees). Academic full Recognition in Cyprus. Suitable combination of subjects in the academic program of the degree related to the specialisation required.

In Russia there is no an official Professional body or Organisation to grant the Professional recognition. The main requirement for the professional recognition is the academic recognition provided officially and for some special cases additional certificates. Even though, certain employers have the possibility to ask for further qualifications, like MBA, in order to provide professional licence to an engineering degree holder. Table 3. Summary of similarities and differences Bologna Country

BSc-3 year programs, 180 ECTS

BSc-4 year program, 240 ECTS

Cyprus

No Recognition

Recognition after evaluation

Russia

TOP 300 universities: Recognition Non TOP 300 universities: Recognition after Evaluation

TOP 300 universities: Recognition Non TOP 300 universities: Recognition after Evaluation

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

Comparing the two systems we note that in the Cyprus system there is a detailed examination of the content of the programs of the degrees under evaluation and this ensures a high level standard of the engineering profession. However it can be noted that in the list of the combination of subjects required for recognition, no laboratory sessions or final projects are included. As it was explained by the chamber evaluation committee, ETEK assumes that the presence of these very important parameters for engineering programs is assured by the fact that the program has already acquired academic recognition. The professional recognition in Russia is more flexible and mainly is defined by employers. However the fact that the academic recognition is based on a reference model of the Federal Standards for Higher Education, ensures that the level of the engineering profession is high. This can be deduced also by the fact that on the contrary to the Cyprus approach, laboratory sessions, course projects and final project are mandatory components in curricula design in Russia. The only weakness that is noted is the absence of an official professional body like ETEK in Cyprus, IEE and others in the UK and other professional bodies abroad which could control better the standards and quality of the engineering profession in the country.

CONCLUSION The Bologna process has made studies in Europe more attractive for prospective students (Fino Solovyev, & Zinchenko, 2013) and it created new opportunities for international mobility of students, academic staff and professionals. Among the obstacles of mobility, that the Bologna policy makers make an effort to remove, is the problem of academic and professional recognition. This paper examined and compared the recognition system of engineering degrees in two Bologna countries with different characteristics Russia and Cyprus and reached at certain conclusions which are given below. Both recognition systems follow the same two general principles which are the examination of the quality of the institution providing the engineering degree and the standard of the content of the academic program offered. This evaluation is applied in a different way in the two countries which satisfies the local requirements and the country’s academic tradition. Another point which is discussed is the duration of studies of engineering degrees. It is noted that in Russia, engineering BSc degrees of 3 years duration can be recognized something which is not possible in Cyprus. As the final point we may state that for 4-year BSc engineering degree programs of studies done in Russia, academic and professional recognition by KYSATS and ETEK respectively is required. Similarly as Cyprus Universities are not part of the list TOP 300 universities, engineering degrees taken at Cypriot universities should be evaluated by the Russian Federal Centre Glavexpertcenter for recognition.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT Lyudmila Zinchenko acknowledges the support by RFBR (grant RFBR #16-06-00404).

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 Comparison of Academic and Professional Recognition Systems of Engineering Degrees

REFERENCES Allen, J., & Van der Velden, R. (Eds.). (2011). The flexible professional in the knowledge society. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-94-007-1353-6 Bologna Process - European Higher Education Area. (2017). Retrieved April 12, 2017 from http://www. ehea.info Chang, Y., Atkinson, D., & Hirleman, E. D. (2009). International research and engineering education: impacts and best practices. Online J. Global Eng. Educ., 4(2), Article 1. Chung, C. (2011). Changing engineering curriculum in the globalizing world. New Horizons in Education, 59(3). Cypriot Council for the Academic Recognition of Study Titles. (2017). Retrieved April 14, 2017 from http://www.kysats.ac.cy ENIC-NARIC. (2017). Retrieved April 5, 2017 from http://www.enic-naric.net EUA Council for Doctoral Education. (2017). Retrieved April 13, 2017 from http://www.eua.be/cde Fino, H., Solovyev, V., & Zinchenko, L. (2013). Challenges for students mobility between European and Russian Universities. Proc. ICL. 10.1109/ICL.2013.6644629 Froyd, J. E., Wankat, P. C., & Smith, K. A. (2012). Five major shifts in 100 years of engineering education. Proc. IEEE, 100. 10.1109/JPROC.2012.2190167 Glavexpertcenter. (2017). Retrieved April 5, 2017 from http://nic.gov.ru Kassinopoulos, M. (2004). Student and staff mobility in EHEA during the first years of Bologna Process. ICEE 04. Kassinopoulos, M. (2007). The three cycle structure in European Higher Education Institutions. Proc. ICEE 07. Kassinopoulos, M., & Dodridge, M. (2004). Academic and professional recognition of UK degrees in Cyprus. Proc. ICEE 04. Marginson, S. (2009). Global perspectives and strategies of Asia-Pacific research universities. Evaluation in Higher Education, 3(2), 1–43. Rajala, S. (2012). Beyond 2020: preparing engineers for the Future. Proc. IEEE, 100. 10.1109/ JPROC.2012.2190169 Rauhvargers, A. (2008). Implementation of the Lisbon Recognition Convention in the countries participating in the Bologna Process. In A. Rauhvargers & S. Bergan (Eds.), New Challenges in Recognition, Council of Europe Higher Education Series No. 10 (pp. 13–27). Academic Press. Sadler, D. R. (2013). The futility of attempting to codify academic achievement standards. Higher Education, 7. doi:0.100710734-013-9649-1

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Shakhnov, V., Vlasov, A., & Zinchenko, L. (2012). O metodicheskom obespechenii ingenernogo obrazovaniya v sovremennuh usloviyah [Features of Engineering Education]. Vysshee obrazovanie - Higher Education in Russia, 3, 104-108. Technical Chamber of Cyprus. (2014). Retrieved April 18, 2017 from http://www.etek.org.cy Teichler, U. (2013). Opportunities and problems of comparative higher education research: The daily life of research. Higher Education, 11. doi:10.100710734-013-9682-0 The EAR Manual. (2017). Retrieved April 7, 2017 from http://www.eurorecognition.eu/emanual The European Qualifications Framework. (2017). Retrieved April 9, 2017 from http://ec.europa.eu/ploteus

ADDITIONAL READING Aleksandrov, A. A., Neusipin, K. A., Proletarsky, A. V., & Fang, K. (2012). Innovation development trends of modern management systems of educational organizations, In Proc. 2012 International Conference on Information Management, Innovation Management and Industrial Engineering (pp.187-189). Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2010). Researching Primary Engineering Education: An Exploratory Study from a UK Perspective. European Journal of Engineering Education, 35(3), 585–595. doi:10.1080/03 043797.2010.497551 Gavrilina, E. A., Zakharov, M. A., Karpenko, A. P., Smirnova, E. V., & Sokolov, A. P. (2017). Software System META-3 for Quantitative Evaluation of Student’s Meta-competencies on the Basis of Analysis of his or her Behavior in Social Networking Services. Procedia Computer Science, 103, 432–438. doi:10.1016/j.procs.2017.01.012 Gray, P. J., Patil, A., & Codner, G. (2009). The Background of Quality Assurance in Higher Education and Engineering Education. In P. Gray (Ed.), A. Patil A., P (pp. 3–25). Engineering Education Quality Assurance. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-0555-0_1 Kassinopoulos, M., & Zinchenko, L. (2014). A Comparison of Quality Assurance Systems in Bologna Countries for Engineering Education. A Cyprus and Russia Case Study. In M. H. Bakr & A. Elsharabasy (Eds.), iCEER2014-McMaster conference digest (pp. 194–197). McMaster. Shakhnov, V. A., Zinchenko, L. A., Rezchikova, E. V., & Glushko, A. A. (2015). An opportunity in engineering education: Russian BYOD tendencies: BMSTU case study. In Proc. 2015 International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning (ICL) (pp. 299-304). Shakhnov, V. A., Zinchenko, L. A., Rezchikova, E. V., & Verstov, V. A. (2017). Distinctions of a learning content for education in the field of nanotechnology. International Journal of Nanotechnology, 14(7-8), 690–697. doi:10.1504/IJNT.2017.083443 Willmot, P., & Smirnova, E. V. (2014). East-West cooperation for the enhancement of teaching and learning engineering. In Proc. Joint International Conference on Engineering Education and the International Conference on Information Technology, ICEE/ICIT -2014,(pp. 500-507).

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Academic Recognition: A recognition of periods of study or qualifications issued by an educational institution. Bologna Country: A signatory of the Bologna Accord. Bologna Process: A voluntary higher education reform process with the aim of making higher education systems compliant and enhancing their international visibility. Curriculum: A curriculum is a planned sequence of learning experiences. Curriculum Design: Design includes consideration of aims, intended learning outcomes, syllabus, learning and teaching methods, and assessment. Engineering Degree: Academic degree in engineering. Professional Recognition: A recognition of an individual’s professional status.

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Chapter 7

Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Pavlovich Biryukov Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Ilya Igorevich Rodko Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter presents prognostic analysis results concerning the changes in the engineering competence requirements. It is noted that professional competences of future experts in this field are undergoing certain changes related to the need for operating complex systems and working in a team in uncertain contexts in order to support and ensure good management throughout the entire high-tech systems lifecycle. It has been established that certain technological areas of the National Technology Initiative (NTI), which is being implemented now, are not provided with the educational training programs by the adopted Federal National Educational Standards (FNES). This chapter also focuses on the role of Worldwide CDIO Initiative international engineering standards of education in the development of new engineering competence assessment tools to enhance the national system of educational standards and includes National Research Nuclear University MEPhI’s own educational standards in higher education as an example.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch007

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 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards

INTRODUCTION The research on the changes concerning professional engineering competence requirements is directly connected to the vision of the high-tech industry future, which will demand relevant competences for development, analysis of development strategies, foresights, road maps exploring promising areas of technological development, research focus and innovation implementation. For its implementation, this vision, shaped by the expert community, should be provided with the relevant methodological standards on the one hand and with enhanced staff training and the creation of a relevant system to form qualifications and competences on the other hand (IBIS, 2014). First of all, it should be mentioned that the very term ‘engineering’ is understood quite broadly starting from its general meaning as a perfect synonym to the creation of promising and competitive engineering systems to the narrow and specific interpretation as ‘business-consulting’, i. e. monitoring projects which create engineering systems in order to raise their saleability and value. This makes the issues related to defining engineering and industrial design professional competence requirements multidimensional and multifold (Osmakov & Pastukhov, 2015).

BACKGROUND The Financial Terms Dictionary (Financial Terms Dictionary, 2017) gives the following definition of engineering: engineering is a field of activities concerning the issues of the creation of industrial sites, infrastructure etc., primarily in the form of rendering of commercial engineering and consulting services. In terms of pre-production, according to Construction Guidelines 80-12.2000: Methodological Recommendations on Working Out of the Investor’s (Customer’s) Conditions (Requirements) during the Preparation for Contract Tendering, engineering means engineering and consulting services related to pre-production and ensuring of normal production and sales (Construction Guidelines, 2000). Several normative documents suggest the following definitions of engineering and related terms: •





According to GOST R (Russian National Standard) 54147-2010: Strategic and Innovation Management. Terms and Definitions - 3.1.14 Engineering: Research, design-and-engineering, computational and analytical activities, preparation of feasibility studies, working out organizational recommendations (GOST R 54147-2010, 2010); According to GOST R (Russian National Standard) 54147-2010: Strategic and Innovation Management. Terms and Definitions - 3.1.15 Innovation Engineering: the totality of works and services aimed at creating an innovation project including the conception, implementation, promotion and diffusion of innovations; According to GOST R (Russian National Standard) ISO 15704-2008: Industrial Automated Systems. Standard Architecture and Enterprise Methodology Requirements - 3.7. Enterprise Engineering: discipline used for any works related to the creation, change or reorganization of any enterprise (GOST R ISO 15704-2008, 2008);

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According to GOST R (Russian National Standard) ISO 19439-2008: Enterprise Integration. Enterprise Modelling Basis - 3.21 Enterprise Engineering: discipline used to complete any tasks related to the creation, modification or reorganization of any enterprise (GOST R ISO 194392008, 2008); According to GOST R (Russian National Standard) 54136-2010: Industrial Automation Systems and Integration. Guidelines for Standards Implementation, Structure and Glossary: - 3.31 Enterprise Engineering: discipline used to complete any tasks related to the creation, modification or reorganization of any enterprise (GOST R 541-2010, 2010).

Thus, “engineering” can be interpreted as a tool for efficiently selling a product in the market which can include, in some cases, the promotion of the product in the market as well as its development. At the same time, it is during the development stage that the implementation of innovative technology should be elaborated for all the stages of its life-cycle, which is a prerequisite for the creation of a competitive product. In this regard, engineering can be considered as a major, but not single, sufficient condition for the final cost efficiency of its sales in the market. That is why the high level of professional training of design engineers should be combined with a number of skills inherent to experts of engineering companies. The systematic approach to the development of future skills and high-tech expert training should rely on the improvement of skills related to planning, coordination of mutual and meta-competences, interindustry and interproject mobility and ability to put into practice the life-cycle concept in real production. It is planned to encourage experts to translate their own professional competences into other industries and markets along with the development and acquisition of new competences. The Russian Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Industry and Trade introduced foresight-research to analyse the strategic vision of high-tech industries development, including the key skills in engineering and industrial design (Strategy Partners Group & Minpromtorg RF, 2015). In these types of research, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Rosstat (Federal State Statistics Service) define engineering as rendering of engineering and consulting services related to pre-production, ensuring production and sales of the products, servicing of construction and operation of industry, infrastructure and other sites, based on a contract with the customer. The core of the engineering activity is formed by the fulfillment of engineering tasks related to the design of products, production system, pre-production and maintenance of production, construction and sites operation. Engineering covers the complete life-cycle of an industrial product - from the conception, test model development, commissioning, including its technical equipment, to marketing, supply to the market, after-sales service and subsequent utilization. The specifics of engineering are in a project-based approach. Current global trends put forward new demands for the skills of engineering experts. Multidisciplinary thinking, knowledge of new technologies, command of foreign languages and development of strategic thinking are mentioned among new engineering competences requirements.

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ANALYSIS OF ENGINEERING SKILLS REQUIREMENTS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE The National Technology Initiative (NTI) is a programme aimed at shaping fundamentally new markets and creating conditions for the global technology leadership of Russia by 2035. The NTI includes integrated solutions to define the key technologies, necessary changes in norms and rules, efficient financial and personnel development measures, involvement and encouragement mechanisms for experts with the necessary skills. The choice of technologies is based on major global trends, with network technologies being the priority. Such technologies are people-focused, as people are the end consumers (ASI, 2017). The basis for the current systematic work is the NTI matrix which comprises new markets, new technologies, institutes and infrastructure/resources. The NTI areas include a group of the markets of the future: • • • • • • • • •

EnergyNet (distributed power generation from personal power to smart grid and smart city) (ASI, 2016); FoodNet (system of personal production and food and water delivery); SafeNet (new personal security systems); HealthNet (personal medicine); AeroNet (distributed systems of unmanned aerial vehicles); MariNet (distributed systems of unmanned maritime transport); AutoNet (distributed network of unmanned management of road vehicles); FinNet (decentralized financial systems and currencies); NeuroNet (distributed artificial elements of consciousness and mentality).

The NTI roadmaps through 2018 shape the ecosystem of future markets. It is important to mention that not all NTI roadmaps have been approved at this moment. As for the implementation of approved roadmaps (NeuroNet and others), this has recently started. Working groups have not entirely formulated all the skills requirements which are necessary to put the roadmaps projects into practice. Table 1 shows a version of engineering skills requirements from the point of view of the NTI working groups participants. We have analysed the ways to improve the national system of federal state higher educational standards in engineering. For this end, engineering higher education training programmes, including bachelor, master and specialist degrees (in groups of specialization 09.00.00, 10.00.00, 11.00.00, 12.00.00, 13.00.00, 14.00.00., 15.00.00, 16.00.00, 17.00.00, 18.00.00, 19.00.00, 20.00.00, 21.00.00, 22.00.00, 23.00.00, 24.00.00), were compared to the list of higher education specializations and training programmes relevant to priority areas of the modernization and technological development of the Russian economy approved by the Russian Governmental Decree #7-p of 6 January 2015 (Russian Government Decree, 2015), as well as with the list of “breakthrough technologies” defined in the National Technology Initiative (NTI). The results of the analysis show that not all of the NTI technological areas are provided with educational programmes within the framework of engineering Federal National Educational Standards (FNES). For example, as for the following technological areas:

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 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards

Table 1. Example of future necessary engineering skills from the point of view of the NTI working groups participants Year 2020, Number of People

Year 2035, Number of People

Development of mathematical models and OS for UAS

1 800

25 500

Transport management systems development (logistics, Big Data etc.)

1 600

29 000

Development and improvement of applications, controllers and UTV sensor system

1 200

14 000

Communication and information transmission system development

400

8 000

UTV design and construction development and modernization

500

9 000

UAS electronic components development and design and their integration with mechanical components

3 400

11 400

UAS engines prototyping, design and development

2 400

8 400

Market NTI

AutoNet

AeroNet

EnergyNet

NeuroNet

• • • • •

Engineering Skills

UAS OS and applications development

2 500

8 500

Power grid information platform and applications development

2 200

17 000

Mathematical models development

500

1 900

Energy carrier design development

200

3 800

Power physical components and sensors design

2 000

15 000

Big data analysis

1 300

6 200

Cognitive technologies

2 600

12 300

Built-in biocybernetics systems engineering

2 600

12 300

Humanoids and UAVs design

6 600

30 800

Sensory; Mechabiotronics; Bionics; Genomics and synthetic biology; Neurotechnologies,

they cannot practically be compared to the ensured Federal National Educational Standards in the higher education in engineering. Consequently, it is in these areas that the federal national educational standards in the higher education of engineering can be improved.

APPROACHES TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ENGINEERING SKILLS IN COMPLIANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL ENGINEERING EDUCATIONAL STANDARDS One of the requirements for creating a competitive product is a deep understanding of the methodology and principles of the product life-cycle concept, which covers a class of homogenous products, some of specimen (samples) of which are at different stages of its life-cycle.

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 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards

In this regard, the application of the approaches and provisions of Worldwide CDIO Initiative (Conceive - Design - Implement - Operate) is crucial for engineering education programmes. The approach suggested in CDIO is aimed at strengthening the practical skills of future engineers as well as introducing the system of practice-focus and project-based teaching (Crawley, 2001). The CDIO Initiative suggests organizing the learning process in engineering programmes so that graduates may demonstrate: • • •

Deep theoretical and practical knowledge of the technical foundations of their engineering profession; Ability to create and operate new products, processes and systems in demand; Understanding of the importance and strategic role of scientific and technological development of society.

In general this, approach indeed provides for an integrated mastering of engineering. The application of various evaluation methods of engineering skills provides for a wide range of learning techniques and enhances the reliability and adequacy of evaluation data. An example of requirements application to the basic higher education training programmes, made in compliance with international standards aimed at necessary engineering competences implementation, is the creation of an organisation’s own educational standards surpassing the level of FNES 3+ generation. A number of National Research Nuclear University MEPhI educational standards are based on Article 2, paragraph 7 and Article 11, paragraph 10 of Federal law “On Education in the Russian Federation” No. 273 - FZ of 29 December 2012. They are also compliant with the international engineering education requirements of Worldwide CDIO Initiative and the best practices of Russian and foreign universities, Bologna Declaration fundamental provisions, public and occupational requirements, including the requirements of the international accreditation of educational programmes (FEANI and others), GOST (Russian national standard) ISO 9001-2011 and professional industry standards requirements as well as employers’ requirements. The specialized core higher education training programmes are modernized in MEPhI so that they comply with international Worldwide CDIO Initiative standards, which ensures the flexibility and individualization of education with the use of new educational technologies. This modernization is aimed at improving the skilled professional engineering training on the basis of practice-focused and project-based teaching methods which rely on interdisciplinarity and multidisciplinarity principles as well as on fundamental physics and mathematics education. Group project work during interdisciplinary development and projects for a real customer are recognized as some of the most efficient forms of practice-focused education. The focal point is the problem of synthesis of educational and innovation process in the contemporary research university. An important part of transformation of a contemporary research university – for example, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow, Russia) with the aid of the 5 top 100 competitiveness program is increasing the quality of engineering education (mostly with the methodological support of international standards, such as CDIO), and provide synthesis of educational and innovation process. The last one is also crucial for successful implementation of CDIO. As a result of the pilot project of implementation CDIO standards in MEPhI for nuclear engineering education, new principles of education were developed and approbated (Baryshev, Berestov & Konash-

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enkova, 2016). Some of them concerned application of new digital instruments for student’s obtaining practical skills in analogue electronics – important to design contemporary information measuring systems for nuclear technologies. An approach to teaching the disciplines related to analogue electronics and the elaboration of analogue devices is changing now. Today not only the knowledge of the theory and several basic principles is significant, but also the knack of applying them and getting a high-quality and competitive product (Bozhko, Baryshev, Maksimkin, Voronin & Kondratyeva, 2016). The essential part of staff training is practice, when a student perceives the gained theoretical knowledge firsthand through the training tasks, gets and polishes up the working skills. In our case these skills are in development, engineering and construction of electronic devices. It is necessary to provide students with corresponding infrastructure, tools and methodology for developing their practical skills, in order to solve the aforementioned tasks. The laboratory facilities for analogue electronics have been constructed in the same way as the collection of laboratory practice has been created with special methodological guidelines. The Laboratory Practical Manual as a basic instrument for students to get-to-know with new instruments required special attention due to the peculiarities of the standards for engineering education being implemented. The outcome of application of the developed Analogue Electronics laboratory module resulted in increased effectiveness of educational process. Students that take nuclear educational engineering programs have a possibility to obtain practical skills in analogue electronics in a better and faster way. They have contemporary hardware, universal virtual devices and proper methodological support to grow into qualified specialists that can successfully solve the task of development of contemporary information measuring systems for nuclear industry with the application of obtained skills and competences. And this is the focal point where educational and innovation process in a contemporary research university come to a synthesis – because practical tasks of development of information systems for quality and safety control of operation of nuclear reactors and facilities are typical tasks for students graduate works for several educational programs in MEPhI. The universality of the laboratory module developed allows students not only to perform training tasks to obtain and develop practical skills in the area of analogue electronics – but also to solve real practical hi-tech industrial engineering tasks with the aid of the same methodological, hardware and software digital instruments. There are advances in other Russian leading universities concerning development of new engineering skills in compliance with international engineering educational standards, such as the CDIO standards. For example, in Tomsk Polytechnic University there is a project of modernization of bachelor programs in engineering in accordance with international standards of engineering education (Boev, 2014). The project is aimed at elaboration of guidelines for development of undergraduate learning outcomes and curricula based on best practices and international standards of engineering education for SKOLKOVO priority areas (IT, Space, Energy Efficiency, Nuclear Technology and Biomed) defined by the Federal Law n.244-FL, September 28, 2011. The project has been started with the International Workshop in Boston (USA). The main idea of the Workshop was to identify and compare possible approaches to undergraduate engineering education development considering modern trends in science and technology and current industry challenges. Studying and analysis of requirements of international standards to engineering graduates’ attributes resulted in recommending the ABET criteria to be used as a framework of learning outcomes for curricula under development. CDIO Syllabus and Standards are chosen to be used as guidelines for curriculum design and implementation by project partners.

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 Changes in the Engineering Competence Requirements in Educational Standards

Another case is from NUST MISiS: the Modernizing English Language Teaching project (Frumina, 2013). The project aim is to contribute to the development of NUST MISiS as an international research university by introducing a new model of English language learning for Bachelor students. The success factors of the project implementation are: • • • • •

Strategic partnership with Cambridge University; Attention and support from the university administration (sufficient resourcing and long term sustainability); New model of program management; Support on the part of the students (the role of regular surveys and meetings); The scope of the project and the type of innovations to attract young motivated teachers seeking professional development.

In Moscow Aviation Institute CDIO is implemented for new educational programs in the faculties of aviation technologies, robotics and intellectual systems and others (Mirzoyan, 2013).

CONCLUSION Thus, the prognostic analysis results allow us to make the following conclusion. The development of engineering skills is directly connected to the need for support and management throughout the entire high-tech product life-cycle. Professional skills of future engineering experts are undergoing certain changes related to the necessity of operating complex systems and working in a team in uncertain contexts in order to support and ensure the management throughout the entire life-cycle of high-tech systems. The development of requirements for the engineering and industrial design of professional skills to implement the NTI road maps projects is now at the initial stage. Meanwhile, working groups of promising markets have a certain concept of the changes in professional skills of such experts taking into account the key importance of these skills for putting into practice the promising projects. Some NTI technological areas are not provided with educational programmes by the adopted engineering FNES. A promising way to successfully complete the set tasks is to primarily improve Russian educational standards in the leading universities, taking into account CDIO Initiative principles and approaches.

REFERENCES ASI. (2017). Natsionalnaya tehnologicheskaya initsiativa [National Technology Initiative]. Retrieved from: http://asi.ru/nti/ ASI. (2016, January 27). National Technology Initiative. EnergyNet Market Development Road Map. Prepared for discussion at the Government Expert Council meeting. Moscow, Russia: Agency for Strategic Initiatives, RVC.

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Baryshev, G. K., Berestov, A. V., & Konashenkova, N. A. (2016). The Application of Online Team Project Training in Nuclear Engineering Education. In A. Chugunov, R. Bolgov, Y. Kabanov, G. Kampis, & M. Wimmer (Eds.), Digital Transformation and Global Society. DTGS 2016. Communications in Computer and Information Science (Vol. 674, pp. 370–379). Cham: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-49700-6_35 Boev, O. (2014). BEng Project: Outputs and Further Development. Retrieved from MyBookLibrary Web site: http://www.mybooklibrary.com/beng-project-outputs-and-further-development.html Bozhko, Y. V., Maksimkin, A. I., Baryshev, G. K., Voronin, A. I., & Kondratyeva, A. S. (2016). Digital Transformation as the Key to Synthesis of Educational and Innovation Process in the Research University. In A. Chugunov, R. Bolgov, Y. Kabanov, G. Kampis, & M. Wimmer (Eds.), Digital Transformation and Global Society. DTGS 2016. Communications in Computer and Information Science (Vol. 674, pp. 386–391). Cham: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-49700-6_37 Construction Guidelines. (2000). MDS 80-12.2000: Metodicheskie rekomendacii po razrabotke uslovij (trebovanij) investora (zakazchika) pri podgotovke podryadnyh torgov [Construction Guidelines 8012.2000: Methodological Recommendations on Working Out of the Investor’s (Customer’s) Conditions (Requirements) during the Preparation for Contract Tendering. Gosstroy (Russian State Committee for Construction)]. Moscow, Russia: SUE Centre of Construction Design Products. Crawley, E. F. (2001). The CDIO syllabus: a statement of goals for undergraduate engineering education. Cambridge, MA: The Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Finansovyj slovar’. (2017). [Financial Terms Dictionary]. Retrieved from: http://dic.academic.ru/dic. nsf/fin_enc/13778 Frumina, E. (2013). Modernizing English Language Teaching: a case of a pilot project at NUST MISiS. NUST MISiS. The report by Elena Frumina, Advisor to Rector NUST MISiS, made at the CDIO Academy training program. Moscow, Russia: SkolTech. GOST R 541-2010. (2010). GOST R (Russian national standard) 541-2010: Industrial Automation Systems and Integration. Guidelines for Standards Implementation, Structure and Glossary. Moscow, Russia: Standartinform. (in Russian) GOST R 54147-2010. (2010). GOST R (Russian national standard) 54147-2010: Strategic and Innovation Management. Terms and Definitions. Moscow, Russia: Standartinform. (in Russian) GOST R ISO 15704-2008. (2008). Promyshlennye avtomatizirovannye sistemy. Trebovaniya k standartnym arhitekturam i metodologiyam predpriyatiya [GOST R (Russian national standard) ISO 15704-2008: Industrial Automated Systems. Standard Architecture and Enterprise Methodology Requirements]. Moscow, Russia: Standartinform. (in Russian) GOST R ISO 19439-2008. (2008). Integraciya predpriyatiya. Osnova modelirovaniya predpriyatiya [GOST R (Russian national standard) ISO 19439-2008: Enterprise Integration. The basis of Enterprise Modelling]. (in Russian)

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Strategy Partners Group & Minpromtorg RF (Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation). (2015). Forsajt-issledovanie v oblasti perspektivnyh professional’nyh kompetencij specialistov v oblasti inzhiniringa i promyshlennogo dizajna [Foresight-research in promising engineering and industrial design professional skills]. Authors. (in Russian) Tech. (2014). World Industry Report: Global Engineering Services Market. London, UK: Technavio. Mirzoyan, L.A. (2013). Primeneniye CDIO v Mosckovskom Aviatsionnom Institute [Implementation of CDIO in Moscow Aviation Institute]. The report by Lolita A. Mirzoyan, Head of Department of Educational Programs NUT MAI, made at the CDIO Academy training program. Moscow, Russia: SkolTech. Osmakov, V. S., & Pastukhov, V. A. (Eds.). (2015). Inzhiniring I promyshlennyi dizain [Engineering and Industrial Design]. Moscow, Russia: Onebook.ru. (in Russian) Russian Government Decree. (2015). Rasporyazhenie Pravitel’stva RF ot 06.01.2015 Nº7-r «Ob utverzhdenii perechnya special’nostej i napravlenij podgotovki vysshego obrazovaniya, sootvetstvuyu-shchih prioritetnym napravleniyam modernizacii i tekhnologicheskogo razvitiya rossijskoj ehkonomiki» [Russian Government Decree of 6 January 2015 #7-p “On Approval of the Higher Education Specializations and Programmes List Which Corresponds to the Priority Areas of Modernization and Technological Development of the Russian Economy”]. Author. (in Russian)

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Chapter 8

CDIO Standards Implementation and Further Development in Russia Alexander I. Chuchalin Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia

ABSTRACT Russian experience in the implementation of CDIO (conceive, design, implement, operate) standards for modernization of BEng programs focused on graduate training for complex engineering activity are considered. The CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” for managers and faculty staff at Russian HEIs is described. Further development of the CDIO concept for MSc and PhD engineering programs design are discussed taking into account the priorities of innovative and research engineering activities. The FCDI (forecast, conceive, design, implement) standards focused on MSc program graduate training for innovative engineering activity and FFCD (foresight, forecast, conceive, design) standards focused on PhD program graduate training for research engineering activity are presented.

INTRODUCTION More than a hundred universities around the Globe implement CDIO Standards to engineering education. The standards are based on the CDIO (Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate) approach to training basic engineering education program graduates to prepare them for complex engineering activities at all stages of the life cycle of technical products, processes and systems (Crawley et al, 2014). The CDIO approach is widely used, as it is consistent with the requirements of International Engineering Alliance (IEA) Standards (IAE Graduate Attributes and Professional Competences) to the engineering HEI’s graduate learning outcomes (LOs) and competences of Professional Engineers. The CDIO Standards allows the design and implementation of BEng programs in accordance with the criteria for accreditation of engineering programs in the countries - signatories of the Washington Accord, including the accreditation criteria of the Association for Engineering Education of Russia (Chuchalin, 2012; Brodeur, 2012). DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch008

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 CDIO Standards Implementation and Further Development in Russia

CDIO STANDARDS IMPLEMENTATION The CDIO Standards have become popular in many Russian engineering HEIs. In 2010 the Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) began to implement CDIO Standards to modernization of BEng engineering programs. In 2011 TPU formally joined the CDIO Initiative as the first Russian university member. In 2014 the first cohort of Bachelors, trained at TPU under the CDIO programs, graduated. The CDIO programs at TPU were accredited by the Association of Engineering Education of Russia (EUR-ACE Labeled) and by Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (USA), the most prestigious engineering organization in the world. Thus, the high quality of the TPU CDIO programs was officially confirmed. Following the example of ТPU a dozen Russian HEIs have implemented the CDIO Standards and formally joined the CDIO Initiative. In 2013 TPU and Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology (Skoltech) designed and piloted a joint CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” in order to ensure proper preparation of managers and faculty staff at Russian HEIs to use the CDIO approach. The CPD program was based on the experience and best practice of engineering programs’ modernization at universities participating in the CDIO Initiative. In total, 27 experts from 6 Russian HEIs: TPU, Skoltech, Ural Federal University, Astrakhan State University, Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Tomsk State University of Control Systems and Radio-electronics and 5 foreign HEIs: KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden), Delft University of Technology (The Netherlands), Technical University of Denmark, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA) were involved in the design of teaching and learning (T&L) materials, as well as in the program implementation (Chuchalin, Tayurskaya, & Malmqvist, 2015). The CPD program consist of 5 modules designed in compliance with the CDIO model: Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate. At the initial stage, the trainees define the particular engineering program (course) to be improved by applying the acquired knowledge and skills. While studying the sections of the 1st module, the trainees pass through the ‘Conceive’ stage of the particular engineering program (course). They develop program (course) objectives and learning outcomes necessary for future professional activity and make them aligned with the key stakeholders (employers). Individual projects of the 2nd and 3rd modules are focused on the ‘Design’ and ‘Operate’ stages of the particular engineering program and its elements. During the 4th module at the ‘Implement’ stage, the trainees develop assessment methods and criteria of students learning outcomes achievement, as well as evaluate the particular engineering program for its compliance with CDIO Standards. The 5th module is devoted to faculty staff development for CDIO implementation and enhancing their competency for teaching. The first version of the CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” was scheduled for delivering during a 16-week academic semester and involved 3 face-to-face interactive lectures and practical classes, 2 Internet on-line webinars and 4 individual assignments given as homework. The pilot test of the CPD program started in Spring semester of 2013–2014 academic year. The face-to-face sessions were organized in Russian and foreign universities with experience of the CDIO Standards implementation. Broadcasting of on-line Internet webinars were arranged by TPU instructors. All organizational, T&L materials based on learning management system (LMS) Moodle were available on the TPU website.

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The CPD program was characterized by a great amount of independent and individual work of trainees in collaboration with consultants from TPU. The CPD program was accomplished by the final project aimed at design of particular engineering programs using modules/courses modernized by the trainees. As a result, over 60 engineering programs in 24 Russian HEIs (including 7 “national research universities” and 7 “federal universities”) were re-designed or upgraded (Chuchalin et al, 2012; Chubik, & Zamyatina, 2013; Petrovskaya, 2013; Chuchalin, 2013; Lunev, Zaripova, & Petrova, 2013; Lunev, Fedotova, & Rybakov, 2014; Rechistov, & Plotkin, 2014; Rebrin, Sholina, & Berestova, 2014; Muratova, & Tayurskaya, 2014; Geraschenko, & Efremov, 2014; Marchenko, Osipova, & Amautov, 2016). Feedback of participants focused on the CPD program quality evaluation and also data for its improvement and upgrading was provided during the delivery of the program. The idea of developing an on-line version of the CPD program was proposed by participants to prepare more Russian HEIs faculty members and administrators for CDIO programs implementation. In 2016 an on-line version of the CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” within a massive open on-line course (MOOC) format based on the EdX platform was designed. For the on-line version, all T&L materials were redesigned to meet the requirements of the MOOC format. Special scenarios for on-line presentations of the CPD program were elaborated based on the following principles: T&L materials were decomposed into separate and logically related themes, modules and short fragments to be learned in chorological order during the weeks of a semester; segmented T&L materials were prepared in video, audio, and text formats based on the recommendations for EdX/MOOC format; each fragment of T&L materials was provided with the tests for self-assessment; T&L materials were supported by individual assignments, methodological guidelines and recommendations for their accomplishment and assessment; T&L materials were accompanied by references to the information related with the corresponding section, theme, module or fragment; T&L materials were complemented with explicit self-study instructions and options for communicating with other the participants and the instructor. Creating the on-line version of the CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” in MOOC format has become a step forward in continuing the professional development of Russian HEIs faculty members and administrators. The on-line format allows the CPD program availability on a continuous basis and its expansion to a wide audience geographically dispersed over many time zones. To reach this goal on the EdX platform, developers used as much as possible, the on-line version accumulated training resources and experience of the leading universities – participants of CDIO Initiative. Currently, the on-line version of the CPD program is being tested and is expected to be launched in 2017. For the future, it is foreseen that a blended format of delivery could also be provided to further support the application of the CDIO Standards in Russian engineering HEIs.

CDIO STANDARDS FURTHER DEVELOPMENT As mentioned above, the graduates of BEng programs are mainly trained for complex engineering activities: Conceive, Design, Implement and Operate technical products, systems and processes, solving a wide variety of technical and other issues at all stages of the engineering product life cycle. Solving complex engineering problems requires basic knowledge of mathematics, natural sciences, engineering and other sciences, as well as specific technical, economic, administrative and other knowledge, including interdisciplinary knowledge in the area of specialization.

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Analysis of the Russian Federal State Educational Standards (FSES) and the Association for Engineering Education of Russia (AEER) accreditation criteria shows that most core competencies of engineering BEng program graduates (>60%) are related to engineering activities at the stages of Implementation & Operation of technical products, processes and systems. About 25% of intended LOs are focused on Design, and a little more than 10% of competencies enable Bachelors to participate in activities at the Conceive stage. Masters in engineering are prepared mainly for innovative engineering activity aimed at the development and design of new technical products, systems and technologies for human needs to get social and (or) economic impact, and therefore demanded and competitive. Innovative engineering is an interdisciplinary activity. It requires deep fundamental and applied knowledge, based on the analysis and synthesis of technical products, systems and processes with the use of mathematical models of the high level with more emphasis on interdisciplinary knowledge. A half of the engineering MSc program graduate LOs (50%) corresponding to the FSES requirements and the AEER accreditation criteria, are related to Design, about 25% are focused on Implement & Operate, and about 25% of competencies enable Masters to participate in activities at the Conceive stage. The PhD engineering program graduates are prepared mainly for research activity in the field of engineering sciences. It aims to generate new knowledge and to transform fundamental knowledge into applied knowledge for its subsequent use in engineering, as well as scientific support of the development of new technical products, systems and technologies based on research results. According to the FSES requirements the majority (>60%) of expected PhD holder competencies is connected with the preparation for research activities at the stage of Conceive, about 25% of LOs focus on activities at the stage of Design, and a little more than 10% of competencies refer to Implement & Operate stages. A group of experts from leading Russian universities (including participants of the CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education”) was asked to assess the applicability of CDIO Syllabus v2 to engineering MSc and PhD programs. The results of the survey conducted in 2016 showed that there were problems of adaptation of the CDIO approach to graduate and postgraduate engineering programs (Chuchalin, Daneikina, & Fortin, 2016). The development of conceptual and methodological models, similar to CDIO Syllabus and CDIO Standards, but aimed at the MSc and PhD engineering programs design considering the peculiarities of innovative and research engineering activities, was recommended. Following the recommendation required models were developed at TPU under the leadership of the author of the paper. In the formation of a list of intended LOs for engineering MSc program, it was proposed to use the abbreviation FCDI (Forecast, Conceive, Design, Implement) instead of the abbreviation CDIO (Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate). The absence of “Operate” in a new abbreviation indicates that this kind of engineering activity (operation and maintenance of products, processes and systems) is not a priority for MSc program graduates. The presence of “Forecast” emphasizes the importance of forecasting potential needs of society in the new products, processes and systems. A two-level list of intended LOs (FCDI Syllabus) for graduate engineering programs was developed (Table 1). In the formation of a list of intended LOs for engineering PhD programs it was proposed to use the abbreviation FFCD (Foresight, Forecast, Conceive, Design). The absence of “Implement” in the abbreviation indicates that participation in the production of products, processes and systems is not a priority for PhD program graduates. The presence of “Foresight” emphasizes the importance of technological foresight to anticipate potential needs of society and to create a scientific basis for conceiving and design-

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Table 1. The list of intended LOs for graduate engineering programs FCDI Syllabus 1. INTERDISCIPLINARY SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE 1.1. In-depth knowledge of mathematics and natural sciences 1.2. In-depth knowledge of engineering and methods of innovative activity 2. PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCES AND PERSONAL QUALITIES 2.1. Analytical study and solution of innovative problems 2.2. Experimentation, research and acquisition of deep knowledge 2.3. Systematic innovation thinking 2.4. Attitude, critical analysis and creativity 2.5. Ethics, equity and other types of liability 3. PERSONAL COMPETENCES: TEAMWORK AND COMMUNICATIONS 3.1. Team leadership 3.2. Communication 3.3. Communication in foreign languages 4. FORECASTING, CONCEIVING, DESIGNING, AND IMPLEMENTING SYSTEMS IN THE ENTERPRISE, SOCIETAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT – THE INNOVATION PROCESS 4.1. Societal and environmental context 4.2. Enterprise and business context 4.3. Forecast and innovation management 4.4. Conceive 4.5. Design 4.6. Implementation 4.7. Leadership in innovative technical enterprise 4.8. Innovative technological entrepreneurship 5. PEDAGOGICAL ACTIVITY 5.1. Development and implementation of educational resources

ing new products, processes and systems in the research activity. A two-level list of the intended LOs (FFCD Syllabus) for postgraduate engineering programs was developed as well (Table 2). Based on FCDI Syllabus and FFCD Syllabus it is possible to generate detailed lists of intended LOs and to design the optimal structure, content, and technology of implementation and evaluation of the quality of MSc and PhD engineering programs. In order to achieve the intended LOs (competencies of graduates), given in FCDI Syllabus and FFCD Syllabus, it was proposed to develop standards that define the requirements to graduate (FCDI Standards) and postgraduate (FFCD Standards) engineering programs by analogy with the CDIO Standards (Table 3). Based on the CDIO Standards, FCDI Standards and FFCD Standards it is possible to develop, design, implement and evaluate undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate programs aimed at preparing graduates for complex, innovative and research engineering activities, respectively. Following proposed standards, a new generation of BEng, MSc and PhD programs are being designed at Tomsk Polytechnic University.

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Table 2. The list of the intended LOs for postgraduate engineering programs FFCD Syllabus 1. NEW SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE 1.1. New knowledge in the field of basic and applied sciences 1.2. New knowledge in the field of engineering and research methods 2. PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCES AND PERSONAL QUALITIES 2.1. Analytical study and solution of scientific problems 2.2. Experimentation, research and generation of new knowledge 2.3. Systematic scientific thinking 2.4. Attitude, critical analysis of the scientific data and results of own research 2.5. Ethics, equity and other types of liability 3. PERSONAL COMPETENCES: TEAMWORK AND COMMUNICATIONS 3.1. Research team leadership 3.2. Communication 3.3. Communication in foreign languages 4. FORESIGHTING, FORECASTING, CONCEIVING, AND DESIGNING IN THE ENTERPRISE, SOCIETAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEXT - THE RESEARCH PROCESS 4.1. Societal and environmental context 4.2. Enterprise and business context 4.3. Foresight and innovation management 4.4. Forecast 4.5. Conceive 4.6. Design 4.7. Leadership in the research enterprise 4.8. Research entrepreneurship 5. PEDAGOGICAL ACTIVITY 5.1. Design and delivery of Higher Education programs

CONCLUSION The CDIO Standards were implemented in Russian HEIs extremely successfully when modernizing engineering BEng programs and training graduates for complex engineering activity. Special CPD program “Applying CDIO Standards in Engineering Education” have been developed and implemented to train Russian HEIs faculty members and administrators. On-line version of the CPD program in MOOC format is being tested to be implemented starting with 2017. As a result of the analysis of generalized national and international requirements to competences of engineering MSc and PhD program graduates, as well as expert examination of the characteristics and priorities of innovation and research engineering activities the FCDI Standards and FFCD Standards have been developed at Tomsk Polytechnic University by analogy with the CDIO Standards. The Standards are being piloted to design new generation of 3-cycle programs in electrical and nuclear engineering.

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Table 3. The standards for undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate engineering programs CDIO Standards

FCDI Standards

FFCD Standards

Standard 1 CDIO – Context of Engineering Education. Adoption of the principle that product, process, and system lifecycle development and deployment— Conceiving, Designing, Implementing and Operating are the context for undergraduate engineering education.

Standard 1 FCDI – Context of Engineering Education. Adoption of the principle that innovative product, process, and system lifecycle design and development – Forecasting, Conceiving, Designing and Implementing are the context for graduate engineering education.

Standard 1 FFCD – Context of Engineering Education. Adoption of the principle that creation of scientific basis for the development and design of innovative product, process, and system lifecycle – Foreseeing, Forecasting, Conceiving and Designing are the context for postgraduate engineering education.

Standard 2 CDIO – CDIO learning outcomes. Specific, detailed learning outcomes for personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills, as well as disciplinary knowledge, consistent with program goals and validated by program stakeholders.

Standard 2 FCDI – FCDI learning outcomes. Specific, detailed learning outcomes for personal and interpersonal skills, and innovative product, process, and system designing and developing skills, as well as interdisciplinary knowledge and teaching skills, consistent with program goals and validated by program stakeholders.

Standard 2 FFCD – FFCD learning outcomes. Specific, detailed learning outcomes for personal and interpersonal skills, and abilities to create scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development, as well as transdisciplinary knowledge and pedagogical skills, consistent with program goals and validated by program stakeholders.

Standard 3 CDIO – Integrated Curriculum. A curriculum designed with mutually supporting disciplinary courses, with an explicit plan to integrate personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills.

Standard 3 FCDI – Integrated curriculum. A curriculum designed with mutually supporting interdisciplinary courses, as well as innovation and teaching activities with an explicit plan to integrate personal and interpersonal skills, and innovative product, process, and system design and development skills based on forecasting the needs of stakeholders.

Standard 3 FFCD – Integrated curriculum. A curriculum designed with mutually supporting transdisciplinary courses, as well as research and pedagogic activities with an explicit plan to integrate personal and interpersonal skills, and abilities to create scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development using the methods of technological foresight.

Standard 4 CDIO – Introduction to engineering. An introductory course that provides the framework for engineering practice in product, process and system building, and introduces essential personal and interpersonal skills.

Standard 4 FCDI – Introduction to innovative engineering. An introductory workshop that provides the framework for engineering practice in innovative product, process and system design and development based on forecasting the needs of stakeholders, as well as introduces essential personal and interpersonal skills.

Standard 4 FFCD – Introduction to research engineering. An introductory workshop that provides the framework for engineering practice in creation of scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development using the methods of technological foresight, as well as introduces essential personal and interpersonal skills.

Standard 5 CDIO – Design-Implement Experiences. A curriculum that includes two or more design-implement experiences, including one at a basic level and one at an advanced level.

Standard 5 FCDI – Innovation- Design Experiences. A curriculum that includes design projects entailing experience in engineering innovations based on forecasting the needs of stakeholders, as well as experience in teaching.

Standard 5 FFCD – Research- Design Experiences. A curriculum that includes research projects entailing experience in creation of scientific basis for engineering innovation design based on technological foresight, as well as pedagogic experience in higher education.

Standard 6 CDIO – Engineering Workspaces. Engineering workspaces and laboratories that support and encourage hands-on learning of product, process, and system building, disciplinary knowledge, and social learning.

Standard 6 FCDI – Innovative engineering workspaces. Engineering workspaces and laboratories that support and encourage innovative product, process, and system design and development, interdisciplinary knowledge, and social learning.

Standard 6 FFCD – Research engineering workspaces. Engineering workspaces and laboratories that support and encourage creation of the scientific basis for innovative products, processes and systems design and development, transdisciplinary knowledge, and social learning.

Standard 7 CDIO – Integrated Learning Experiences. Integrated learning experiences that lead to the acquisition of disciplinary knowledge, as well as personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills.

Standard 7 FCDI – Integrated Learning Experiences. Integrated learning experiences that lead to the acquisition of interdisciplinary knowledge, as well as personal and interpersonal skills, and innovative product, process, and system design and development skills based on forecasting the needs of stakeholders.

Standard 7 FFCD – Integrated Learning Experiences. Integrated learning experiences that lead to the acquisition of transdisciplinary knowledge, as well as personal and interpersonal skills, and abilities to create scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development using the methods of technological foresight.

Standard 8 CDIO – Active learning. Teaching and learning based on active experiential learning methods.

Standard 8 FCDI – Active learning. Teaching and learning based on active learning and innovative methods.

Standard 8 FFCD – Active learning. Teaching and learning based on active learning and research methods.

Standard 9 CDIO – Enhancement of Faculty Competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills.

Standard 9 FCDI – Enhancement of faculty FCDI – competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in personal and interpersonal skills, and innovative product, process, and system design and development skills.

Standard 9 FFCD – Enhancement of faculty FFCD – competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in personal and interpersonal skills, and abilities to create scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development.

Standard 10 CDIO – Enhancement of Faculty Teaching Competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in providing integrated learning experiences, in using active experiential learning methods, and in assessing student learning.

Standard 10 FCDI – Enhancement of Faculty Teaching Competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in providing integrated learning experiences, in using active and innovative learning methods, and in assessing student learning.

Standard 10 FFCDI – Enhancement of Faculty Teaching Competence. Actions that enhance faculty competence in providing integrated learning experiences, in using active learning and research methods, and in assessing student learning.

Standard 11 CDIO – Learning assessment. Assessment of student learning in personal and interpersonal skills, and product, process, and system building skills, as well as in disciplinary knowledge.

Standard 11 FCDI – Learning assessment. Assessment of student learning in personal and interpersonal skills, and innovative product, process, and system design and development skills, as well as in interdisciplinary knowledge.

Standard 11 FFCD – Learning assessment. Assessment of student learning in personal and interpersonal skills, and abilities to create scientific basis for innovative product, process, and system design and development, as well as in transdisciplinary knowledge.

Standard 12 CDIO – Program evaluation. A system that evaluates programs against twelve CDIO standards, and provides feedback to students, faculty, and other stakeholders for the purposes of continuous improvement.

Standard 12 FCDI – Program evaluation. A system that evaluates programs against twelve FCDI standards, and provides feedback to students, faculty, and other stakeholders for the purposes of continuous improvement.

Standard 12 FFCD – Program evaluation. A system that evaluates programs against twelve FFCD standards, and provides feedback to students, faculty, and other stakeholders for the purposes of continuous improvement.

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REFERENCES Brodeur, D. (2012). Aligning Accreditation Criteria and Processes with the CDIO Approach. In Proceedings of the 8th International CDIO Conference. Queensland University of Technology. Chubik, P., & Zamyatina, O. (2013). Training Elite Specialists in Engineering and Technologies. Proceedings of the 9th International CDIO Conference. Chuchalin, A. (2012). RAEE Accreditation Criteria and CDIO Syllabus: Comparative Analysis. In Proceedings of the 8th International CDIO Conference. Queensland University of Technology. Chuchalin, A. (2013). TPU-SKOLKOVO Project: Modernization of BEng Programs in Russia. Proceedings of the 9th International CDIO Conference. Chuchalin, A., Daneikina, N., & Fortin, C. (2016). Application of CDIO Approach to Engineering BEng, MSc and PhD Programs Design and Implementation. Proceedings of the 12th International CDIO Conference. Chuchalin, A., Petrovskaya, T., Kulyukina, E., & Tayurskaya, M. (2012). Benchmarking of TPU Academic Standard and CDIO Standards in Engineering Education. In Proceedings of the 8th International CDIO Conference. Queensland University of Technology. Chuchalin, A., Tayurskaya, M., & Malmqvist, J. (2015). Professional Development of Russian HEIs’ Management and Faculty in CDIO Standards Application. European Journal of Engineering Education, 40(6), 426–437. doi:10.1080/03043797.2015.1085837 Crawley, E., Malmqvist, J., Ostlund, S., Brodeur, D., & Edström, K. (2014). Rethinking Engineering Education, the CDIO Approach (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-05561-9 Geraschenko, A., & Efremov, A. (2014). The Targeted Training of the Students Enrolled in Aeronautical Programs. Proceedings of the 10th International CDIO Conference. Lunev, A., Fedotova, A., & Rybakov, A. (2014). Complex Strategy of CDIO Initiative Implementation in a Regional Russian University. Proceedings of the 10th International CDIO Conference. Lunev, A., Zaripova, V., & Petrova, I. (2013). Implementation of CDIO Initiative Approach at a Russian Regional University. Proceedings of the 9th International CDIO Conference. Marchenko, N., Osipova, S., & Amautov, A. (2016). New Role of Employer in the Educational Process of Metallurgy Programme. Proceedings of the 12th International CDIO Conference. Muratova, E., & Tayurskaya, M. (2014). Stakeholders’ Evaluation of Learning Outcomes in Educational Programs Improvement. Proceedings of the 10th International CDIO Conference.

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Petrovskaya, T. (2013). Using CDIO Concept to Develop Engineering Education in Tomsk Polytechnic University. Proceedings of the 9th International CDIO Conference. Rebrin, O., Sholina, I., & Berestova, S. (2014). Interdisciplinary Project for Bachelor Engineering Program. Proceedings of the 10th International CDIO Conference. Rechistov, G., & Plotkin, A. (2014). Computer Engineering Educational Projects of MIPT-Intel laboratory in the Context of CDIO. Proceedings of the 10th International CDIO Conference.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Accreditation Criteria: Criteria for evaluation and accreditation of Engineering Programs. CDIO Standards for BEng Programs: Standards for Bachelor of Engineering degree programs design and implementation focused on graduate training for complex engineering activity (conceive, design, implement, operate). CPD Program for Faculty: Program for continuing professional development of higher education institution faculty members. FCDI Standards for MSc Engineering Programs: Standards for Master of Science degree engineering programs design and implementation focused on graduate training for innovative engineering activity (forecast, conceive, design, implement). FFCD Standards for PhD Engineering Programs: Standards for philosophy doctor degree engineering programs design and implementation focused on graduate training for research engineering activity (foresight, forecast, conceive, design). Innovative Engineering Activity: Activity aimed at forecast, conceive, design, and implement innovative engineering products, processes and systems. MOOC Format: Format for massive open online course design and implementation. Research Engineering Activity: Activity aimed at creating scientific basis for innovative engineering activity.

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Chapter 9

The Implementation of Modern Information Technologies in Educational Fields Anatoly A. Aleksandrov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Proletarsky Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen Beijing Institute of Technology, China

ABSTRACT As known to all, we are living in an information society today. Learners can acquire knowledge, skill, and ability by participating in teaching, training and learning systems. As the basis of teaching, training, and learning system, the management system is significantly important in the management of online materials and intercommunion between students and teachers. In order to construct more effective systems of management, virtual organizations should be considered with latticed structure, which can easily adapt to external environment changing and may even inspire more innovations in the fields of education.

INTRODUCTION As for modern education, a mass of information technologies have been put into practice (Aleksandrov, Proletarsky, Ke, & Neusypin, 2012; Kovalenko, 2012). In Japan, for those who accept engineering professional education at Tokyo, Osaka and Kioto universities, vast of high information technologies have been applied. In view of the applying of high educational technologies in USA, numerous of universities can be listed, such as University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Pennsylvania, Purdue University, University of Texas, Stanford University, University of California, Massachusetts Institute DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch009

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 The Implementation of Modern Information Technologies in Educational Fields

of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, Georgia Institute of Technology and etc. With the rapid and booming development in China, new information educational technologies have also been actively suggested to apply in schools, colleges and universities during training, teaching and learning process.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION SOCIETY Information technology has become the main pillar of economic development. In terms of the GDP development, information industry comes first. What’s more, telecommunication has also become one of main methods to increase the efficiency of production and to strengthen competitive power at home, even in the world. The development of infrastructure serves to the development of information technology. Above all, we cannot emphasize the importance of infrastructure improvement in the fields of education and science too much. For example, in China redistribution of state revenue and national resources is going on, which makes a benefit to the progress of science and education. During the struggle for international top ranking, it is also highly required to develop information technology and to build information society. Moreover, the development level of information infrastructure and information technology is one of the most important evaluation indicators. Information society make it possible for every company, department and unit of society to access to information sources and share their achievements on internet. It should be noted that the exchanging process of information must be guaranteed by laws and regulations in order to keep the technical secret of own country, company and organizations. Therefore, new criteria should be established to assess the development level of society. Using computers, mobile phones as well as immobile phones, a large number of people all over the world can get access to the internet. Due to technology integration and convergence, such as telecommuting computer, audio-visual technology etc., uniform integrated informational systems have been far and wide applied and popularized in every aspect of society. Information society gives rise to unitive world economic system, unitive informational living space, global informational infrastructure and global legislation laws (Gorelov, 2007; Knyaginin, Meshkov, & Utolin, 2016). In information society, activities of economy and business are being carried out with the help of information communicative mediums. By utilizing high-technology, virtual economic and financial systems can be established. Moreover, an interrelation exists between the virtual economic and financial systems and the actual-physical economic as well as financial systems, namely, an interactive relation.

Development of Russian Educational Complex The key problem of socioeconomic development of Russian Federation in contemporary conditions is the low competitiveness of major industries. To some extent, the reason is that the organs of state power and government, organizations and citizens are not fully and not effectively used the opportunities provided by the information society. One of the most important sectors of the economy is education. Therefore, innovation of contemporary organizational and economic processes in the field of education has been strongly required. Hence, there is a need for organization forms and management methods to develop Russian educational complex

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(REC), considering the increasing importance of non-material forms and non-traditional qualitative factors of economic growth. Moreover, the scientific study determines the development of theoretical, methodological, and practical approaches on REC innovation in the information society. In order to realize the innovative REC development, a management system should be built on the basis of synthesizing goals which comprises of information about external environment, internal state of system and its prediction. Thus, such management system is the symbiosis of synthesizing goals, decision-making, prediction, adaptive control and management, dynamical expert system and so on. As shown in Figure 1, such advanced intelligent management systems of innovative development of Russian educational complex are complicated functional systems, consisting of some simpler functional subsystems conversely. Based on decision-making block of the intelligent management system, estimation and prediction of future acceptor operations can be made. What’s more, during the functional procedure of the intelligent management system, not one integrated complex intelligent system but several simpler intelligent subsystems work together in order to save the system source and reduce the difficulty of system integration.

MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION SYSTEM It is acknowledged that educational technologies are multi-media presentation, showing object, phenomenon, appearance, etc., as well as other training and teaching information. Furthermore, the basis of teaching, training and learning (TTL) system is the management system which plays an important role in management, spreading and processing of online-materials between students and teachers involved in this TTL system. With the teaching, learning and learning process going on, materials-mentioned are visible and accessible by specified websites. In this TTL system, individual task, project and assignment for exceptional students, as well as educational information based on substantial and communicative materials for all students, are available, downloadable and workable subsequently. Figure 1. Concept of an intelligent management system of innovative development of Russian educational complex

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TTL management system can be accomplished by remote management of training program by utilizing the Internet and others networks. Hence, procedure of remote teaching and training project can be realized at a high level. Accordingly, students living in different countries are active to take apart in this high-lever remote interactive TTL system. The organization systems which deal with the assignment of educational resources and provide a much appreciated service for the country, currently are multi-layered educational institutions, even institutions coordinating with the ministry of education. In general, such institutions belong to national professional bureaucracy. Classical professional bureaucracy secures the coordination and harmonious of high-learning activities for training high-skilled and high-qualified specialists. Moreover, those organization systems are characterized by low-level of bureaucracy and less subsidiary service personnel. The mentioned features above can be certified by utilizing special lines or trends, such as linear trend, Demark trend and Theil-Wage trend. Linear trends can be written as zˆ0i = k 0i ⋅ ti + d0i

(1)

where zˆ0 = predicted values, k 0, d0 = slope and constant in linear trends, ti = time. Classical Demark trend has a form as: zˆ1i (a1, b1 ) = k1i ⋅ ti + d1i

(2)

where zˆ0 = predicted values, k 0, d0 = parameters of trends, a1 , b1 = bearing points, ti = time. Parameters of treads k 0, d0 and bearing points a1 , b1 can be formally determined as: Step 1: dividing observational space into several parts according to the tendency of updating states; Step 2: calculating average values of each part. Average values will function as bearing points a1 , b1 in the next step; Step 3: drawing linear lines from one bearing point a1 to another bearing point b1 ; Step 4: connecting those linear lines and obtain one predicting curve; Step 5: expressing studied system as predicting curve and predict future states by tracking tendency of established models.

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Classical Demark trend is a relatively precise model. Theil-Wage trend can be expressed as: x t = a1,t + εt , a1,t = a1,t −1 + a2,t , a2,t = a2,t −1 + vt ,

(3)

where a1,t = values of studied sequence in t moment, a2,t = increase values from moment t − 1 to moment t , εt , vt = time series with zero mathematical expectation and known covariance. Those trends are some standard mathematic models which can be used not only in the areas of management, but also in the areas of organization of education, economy and society. By applying those standard mathematic models (special trends), the operational efficiency and capability of educational organizations or institutions can be analyzed. In order to meet the need of social progress, it is highly required to propose new paradigm of education, which can realize the transformation from existent traditional educational system to self-developing and self-organizing educational system.

NOVELS OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIZATION Recently, building scientific and teaching complex (STC) at leading university in Russia, such as Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU), can translate educational institutions of higher learning from deficient-training levels to professional-training levels (Tsibizova, & Neusypin, 2012; Zinchenko, 1988). In the newly-built STC, the applying of classical management methods brings to the increasing of hierarchical levels and decreasing of the manageability of STC subdivision. Accordingly, due to the imperfection of existent organization and management methods, the increasing of hierarchical levels gives rise to the decreasing of working quality of STC management system. Comparing with other organization structures, latticed structure can more effective works during the organization and management of complex systems (Russell, 1981; Kim, & Mauborgne, 2005). The characteristics of latticed structure are as follows: (1) in horizontal connections (aspect) maximal progress should be made; (2) in vertical connections (aspect) minimal progress may be made. The efficacy of horizontal connections is much higher than that of vertical connections. When designing management systems of scientific and teaching center, it should be noted to decrease hierarchical levels of management. Hence, we should make the most of horizontal connections in order to (1) increase the manageability of STC subdivisions (2) decrease hierarchical levels of management. Moreover, vertical connections can be built as less as possible, under the condition of non-decreasing the manageability of STC subdivision. Such modification of STC management system can strengthen STC management structures and increase STC efficacy owning to the increasing of versatility and sensitiveness.

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In the times of today’s explosion of science and technology, self-organizing and intelligent methods of organization and management should be established for enterprises, companies and educational institutions, in view of human factors. The transformation has taken place from organization based on traditional physical principles to organization based on knowledge and information. New organization forms should own more versatility so as to adapt to the rapidly changing external environment. Furthermore, such new forms may generate new knowledge and may encourage more innovations. The synthesization of classical organization methods and modern information technologies brings to more advanced organization forms, especially virtual organization. By applying virtual organization, synergizing efficiency of educational complex can be analyzed, and more advanced and intelligent forms of organization can be built during the updated innovative process. For the sake of effective function of virtual organization, it is highly required to apply central coordination. Central coordination can help participants of virtual organization to proceed according to institutional norms. Moreover, central coordination can ensure the interest concordance of all participants, such as universities, customers and enterprises.

AVIONICS ENGINEERING CENTER Let’s introduce an example of scientific and teaching complex with implementation of information technologies and international cooperation. At Bauman Moscow State Technical University (Ugin & Demihof, 2005), an engineering center “Avionics”, functioning as a scientific and teaching complex, was built as a joint project of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Ramenskoye Design Company (RDC) and Nanjing University of Science and Technology (NJUST) within the framework of the International Russian-Chinese Laboratory “Intelligent Electromechanical Systems” (IRCL). Avionics Engineering Center has been working on the following main research and educational directions: preparation of bachelors, engineers, masters and highly qualified specialists in the priority areas; improvement of training methods, creating a highly effective system for training technical professions; carrying out joint research projects; participation in scientific competitions, grants, awards, including Grants of Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation and P.R. China; joint organization of international conferences and symposia; international cooperation, for example, international laboratory; organization of joint scientific journal, scientific and methodical bases; joint intellectual property rights (patents); joint participation in competitions, grants, awards and research funds. The equipment of Avionics Engineering Center located in three main areas as follows: the multipurpose multifunctional exerciser based on four-generation aircraft cabin with spread spectrum of functionality: simultaneous work for several students, practicing coalition cooperation, advanced training of flight crews under conditions that are close to combat, practicing dueling and group interaction of several aircrafts, and further complication for training purposes; the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems at Bauman Moscow State Technical University includes several operational working stations for pilots which are adapted to current and future requirements, such as formation of flight mission during multi-conflict flight situation, coalition, interaction and formation of models of external environment; the research is in progress with real navigation and piloting systems and platforms of modeling aerodynamic characteristics.

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The research works are carried out in the following directions: the research in the field of aerodynamic characteristics, application of nanotechnology and research of aerodynamic properties, creation of models and working out on modeling complex engineering center; the work on dynamic formation of flight mission on the basis of predictive models with Genetic Algorithms to meet changing operational conditions of aircraft and conditions of our aircrafts against coalition enemies; the development of measurement systems and complex of modern aircraft from the concept of measuring complex synthesis with variable structures which can provide information as accurately as possible under conditions of intensive maneuvering. Perspective areas of research works are: development of the theory of intelligent control systems; creation of intelligent systems for space applications; development and application of intelligent technologies for control systems of atmospheric flight vehicles; research in the field of control theory; global aggregation and management of multi-site complexes and coalitions. The primary purpose of Avionics Engineering Center and International Russian-Chinese Laboratory “Intelligent Electromechanical Systems” is to provide scientific and engineering school of world level. The main tasks of Avionics Engineering Center are: the involvement of prominent scientists to work in IRCL as supervisors to research current and future problems of equipment, technologies and educational programs; the development and coordination of fundamental and applied research works; the increase of level of fundamental education and engineering training of young professionals; the preparation of a new generation of young scientists via scientific subjects; the active involvement of graduate and undergraduate students to participate in international seminars, conferences, symposia; the creation of specialized scientific research stands, simulators; the development of international cooperation in the field of research and educational activities; the organization of international scientific and technical conferences, symposiums, competitions, seminars, exhibitions; the creation of modern laboratory workshop for students and postgraduates; the organization of research works for students and graduate students; the promotion and popularization of engineering knowledge, advanced information technology; the attraction of additional resources for the development and strengthening of material and technical scientific and methodological base; the work on the creation of joint intellectual property right (patents); the joint participation in competitions, grants, awards and research funds. Therefore, the establishment and successful operation of the engineering center will help to solve one of the most important tasks of present stage – the training of a new generation of young scientists which are capable of creating breakthrough technologies in the defense industry.

SUMMARY In the fields of modern education, a mass of information technologies have been put into practice. Hence, teaching, training and learning systems can be established on the basis of high information technologies. Therefore, learners all over the world can acquire knowledge, skill, and ability by participating in TTL systems.

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The basis of TTL system is the management system of TTL procedure. By applying linear trend, Demark trend and Theil-Wage trend, the efficiency of TTL management systems can be analyzed. In order to obtain more effective management and organization system, latticed structure may be applied. What’s more, virtual organization can also be established, which can adapt to external environment and may encourage more innovations. Based on analysis of domestic and foreign organization methods in educational fields, we propose several recommendations: (1) modifying structures of STC management and organization systems; (2) decreasing vertical connections and increasing horizontal connections as much as possible; (3) applying delegation of authority and decreasing hierarchical levels of management; (4) adopting virtual organization and using central coordination. Avionics Engineering Center as a joint international project was briefly introduced. Functioning as a scientific and teaching complex of world level, the main tasks of Avionics Engineering Center were illustrated. Then, methods on implementation of perspective scientific-research and educational programs were developed for innovative development of “Avionics” engineering complex. The symbiosis of new proposed methods and programs allows training and getting a set of high-class specialists and better innovative technologies in the defense and aerospace industry.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The basis for the further development of the proposed educational concept is the system of advanced specialists training for the industrial complex based on scientific and educational centers (SEC) at Bauman Moscow State Technical University. The advanced training system of specialists was tested at the BMSTU and Ramenskoye Design Company and other enterprises of Russia, China, Vietnam, Myanmar and other countries. At the BMSTU, specialists are trained on the basis of the traditions of the classical Russian engineering school of polytechnic education that has developed and is constantly developing within its walls, which is based on the deep integration of education, science, innovation, and industrial enterprises. The requirements of advanced training of specialists are scientifically substantiated by means of analysis of the forecast results obtained on the basis of forecasting models that coordinated with customers and linked with the existing capabilities of the country’s educational complex. When training specialists, great attention is paid to: 1. Strengthening the influence of industry on the educational process through: participation in the formation and correction of the request for training in specific specialties and qualifications; participation in the permanent renewal of educational standards and educational programs; the development of the system of branch faculties, departments in the territory of basic enterprises; creation of joint SECs. 2. Strengthening the material and technical basis of BMSTU educational structures, conducting production practices in modern enterprises, correlating the topics of scientific research projects, course and diploma projects with the actual tasks of industry.

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3. Based on the complex of SECs, deepering research cooperation between BMSTU and enterprises through the implementation of research. 4. Ensuring mutual scientific and training integration between BMSTU and enterprises through cooperation within the framework of mixed small creative research groups. 5. Ensuring the upgrading of qualifications, retraining, probation, second higher education for employees of enterprises and holding trainings for BMSTU teachers at the enterprises. The symbiosis of technologies and methods of advanced education, a powerful production base of the SEC complex, modern information technologies and the “Russian method” in training allows to obtain a synergetic effect, which is an innovative advantage in comparison with other educational systems due to the formation of new competencies and creative skills, acceleration and more qualitative mastery of knowledge, increased motivation of students and specialists. The advanced training system allows to realize the function of habilitation, which provides comprehensive preparation of the students for professional work in new, increasingly complicated conditions, as well as his professional self-realization.

REFERENCES Aleksandrov, A. A., Proletarsky, A. V., Ke, F., & Neusypin, K. A. (2012). Conception of complex continuous education with innovation technologies. In Proceedings of the 2012 2nd international Conference on Education and Education Management. Hong Kong: Information Engineering Research Institute. Gorelov, V. I. (2007). Management of the society development. Moscow: Ekon-Inform Press. Kazinik, M. S. (2010). Secrets of the geniuses. Moscow: Legan Press. Kim, W. C., & Mauborgne, R. (2005). Blue ocean strategy: How to create uncontested market space and make competition irrelevant. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Knyaginin, V. N., Meshkov, N. A., & Utolin, K. V. (2016). Advanced education in the information society. International Review of Management and Marketing, 6(3), 89–99. Kovalenko, I. V. (2012). Theoretical bases of lifelong education research as an innovation system. Izvestija of the Tula state University, 1, 281-287. Russell, L. A. (1981). Creating the corporate future: Plan or be planned for. Wiley. Tsibizova, T. Yu., & Neusypin, K. A. (2012). Some restructuring aspects of the modern educationalscientific centers control system. Automation and modern technologies, 1, 30-34. Ugin, E. G., & Demihof, K. E. (2005). Founders of the scientific school of Bauman Moscow State Technical University. Moscow: BMSTU Press. Zinchenko, G. P. (1988). Continuous education – command of time. Moscow: Knowledge Press.

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Avionics: The electronic systems used on aircraft, artificial satellites, and spacecraft. The term avionics is a portmanteau of the words aviation and electronics. Education: The process of facilitating learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, skills, values, beliefs, and habits. Information Society: A society where the creation, distribution, use, integration, and manipulation of information is a significant economic, political, and cultural activity. Information Technology: The application of computers to store, study, retrieve, transmit, and manipulate data or information. Management: The administration of an organization, whether it be a business, a not-for-profit organization, or government body. Management System: The framework of policies, processes and procedures used by an organization to ensure that it can fulfill all the tasks required to achieve its objectives. Organization: An entity comprising multiple people, such as an institution or an association, that has a collective goal and is linked to an external environment.

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APPENDIX At BMSTU, the concept of training specialists for enterprises has been developed and successfully implemented. Teaching methods with the use of modern information technologies that make it possible to intensify the process of obtaining and assimilating knowledge, the use of the “Russian method” in the process of teaching makes it possible to consolidate theoretical knowledge, to form skills and abilities in each phase of the continuous educational process. A generalized model has been developed at BMSTU for realizing scientific research activities at all levels of training (Figure 2), which was tested in the system of “school - university - enterprises”. The illustrated generalized unified model includes several basic functional blocks: analytical, informative, management and diagnostics, evaluative and correcting. The analytical unit is associated with the attraction, identification and selection of students for the implementation of research work in accordance with the requirements for training, direction, volume and specific knowledge required to participate in research. The informative block includes a set of individual educational programs established for the successful implementation of the research activities of the trainee, as well as the very research work of the student as part of a mixed small creative group. In the management and diagnostic unit, the educational process is monitored in respect of profiling disciplines, including the evaluation of interim results, as well as the process of performing scientific research work. The evaluative unit includes an evaluation system for key results, it analyzes the results of the training (protection of research work, etc.). Corrective block is designed to compare the requirements of legislation, educational standards, requirements for the educational process and the performance of research activities with the requirements of enterprises. Based on the analysis of these requirements, the educational programs and methodology of the research process are systematically corrected, and timely measures are taken to improve the advanced training of future specialists.

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Figure 2. A generalized unified model for the implementation of research activities

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Concept of Automated Support to Problem: Modular Vocational Training Andrey Igorevich Vlasov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ludmila Vasilievna Juravleva Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vadim Anatolievich Shakhnov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter deals with the concept of training for technicians, able to adjust to ongoing changes in the manufacturing environment. It is proposed to apply the systematic approach with a targeted use of collected methods and acmeological planning in a learning process when extra time is found owing to interdisciplinary integration and increased self-learning. Such planning is done with crosscutting design and problem-modular training with cross-rated instruction materials and learning outcomes. Education information systems are recommended as tools (like those based on modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment according to shareable content object reference model standard) together with automated information systems for self-learning, business and role plays with methods to rate career guidance and multimedia aids as learning tools.

INTRODUCTION Technician training requires developed skills, abilities in project activities, teamwork, quick decisionmaking, and strict adherence to made decisions. This chapter introduces acmeological planning in the learning process to trigger hidden reserves. The authors search for reserves of training time at the expense of interdisciplinary integration (introducing the concept of the consolidated integrated interdisciplinary task) and increased self-learning (Zhuravleva, 2012). Planning is achieved through crosscutting designs and problem-modular trainings using cross-rated teaching aids and learning outcomes (Kolesnikova, 2009). DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch010

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 Concept of Automated Support to Problem

To intensify the learning process within the same class, teams are formed during workshops, laboratory classes, and business games. Research and development (R&D) teams, which include students from different years and groups, allow undergraduates and junior students to share experiences from scientific and practical activities (Choshanov, 1996). At creative workshop sessions, teams are made within a brainstormed production task depending on student skill level. A level of solved tasks varies from local learning tasks to development of engineering systems following competitive tasks. The project-based preparation to competitions (for example, EUROBOT) has proven an advantage. Within an academic year, project teams use knowledge from different engineering courses to design robotics system under EUROBOT competition terms and conditions. Then, they defend their solution at college, regional, and international competitions (Vlasov& Yudin, 2011).

PROBLEM-MODULAR ENGINEERING TRAINING Analysis of Processes and Methods of Transfer of Knowledge Against the background of profound social change, the education system in Russia is in search of new ways to improve the learning process through fundamental and holistic student training. The learning process takes place during sessions in classrooms, laboratories, workshops, and extramural self-learning. Professors act as trainers, tutors, and supervisors students are active subjects within the learning process. Training facilities (or instruction materials) require different tools to present and visualize knowledge and information (Yudin, Kolesnikov, Vlasov, & Salmina, 2017). For the generalized scheme of encapsulated objects in training and education, see Figure 1). Figure 1. Relationship between types of training and education

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In training competent experts at the college level, improvements to the training quality are possible with the applied new educational technologies, developed learning routes, process plants (public-private partnership), and experienced professionals from process plants involved in the learning process. Other ways include launching art workshops under joint supervision of college teaching staff and leading professionals from core enterprises and establishing the social learning environment close to the working environment. These environments developstudents’ abilities to work as a team, make independent decisions, and solve management problems in individual work. Tools for learning methods and approaches include: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Project-based approach, Problem-based learning, Crosscutting design, Problem-modular training, Cognitive learning, Competence-based approach, Profession and activity-related approach, Value and activity-related approach, Process approach, Developmental teaching, Distance learning, Integrative and innovative learning, Person-centered learning, Qualitative approach, Context-sensitive approach, and Elkonin-Davydov system.

Analysis of Components of Problem-Modular Training To improve the learning process, it is necessary to apply information systems to support and administer documents, as well as the learning process (Vlasov, Zhuravleva, Sharipov, & Sharipova, 2012).In training technicians (who adjust themselves to rapidly changing working environments), people often use methods of problem-based and problem-modular training (Archan, 2005). The problem-based learning concept has been widely shared. However, there have been several approaches to its interpretation (Brockmann, Clarke, Mehaut, & Winch, 2008). Problem-based learning is developmental teaching as a set of activities, including: • • • • • •

Generating problematic cases, Problem statement, Support to students in problem solving, Solution checks, Administration in systematization and consolidation of acquired knowledge to develop creativity, Efficient thinking,

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• • •

Imagination, Cognitive motivation, and Mental emotions (see Figure2).

When using problem-based learning, users simulate the real creative process. This makes a problematic case and facilitates a search for a solution. Levels of problem-based learning depend on the content of the instruction material (possibility to generate problematic cases that vary in difficulty) and type of students’ self-learning. The method of problem-modular training mirrors the problem-based method (Belous, Bobrovsky, Dobrjkov, Karpenko, & Smirnova, 2012). Problem-modular training has gained popularityat colleges in the United States, Germany, and England. The problem-modular training technique assumes compression of training information, modularity, and rating of knowledge and skills. Training information compression refers to cases of knowledge compilation, consolidation, systematization, and generalization using the achievements of knowledge engineering. A module may include several modular units; each includes a complete description of a separate operation or technique. Depending on requirements of a professional activity, the modular units may be extended and complement a content of the module (Aleksandrov, Fang, Proletarsky, & Neusypin, 2012).Effectively proved modules with functions use syntactic text analysis to estimate educational task difficulty and complexity (Naumov & Vykhovanets, 2016). Figure 2. Components in problem-modular training

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APPROACHES TO AUTOMATED SUPPORT IN PROBLEMMODULAR VOCATIONAL TRAINING Dynamic Learning Environment: Open Learning Management System (LMS) Today’s learning process is successfully integrated with computer techniques. These include: • • • • • • • • •

e-Textbooks, Problem books, Simulator stands, Laboratory workshops, Tutorials, Syntactic text analysis, Virtual enterprises, Visualized thematic lexicons (Shakhnov, Zhuravleva, & Vlasov, 2013), Cognitively-structured training, and Testing systems (Medvedev& Dobriakov, 2013).

The modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment system (Moodle) has a philosophy of social constructivist teaching. It is primarily focused on establishing professor-student interaction. It is also suitable for an arrangement of traditional distance-learning courses and as a support to full-time studies. The modular object-oriented learning system produces e-learning courses combining various teaching methods. It is an appropriate structure and method to display teaching aids in an electronic format. Training modules vary depending on their application. They provide support to customized object environments within the framework of the person-centered principle to training management. Thus, using Moodle, a professor can benefit from broad opportunities to run a course and develop separate training elements. In the teaching and learning process, systematized distance courses can be used for selected aspects or a discipline. This is also true for separate elements and resources. It should be mentioned that Moodle course development does not require special knowledge from the professor surrounding modern information technology. Moodle has a comprehensive set of e-learning aids through efficient standard tools (i.e., text processors, Web forms, etc.). It presents an opportunity to edit and manage learning aids in real time. When professionals establish e-learning (open education) systems, a crucial point is to select a system to store, manage, and update the content of the training resources. It is possible to achieve these features with a set of standard tools, including regular mail, e-mail, online classifieds, spreadsheets, and databases. Developers usually achieve special-purpose software systems like LMS, learning content management system (LCMS), and development tools for learning environments or authoring software (AS). Training providers use LMS and virtual learning environments (VLEs) to introduce automation and informational support in administrative procedures related to storage and management of information on training courses, certification learning outcomes, student’s personal data, and a scheduled control of the learning process (IEEE 1484.11.2 Standard for Learning Technology, 2003). LCMS create, store, manage, and provide a student with content in an information academic course. Creating content, which is a labor-intensive process, requires regular updates in accordance with changing conditions of the learning process and requirements to students. Tools for course development and AS are designed for teachers or specialists in teaching methods who have no IT working experience. With these tools, they cancreate

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information and academic content of courses (or content). Training materials developed with the help of such tools are subject to requirements of strict compliance with certain standards and specifications developed by international associations and consortia. There are three ways to introduce AS: (1) use commercial software (of the shelf solution);(2) commission software development following one’s own specifications from third-party development companies (a tailor-made solution); and (3) use in-house design (a home-grown solution). Commercial software speeds up an implementation process. However, the cost of such software is high. Upon a product purchase, the developments in the field of teaching methods will be restricted to existing formats. The main problem is a need in the learning process redesign to absorb other people’s learning methods embedded in the software. The main disadvantage of commissioning from third-party companies is support and upgrades. Unfortunately, many third-party companies have a short lifecycle. The support ends upon their closure or a change of an activity field. In addition, the product lifetime is large enough. The third option, in-house design, is the best option for AS implementation at an engineering college. In this option, developers of this class of systems and opportunities for future operational support and improvement is available through professors and students. Transitioning to a qualitatively new level of the learning process requires a revised architecture of current information systems, as well as replacement and optimization of elements in the data analysis by the complexity criterion. At the current level of society development, education and science has been an object of informatization. Consequences from this process, which are supported by governmental and nongovernmental organizations, are agreements and standards. This application in the open e-learning environment is now becoming mandatory. Due to this, informatization of engineering training—with its specific learning content, used processing methods, and research methodologies—requires a careful study of possible data sources in this field (i.e., material, data from unique equipment, etc.). It also requires developed extensions to standards and agreements in the field of distance learning systems for a possibility of wide remote copying of these data by means of the Web. It is reasonable to build an up-to-date open learning system following the sharable content object reference model(SCORM) standard. It includes main parts of other important standards for learning process management systems and is progressive because leading automated environments use it (for example, Moodle). SCORM is a set of guidelines to organize work with teaching materials to shape a pattern of instructions (SCORM 2004 4th Edition Run-Time Environment Version 1.0., 2009). The pattern determines which kinds of auxiliary functions should be used to solve a task and arrange learning materials. It also determines which interrelations exist between these functions and how people can use them. The SCORM set integrates standards and specifications into a set of technological volumes. Nearly all the specifications and guidelines come from third parties. So far, all the technological volumes are divided by three subjects: (1)SCORM content aggregation model (CAM); (2) SCORM run-time environment (RTE);and (3) SCORM sequencing and navigation (SN). SCORM combines technologies of companies into a single model. These include IMS, AICC, ARIADNE, and IEEE LTSC. The model, which is usable by all e-learning providers, creates a consistent guide to meet the standard(IMS Content Packaging Information Model, Version 1.1.4 Final Specification, 2004).

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To increase a pace with which the standard is introduced and with which they implement the model, SCORM conceptually defines common functionalities that should be available in the all e-learning systems like SCORM. There are the following functionalities: • • • • • •

accessibility is an opportunity to identify and access learning components from a single remote point and deliver them to many others; flexibility is an opportunity to have tailor-made training to individuals and companies. cost-effectiveness is an opportunity to increase efficiency and performance by reducing the price and the time required to provide customers with distance learning; long life-cycle is an opportunity to withstand the technological progress and changes without expenditures for redesigning, reconfiguring and changes to a source code; compatibility is an opportunity to take an educational component developed in one system with a set of tools and platforms and use it in another system with another set of tools and platforms; reusability is an opportunity to reuse, flexibility, the opportunity to add the educational component many times to various applications and contexts.

LMS, which is a comprehensive concept in SCORM, refers to a set of functionalities designed for transferring, tracking, reporting, and management of learning objects, students’ academic progress, and learners’ actions. LMS can refer to basic course management systems or complex distributed environments installed at an enterprise. Many people use the term LMS rather than computer-aided instruction (CMI) to discuss new functionalities and capabilities that are not historically related to previous systems (Computer Managed Instruction Guidelines for Interoperability [CMI001] Version 3.5., 2001). They include links to other information systems, sophisticated tracking and reporting systems for student activities, centralized registration, networking, and adaptive delivery of learning objects. SCORM guidelines review the organization of work using instruction materials to create a model of instructions. It determines which kinds of auxiliary functions should be presented to solve a task of training content organization, possible interrelations between these functions, and possible applications. There is a wide range of descriptions for LMS. SCORM focuses on an interface between academic content and LMS environments. It does not discuss specific features and opportunities within the LMS. This allows individual sellers to provide users with a variety of training and management services, competitive alternatives maintaining an important aim of SCORM, and capacity for interaction. SCORM assumes that LMS is a client-server environment with integrated functions of control and delivery to a student. According to SCORM, LMS determines what is to be delivered and at what time. It also tracks user progress and academic performance during the training. SCORM assumes that training resources contain internal logic to solve learning tasks. Such a resource can refer to itself as branching (depending on student actions). Branching is sufficient and locally significant for a training resource. Internal branching should not refer to external training resources in different structures of the content. Due to its importance, a content developer should pay it special attention when choosing training resources and layout.

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Analysis of Information Aggregation (IA) Problems IA can be used as both a specific action-event and to describe conceptual information. It describes an action or process to create a functional set associated with learning objects. This makes it possible to use the set in the learning process. During the SCORM data model choice, IA describes information created during the process or action. IA, which can be a shortened form to describe a training kit, can be used to deliver content as an established structure for the organization distributed between systems and stored in a repository. A representation of the learning content organization structure in accordance with SCORM requirements includes components aimed at identifying various aspects of its arrangement: •





Content Hierarchy: This tree representation looks like a table of contents and represents a logical organization of training resources or events using learning resources. In some cases, a student can go through this hierarchical tree representation in a specific default order designed by a course author. Metadata: These optional descriptive data are context specific and describe content structure or organization. Such metadata might describe the integration of training resources into a system (for example, students’ knowledge or ambitions faced as they use training resources in a learning event). Content Sequencing, Adaptive Content Sequencing, and Navigation: These optional instructions are used when a course author wants to control training resources presented to students during course navigation. By default, if there are no instructions on content sequencing and navigation, the student can choose any point of the instruction content. By adding specific guidelines, users can change the standard learning behavior. More complex adaptive sequencing of the content can be based on whether the student has completed a learning course or more complex calculations of the user’s preferences or evaluation results.

The standard provides for a wide variety of approaches to content aggregation. Aggregation is possible from the smallest learning resources, so small that they will be comparable to a couple of lines of HTML code or a short video, to highly organized learning resources that have got feedback features and are tracked by the LMS. When a training resource is created, it can be easily described as metadata. It is important to understand that not every resource will require metadata because the training resource can create a single use. In some cases, training resources are made for applications in a specific context. Metadata allow users to find training resources stored in a repository. Training resources may be suitable for repeated use. By reviewing metadata, it is possible to determine whether it is necessary to reuse the resource without a need to review the training resource. Such metadata are considered context-independent because they describe the training resource regardless its location and its application in a specific learning strategy. Metadata that belong to a specific learning strategy are called context-sensitive. For example, metadata can include an explanation of reasons for a learning event added at a given point in the learning process. Context-independent metadata usually refer to immutable metadata that describe digital objects, objects of the instruction material, or a set of objects. Context-sensitive metadata, on the other hand, usually refer to metadata that only make sense in the context of a specific context organization.

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Using metadata for developing learning resources is a newer concept. A successful practice of this still needs to be developed. In some cases, a conceptual goal of metadata provides users with an opportunity to review several instruction materials. Other cases are strictly informative as they provide an author with information about a model and objectives of a learning object. Content coherence and SCORM navigation provide an opportunity to find highly adaptable coherence between learning events. The process of standardization for sequencing and navigation through content has proven difficult because of complex approaches required for effective teaching of certain skills or training for challenging jobs and responsibilities. Previous SCORM versions did not provide users with specific sophisticated sequencing capabilities. Users were unable to effectively organize free learning processes because the capabilities were complex and integrated tasks requiring more time. The community has many requirements to learning process development; these are often contradictory. Researchers have not found an approach to cover the necessary applications. However, the flexible approach adopted in SCORM and based on IMS SS Specification provides users with a variety of approaches to training organization. Based on Moodle in accordance with SCORM standard requirements, the open engineering training system is a part of a large information and instruction system, including: •



Distance Learning System: This includes MediaLearning, which is a management system for instruction materials and learning processes (meeting international standard SCORM), a video conferencing system, and an online library. The system follows a modular basis with an option to include additional modules provided by the community of developers for Moodle training systems. Online Laboratory: This includes hardware and software for experiments with subsequent processing of results through a special-purpose server. The results of each experiment are saved in the experiment database. Therefore, it is possible to create a library of experiments and incorporate results of experiments into instruction materials for courses made in the distance learning system.

This chapter functionally distinguishes the following user roles in the information and instruction system: • •

Laboratory Assistant/Moderator: This role works with experimental equipment and an application server. Duties include equipment setup, synchronizing work with a data storage and processing server, and correct term nation of a set of research on completed experiments. Course Developer-User: This role analyzes and arranges materials received from teachers. A server experiments’ library is organized into a single and coherent training course in accordance with SCORM. This person possesses skills to work with a special-purpose editor of SCORM courses, a Web-interface of the course developer in MediaLearning instruction materials, and learning process management system. Duties also include working closely with professors.

The professor is an organizer of the learning process and a source of instruction materials. The user must have skills to work with the Web interface used by the professor in MediaLearning. Student-users who go through an entire learning route developed by the professor will learn materials integrated by course developers and take part in supervisory events monitored in MediaLearning. The user must correctly utilize MediaLearning Web-interface toolkits through all stages of the learning route.

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The developed methodology for problem-modular engineering training and the education information environment powered by Moodle ensure integrated work experience in distance learning, processing of research data using remote access equipment, and processing of data with remote access. This chapter presents a methodology to organize the learning process using research findings with remote access. Based on an in-depth analysis of valid standards for distance learning, there is a comparative analysis between SCORM and other standards applied to produce distance learning systems. There is also a concept for the distance learning system implementation based on SCORM. There are results of the designed management system for the learning process. BMSTU (www.bmstu.ru) has introduced the system in the learning process, there are standard routes for teaching and remote access experimenting. Formalization and structuring are required for lecture materials when estimating the amounts of information and other properties consolidated in the automated training support system. Hierarchical structuring is the most appropriate way to present elements in the formal presentation of system properties (structural complexity) for elements of lecture materials that include different types of information (Shakhnov, Vlasov, Rezchikova, & Zinchenko, 2013). Based on the hierarchical approach, this chapter identified measures to evaluate structural complexity and formal quality ratings to describe objects with varying physical natures in their quantitative, pragmatic, and semantic sides (Zhuravleva& Shakhnov, 1998). Hierarchical structuring of lecture materials is based on the content hierarchical arrangement (see Figure 3). In engineering training, hierarchical structuring is directly associated with the crosscutting design methodology. Targeted methods and tools are applied for structuring, visualization, automation, and presentation at each stage of the crosscutting design (Zhuravleva & Shakhnov, 1995). Figure 3. Hierarchically structured content

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS As noted above, the problem-modular training techniques are based on compression of training information, modularity, and rating of knowledge and skills acquired by students. At that, training information compression refers to compilation, consolidation, systematization, and generalization of knowledge using the achievements of knowledge engineering. This tendency is expected to increase in the future, the forming databases of knowledge and instruction materials on achieving a set didactic purpose will be subjected to even greater “compression”, and new forms of knowledge formalization and transfer will be applied. The concept of “one picture speaks more than 1000 words, and one scheme speaks more than 1000 pictures” will be growing in topicality. Mechanisms of dynamic semantic conceptual search for information, CMAPs and MIND MAPs, etc. will be in greater demand. Developers of the systems for the learning process electronic support will concentrate their efforts on creating interactive tools for dynamic management (including reverse management) of the learning process, as well as introducing multimedia aids and conceptual navigation taking into account individual preferences of a student.

CONCLUSION With the modular training system, students may find independence or self-sufficiency in their work. This proposed individual training program includes a targeted action plan, data bank, and guidance to achieve a set didactic purpose. At the same time, professors’ roles vary depending on a student’s level of competence.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The work was performed as part of the project of the state order Ministry of Education of Russia: project number Nº 2.4176.2017/46.

REFERENCES Aleksandrov, A. A., Fang, K., Proletarsky, A. V., & Neusypin, K. A. (2012). Conception of complex continuous education with innovative information technologies. In Proceedings of the 2ndInternational Conference on Education and Education Management. S. “Advances in Education Research”(pp. 374378). Academic Press. Archan, S. (2005). Modularisierung: ein Weg zur Steigerung der Attraktivität der Lehre in Österreich [Modularisation: A Pathway to increase the attraction of apprenticeship training in Austria]. BWP Berufsbildung in Wissenschaft und Praxis, 4, 23–25.

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Belous, V. V., Bobrovsky, A. V., Dobrjkov, A. A., Karpenko, A. P., & Smirnova, E. V. (2012). Multicriterion integral alternatives’ estimation: Mentally-structured approach to education. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Education and Education Management. S. “Advances in Education Research” (pp. 215-224). Academic Press. Brockmann, M., Clarke, L., Mehaut, P., & Winch, C. (2008). Competence-based vocational education and training (VET): The cases of England and France in a European perspective. Vocations and Learning, 1(3), 227–244. doi:10.100712186-008-9013-2 Choshanov, M. A. (1996). Flexible technology of problem-modular training. Public Education. Computer Managed Instruction Guidelines for Interoperability (CMI001) Version 3.5. (2001). Aviation Industry CBT Committee (AICC). IEEE 1484.11.2 Standard for Learning Technology. (2003). ECMA Script Application Programming Interface for Content to Runtime Services Communication. IMS Content Packaging Information Model, Version 1.1.4 Final Specification. (2004). IMS Global Learning Consortium, Inc. Kolesnikova, I. A. (2009). Theory and practice of modular transformation of learning environment at educational institution. Saint-Petersburg.A. I. Herzen. Medvedev, V. E., & Dobriakov, A. A. (2013). Conceptual clauses and peculiarities of the cognitivelystructured training of engineering elite. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning, (ICL) (pp. 203-207). Academic Press. Naumov, I.S., &Vykhovanets, V.S. (2016). Using syntactic text analysis to estimate educational tasks’ difficulty and complexity. Automation and Remote Control, 77(1), 159-178. SCORM 2004 4th Edition Run-Time Environment Version 1.0. (2009). Advanced distributed learning. Shakhnov, V., Vlasov, A., Rezchikova, E., & Zinchenko, L. (2013). Visual learning environment in electronic engineering education. In Proceedings International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning (ICL) (pp. 389-398). Academic Press. 10.1109/ICL.2013.6644605 Shakhnov, V.A., Zhuravleva, L.V., & Vlasov, A.I. (2013). Nanoengineering Ontology. International Research Journal, 12(19), 50-67. Vlasov, A. I., & Yudin, A. V. (2011). Distributed control system in mobile robot application: General approach, realization, and usage. Communications in Computer and Information Science, 156, 180–192. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-27272-1_16 Vlasov, A. I., Zhuravleva, L. V., Sharipov, N. R., & Sharipova, A. F. (2012). Architecture of adaptive multiservice information and training systems. Scientific Review (Singapore), 6, 152–154. Yudin, A., Kolesnikov, M., Vlasov, A., & Salmina, M. (2017). Project oriented approach in educational robotics: From robotic competition to practical appliance. In M. Merdan, W. Lepuschitz, G. Koppensteiner, & R. Balogh (Eds.), Robotics in education. Advances in intelligent systems and computing (Vol. 457, pp. 83–94). Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-42975-5_8

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Zhuravleva, L., & Shakhnov, V. (1995). Fachspile als Bestandteil der Ingenierpadagogik. Ingenieurausbildung and Strukturveranderungen am Arbeitsplatz des des Ausgehenden 20. Jahrhunders. In Proceedings 24. Internationalen Symposiums. Ingenieurpadagogik, 95, 244–247. Zhuravleva, L., & Shakhnov, V. (1998). Features of business games in engineering education. In Proc. Padagogische Probleme in der lngenieurausbildung (pp.287-288). Academic Press. Zhuravleva, L. V. (2012). Formalization of lecture material. In Proceedings Tenth International Symposium “Intellectual systems” (pp. 576-580). Academic Press.

ADDITIONAL READING Aleksandrov, A. A., Neusipin, K. A., Proletarsky, A. V., & Fang, K. (2012) Innovation development trends of modern management systems of educational organizations. Proc. Proceeding of 2012 International Conference on Information Management, Innovation Management and Industrial Engineering. ICIII 2012. (pp.187-189). 10.1109/ICIII.2012.6339951 Berduygina, O. N., Vlasov, A. I., & Kuzmin, E. A. (2017) Investment capacity of the economy during the implementation of projects of public-private partnership. Investment Management and Financial Innovations. T. 14. Nº 3. (pp.189-198). de Bruijn, E., & Volman, M. (2000). Changes in occupational structure and occupational practice. a challenge to education. European Journal of Women’s Studies. T., 7(4), 455–474. doi:10.1177/135050680000700414 Gavrilina, E. A., Zakharov, M. A., Karpenko, A. P., Smirnova, E. V., & Sokolov, A. P. (2016) Software system meta-3 for quantitative evaluation of student’s meta-competencies on the basis of analysis of his or her behavior in social networking services. Proc. Procedia Computer Science 12th. “12th International Symposium Intelligent Systems, INTELS 2016”. (pp.432-438). Ibragimov, G. I., Ibragimova, E. M., & Bakulina, L. T. (2016) The state and prospects of development of problem-based learning in higher education. IEJME: Mathematics Education. T. 11. Nº 4. (pp.881-889). Orekhovskaya, N. A., Lavrentiev, S. Y., Khairullina, E. R., Yevgrafova, O. G., Sakhipova, Z. M., Strakhova, I. V., ... Vishnevskaya, M. N. (2016). Management of young professionals in the labor market. International Review of Management and Marketing, 6(2), 254–269. URL http://www.econjournals. com/index.php/irmm/article/view/2098/pdf Shpak, M. A., Smirnova, E. V., Karpenko, A. P., & Proletarsky, A. V. (2016) Mathematical models of learning materials estimation based on subject ontology. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing. T. 450. (pp.271-276). Yudin, A., Kolesnikov, M., Vlasov, A., & Salmina, M. (2017) Project oriented approach in educational robotics: from robotic competition to practical appliance. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing. T. 457. (pp.83-94).

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS BMSTU: Bauman Moscow State Technical University. CAM: SCORM content aggregation model. CMI: Computer-aided instruction. Commercial Software: Developed software for commercial purposes and that a price a license. Data Mining: A computer process that uses artificial and machine learning methods to discover hidden information or relations in large amounts of data. EUROBOT: An international amateur robotics contest for teams of young people. This is organized through student projects or independent clubs. LCMS: Learning content management system. LMS: Learning management system. R&D: Research and development. RTE: SCORM run-time environment. SN: SCORM sequencing and navigation. VLE: Virtual learning environments.

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CSRP:

System Design Technology of Training Information Support of Competent Professionals Vitaly Vladimirovich Martynov Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Peter Sakál Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, Slovakia Alexey Skuratov Directorate of Scientific and Technical Programs, Russia Elena Ivanovna Filosova Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Alena Alekseevna Zaytseva Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia Elena Shavkatovna Zakieva Ufa State Aviation Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter proposes a new model of managing educational institutions’ activities to provide staffing needs: customer synchronized resource planning (CSRP). It describes a technology that rebuilds the learning process in order to reduce the time needed to prepare staff adequately with the competencies required by employers as requested by the economy sector. At present the development of an open system for the educational institution is being carried out. This system is able not only to create an educational program dynamically, which allows us to get the right number of specialists with the desired competencies in the minimum period, but also to rebuild the agency’s management system for new tasks: to generate the necessary training materials, make changes in the timetable, and rebuild the educational portal by adding new data. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch011

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 CSRP

INTRODUCTION Over the past decade or two advancements in educational technology have taken place so swiftly that it threatens to revolutionize the education system (Linda Van Ryneveld, 2015). At present specialists training in higher educational institutions need to meet the rapidly changing conditions of the information society and economy development. Today there is a lack of qualified personnel in a number of professions, and the demand is not fully in line with the supply provided by educational institutions. In addition, employers may believe that a large number of graduates from educational institutions cannot apply practically the obtained knowledge and skills, they have a low motivation to work, and they often do not have the competencies required fora particular job. This new approach is especially important in the training of engineers. The flexibility in using new technologies in HEIsis reflecting the socio-economic changes affecting the needs of the student population across the world(Narduzzi & Campbell, 2015) It is possible to increase the quality and effectiveness of the training by analyzing the requirements of those who are interested in their competitiveness (the educational institution, the state, and the employer), automating the process of learning and evaluating specialists’ competitive capability (Martynov, Filosova, & Guzairov, 2014). Training should be carried out with a focus on the criteria that assess the training quality (Bogoslovskiy et al., 2007). When training specialists in a technical university, the following criteria are of high priority: • • •

Degree to which graduates have acquired certain competencies Intellectual, personal, social, and psychological characteristics of a future specialist (such as communication skills, creative thinking, etc.) Focus on future professional activities (desire to work according to a specialty and high motivation to work)

In addition to the common forms of improving the quality of specialists’ education, operational training of a specified number of trainees with the competencies required by employers is increasingly becoming an urgent task. This chapter focuses on the introduction of such educational platforms that effectively train specialists at any level of education with a set of desired requirements (in the form of competencies) for his or her level of knowledge. According to its purpose and functional properties, such an information system is the closest one to the CSRP systems in industry (Martynov, & Filosova, 2014).For innovation to take place in higher education, the organizational culture of institutions of higher education and leadership should support such initiatives (Zhu, 2015).

USING CSRP TECHNOLOGIES IN EDUCATION CSRP systems solve the problem of the individual urgent orders. Such systems presuppose continued possibilities to control the external elements of the production chain. In the CSRP systems with typical enterprise resource planning(ERP)system functions, the function of customer lifecycle support has been added. In the education system, such customers are primarily the representatives of the real sector of the economy, who make individual orders for specialists with the competencies required by the given employer. To implement the CSRP systems in an educational institution, it is necessary:

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• • •

To optimize the activities of the educational institutions, building an effective information infrastructure To integrate the representatives of the real sector of the economy into the divisions of the organization, aimed at servicing these customers who plan and conduct training To create the technological infrastructure by implementing open technologies capable of supporting the integration of employers, educational institutions, and training control applications.

Successful application of CSRP systems in industry improves the quality and value of the goods or services for the customer, reduces the delivery time and operating costs, creates the infrastructure to meet the needs of the buyer, and improves feedback with the buyer. Today open CSRP systems are becoming increasingly popular. They are able to integrate a variety of technologies and applications, to collect individual applications produced by different vendors, and to get a single unified application for the manufacturing management. At present the development of an open system for the educational institution is being carried out. This system is able not only to create an educational program dynamically, which allows us to get the right number of specialists with the desired competencies in the minimum period, but also to rebuild the agency’s management system for new tasks: to generate the necessary training materials, make changes in the timetable, and rebuild the educational portal by adding new data.

PRINCIPLES OF DEVELOPING CSRPSYSTEMS IN EDUCATION In addition to the common forms of improving the quality of specialists’ education, the operational training of a specified number of trainees with the competencies required by employers is becoming an increasingly urgent task. This problem can be solved by forming dynamically changing educational programs up to and including personal training planning that will take into account a combination of the acquired knowledge, with its practical application corresponding to vocational interests of a future bachelor’s or master’s degree. Also, formation of the dynamic learning plans can be useful when improving the skills of workers in different industries to master the missing competencies. The process of forming educational programs promptly allows us to prepare a predetermined number of trainees with the competencies required by the employers. This can be shown in the form of a value-added chain diagram (Figure 1) (Martynov, Tikhonova, Filosova, & Cherkasov, 2013). Let us consider some of the features of the formation of such a system in detail. The first stage of CSRP system construction in education is formation and formalization of the employer requirements to the necessary specialists. That is why one of the tasks is to create a domain thesaurus and construct and use a mechanism of determining the necessary competencies. The competency is understood as a formal system characteristic, which is described as a set of requirements for the knowledge, skills and qualities of the employee for a function, position or role in the organization. Competency is associated with the subject area. If the specific system-wide signs of the knowledge, experience and skill of the specialist coincide with the requirements of the employer for a particular position or the performance of a specific project, then the relevant work should be performed by such a specialist qualitatively and effectively.

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Figure 1. Value-added chain diagram model of the process of dynamically forming educational programs

In terms of testology, “competency” is convenient to interpret as the name of the scale, and “competence” - as the level on the scale(Bogoslovskiy et al., 2007). This scale is based on a model of mastering knowledge and skills, according to which workers gradually acquire more experience as they progress through the career ladder. Each specific type of competence is divided into levels, starting from zero, where the employee does not need to have any competence to perform work, up to the maximum level where the highest competence is required. The competence scale for one competence may vary in accordance with the requirements imposed on the employee of this specialty. In general, the formation of coherent requirements to the specialist competence includes the following steps: • • • • • • •

Construction of the production processes’ business model Identification of the key professional competencies Harmonization of the requirements with the government education fund (GEF) Analysis and formation of the hierarchical structure of requirements Approval of a set of requirements by the parties concerned Creation of the sequence in the form of a training program Objective analysis of the educational program’s feasibility

Professional standards have already been developed for a number of fields, and there are plans to implement them for another 800 jobs (Decree of the President of the Russian Federation vol. 577 of May 7, 2012). One of the problems concerning the selection of specialists by the employer is the failure of qualification criteria described in these standards or job descriptions to conform to the competencies described in the educational standards, if the standard has not been developed yet.

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Therefore, the first task in reaching an agreement is to form the object domain thesaurus and then construct and use the mechanism to determine the required competencies. This thesaurus can be formed as an ontological database, and general requirements are further generated on the basis of the developed ontology (Martynov, Filosova, &Filosova, 2015). The developed ontology was the basis of the established automated information system (AIS), making it possible to choose the federal state standard of higher professional education (FSES), which will be the closest one to the requirements with respect to the structure and content of the basic competencies put forward by the employer. The employer in the AIS generates the requirements based on the FSES and professional standard. These requirements can be clarified at the request of the university. On the basis of the clarified requirements, the FSES is selected and the employer gets a list of the most suitable areas of training, and the percentage of compliance to the requirements is indicated. Formation of the employer’s requirements proceeds in several stages. First, the employer chooses a profession from the professional standards; if there is no such profession, the employer enters it himself. Further, the employer determines the required competencies on the basis of the professional standards. The last step is to add the competencies associated with the requirements of a particular employer. If a set of competencies and those of the third-generation FSES overlap, the specialist’s training area is chosen. The algorithm determines the direction of specialist training closest to the developed competence model according to the structure and content of the basic competencies, which satisfies a set of required competencies and minimally differs from the competencies formed on the basis of the training standard. This algorithm is presented in the form of the model shown in Figure 2 and is described in Martynov et al. (2013) and Martynov, Filosova, Sharonova, &Shiryaev (2015). There are still a lot of unfulfilled competencies (Figure 3) (which are not at present covered by FSES), the formation of which is done by filling a variable part of the educational program, consisting of the national-regional component (NRC) and the subjects as may be selected by the students (SSC). Alternatively, they can be formed within the scope of additional education. Next, it is necessary to make a list of subjects that will allow us to form all the necessary specialist competencies according to the employer’s requirements. To design or change the curriculum of the training areas closest to the competence formed, qualification criteria are decomposed up to the competence level and then to the discipline level. Based on the previous decomposition, the compliance matrix of competencies and the components of the educational program (disciplines, training units) are designed. Further, the curriculum in this area is created according to the compliance matrix. On the basis of the competencies list that is applicable to a specialist but not formed according to the selected area of study, the design of changeable and replaceable disciplines is performed. Then it is necessary to develop a set of training materials and methodological support for these disciplines. Currently, many universities conduct research focused on the development of an automated system to design a training package (TP). The analysis showed that most of them are directed to the automation of accessing the developed materials, as well as to providing paperwork support. The disadvantage of the proposed solutions is the lack of support of the development of educational materials and their automated search for the relevant disciplines and formed competencies. To solve these problems, the development of the automated system for the creation and maintenance of the TP is under way. The implementation of this subsystem will help form the TP in accordance with the curriculum in the shortest time. A reduced period of development is achieved through the automatic formation of a set of necessary documents according to the curriculum and the list of competencies that should be covered. 119

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Figure 2. The process of the nearest standard selection

TP paperwork will also be implemented automatically. Coordination of documents will be carried out remotely in the style of modern document management systems, thus saving the time of TP coordination. This system will help the faculty and students make better use of information resources when preparing for the disciplines due to the clarity and completeness of the provided materials (Martynov, & Zaytseva, 2015). The mathematical model of TP selection from the knowledge base can be presented as follows: n

EMC j = ∪ E ji ,

(1)

i =1

where EMCj–a set of teaching materials for a specific educational plan (EP), j – a number of subjects in the EP, j∈(1;m), m – a number of subjects in the EP, Еji– the ith element of the CMD for the jth discipline and n – a number of items of the CMD (the composition is determined by the university training package). Each TP element consists of a document template, the information from the curriculum, and the content:

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Figure 3. Unfulfilled competencies

E ji = Pstrji ∪ !

EPji

∪!

jiq

,

(2)

where Pstrji– the structure of the developed element (template), СEPji– information contained in the EP (labor input, sequence of disciplines, etc.), Сjiq– informative material on the subject developed by a teacher on the basis of information sources and personal experience. The educational plan includes a range of disciplines: m

EP = ∪ Disc j ,

(3)

j =1

where EP– educational plan, Discj– jth discipline of the EP. TP is being developed for each discipline: Disc j → EMC j

(4)

FSES provides competencies that should be formed within the scope of this direction. A competence model is complemented by regional components as well. The program must generate a number of competencies (Kl) of the student, as follows: a

EP → ∪ Kl ,

(5)

l =1

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where а – the total number of competencies generated by the student as part of the EP. The materials (EMlf) should be created with an aim to developing the student’s necessary competencies, and these materials are placed based on the teaching material knowledge: Kl =

m

∪ EM

f =0

lf

,

(6)

where EMlf– educational material contributing to the formation of a competence. Later, during the formation of new CMD in this database, materials relevant to competencies are selected and formed as part of the discipline: a

m

KB = ∪∪ EM lf ,

(7)

l =1 f =0

where KB– knowledge base of educational materials. The educational material may be formed by different resource materials: EM l = Int ∪ Lib ∪ KB ,

(8)

where Int– material from Internet resources, Lib– materials from the library. Approval of the training package will be done remotely in the style of modern document management systems, thus saving time when coordinating the TP. This system will help the academic staff and students use information resources and prepare the subjects effectively due to the clarity and completeness of the provided materials.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Dynamic design and formation of educational-methodical support of realization of educational programs can be used to solve the problem of increasing the effectiveness of the training demanded by employers graduates through in-depth analysis of the requirements of all stakeholders in their competitiveness (University – state employer), automation of build process of the curriculum and training. In future the development of this system, the formation of a holistic educational environment supporting the educational process at all its stages. It is also planned to develop tools to support the formation of a substantial part of the educational materials using the technology of the semantic web. More about how to develop CSRP systems can be found in the article Martynov, V.V., &Filosova, E.I. (2014). The ontological approach in educational activities is observed in article Martynov, Filosova, Sharonova, &Shiryaev(2015).

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CONCLUSION To provide information support for changing the curriculum, it is necessary to reflect the changes not only in the learning management system in which the new curricula should appear, but also on the university site and the schedule of classes. For communication between the different information systems of any company (as well as the university), it is necessary to build an optimum information architecture. Evaluation of the effectiveness of forming the necessary professional competencies is often performed on the basis of statistical data on the status and results of the students’ individual achievements (Filosova, & Rykova, 2010). This estimation aims to check the knowledge availability in specific subjects taught according to the curriculum and skills to be used in typical situations. To this effect, the procedures of the educational establishment’s licensing, psycho-diagnostic tests, physiological monitoring, monitoring of the development of the regional system of education, and examination and certification procedures are used. The use of the objective approach to structuring knowledge, competence approach, and modern information technology makes it possible to improve the efficiency of training engineers to meet the requirements of fast-growing sectors of the economy. There is an opportunity to optimize the learning process by building flexible, individualized learning paths and improving the quality of the obtained competencies and current changes in the educational process.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT This contribution is based on the results of project APVV number LPP-0384-09: “HCS 3E Concept Model vs. Concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)” and project KEGA number 037STU4/2012 “Implementation of the subject ‘Corporate Social Responsibility Entrepreneurship’ into the Study Programme Industrial Management in the Second Degree at MTF STU Trnava.”

REFERENCES Bogoslovskiy, V. A., Karavaeva, E. V., Kovtun, E. N., Melehova, O. P., Rodionova, S. E., Tarlyikov, V.A., & Shehonin, A.A. (2007). Guidelines for the design of assessment tools for the implementation of multi-level educational programs HPE with competent approach. In Higher education in Russia (vol. 10, pp. 3-10). Moscow: Moscow Polytechnic University Press. Campbell, J. D., & Narduzzi, J. L. (2015). The More Things Change: Reflections on the State of Marketing in Continuing Higher Education. In Centennial Conversations: Essential Essays in Professional, Continuing, and Online Education (pp. 309-17). Washington, DC: UPCEA.

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Filosova, E. I., & Rykova, O. V. (2010). The use of ontologies in the object learning technologies. In Proceedings of the Seventh International Scientific Conference “New Educational Technologies in High School” (vol. 2, pp. 123-127). Ekaterinburg, Russia: Federal State Autonomous Educational Institution of Higher Education “Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin”. Martynov, V. V., & Filosova, E. I. (2014). Methods for developing CSRP-system in education for human capacity SMART-region. In Proceedings of the Workshop on Computer Science and Information Technologies (CSIT2014) (vol. 2, pp. 180-184). Ufa State Aviation Technical University Press. Martynov, V. V., Filosova, E. I., & Filosova, V. K. (2015). The use of ontologies in the task of drawing up training plans for the requirements of employers’ information technology. In Proceedings of the International Scientific-Practical Conference “Problems and Solutions” (vol. 1, pp. 242-246). Publishing House “East Press”. Martynov, V. V., Filosova, E. I., & Guzairov, M. B. (2014). Improving the efficiency of training requirements for employers. In Proceedings of the International Scientific-Practical Conference“Innovative Information Technologies” (pp. 376-381). Moscow: National Research University Higher School of Economics. Martynov, V. V., Filosova, E. I., Sharonova, J. V., & Shiryaev, O. V. (2015). The technology of ontological analysis in educational activities. In Proceedings of the Workshop on Computer Science and Information Technologies (CSIT’2015) (vol. 1, pp. 173-178). Ufa State Aviation Technical University Press. Martynov, V. V., & Zaytseva, A. I. (2015). Educational methodical complex development support system. In Proceedings of the 2015 Workshop on Computer Science and Information Technologies (CSIT2015) (vol. 1, pp. 183-185). Ufa State Aviation Technical University Press. On measures to implement state social policy. (2012, May 7). Decree of the President of the Russian Federation vol. 577. Van Ryneveld. (2015). Introducing Educational Technology into the Higher Education Environment: A Professional Development Framework. In Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 126-136). Hasan Kalyoncu University. Zhu. (2015). Organisational culture and technology-enhanced innovation in higher education. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 24(1), 65-79. doi:10.1080/1475939X.2013.822414

ADDITIONAL READING Intel World Ahead Program. (2009). The Positive Impact of eLearning. Retrieved from https://www.intel.la/ content/dam/www/program/education/us/en/documents/positive-impact-of-elearning.pdf Khan, B. (2005). Managing E-Learning Strategies: Design, Delivery, Implementation and Evaluation. Hershey, PA: IGI Global; doi: Learning Technologies. (2017). E-Learning Awards Categories and Criteria, Retrieve from http://www. learningtechnologies.co.uk/enter-an-award/award-categories10.4018/978-1-59140-634-1

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Ning, W. (2014). The Latent Appreciation Effect of Interactive Design in Internet Communication, IEEE 11th Intl Conf. on Ubiquitous Intelligence and Computing and IEEE 11th Intl Conf. on Autonomic and Trusted Computing and IEEE 14th Intl Conf. on Scalable Computing and Communications and Its Associated Workshops (pp. 723-726). doi:10.1109/UIC-ATC-ScalCom.2014.65 Technologies, L. (2017). E-Learning Awards Categories and Criteria, Retrieve from http://www. learningtechnologies.co.uk/enter-an-award/award-categories Weinreich, H., Obendorf, H., & Mayer, M. (2008). Not Quite the Average: An Empirical Study of Web Use University of Hamburg. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on the World Wide Web (Vol. 2). 10.1145/1326561.1326566 Zualkernan, I. A. (2006). A framework and a methodology for developing authentic constructivist eLearning environments. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 9(2), 198–212. Retrieved from http://www.ifets. info/journals/9_2/16.pdf

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Competence: It is the possession of a specific competence (i.e., knowledge and experience of their own activity), allowing to make objective judgments and to make the correct decisions. Competency: The ability to act successfully on the basis of practical experience, skill, and knowledge in solving professional problems. Is understood as a formal system characteristic, which is described as a set of requirements for the knowledge, skills and qualities of the employee for a function, position or role in the organization. CSRP Systems: Resource planning synchronized with the customer. CSRP includes a complete cycle from designing the future product to customer requirements, to warranty and after sales service. The essence of CSRP is to integrate the buyer into the enterprise management system. In this case, not the sales department, but the buyer places an order for the manufacture of products, he is responsible for the correctness of its execution and, if necessary, monitors compliance with the terms of production and delivery. The enterprise can very accurately track the demand trends for its products. ERP: Organizational strategy for integrating production and operations, managing human resources, financial management, and asset management focused on continuous balancing and optimization of enterprise resources through a specialized integrated software package providing a common data and process model for all areas of activity. Federal State Standard of Higher Professional Education: A set of mandatory requirements for the formation of a certain level and (or) the profession, specialty and direction of training, approved by the federal executive body, which exercises the functions of developing public policy and regulatory legal regulation in the field of education. Object Approach: A programming paradigm in which the basic concepts are the concepts of objects and classes (or, in the less well-known version of prototyping languages, prototypes). Training Package: The standard name for the totality of educational and methodological documentation, teaching and control tools developed in the higher school of the Russian Federation for each discipline. The TP should include complete information sufficient for the passage of discipline. TPs are designed to ensure the openness of the educational process and should be available to anyone who wants.

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The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality Aleksandr Kolesenkov Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Aleksandr Taganov Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter has considered research and instructional methodology aspects for development of methodological, informational, and instrumental, ensuring of the education quality management system which are necessary to be taken into account in modern conditions. Mathematical bases of the geoinformation system application for monitoring of the education process realization quality have been developed. Model, method, and algorithm for quality assessment of the educational process realization in institutions have been unfolded. A way of representing some fuzzy production rules in solving application tasks of fuzzy modeling and executing the process of approximate reasoning on educational risks has been introduced. A fuzzy production system of educational risk analysis on the basis of using modified fuzzy Petri nets has been realized. Analysis of possibilities to apply suggested approaches for monitoring of institutions at various levels has been conducted.

INTRODUCTION Process of monitoring and quality assessment of the education service provision is important for contemporary educational systems. It is necessary to develop a monitoring system realizing specific functions of management and fitting the general system of education (Gurov, Koryachko, Taganov, Moiseenko, & Taganov, 2010) for qualitative realization of educational programs in institutions. Such system is necessary at all levels of the education management for informational support of the management decision procedure to organize, optimize, modernize and increase the educational program realization quality in institutions (Heyneman, & Lee, 2014).

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch012

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 The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality

Let’s mark out specific functions of the education management system (Xin, Li, & Li, 2007): • • • • • • •

Prediction of quality dynamics of the educational process realization; Organization of the education quality management process, distribution, assignment and realization of functions; Control of the education process realization quality according to characteristics of its potential, current state and result (Brown, 1999); Regulation of the educational process realization quality, provision of related indicators; Quality assessment of the educational process realization and possibilities of its improvement; Quality research of the educational process realization in the area of historical aspects of its formation, limitations, priorities, negative influences and critical factors (Taganov & Taganov, 2006); Motivation for actions directed to increase the education quality. Let’s mark out main specific functions of the education quality management (Tan, 2012):

• • • • • •

Professional and teaching staff quality management; Student teaching quality management; Educational process realization technology quality management; Informational and methodological provision quality management; Material and technical support quality management; Institution infrastructure quality management.

Function composition characterizes a specific nature of the management object and real problems of its functioning and development (Glebova, & Kuznetsova, 2012).

PROCEDURE Assessment of the education quality is suggested to be accomplished by estimating and monitoring quality of educational program realization in institutions, so a crucial task is to develop a system executing a collection, processing and analysis of information on state of educational programs in order to monitor educational programs (EP) periodically (Dohmen, 1999). Monitoring of EP refers to a collection, processing and provision of data in relation to set criteria and indices aimed at ensuring efficiency and increase of the educational process quality. Taking into account feedback on the basis of intermediate results for corresponding criteria allows making alterations in educational programs promptly (Attfield, & Vu, 2013).

Criteria and Function of the Education Quality Assessment All criteria of EP realization quality assessment can be divided into 2 groups (Kolesenkov, & Taganov, 2015):

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Criteria {Z i , i = 1, N } , for which the best value is minimal;



Criteria {Rj , j = 1, M } , for which the best value is maximum. Model of the educational program monitoring process is suggested to be represented as following:

fm = f (K ,T ) ,

(1)

where K – a set of constant and variable criteria of educational programs which change their values in time t and under influence of various factors; T – a periodicity of fixation of the object state change. K = {Q, R}

(2)

Object state means a set R consisting of sets of attributes Q = {Qi , i = 1, N } and R = {Rj , j = 1, M } . For assessment of EP the following effectiveness function is suggested to be used: ξ=

M M N ⋅ ∑ Qi \ ∑ Rj , j =1 N i =1

(3)

where Qi - a normalized value of each from i - cost criteria; Rj - a value of each from i - result criteria. Development of the function ξ according to years of education will allow to reveal dynamics of the educational program realization quality and execute as well rating assessment of departments responsible for the educational program realization (Sarkisyan, 1977).

Application of Geoinformation Technologies The use of geographical informational technologies (GIS) will ensure interconnection of attributive and spatio-temporal data taking into account geographic reference to the cartographic base from departments of institutions. It will readily simulating processes and estimating realization of EP (Ninomiya, & Urabe, 2011). On the basis of GIS-technologies we suggest to execute: • • • • • • • •

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analysis of the EP current state; prediction of dynamics of the EP state; prediction of dynamics of a set of criteria; analysis of demand for graduates who learnt EP successfully; assessment of efficiency of distribution of institutions realizing EP; assessment of mobility of graduates who learnt EP successfully; assessment of scientific potential of graduates who learnt EP successfully; simulation of various processes in institutions realizing EP.

 The Usage of GIS in Realizing Engineering Education Quality

GIS structure represents a multilevel relational model containing a set of layers and objects including geographical data, their connections and attributive information (Kostrov, & Baranchikov, 2014). Each layer includes a table containing information on elements of the cartographic base. Besides, this GIS platform allows to quickly extract information requested by a customer from the data base in the required format and also visualizing it on the map.

ALGORITHM FOR MONITORING OF THE INSTITUTION EDUCATIONAL PROCESS The following algorithm is suggested for constant monitoring of EP in institutions (Kamens, & McNeely, 2009). • • • • • • • • •

Choice of criteria and methods for acquisition of their normalized values. Calculation of statistical indicators. Development and initialization of a specialized set of layers and objects. Integration of attributive information. Acquisition of data from departments of institutions realizing EP. Calculation of the EP effectiveness function according to formula (3). Prediction of dynamics of set criteria. GIS-simulation of processes in institutions realizing EP. Development of the assessment rating of departments by means of GIS facilities according to values of statistical characteristics.

GIS Structure Task of data storage in GIS is offered to be carried out by putting additional information contained in tables of the integrated or internal data base in correspondence with each graphical object (point, line, polygon) (Dinham, 2013). Appeal to data from the data base is suggested to by realized be means of SQL-requests, which nature and complexity will be determined by a type of information contained in tables. Application of such approach will let filter data by set parameters, combining tables, sorting and generalizing data. The following modules are meant to be included into GIS for monitoring of online-learning educational programs (Figure 1): • • • • • • •

Data collection module. Data transformation module. Data analysis module. Module for monitoring of online-learning educational programs. Module for assessment of online-learning educational program state. Module for simulation of processes in institutions realizing a program of online-learning. Module for prediction of dynamics of criteria and indices of the online-learning educational program efficiency.

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Executed theoretical researches have shown that application of geoinformation technologies for monitoring of online-learning educational programs in institutions of higher education are reasonable and efficient (Pegat, 2013). It was found out that a part of parameters can have a fuzzy nature that requires an application of a fuzzy logic device in algorithms of data processing. The suggested conceptual technology to be fulfilled in the geoinformation media ArcGIS 10.3. Suggested model for assessment of efficiency of online-learning educational programs in institutions of higher education will allow considering this process completely since not only economical but also pedagogical and social parameters are taken into account. Such model is also applicable for assessment of efficiency of the educational program realization by all forms of education in institutions of various levels. Current state of geo information technologies allows developing and implementing a system which is innovative in its analytical possibilities, realizing models, methods and algorithms for monitoring of online-learning educational programs. Practical usage of such specialized GIS will ensure an increase of the management decision-making efficiency in the organization, realization and modernization due to acquisition of reliable information, its processing and analysis. Modern theories and practice of geoinformation system development for educational risk analysis and monitoring under conditions of miscellaneous given geodata require developing some new effective approaches and algorithms to support decision making on educational risks under fuzzy conditions.

ANALYSIS AND MONITORING OF THE EDUCATIONAL RISKS Along with classical approaches to structural and functional construction of GIS analysis and monitoring of educational risks the present paper has considered a new approach to organization of the process for analysis and monitoring of educational risks under conditions of fuzziness based on application of contemporary theory and practice for analysis and monitoring of risks under sophisticated software projects. In the suggested approach the process for analysis and monitoring of educational risks as part of GIS includes an algorithm consisting of the following steps (Wheeler, & Bailer, 2009): •

Identification of Educational Risks: Determination which risks can influence the quality of the educational project implementation of the region and documentary preparation of their characteristics.

Figure 1. Composition of GIS for the educational program monitoring

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• • • •

Qualitative Analysis of Educational Risks: Arrangement of risks due to their priority for following analysis or processing by estimation and summation of a possibility of their occurrence and influence of the educational project implementation quality. Quantitative Analysis of Educational Risks: Quantitative analysis of potential influence of identified risks on general purposes to maintain the quality of the educational project implementation. Educational Risk Response Planning: Development of possible variants and actions contributing to increase of favorable possibilities and decrease of hazards. Monitoring and Control of Risks: Tracking of identified risks, monitoring of residual risks, identification of new risks, execution of plans to react to risks and estimation of their effectiveness within life cycle of the quality of the educational project implementation.

An important step of the present algorithm is a qualitative analysis of educational risks executed by expert methods. As a result of this analysis experts form a scaled list of educational risks grouped in categories: • • •

A list of risks requiring an immediate response; A list of risks for additional analysis and response; A list of risks of low priority requiring observation.

A formed list of educational risks is a base for execution of the algorithm following stages for system analysis and monitoring of educational risks. Besides, the process of the qualitative analysis of educational risks is a rather labor-intensive process. In order to formalize the process current methods for support of expert decision making under conditions of fuzziness are suggested to be used. The existing fuzzy production systems of decision support are meant for the realization of a fuzzy inference process and are a conceptual framework of modern fuzzy logic. Such were the gains in the application of these systems for solving a wide range of control tasks that conditioned choosing the mathematical tools for the formal characterization of the process of educational risk analysis and reduction on the basis of using models, methods and algorithms of the theory of fuzzy sets and fuzzy Petri nets. Petri nets and their numerous modifications are one of the model classes, a certain advantage of which is an adequate representation possibility of not only the structure of complex organizational and technical systems and complexes but also logic-time specific features of their operation processes. Petri nets are a mathematical model for representing the structure and analysis of the system operation dynamics in terms of «event condition». It can be used for analyzing risk events and revealing potential risks of the educational profile. An important type of Petri nets is fuzzy Petri nets allowing to constructively solve tasks of fuzzy modeling and fuzzy control in which fuzziness is of subjective nature. In this regard some certain prospects of studying the possibilities of fuzzy Petri nets application for the description and formal characterization of risk control processes and appears as well as the purposes of risk analysis under educational data fuzziness conditions. On the basis of using modified fuzzy Petri nets can be formulated an experimental version of a computer-aided system of decision support on educational risks (Leonenkov, 2005). This system is in fact an expert system showing the fuzzy logic of input values interrelation – the expert analysis of the risk and output values – the truth degrees of possible educational risks. Scanning of the Fuzzy Petri Net

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can be effected using an interface represented in Figure 2. Positions of fuzzy Petri nets corresponding to input and output data are marked by color.

PRACTICAL RESULTS As a result of the theoretical research execution the following points have been developed: • • •

Model of the educational program geoinformation monitoring process; Algorithm for calculation of the educational program realization effectiveness function; Functional system of the geoinformation system for educational program monitoring.

Experimental researches represent software realization of the suggested approaches and algorithms in GIS-media ArcGIS 10.3. According to their results the following conclusions can be made: • • •

Application of GIS for EP monitoring is reasonable and effective from the point of view of prompt informational support for decision-making by institution management; Since values of some criteria can belong to fuzzy sets it is necessary to develop technologies for correct operation in conditions of uncertainty for assessment of EP quality. Calculations of efficiency criteria for principal educational programs (PEP) have been fulfilled by the example of Ryazan State Radio Engineering University (Figure 3).

Figure 2. Form for scanning of the Fuzzy Petri Net

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Figure 3. Results of calculation of PEP effectiveness function of the institution

Timely feedback from persons successfully learning EP online will allow to make changes in the educational process at once and that will positively influence quality of services provided by institutions.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Several promising future directions of research were identified. The effect obtained by a person and society is difficult to quantify. This is the main feature of educational services, leading to the emergence of risk. Therefore, the development of technologies for management of educational risk based on modern approaches and systems is an urgent task. The development of the presented technology gives an opportunity to assess the educational risk in educational institutions. According to the results of the experimental researches, the proposed approach to monitoring educational risk is effective and applicable for informational support of the managerial decision-making procedure in the field of higher education management. Another research area ​​ is the quality monitoring of large enterprises and organizations that have a network of distributed branches. The program implementation of the characteristics evaluation for the higher education institutions directions is realized as an independent library. It can be integrated into any automated system, where similar technologies are used. Currently, the library contains a classification method that takes on the input attributes of analytics (points, enrollments, places, trained professions, paid training), and at the output gives out the leaves of the tree. The usage of the presented technology in mobile devices and application based on IOS/Android allows to increase the quality of the results obtained, as well as the analyzed characteristics number.

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CONCLUSION Scientific approach to assessment of the educational process quality leads to significant generalization in the area of educational program realization result. Stable conception of competence has been developing for a long time and includes not only monitoring of the education quality but also assessment of possibility of this quality realization for professional activity. Modern integrated GIS for the educational process realization quality management becomes a comfortable tool for managers at all levels. Usage of GIS allows not only to increase management efficiency due to automation of collection, processing and analysis of data on realization of educational processes but also improve a level of its management culture. GIS integrated with other systems for the institutional education quality management is a basic integrated system of management in current conditions and should be based on the integrated field of knowledge containing structural and semantic representations of different models and actual data and also mechanisms for their processing. Suggested model of the EP efficiency assessment in institutions will allow to completely estimate processes occurring in departments since pedagogical, economic and social aspects are taken into account. It is scalable and can be applied for assessment of EP realization efficiency for intramural, extramural and intra-extramural forms of study in institutions of secondary and higher education. At the macro-level suggested facilities can be used for assessment of institution work in the region by various indices with following visualization of results on intuitive maps-diagrams. As a result of software realization of the algorithm for analysis of educational risks using an mathematical instrument fuzzy Petri nets an effective and usable software product has been obtained for application in practice both independently and as a part of industrial GIS. The considered way of representing the rules of fuzzy productions in a fuzzy production system of educational risk analysis and reducing based on applying fuzzy Petri nets allows broadening the existing notions of the models, methods and means of the analysis of the educational risks. It opens up new possibilities for applied researches and practical realization of the formal procedures of the decision support within the fuzzy production GIS for analyzing and monitoring educational risks. Modern GIS technologies provide a possibility to develop and integrate a system having innovative analytical functional and realizing new effective technologies, methods and algorithms for tasks of EP monitoring. Practical application of the developed technologies and system will help increase efficiency of decision-making for the institution management due to prompt processing of great volumes of data.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The research is carried out in the Grant of the President of the Russian Federation Nº SP-553.2015.3.

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Brown, G. (1999). The Quality of Learning of Learning and How to Assess it. Lifelong Learning in Europe., IV(99), 47–54. Dinham, S. (2013). The quality teaching movement in Australia encounters difficult terrain: A personal perspective. Australian Journal of Education, 57(2), 91–106. doi:10.1177/0004944113485840 Dohmen, G. (1999). Lifelong Learning for All – innovative perspectives of continuing education. Lifelong Learning in Europe., 4(99), 154–158. Glebova, L. N., & Kuznetsova, M. D. (2012). Monitoring kachestva vysshego pedagogicheskogo obrazovaniya [Monitoring of quality of higher pedagogical education]. Logos. Gurov, V. S., Koryachko, V. P., Taganov, A. I., Moiseenko, V. P., & Taganov, R. A. (2010). Opyt sozdaniya i primeneniya resursov elektronnoy informatsionno-obrazovatel’noy sredy po napravleniyu CALS i CASE tekhnologii [Experience of development and application of resources of the electron informational and educational media in the direction CALS and CASE-technologies]. In Papers of the VII All-Russian scientific and methodical conference Telematics-2010. Academic Press. Heyneman, S. P., & Lee, B. (2014). The impact of international studies of academic achievement on policy and research. In Handbook of international large-scale assessment: Background, technical issues and methods of data analysis (pp. 37–72). Boca Raton, FL: Taylor and Francis Group. Kamens, D.H., & McNeely, C.L. (2009). Globalization and the growth of international educational testing and national assessment. Comparative Education Review, 54(1), 5–25. Kolesenkov, A.N., & Taganov A.I. (2015). Kontseptsiya geoinformatsionnoy tekhnologii monitoringa obrazovatel’nykh programm onlayn-obucheniya [Conception of geoinformation technology for monitoring of online-learning education programs]. In Open and online education. Tomsk: Publishing House of Tomsk State University. Kostrov, B.V., & Baranchikov, A.I. (2013) Teoriya i metody issledovaniya modeley i algoritmov predstavleniya dannykh dlya predmetnykh oblastey s ranzhiruyemymi atributami [Theory and methods of researches of models and algorithms for representation of data for subject areas with ranged attributes]. RSREU Vestnik, 47, 59-64. Leonenkov, A. V. (2005). Nechetkoye modelirovaniye v MATLAB i fuzzyTECH [Fuzzy modeling in MATLAB and fuzzyTECH]. St. Petersburg: Academic Press. Ninomiya, A., & Urabe, M. (2011). Impact of PISA on education policy: The case of Japan. PacificAsian Education, 23(1), 23–30. Pegat, A. (2013) Nechetkoye modelirovaniye i upravleniye [Fuzzy simulation and management]. Binom. Sarkisyan, S. A. (1977). Teoriya prognozirovaniya i prinyatiya resheniy [Theory of prediction and decision making]. Higher school. Taganov, A. I., & Taganov, R. A. (2006). Metodicheskiye osnovy sozdaniya informatsionnykh sistem sfery obrazovaniya [Methodical fundamentals for development of information systems for education: Tutorial.]. Ryazan: RSREU.

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Tan, C. (2012). The culture of education policymaking: Curriculum reform in Shanghai. Critical Studies in Education, 53(2), 153–167. Wheeler, M. W., & Bailer, A. J. (2009). Benchmark dose estimation incorporating multiple data sources. Risk Analysis, 29(2), 249–256. doi:10.1111/j.1539-6924.2008.01144.x PMID:19000080 Xin, T., Li, F., & Li, L. (2007). An International Comparison of Elementary Education Quality Assessment. Journal of Beijing Normal University, 44–47.

ADDITIONAL READING Alavi, M., & Leidner, D. E. (2001). Review: Knowledge management and knowledge management systems: Conceptual foundations and research issues. Management Information Systems Quarterly, 25(1), 107–136. doi:10.2307/3250961 Arthur, J. B., & Aiman-Smith, L. (2001). Gainsharing and organizational learning: An analysis of employee suggestions over time. Academy of Management Journal, 44(4), 737–754. doi:10.2307/3069413 Brown, J. S., & Duguid, P. (2001). Knowledge and organization: A social-practice perspective. Organization Science, 12(2), 198–213. doi:10.1287/orsc.12.2.198.10116 Cummings, J. N. (2004). Work groups, structural diversity, and knowledge sharing in a global organization. Management Science, 50(3), 352–364. doi:10.1287/mnsc.1030.0134 Goodman, P. S., & Darr, E. D. (1998). Computer-aided systems and communities: Mechanisms for organizational learning in distributed environments. Management Information Systems Quarterly, 22(4), 417–440. doi:10.2307/249550 Liao, L.-F. (2008). Impact of manager’s social power on R&D employees’ knowledge-sharing behaviour. International Journal of Technology Management, 41(1/2), 169–182. doi:10.1504/IJTM.2008.015990 Lin, H.-F. (2007). Effects of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation on employee knowledge sharing intentions. Journal of Information Science, 33(2), 135–149. doi:10.1177/0165551506068174 Mohammed, S., & Dumville, B. C. (2001). Team mental models in a team knowledge framework: Expanding theory and measurement across disciplinary boundaries. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 22(2), 89–106. doi:10.1002/job.86 Parise, S. (2007). Knowledge management and human resource development: An application in social network analysis methods. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 9(3), 359–383. doi:10.1177/1523422307304106 Reagans, R., & McEvily, B. (2003). Network structure and knowledge transfer: The effects of cohesion and range. Administrative Science Quarterly, 48(2), 240–267. doi:10.2307/3556658

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ArcGIS: Series of geographical information software products of American company ESRI. Education Quality: Conformity of education to the needs and interests of the individual, society, state. Educational Program: The complex of the main educational characteristics, organizational pedagogical conditions, and appraisal forms. Educational Risk: An element of events uncontrolled development probability with the realization of educational services because of objective exist uncertainty. Fuzzy Petri Nets: Mathematical instrument for dynamic discrete systems modeling in fuzzy environment. Geographical Information System: The system of collecting, storing, analysis and graphical visualization of orientation reference data and information connected with them. Geographical Information Technologies: Information technologies of geographical organized information processing. Geoinformation System: The system of collecting, storing, analysis and graphical visualization of orientation reference data and information connected with them. GIS: Geographical information system. Management: Coordinated activities for the management and management of the organization. Monitoring: Continuous process of object parameters control and registration in comparison with specified criterions. Quality: The totality of the characteristics of an object related to its ability to satisfy stated and perceived needs. Risk: An activity, connected with uncertainty overcoming in a stark choice situation, where there is a possibility of numerical and qualitative estimation of supposed result achievement probability, failure, and divagations from the purpose. University: Higher educational institution.

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An Approach to Improvement of Master’s and PhD Studies in Data Processing and Management Systems Artem A. Sukhobokov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vitaliy Baklikov Optimal Management LLC, UK Dmitry S. Lakhvich Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Andrey V. Sukhobokov Optimal Management LLC, Russia Ilya V. Tikhonov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT To make Master’s and PhD theses more influential on the evolution of the software industry, and to make them even more effective and successful, the authors propose that they be directed towards developing cognitive systems and expanding the functionality of integrated big data platforms. Within this field, the authors propose that their themes be organized in the form of the following dual model: for each thesis that develops an emerging new cognitive component inside a core big data platform, there is another thesis that develops a corresponding cognitive component/module within the application layer that uses that component of the core big data platform.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch013

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 An Approach to Improvement of Master’s and PhD Studies in Data Processing and Management Systems

INTRODUCTION In the segment of software industry that deals with the development of business applications, there is a clear trend towards the adoption of new and innovative approaches to business processes. IoT, Blockchain, methods of AI, Big Data analytics, and the use of social media data – all have a significant impact on certain business functions and all, in some cases, transform business models completely. Universities play a major role in the process of the development and integration of innovative solutions. The enterprise software market is growing by about 6-8 percent annually (Gartner, 2017a; Pang, 2016; Allied Market Research, 2015). The accelerating dynamics will be preserved if more universities, those which were not previously known for their breakthroughs or for outstanding alumni, could take leading positions in modern research and in professional training. In this paper, the authors offer a general approach to these challenges in the area of Data Processing and Management Systems. If the authors are to take a look at Ph.D. programs, then it becomes evident that the majority of time is spent on research, preparing papers, and preparing the thesis, which ends with the defense. It exceeds the amount of time spent studying various courses, engaged in one’s teaching practice, etc. Examples demonstrating such proportions are given in (University of Minnesota, 2017; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2017). For Ph.D. programs, such proportions are reasonable—but the same is true, to a large extent, for master’s programs. This is because during the two-year term, students are involved in scientific work, prepare publications, and gather practical experience; thereby gathering the material for the thesis and writing the thesis itself. In other words, the execution of a research project, the preparation of papers, and the preparation of the thesis plays a key role in the quality of the professional education of the student. Herewith, the authors mean the quality of professional education as a tolerably-limited set of student indicators: • • • • • •

The possession of knowledge about a set of interrelated disciplines that are present in the educational program; The ability to use existing knowledge to solve professional problems; The ability to solve professional problems; The ability to learn within the problem-solving process; The ability to conduct research in a specific professional field; The possession of a set of knowledge, skills, experience, and aptitudes that employers find attractive.

To increase the quality of education, topics of theses must be formulated in such a way that the research is conducted on the most relevant topics within the software industry and modern science. Only then will they have the necessary rationale and lie at the forefront of scientific novelty. Successful identification of such topics for theses requires high qualification, wide professional erudition, and some intuition regarding how things are going to be progressing. One of the signs of the relevance of the topics is if it belongs to the Innovation Trigger area of the Gartner Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies (Gartner, 2016). Meanwhile, despite the novelty, all of these theses’ topics must be such that Master’s and Ph.D. students could finish their research in a specified or reasonable amount of time. In this paper, the authors aim to offer a certain approach for forming master’s and Ph.D. thesis topics in the Data Processing and Management Systems area for universities at various stages of educational maturity, which would allow them to enter new heights on the world stage.

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BACKGROUND Organizational Background The authors of the paper have developed and delivered lectures and laboratory practicums for the “Big Data Technologies” and “Tools of Business Analytics” courses offered in 2016-2017 within the Data Processing and Management Systems graduate program of Bauman Moscow State Technical University. The “Big Data Technologies” course was conducted during the 2016 spring semester and included the description of an architecture and functionality of: • • • • • •

Hadoop distributions; Application suites delivered alongside the Cloudera, Hortonworks, and MapR Hadoop distributions; More than 20 applications within the Hadoop ecosystem; Several Big Data SQL DBMS; More than 10 Big Data NoSQL DBMS; Open-source integrated Big Data platforms—Apache Spark, Apache Flink, and Apache Apex (in various stages of maturity); Proprietary Integrated Big Data platforms—SAP HANA and IBM Bluemix; Several sets of services from the Microsoft Azure platform—Microsoft Cognitive Services, Microsoft R Server, Microsoft Azure Machine Learning, and Microsoft Graph Engine.

• •

The “Tools of Business Analytics” course was conducted during the 2017 spring semester and included: • • • •

Business Intelligence and Analytics Platforms; Predictive Analytics and Machine Learning Platforms; Data Warehouse and Data Management Solutions for Analytics; Corporate Performance Management Solutions.

At the end of the course, three lectures were given on topics that are currently three of the fastestgrowing fields in Big Data and Cognitive Systems: IoT, Blockchain, and Deep Learning. Next year, based on this material, the authors plan to develop two new courses: “Promising Applications of Big Data & Machine Learning” and “BI in Corporate Applications”. The first course will dive deeply into the applications and use cases, and the second course will concentrate on the adoptability of new approaches towards existing corporate systems such as ERP, EAM, CRM, HCM, SCM, etc. The students, while taking either or both courses, expressed a great interest in the subject and the ability to capture the latest developments as they emerge. Big Data and Machine Learning technologies, and the tools to which these courses are devoted, are currently undergoing explosive developments. In some cases, the course programs were adapted on the fly to accommodate for the new releases of the software that were released during the term. Students enthusiastically readjusted to the new versions of the software that usually offered a richer feature set. For example, this was evident during the transition from SAP HANA SPS 11 to SAP HANA SPS 12 for using Graph Engine as well as with Microsoft Cognitive Services for using new services.

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The courses were conducted for a parallel stream of 60 students (3 groups). At the end of the master’s program, 12 students entered the postgraduate program in 2017. Such interest in continuing education may partly be due to students’ interest in modern trends of information technologies, which was raised by the authors’ who conducted these courses. Witnessing such an interest, the authors think that the education process should be fine-tuned to benefit all three parties involved in the process – the students, the university, and the software industry (the products and technologies of which form the foundation for each course of the master’s program considered in the next section).

Master’s Program in “Data Processing and Management Systems” The master’s program in “Data Processing and Management Systems” is focused on preparing professionals in corporate applications: • • • • • •

Consultants, software architects and developers that integrate packaged and preexisting solutions; Consultants and software architects for pre-sales of IT systems; Consultants, software architects, and developers extending and maintaining existing products or developing new products; Consultants, architects, and developers for bespoke development; Consultants in tech support roles; IT specialists in non-IT companies planning the implementation and development of new applications and interacting with contractors.

It is assumed that the prospective students for this master’s program had already passed the following courses: • • • • • • • • • • • •

Mathematical analysis; Linear algebra and analytical geometry; Graph theory; Mathematical logic; Probability theory and statistics; Methods of optimization; Numerical analysis; Programming languages; Imitational modeling; Databases; Internet Technologies; Operating Systems.

The authors propose a well-balanced plan for the “Data Processing and Management Systems” master’s program, focusing on teaching specialist competencies for the corporate world. In the meantime, it has a rather flexible structure that could be fine-tuned for other programs in the area of software development. The plan is shown in Figure 1.

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Figure 1. The proposed plan for the master’s program in the direction of data processing and management systems

Figure 1 fully depicts the relationships only between those two courses that were prepared by the authors and which formed the foundation for this article. Other relationships are depicted in fragmented form, so as not to overcomplicate the organizational plan. The “Tools of Business Analytics” course, which was developed and conducted by the authors, should in future be renamed as “Tools of Predictive Analytics” as this name better reflects the content. Alongside this course, a “Tools of Prescriptive Analytics” course should be offered, in which optimization and simulation tools will be considered to suggest decision options on how to take advantage of a future opportunity or mitigate a future risk as well as to show the implication of each decision option.

FUTURE-ORIENTED AREA OF RESEARCHES The authors see the development of cognitive systems on top of Big Data platforms as the most promising direction in the evolution of corporate systems and applications. The authors will now review each of the two foundational parts of this synthesized approach.

Integrated Big Data Platforms The term (Integrated) Big Data Platform emerged 1-2 years after the first platforms actually appeared (Guess, 2011; Lawson, 2011). A strict and straightforward definition of the term has been absent up until now; but vendors, consultants, and market analysts intuitively understand it and widely use the term (Teradata, 2017; Rose Technologies, 2016; Cloud News Daily, 2015). All of them discuss the components and the functionality of such platforms. The authors use this term to highlight a software tool that is intended for Big Data processing and that includes several instruments of various types. Several of these software tools are listed under Data Management Solutions for Analytics as described by Gartner (2017b). The authors changed the list contained there for the following reasons:

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• • •

Open Source Integrated Big Data Platforms such as Apache Spark, Apache Flink, and Apache Apex were not considered by Gartner; Some Data Management Solutions for Analytics from Gartner’s review are not designed for Big Data processing as they cannot distribute the processing of data between the servers of the cluster; Some Data Management Solutions for Analytics from Garner review are not designed to include several components and are, by their functions, either regular DBMS or Data Warehouses.

The reason that our choice of integrated platforms lies within the area of Big Data Tools is caused by the fact that this segment is being intensively developed. Spark is one of the most mature Open Source Integrated Big Data Platforms available on the market and has also been the most active Open Source project in Big Data for several years in a row (Zakharia, 2014; Zakharia, 2015; Databricks, 2016). The same situation is observed within proprietary platforms. Although companies do not publicly disclose such data, it is witnessed through frequent updates of the products and the marketing hype around SAP HANA, IBM Bluemix and other products of this class. Some components of the integrated platforms can be inferior to analogous independent products. For instance, GraphLab Create is very effective in optimizing the transfer of data between nodes of the cluster during intensive computations over large graphs that are widely distributed over multiple nodes (Turi, 2017). Apache Mahout “Samsara” has its own language for developing Machine Learning algorithms (Lyubimov & Palumbo, 2016). Nevertheless, integrated platforms beat independent modules in their popularity and adaptation by the masses (King & Magoulas, 2017, p. 15; Dinsmore, 2017). For the most part, out-of-box compatibility between various components and wide popularity of the product are factors that far outweigh specific functionality, which often requires additional effort for integration. The analysis performed during preparation of the course materials helped the authors to generalize the process of the development and proliferation of integrated platforms and also helped the authors to establish a clear picture regarding the future: 1. Open Source integrated platforms emerged as a result of the occurrence of multiple independent applications within the Hadoop ecosystem. Integrated platforms were compensating for the shortcomings of HDFS and allowing for more effective utilization of RAM. Their modules were also combining and integrating disparate applications into a single set of tools that were productionready out of the box. The majority of proprietary integrated platforms came from cloud computing providers in the form of additional services – which, for the most part, offered more functionality for application’s development with using of cloud resources. It may seem that there is some incommensurability: Apache Spark, which the authors consider to be an Open Source Integrated Platform, could be launched within public clouds such as Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure – service offerings which themselves are also considered by the authors to be integrated platforms. But no matter how, and in what form, the services have come to users, if they combine several different capabilities, the authors consider it to be one of the integrated platforms for Big Data processing.

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2. Today, the similarity of components amongst various platforms is evident. The components which are presented within at least one of the selected Integrated Big Data Platforms are listed in the right-hand column of Table 1. (SAP, 2017; IBM, 2017; Microsoft, 2017a, 2017b, 2017c, 2017d; Amazon, 2017; Google, 2017a, 2017b; Apache, 2017a, 2017b, 2017c). The Integrated Big Data platforms market segment is rapidly developing. The data in Table 1 was refined in April 2017 while working on this paper; and by this time, most of the platforms that are also mentioned in Sukhobokov (2016) from December 2016 have been updated or enhanced with additional components. Certainly, from the table above, it is hard to judge the complexity of the specified item – whether it is a simple system or a sophisticated multifunctional platform with developed interfaces. However, it is not that relevant for this publication – the authors only want to determine the direction of the Integrated Big Data platforms. The authors believe that further development of these platforms will be expanded by new components that would have a widespread applicability across industries. For example, such components will include libraries of parallel numerical methods for discrete and continuous problems (non-linear optimization methods, packages for differential equations solving, and optimal control packages, etc.); systems for imitational modeling; methods of analysis; situational forecasting and decision making; algorithms of business management; and others. In all the aforementioned cases, parallel processing and the mechanism of distributing the calculations offered by the platforms can yield significant benefits. 3. Specific parallel applications – such as aero- and hydro-dynamic modeling systems, CAD, power network modeling systems, and oil and gas reservoirs modeling systems; as well as ERP, CRM, and SCM systems (whether On-Premise or SaaS) – will not be developed within the integrated platforms. Rather, they will form their own application layer built on top of core platforms as it is shown in Figure 2. The development of the Integrated Big Data platforms is currently one of the main research topics in software engineering and the evolution of the software industry. The shift of master’s and Ph.D. research activities towards this segment could have a significant impact on the growth of universities’ international reputations as centers of excellence in preparing high-quality professionals in the most modern segments of IT. Due to the high popularity and relevance of this segment, each thesis in this area containing qualitatively new results would be regarded as an important achievement in professional circles as well as a personal scientific achievement of the student.

Cognitive Systems The concept of cognitive systems is not strictly defined. As the concept of Artificial Intelligence develops and transforms, the understanding of which systems perform cognitive functions is gradually shifting. At present, the area of cognitive ​​ systems can be represented as follows:

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Table 1. Components of Integrated Big Data Platforms

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Figure 2. An example of an application layer built on top of an integrated big data platform



• • • • • • •

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Predictive analytics systems using the Machine Learning algorithms designed to solve problems of classification, regression, clustering, and association of data; analysis and forecasting of time series (Larose & Larose, 2015, pp. 10-17; Awad & Khanna, 2015, pp. 15-17). These algorithms based on the available data under the conditions of vague definitions of the nature of the system; Predictive analytics systems using knowledge of the interactions of individual elements of the system or the rules of its operation. In the first case, simulation systems are used; and in the second case, Inference Mechanisms are used; Systems that use neural networks to solve predictive analytics tasks and tasks of text, speech, images, and video processing; Adaptive systems of predictive analytics that use a number of Machine Learning models or more complex mechanisms – for example, the Inference Rules set applied to a set of models or an ensemble of parallel algorithms operated by the Machine Learning algorithm of a higher level; Adaptive systems using neural networks whose structure changes on the fly under the influence of incoming data. An example of a toolkit for building such networks is Chiner (Hido, 2016); Systems of prescriptive analytics that solve optimization problems by exact numerical methods in the presence of a formalized mathematical formulation of the problem, as well as by heuristic numerical methods, often without the formal definition of the problem; Systems of prescriptive analytics, constructed as optimization algorithms over the algorithms of Machine Learning or imitation models. The essence of such systems is reduced to solving the problem of selecting the most suitable values ​​of input data or parameters for the simulation model; Reinforcement Machine Learning systems, solving the problems of choosing the optimal sequence of actions in a dynamically-changing environment. The basic approaches for solving these problems are divided into passive methods (including adaptive dynamic programming, temporaldifference or “TD” learning, etc.) and active methods (the most common of which is Q-Learning) (Russell & Norvig, 2010, pp. 830-859);

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Systemic Machine Learning systems are partly like the Reinforcement Machine Learning systems because they solve the problems of choosing the optimal sequence of actions in a dynamicallychanging environment. But unlike the previous group of systems, they solve these problems in a changing external context. The main approaches to the implementation of Systemic Learning are the Whole-System Learning and Multiperspective Approaches (Kulkarni, 2012, pp. 23-56).

THE APPROACH TO FORMING THESIS TOPICS To develop and expand the functionality of integrated platforms more effectively, the authors are offering the following approach based on the dual model for master’s and Ph.D. theses: 1. For each thesis that addresses an emerging new component inside a core Big Data platform, there is another thesis that develops a corresponding component/module within the application layer that uses the component of the core Big Data platform. 2. Both of the components under development must be cognitive systems. For example, when one thesis develops a new numerical method or a system of imitational modeling that uses certain features of the platform such as parallel computation and/or distributed processing on numerous nodes of the cluster, there is another thesis that develops an application that uses the component from the adjacent thesis. This will promptly demonstrate the new capabilities that are added by the newly-developed component. Since master’s students have less development and scientific experience than Ph.D. students, and since their term lasts 2 years (whereas that of Ph.D. students’ studies lasts 4-5 years), when forming the theses topics for master’s students, several students could be researching the problem and developing one component of it. Moreover, the development of the second related component also could be undertaken by either a student or a group of students. The key point in dividing up the effort is the synchronization which is achieved by organizing small research groups of students with organizing the focus of their work around a common dual goal and supporting the cooperation of participants. During the parallel workflows, students must almost simultaneously: • • •

Develop their first working prototype; Implement the ability to debug and improve related components; Conclude the research in time for submission of the dissertation.

In the case of working within a team, the responsibility of each participant increases and the risk that one of the students will drop the project is reduced. The development of new components for proprietary platforms within the university is almost impossible without tight connections with the R&D centers of the corporations that author the platforms. The development of such relationships requires long-term contracts and is less likely in the coming years. Such opportunities can exist only within a few universities around the world – for example, in the Hasso Plattner Institute (HPI), which closely interacts with SAP (HPI, 2017) and participated in SAP HANA development (McDermott, 2014, p. 286). Therefore, the authors emphasize the importance of Open

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Source platforms. Moreover, the popularity of Open Source platforms within professional environments is not less than, and most likely exceeds that of, the proprietary platforms. For faculties that do not have any experience in developing the functionality of Open Source platforms and that lack a significant number of contributors to such projects, the most effective way to get noticed could be the invention of new components for the platforms. Amongst such components could be new components that, in our opinion, should appear within Integrated Platforms in the near future, but that could also be the existing components that are currently found in proprietary platforms but which are absent in Open Source platforms.

PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE APPROACH The discussed approach was used by two students who are co-authors of this paper and who entered the Ph.D. program in the 2015/2016 term. This approach was also used by two master’s students who started their programs in the 2015/2016 term. They successfully earned their master’s degrees in the summer of 2017, defended their theses (for which each received an excellent grade), and entered the Ph.D. program. These pilot actions offer first proof of the feasibility of the described approach. The authors will continue to use the approach to assess the opportunity to improve the level of scientific achievements of the department.

SOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS At first glimpse, it could appear that the offered approach for the formation of thesis topics for master’s and Ph.D. programs in the area of Data Processing and Management Systems could narrow the scope of research subjects in this field. However, this assumption is not true. Cloud, hybrid, and On-Premise clusters that host Big Data solutions become more and more widespread. Multi-node technical platforms – with On-Demand resource provisioning capabilities – are the systems of the new generation (Chapman, Emmerich, Márquez, Clayman, & Galis, 2012). In several years, all applications will be hosted on such platforms (Sukhobokov, 2016). A striking example of this is the process of transferring numerous SAP applications to SAP HANA. Therefore, the approach proposed in the paper does not introduce any limitations, but rather only stimulates the transition of research works to the modern architectures. Very similar conclusions are valid for cognitive systems. The shift of the whole developments only to cognitive systems will not be a limitation. Cognitive components will become an integral part of future applications within ERP, EAM, CRM, HCM, SCM, and other applied systems. The observed trend in the allocation of smaller services (micro services) in systems and their integration based on a serviceoriented architecture will provide deeper cross-use of the entire set of data by means of BI – which, to a large extent, will consist of predictive and descriptive analytics. To interact with all categories of external stakeholders (customers, partners, suppliers, applicants for vacant positions, etc.) as well as with internal staff, bots will be used on a massive scale to build dialogues in natural language. This will improve the interfaces and make it possible to remove most of the work from personnel’s interactions with people (Sukhobokov, 2016).

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The situation currently being witnessed in the area of Data Processing and Management Systems – in which the barriers to entry into most modern scientific researches, and barriers to the practical implementation of these researches, have been significantly reduced – may not correspond to other scientific areas as well as Ph.D. and graduate programs. For example, the development of engineering education in nuclear technology (Nuclear Energy Agency [NEA], 2012), molecular biology, and other challenging areas requires increasingly sophisticated laboratory equipment. Experts in various areas of science and education should carefully evaluate the applicability of this approach and its components to their respective areas.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTION Evaluation of the proposed training program requires a review of analogous educational programs and similar courses taught by universities in different countries and regions, as well as courses taught by the company’s training centers and distance education providers. This review will require a lot of additional research and involvement of other specialists of the department. We hope that we will be able to extend our team and move forward in this direction. As of today, only two of the described courses are prepared and conducted. The entire educational program consisting of many such courses is presented as a proposal for discussion. Until it is not implemented in the educational process, it is impossible to assess its quality. The work on the program is continuing however. After the first implementation of the new program, we plan to assess the quality of this program. Regardless of the chosen approach to forming thesis topics, it requires a review of the state of researchers in leading universities working in scientific field “Data Processing and Management Systems”. After increasing the number of students using the approach proposed in the article for carrying out their theses, we want to explore how their opportunities can be used to consolidate information on scientific research conducted by leading universities, to form and support the topical state of such a review.

REFERENCES Allied Market Research. (2015). Enterprise application market. Allied Market Research. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/enterprise-application-market Alvesson, M., & Sandberg, J. (2011). Generating research questions through problematization. Academy of Management Review, 36(2), 247–271. Alvesson, M., & Sandberg, J. (2013). Constructing Research Questions: Doing Interesting Research. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications. doi:10.4135/9781446270035 Amazon. (2017). Amazon Web Services. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://aws.amazon.com/ products/?nc1=h_ls Apache. (2017a). Spark overview. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://spark.apache.org/docs/ latest/

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Apache. (2017b). Apache Flink documentation. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://ci.apache. org/ projects/flink/flink-docs-release-1.3/ Apache. (2017c). Apache Apex. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://apex.apache.org/docs/apex/ Awad, M., & Khanna, R. (2015). Efficient learning machines: Theories, concepts, and applications for engineers and system designers. New York, NY: Apress Media, LLC. doi:10.1007/978-1-4302-5990-9 Chapman, C., Emmerich, W., Márquez, F. G., Clayman, S., & Galis, A. (2012). Software architecture definition for on-demand cloud provisioning. Cluster Computing, 15(2), 79-100. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.ee.ucl.ac.uk/~sclayman/docs/HDPC2010.pdf Cloud News Daily. (2015). Guide to Big Data Analytics: Platforms, software, companies[’] tools, solutions and Hadoop. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://cloudnewsdaily.com/ big-data-analytics/ Databricks. (2016). Apache Spark Survey 2016: Report highlights. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http:// cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/438089/DataBricks_Surveys_-_Content/2016_ Spark_ Survey/2016_Spark_Infographic.pdf Dinsmore, T. W. (2017). Spark is the future of analytics. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://thomaswdinsmore.com/ Gartner. (2016). Gartner’s 2016 Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies identifies three key trends that organizations must track to gain competitive advantage. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.gartner. com/newsroom/id/3412017 Gartner. (2017a). Gartner says worldwide IT spending forecast to grow 1.4 percent in 2017. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.gartner.com/ newsroom/id/3672818 Gartner. (2017b). Magic Quadrant for Data Management Solutions for analytics. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.gartner.com/doc/reprints?id=1-3TZLQ0P&ct=170221&st=sb%3f Google. (2017a). Google Cloud Platform documentation. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://cloud. google.com/docs/ Google. (2017b). Google Cloud Platform solutions. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://cloud. google. com/solutions/ Guess, A. R. (2011). 5 key issues any Big Data integration platform should address. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www. dataversity.net/5-key-issues-any-big-data-integration-platform-should-address/ Hido, S. (2016). Complex neural networks made easy by Chainer. O’Reilly Media, Inc. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.oreilly.com/learning/complex-neural-networks-made-easy-by-chainer HPI. (2017). The Hasso Plattner Institute. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://hpi.de/en/the-hpi/overview.html IBM. (2017). IBM Bluemix catalog. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://console.ng.bluemix.net/catalog/ Jeanes, E., & Huzzard, T. (Eds.). (2014). Critical Management Research: Reflections from the Field. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications. doi:10.4135/9781446288610

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King, J., & Magoulas, R. (2017). 2017 European Data Science Salary Survey. O’Reilly Media, Inc. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.oreilly.com/data/free/files/2017-european-data-science-salarysurvey.pdf Kulkarni, P. (2012). Reinforcement and systemic machine learning for decision making. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. doi:10.1002/9781118266502 Larose, D. T., & Larose, C. D. (2015). Data mining and predictive analytics (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Lawson, L. (2011). Big Data platform should support data exploration. ITBusinessEdge. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.itbusinessedge.com/cm/blogs/lawson/big-data-platform-should-support-dataexploration/?cs=48159 Lyubimov, D., & Palumbo, A. (2016). Apache Mahout: Beyond MapReduce. Distributed algorithm design. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (2017). PhD program in social & engineering systems. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://idss.mit.edu/academics/ses_doc/ McDermott, B. (2014). Winners dream: A journey from corner store to corner office. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster. Microsoft. (2017a). Microsoft Azure solutions. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://azure.microsoft. com/en-us/solutions/ Microsoft. (2017b). Introduction to R Server and open-source R capabilities on HDInsight. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/hdinsight/hdinsight-hadoop-r-server-overview Microsoft. (2017c). Graph Engine. Serving big graphs in real-time. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https:// www.graphengine.io/ Microsoft. (2017d). Microsoft Azure Machine Learning Studio. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https:// studio.azureml.net/ Moeini, S. (2014). 6 (very useful!) Approaches to identify research gaps and generate research questions. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140912150946-275561203-6-veryuseful-approaches-to-identify-research-gaps-and-generate-research-questions/ NEA. (2012). Nuclear education and training: From concern to capability. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Nuclear Energy Agency. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www. oecd-nea.org/ndd/pubs/2012/6979-nuclear-education.pdf Pang, A. (2016). Worldwide enterprise applications market to hit $208B by 2020 as replatforming intensifies. Apps Run The World. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.appsruntheworld.com/ worldwide-enterprise-applications-market-to-hit-208b-by-2020-as-replatforming-intensifies/ Rose Technologies. (2016). IBM Big Data Platform. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http://www.rosebt. com/blog/ibm-big-data-platform

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Russell, S. J., & Norvig, P. (2010). Artificial Intelligence: A modern approach (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. SAP. (2017). SAP HANA Platform. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://help.sap.com/viewer/product/ SAP_HANA_PLATFORM/2.0.00/en-US Sukhobokov, A. V. (2016). Perspektivy razvitiia system obrabotki informatsii i upravleniia v sleduiuschem desiatiletii (2020 – 2030) [Prospects of data processing and management systems development in the next decade (2020 – 2030)]. Informatsionno-izmeritelnyie i upravliaiuschie sistemy, 2016(12), 69-78. Teradata. (2017). Teradata Integrated Big Data Platform. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from http:// teradata. ru/products-and-services/integrated-big-data-platform Turi. (2017). GraphLab Create. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://turi.com/learn/ University of Minnesota. (2017). Doctoral students. General degree information. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://www.cs.umn.edu/academics/graduate/phd Zakharia, M. (2014). Spark’s role in the Big Data ecosystem. Spark Summit, San Francisco, CA. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https://spark-summit.org/2014/wp-content/ uploads/2014/07/Sparks-Role-in-the-BigData-Ecosystem-Matei-Zaharia1.pdf Zakharia, M. (2015). Introduction to Spark. Databricks Intern Event. Retrieved July 18, 2017 from https:// www.slideshare.net/databricks/introduction-to-spark-intern-event-presentation

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Cognitive System: The term is applied when a computer system mimics “cognitive” functions associated with human intelligence, such as “learning” and “problem solving.” Data Processing and Management Systems: The direction of Master’s education which is oriented towards consulting, architecture, and development in the areas of corporate applications and computer science. Influence on the Industry: Research activities have a significant impact on the software development industry. The results of scientific research offer new and more effective approaches and methods for solving problems and enable the creation and launching of new products on the market. Integrated Big Data Platform: A software tool that is intended for big data processing and that includes several various instruments. Master’s and Ph.D. Thesis: A document presenting the author’s research and one submitted in support of candidature for an academic Master’s or Ph.D. degree. Master’s Program: A set of interrelated mandatory and elective courses studied by Master’s students, as well as a list of possible research areas. Quality of Education: The ability to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and core transferable competences they need to succeed after graduation. Subject of Thesis: The subject of the thesis lies within the chosen specialty and determines the purpose and subject of the dissertation research. It points as well to the solved scientific problem and the results obtained.

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APPENDIX The process of Master’s or PhD thesis topic’s forming ideally should be split into stages and formalized. One of the most important parts of this process is identifying gaps and generating research questions. LinkedIn post (Moeini, 2014) contains a brief description of six useful approaches on how it could be done. This post has a link to an article (Alvesson & Sandberg, 2011). It is covered in more detail in the book that was released by the same authors a bit later (Alvesson & Sandberg, 2013). One of the modern approaches that can be used to manage a set of parallel dissertational studies is CMS (Critical Management Studies). The book (Jeanes & Huzzard, 2014) discusses the practical application of CMS to manage various aspects of scientific research. There is no step-by-step detailed methodology, but many questions can be answered.

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Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University Tatiana Tsibizova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter is about different aspects of creating university-based professionally orienting environment. Issues of students’ professional self-determination in transition from secondary education to high school are considered. The author suggests to arrange resource center as a training and research innovative complex for solution of youth’s problems with early professional orientation, their motivation, for recruitment and selection of the most prepared for further study. As a result of the center’s usability there is a developing trend towards form and direction diversity in scientific, educational, and industrial integration, growing university penetration into secondary school, and high school scientific research’s impact into industry.

INTRODUCTION Under modern conditions, special status is provided for solutions to the problem of professional development and the training of scientific and scientific-pedagogical personnel in non-stop specialized engineering and technical educational systems based on the integration of science and education (Zelencova, Zelencova, & Zelencov, 2014). Obviously, such solutions should be based on the integration of science, education, and production; and should match the new stage in personnel training in a non-stop preparatory system. Such contemporary attitudes are based on different theories and techniques proven by practice. To illustrate the argument – the trend being reflected in conceptual foundation of educational process taught in Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) – a well-known method, “The Russian method of craft training,” is used (Tsibizova, 2011). The very same system was notable for its reasonable and multistage approach to education. All the works were scientifically analyzed. The master-craft teachers were absolute authorities in their fields, and (as experts) were experienced enough DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch014

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 Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University

to be able to see the mistakes of their students and to provide explanations. There were three (3) main components (Antsupova, 2005): • • •

Serious theoretical preparation equivalent to the same quality preparation offered by traditional universities; Practice within real factory conditions; Non-stop communication between the school and real factories.

Students’ professional self-determination (as a process) is influenced not only by educational learning, professional orientation, and research-and-development components, but also by the necessity of personality development in individual and social directions. Such a process ‘evolves’ the holistic development of the personality of those students who possess a flair for science, research, and creativity and who are considered to be the subjects of the development of professional and social self-determination. It is characterized by the fostering of a desire for creativity, self-expression, and self-affirmation in professional activity; by stable and dominated motives, views and interests, position to knowledge and acquired know-how, social norms, and values; level of moral and aesthetic culture; and development of self-awareness. Global society needs the educational system’s reconsideration that has manifested itself in the practical implementation of a new educational paradigm – one enabled to transform the educational space of a ‘high-school-to-university’ transition as an important component of a system of continuing professional educational ; and enabled to emphasize the necessity of research with respect to social movements in the context of educational reforms (Arnove, Torres, & Franz, 2012; Tsibizova, 2012). The author’s understanding that the economic and social terms of societal development influences education directly makes the problem even more relevant in terms of its research impact concerning the formation, development, and current stage of the educational environment in the world, in the country, and in a given society (Ivanov, & Ivanova, 2015; Biggeri, & Santi, 2012). Modern society needs educative, moral, professionally competent, pragmatic people capable of making decisions and of taking correspondent responsibility for those decisions; people who are capable of cooperating with others; people who are notable by their upward mobility, positive dynamics, and constructive communication resulting from social expertise (Arakcheeva, 2012; Sergeeva, 2016). Society demands that young people in their teens define their professional path. In such circumstances, one of the main tasks of high school is to reveal, teach, engage, and support the youth who are interested in science – to regenerate society’s scientific potential. These goals are aimed at the pre-institute period, as the personality is built up in the secondary school period. In these circumstances, six of the main purposes of high school are as follows: • • • • • •

To reveal and develop creative abilities and a flair for science; To mold key competences and professionally-important personality features as well as to mold motives towards practical implementation of the knowledge received; To provide necessary educational conditions for talented children; To guide and help youth in their professional orientation; To propagate science; and To choose those students who are most prepared and ready for the educational process.

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The process of professional self-determination proceeds from the expansion and deepening of creative, socially-significant student activities (such as those related to employment, education, gaming, and communication) and the formation of moral, aesthetic, and scientific cultures. Professional self-determination, as defined by Ya. S. Batyshev, refers to independent professional choice, made after personal analysis of inner resources including the student’s set of abilities and its match with professional demands. It is a conscious personality attitude, stipulated by the effects of one’s upbringing and education, being foundational to any form of professional self-determination (Batyshev, 1987). Training based on modern technology is an important developmental factor of educational systems connected with integration within scientific, industrial, and educational entities combining practice training with the study of general subjects (Spillane, & Hopkins, 2013). For an effective solution to the problem of students’ professional self-determination, studying must be closely connected with practice. Therefore, certain conditions are to be created to consolidate crossdisciplinary teams of researchers, tutors, and teachers (Donovan, 2013). Hence, the creating of a university-based professionally-orienting educational environment means a common process influencing the effectiveness and quality of education. As a result, there is a developing trend towards a diversity of forms and directions in scientific, educational, and industrial integration, growing university penetration into secondary school, high school scientific research’s impact on industry that effectively affects modern and high-tech industries.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF PROFESSIONALLY ORIENTING THE ARRANGEMENT OF THE EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT Scientific and technological achievements dominate life in modern society. Thus, society needs fieldspecific, highly qualified specialists able to create something new in different areas of professional activity. The opportunity to acquire skills based on modern knowledge and to achieve practical results is of utmost importance for the modern specialist. In his monograph Philosophy of Education for the 21st Century, B.S. Gershunsky creates a chain to describe the stages of the educational process: “literacy – scholarship – professional expertise – culture – mentality” (1998). The result of education should be assessed per certain criteria as well as on the basis of the mental priorities and preferences of the certain societies, considering constant changes in social values (Gershunsky, 1998). Hence, the aims of creating a professionally-orienting educational environment on the basis of a technical university are: • • • •

Students’ engagement in design, research, and innovative activity; The development of youth’s scientific and research creativity and its infrastructure; Recommendations for governmental support and regulatory; Methodological, and informational supply for large-scale student involvement in scientific and technical activities for the purpose of providing high-quality training to a new, innovation-oriented generation. To achieve the goals indicated above, the solutions to the following problems are crucial:

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• • •

The detection of any and all creative students; The development and enhancement of motivation with regards to professional choice and the furthering of education; Quality improvement of professionals’ training through arrangement and support of the system preparing young people for research-oriented, intellectual, and creative activity.

This will allow the program to assess students’ personal creativity, propensity for research, and professional orientation even before admission to the university; and to create opportunities for development of those very abilities in future while studying at the university – thereby providing generational continuity, the training of specialists highly qualified for the fields of science, engineering, and industry; and a replenishment of teaching staff (Tsibizova, 2012). The main task in setting up a professionally-oriented educative environment on the basis of a technical university model is to form students’ creative, intellectual, and professional self-determination in ways appropriate to the features of their individual personalities and to what society demands of staff and modern specialists. In this case, the leading goal for a teacher, tutor, or research advisor should be each youth’s preparation for a reasonable professional choice. For these purposes, and in order for professional development in the STEM fields to be effective, teachers need worthwhile experiences that will simultaneously develop their knowledge of content, pedagogy, and understanding of how students learn the content (Polly, Martin, Wang, Lambert, & Pugalee, 2016). On the basis of the overall strategic objective and the main tasks to be performed, much more shortterm, specific targets could also be achieved to equip students with definite knowledge, to help them form some essential skills, to reveal creativity, to cultivate aesthetic consciousness, morality, etc. The result of the above-mentioned aims defines the target levels of educational, creative, intellectual, and personal qualities; provides for high-school-to-university continuity; will it facilitate the fundamental and integral goals of the educational process, and will solve tasks of professionally-orienting training of future specialists in compliance with university profiles and their chosen professions. This issue is ‘near and dear’ to the United States, which is concerned that not preparing a sufficient number of students, teachers, and practitioners in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) is of issue; so improving learning in STEM education continues to be a priority for American policymakers (Congressional Research Service, 2011). The results of the aforementioned study revealed that when simulation and modeling are used under specific learning conditions, a deeper level of understanding of key scientific and mathematical concepts is observed (Moallem, Morge, Narayan, & Tagliarini, 2015). To create effective classroom environments for STEM teaching and learning, there is a requirement for the comprehensive integration of technology as a fundamental building block of education in the following areas: 1. to develop proficiency in 21st century skills for students; 2. to support innovative teaching and learning; and 3. to create a robust educational support system for both students and teachers. American policymakers believe that several technologies including probeware, computer simulations, software applications, programmable instruments, mobile devices, and laptop/notebook computers could

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be used effectively to impact student learning in STEM subjects. To meet the challenges in teaching STEM subjects, the use of computer-based laboratories and features makes it possible to envision dramatic changes in instructional environments and the creation of unique STEM learning environments – in particular, ones which provide support for STEM teaching strategies and active-learning activities (Srisawasdi, 2015). These tasks demand the formation of science-education integration processes that are reflected in the development and institutionalization of integrated educational systems that associate educational facilities with scientific and professional social institutions (e.g. in the setting of a high school Resource Center).

RESOURCE CENTER FOR SUPPORTING STUDENTS WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF PROFESSIONAL SELF-DETERMINATION A Resource Center should be an educational-scientific-innovative establishment where, as for its arrangement, all implementation mechanisms for a competitive selection system, students’ education, and support are to be provided. Additionally, as for materials, it ought to supply specific research and design laboratories, multimedia interactive classes for collective usage, a youth business incubator, expertise centers for different training lines, etc., all of which are to be fully equipped. Likewise, as for its methodology, it ought to offer a wide range of variable educational programs; allowing students to take the next step in educational, scientific, and innovative integration with the real economy (with deep penetration into that economy) when the educational process is seamlessly connected with the presentation of science, engineering, and design. The arrangement of a university-based Resource Center is focused on the following problems: •



• • • •

158

The development of a methodical basis for students’ innovative and scientific-educational activity by means of the updating and creating of variable educational programs, the development of educational technologies, and quality improvement through new methods and means of theoretical and practical training; The development of students’ scientific and design works, scientific-innovative activities for youth’s professional self-determination and motivated training for further education using Center’s material base: lab equipment, technology, metrical and analytical means of measurement, and specialized laboratories; Scientific-educational performances and student competitions to select those most prepared for further education and for professional activity; annual performances, and contests among research and scientific students based on their works; The development of network infrastructure and a common educational data space used to notify young people of educational opportunities; A diversification of functional opportunities of the main university departments as a tool for forming students’ professional competences; including the establishment of a youth training center for integrating education, research, and innovation; and The arrangement and development of an integrated multilevel and multicomponent system for continued anticipatory youth training.

 Aiding the Transition of Students From School Into Technical University

The Resource Center’s structure implies the setting up of educational-research laboratories, specialized classes, workshops, competence centers, etc. Each center’s department provides for students’ training in one of various priority directions of scientific, engineering, and technological progress in single or several profile disciplines; and offers additional educational programs with the involvement of the main departments as well as strategic university partners – entities from high-tech industry, research, and innovative bodies, establishments, and corporations; which stipulates the development of students’ scientific research activities through defined innovative projects and an intended incubation of start-ups based on youth teams. The Structural-Functional Scheme of a Resource Center arrangement could be as shown in Table 1. A research, project, and innovative activity cluster means an organization of students’ education and research; specialized profiling laboratory works; students’ project activity within creative workshops; the acquisition of hi-tech funds from the expertise centers of leading companies in particular areas; the arrangement of collective-use centers, youth business hatcheries and constructive bureaus; different scientific, research and creative events to finalize every stage of cluster’s educational process. An educational activity cluster includes a detailed study of particular subjects and related disciplines; practical classes of special training; additional teaching per professionally orienting programs; professional lectures and master-classes by top scientists and specialists in particular knowledge areas; and educational contests for the assessment of educational quality and students’ level of initiative. A technical, organizational, and methodical activity cluster is about material-technical support of the Resource Center – its material-technical base, equipment, and consumables for lab, research, innovative, and creative works; organizational support of the operation of the two other clusters – including group settings, departmental timetables, etc.; methodical support of educational activity – educational programs, academic plans, guides and manuals, methods of contests’ and competitions’ arrangements, standard-form reviews and questionnaires, etc. Such an approach towards professionally-orienting educational areas provides opportunities for:

Table 1. Structural-Functional Scheme of a Resource Center Cluster

Composition, the Department

Functionality

Research, project, and innovative activity cluster

Educational research laboratories Scientific research activity (business hatchery) Creative workshops Expertise centers

Organization research and design activities Innovation The use of high-tech equipment Scientific, research, and creative events (conferences, exhibitions, and contests)

Technical, organizational, and methodical activity cluster

Material technical base Organizational support Methodical provision

Organizational-methodological support Logistical support Support of technical events

Educational activity cluster

Specialized classes Professionally-orienting educational programs Professional lectures Master class Excursions

The teaching of core subjects An in-depth study of disciplines Educational events (competitions; contests)

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• • •

The development of youth’s mental, intellectual, and creative skills; The early proactive and conscious professional orientation of youth; Sustainable motivations for seeking professional knowledge in the chosen area, and based on practice; Incentives for personnel reproduction for development of the country’s scientific capacity; Youth’s social security; The development of supporting research and professional training of youth, including a wide range of opportunities for scientific and technical creativity; An elaboration of new methods and educational technologies for the further development of modernization of education .

• • • •

This complex outlook with regards to the Resource Center arrangement allows for people: • • • • • •

To develop the variability of additional educational programs and a practical focus on professional education; To combine task-reproductive, productive, and creative activities; To create new educational technologies based on a combination of theoretical and practical forms of education; To solve the problem of integrating education, science, and production while ensuring the integrity of scientific tasks; To implement principles of educational continuity, differentiation, and individualization of the educational process, aimed at personality growth and fulfillment; To generate socially-significant qualities specific to the young scientist, the motivating needs of the professional educational area, functional literacy, and upward mobility.

This work should result in qualitative and quantitative changes in the educational process’s methods and foundational technologies from the point of its continuity in from the “high-school-to-university” educational process. Continuity between both is considered as being a process – and as being the result of defining the integrity of such courses as education, quality improvement, continuity, anticipating character, diversification, and the arrangement of research, scientific, and business components used in the preparation of a new generation of specialists. Hence, this should enhance youth’s educational, research, scientific, and professional levels and help enable them to solve social and educational problems beyond the secondary (high school) level.

CONCLUSION The implementation of an integrated multicomponent educational system in technical university provides for the opportunity to have a steady and central effect on professionally orienting students’ training; to maximally avoid the lack of information on conferences, contests, exhibitions, and other performances held; and to arrange and streamline the process of conducting scientific and educational events. Such a model should be based on the integration of science, education, and business; and should correspond to updated levels of researchers’ and technologists’ training – their persistent buildup of growth in a system of non-stop professional development.

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Basing the educational format on scientific knowledge, the development of additional awareness and the inner motivation generated thereof greatly improves the efficiency of the educational process. The early development of such patterns within the secondary educational process will become of utmost importance when students reach the ‘university’ stage of schooling. This program serves as the basis for a non-stop educational process of development with the goal of building up a creative and socially-active personality able to solve innovative problems in a range of different scientific and technological spheres.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS There are two research directions for further work. First on consist in the development of the methods of young people professional self-determination. One of methods is modernization of the educational programmes. This modernization of educational programs is carried out by means of complex implementation. It is necessary to include into the programs research and design activities of students. This must be done in full compliance with the existing regulatory framework for the development of continuing education. The second line of research is to develop a model of the implementation of research activities in the continuing education system for training highly qualified specialists.

REFERENCES Antsupova, G. N. (2005). MGTU – glazami istorika [BMSTU – eyes of the historian]. Bauman Moscow State Technical University Publishers. Arakcheeva, O.E. (2012). Propedevticheskaya podgotovka uchitelya k formirovaniyu sotsial’noy kompetentnosti uchashchikhsya [Propaedutic teacher’s preparation for the formation of students’ social competence]. Obrazovanie i Samorazvitie, 3, 43-46. Arnove, R. F., Torres, C. A., & Franz, S. (2012). Comparative education: The dialectic of the global and the local. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Retrieved from https://rowman.com/ Page/RLContact Batyshev, S. Ya. (1987). Reforma professional’noy shkoly: opyt, poisk, puti realizatsii [Reforming professional schooling: Experience, research, and implementation]. Moscow: Vysshaya Shkola Publishers. Biggeri, M., & Santi, M. (2012). The missing dimensions of children’s well-being and well-becoming in education systems: Capabilities and philosophy for children. Journal of Human Development and Capabilities: A Multi-Disciplinary Journal for People-Centered Development, 13(3), 373-395. Donovan, M. S. (2013). Generating improvement through research and development in education systems. Science, 340(6130), 317–319. doi:10.1126cience.1236180 PMID:23599484

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Gershunsky, B. S. (1998). Filosofiya obrazovaniya dlya XXI veka: V poiskakh praktiko-orientirovannykh kontseptsiy [Philosophy of education for the 21st century: In search of concepts]. Moscow: Sovershenstvo. Ivanov, O. B., & Ivanova, S. V. (2015). Special features of education space formation in economic and social conditions inherent in the post-industrial epoch. Lifelong Learning Proceedings of the 13th International Conference, 43-47. Moallem, M., Morge, S.P., Narayan, S., & Tagliarini, G.A. (2015). The power of computational modeling and simulation for learning STEM content in middle and high schools. Improving K-12 STEM Education Outcomes through Technological Integration, 135-171. Polly, D., Martin, C., Wang, C., Lambert, R.G., & Pugalee, D. (2016). Supporting the enactment of standards-based mathematics pedagogies: The cases of the CoDE-I and APLUS projects. Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education, 137-148. Sergeeva, M. G. (2016). Kriterial’nye pokazateli sformirovannosti sotsial’noy kompetentnosti obuchayushchikhsya [Criteria indicators for students’ formation of social expertise]. Professional’noe Obrazovanie i Obshchestvo, 1(17), 30–37. Spillane, J. P., & Hopkins, M. (2013). Organizing for instruction in education systems and school organizations: How the subject matters. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 45(6), 721–747. doi:10.1080/00 220272.2013.810783 Srisawasdi, N. (2015). Motivating inquiry-based learning through a combination of physical and virtual computer-based laboratory experiments in high school science. Improving K-12 STEM Education Outcomes through Technological Integration, 108-134. Tsibizova, T.Yu. (2011). Podgotovka vysokokvalifitsirovannykh spetsialistov v sisteme nepreryvnogo professional’nogo obrazovaniya (na primere MGTU im. N.E. Baumana) [Training of highly-knowledgeable specialists in a system of non-stop professional development (per the example of Bauman Moscow State Technical University)]. European Social Science Journal, 2(5), 154-159. Tsibizova, T. Yu. (2012). Profil’noe obuchenie kak komponent sistemy nepreryvnogo professional’nogo obrazovaniya [Profile education as a part of the system of continued professional education] [Profile School]. Profil’naya Shkola, 4, 9–13. Zelencova, N.F., Zelencova, E.V., & Zelencov, V.V. (2014). Problemy professional’nogo stanovleniya i vosproizvodstva nauchnykh i nauchno-pedagogicheskikh kadrov v nepreryvnoy sisteme profil’nogo inzhenerno-tekhnicheskogo obrazovaniya [Problems of professional growth and scientific-pedagogical staff reproduction in a system of continued profile engineering education]. Nauka i Obrazovanie: Nauchnoe Izdanie MGTU im. N.E. Baumana, 11, 827-839.

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ADDITIONAL READING Aleksandrov, A. A., Neusipin, K. A., Proletarsky, A. V., & Fang, K. (2012). Innovation development trends of modern management systems of educational organizations. In Proceeding of 2012 International Conference on Information Management, Innovation Management and Industrial Engineering. (pp. 235-238). Sanya, China. 10.1109/ICIII.2012.6339951 Galikhanov, M. F., Ilyasova, A., Ivanov, V., Gorodetskaya, I. M., & Shageeva, F. T. (2015). Continuous professional education as an instrument for development of industry employees’ innovational competences within regional territorial-production cluster. In Proceedings of 2015 International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning. (pp. 251-255). Firenze, Italy. 10.1109/ICL.2015.7318034 Khairutdinova, R. R., & Fedorova, Y. A. (2016). Pedagogical professional self-determination support for students under conditions of additional education program implementation. International Journal of Environmental and Science Education, 11(9), 2275–2285. Oreshkina, A.K. (2011). Teoretiko-metodologicheskie aspekty formirovaniya proektnoy deyatel’nosti v obrazovatel’nom protsesse nepreryvnogo obrazovaniya [Theoretical and methodological aspects of project activities in the educational process of continuing education]. Otechestvennaya i zarubezhnaya pedagogika [Domestic and foreign pedagogy], 1, 159-164. [Russian]. Oreshkina, A. K., Tsibizova, T. Yu., & Nosova, I. S. (Eds.). (2015). Formy razvitiya sotsial’nogo prostranstva sistemy nepreryvnogo obrazovaniya [Forms of development of social space of lifelong learning system]. Moscow Region State University Publishers. [Russian] Shaidullina, A. R., Masalimova, A. R., Vlasova, V. K., Lisitzina, T. B., Korzhanova, A. A., & Tzekhanovich, O. M. (2014). Science and Manufacture Integration Models Features in Continuous Professional Education System. Life Science Journal, 11(8s), 478–485. Tsibizova, T.Yu. (2011). Integratsiya nauki i obrazovaniya kak element sistemy nepreryvnogo professional’nogo obrazovaniya [Integration of science and education as part of the system of continuous professional education]. Integratsiya obrazovaniya [Integration of education], 4, 25-29. [Russian]. Tsibizova, T.Yu. (2014). Realizatsiya professional’no-orientiruyushchey obrazovatel’noy podgotovki uchashchikhsya na baze Resursnogo tsentra vuza [The implementation of the vocational orientation of the educational preparation of students on the basis of the Resource center of the University]. Izvestiya Moskovskogo gosudarstvennogo tekhnicheskogo universiteta MAMI. [Proceedings of Moscow State Technical University MAMI], Vol. 5, 4(22), 209-213. [Russian].

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Continuity of Educational Activities: The relationship of education levels, types and forms of educational process, carried out in the development of the educational level of students aimed at the acquisition of knowledge, skills, research and socio-cultural experience, secondary, high and professional education. Diversification of Education: The principle of the education system structuring, providing the possibility of variability of educational services, educational programs, types of educational institutions, etc. Integration of Education, Science, and Production: The common usage of educational, scientific and industrial potential of organizations with mutual interests, primarily in the areas of training, advanced training and retraining of personnel, as well as joint scientific research, implementation research, etc. Professional Orientation: A system of science-based activities aimed at preparing young people to choose of profession, to assist young people in professional self-determination and employment. Professional Self-Determination: The independent choice of profession, carried out the analysis of a persons’ internal resources, including their abilities and their correlation with the requirements of the profession. Research Activity: A process of students study the scientific knowledge system by specially developed means and methods with the aim of cognitive skills developing, world perception, moral and other qualities of the person, as well as creative powers and abilities developing. Variability of Education: The quality of the education system describing its ability to create and to provide students with options for educational programs and services for selection according to their changing needs and opportunities.

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Section 3

Innovation in Engineering Education

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Chapter 15

Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education:

Possible Solutions Based on Best Practices in European and Russian Universities Ilia Soldatenko Tver State University, Russia Irina Zakharova Tver State University, Russia Oleg Kuzenkov Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia Alexander Yazenin Tver State University, Russia

ABSTRACT Engineering education tends to be more and more attractive to Russian students in response to the growing demands of the labor market in this area. However, there is a serious problem of high percentage of drop-outs during first year of study in STEM courses (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) and mathematical disciplines are the most typical reason for that. This problem is addressed by international TEMPUS project MetaMath whose aim is modernization of the Russian education system in accordance with international trends and Russia’s cultural and educational traditions as well as needs of business and industry. The purpose of this chapter is to describe research results and analysis of modernization experience of educational programs based on the produced methodology.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch015

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education

INTRODUCTION Engineering education tends to be more and more attractive to Russian students in response to the growing demands of the labor market in this area. However, nowadays there are several serious problems in this area. These problems, firstly, include global changes in the world that certainly affect education. The speed with which engineering knowledge and competencies evolve has been steadily increasing; new skills required by engineers constantly emerge while some of the existing ones become obsolete. Sometimes it even happens that some technology becomes outdated before a student completes a four-year bachelor course of study. This, in turn, complicates the process of learning. Modern student is obliged not only to master a certain amount of knowledge but also to learn how to use it to solve practical problems which were not dealt with explicitly during training and may lie on the intersection of different fields. This requires formation of respective competencies of the student. Secondly, there is a very serious problem of high percentage of drop-outs during the first year of study in STEM courses. Mathematical disciplines are the most typical reason for that. According to current statistics, the average drop-out rate from engineering specialties because of mathematics in Russian universities is about 20%, for some curricula it reaches 40%. School graduates, who choose these courses, usually underestimate the role and place of mathematics in their upcoming education. Often, prospective students have this false perception that mathematics is unimportant for a chemist, a physicist or a programmer. Everything is also aggravated by the difference in the level of mathematical training between universities and schools. At the same time, numerous studies have shown that the level of mathematical knowledge is a major factor determining the success of engineering education. In Russia all university students pursuing this kind of curricula are obliged to take a lot of math-related courses at the beginning of their education. Disciplines of engineering profile for which the mathematical knowledge and skills are essential input requirement appear only during senior years. Other reasons for the above-mentioned problems in Russian universities include reduction of teaching hours (credits) for math subjects in curricula of some Russian universities and the fact that new information technologies are not used to the full extent in education process. The European experiences and research results have proven that significant improvements in learning outcomes in mathematics can be achieved by applying new Technology-Enhanced Learning (TEL) tools and pedagogic approaches. Because of these circumstances, much methodological work is required to modernize the system of mathematical education for engineers in Russian universities. This problem is addressed by international TEMPUS project MetaMath (MetaMath, 2016) which involves five Russian universities (Tver State University, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, Kazan National Research Technical University named after A.N.Tupolev, Ogarev Mordovia State University, Saint-Petersburg Electrotechnical University (LETI)), Association for Engineering Education of Russia and four European universities (Tampere University of Technology, Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, Saarland University, Chemnitz University of Technology). This project’s aim is modernization of the Russian education system in accordance with international trends, best practices of European universities and Russia’s cultural and educational traditions as well as needs of business and industry.

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The purpose of this chapter is to describe research results and analysis of modernization experience of educational programs based on the produced methodology and to analyze possible ways of modernization of requirements system for mathematical education in Russia basing on SEFI framework approach (SEFI, 2013).

THE ATTITUDE OF STUDENTS TOWARDS MATHEMATICS As mentioned above, all students of engineering programs in Russian universities have a significant number of mathematical disciplines in the early years of their education. As part of the research several sociological surveys among the students, teachers, employers and graduates were conducted to determine their attitude towards mathematics. One of the surveys was devoted to the study of students’ attitudes towards mathematics as a discipline of their study and its role in their future profession. There are six responses for each question: 0 - completely disagree, 1 – disagree, 2 - rather disagree, 3 - rather agree, 4 – agree, 5 - completely agree. Table 1 shows the results as a percentage of the total number of survey participants. The survey was conducted among students of 3d and 4th years of study. Table 1. Results of survey “mathematics in the life of students” #

Question

0

1

2

3

4

5

1

  I think solving math problems is quite boring

5

33

40

12

7

3

2

  Solving math problems is fun

4

1

13

48

29

4

3

  I am OK with how I am doing at solving math problems

0

11

20

51

15

4

4

  I consider solving math problems as an opportunity to prove myself

7

21

29

29

11

3

5

  I think mathematics is very interesting

0

5

17

36

29

12

6

  I liked working on math problems

0

4

24

49

17

5

7

  I find mathematics to be very hard

8

21

39

25

5

1

8

  I think I am very good in math

1

3

21

49

23

3

9

  It is very important for me to be able solve math problems

3

7

12

40

31

8

10

  I think math problems are very boring

1

15

19

28

23

15

11

  I like situations, in which I have to prove my skills

0

8

5

32

37

17

12

  I try to do my best when solving math problems

1

4

17

56

19

3

13

  I like tasks that show what I am good at

0

1

1

36

37

24

14

  I prefer easy tasks, in which I know I won’t make any mistake

0

4

4

41

33

17

15

  I am scared to have to solve exercises that might cause me making mistakes

0

13

29

28

25

4

16

  I enjoy theoretical aspects of mathematics more than practical problem solving

8

33

36

19

4

0

17

  I think for an engineer, problem solving skills are more important than math theory

0

11

19

36

28

7

18

  I think we need fewer mathematics course in university

5

7

47

28

11

3

19

  I think for my future studies at this university, mathematics has little importance

8

28

35

15

7

8

20

  I think for my future career, mathematics has little importance

8

17

29

20

16

9

21

  I think, I need to study math to be successful in the future

3

5

24

40

21

7

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 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education

One can see from the results that students prefer more practical mathematics, rather than theoretical. At the same time, they consider reduction of credits for mathematical disciplines inappropriate, because they believe that mathematics is important in order to study other disciplines. Second, students consider mathematics to a lesser extent essential for their future lives and careers. Thirdly, the students believe that for an engineer practical problem-solving skills are more important than theoretical understanding of the principles, on which these methods are based. Polls generally show that students are aware of the importance of mathematics at least for their further education at university.

THE ROLE OF MATHEMATICAL COMPETENCIES IN HIGHER EDUCATION In 2003 Russia joined Bologna Process by signing the Declaration. In 2011 Russia introduced new federal state educational standards (FSES). One of the main distinguishing features of the new standards is a competence-based approach. The essence of this approach is that the emphasis of the educational process is transferred from the content of education to learning outcomes, which should be transparent. The learning outcomes are described by the system of competencies, which are a dynamic combination of knowledge, skills, abilities and personal qualities that a student should be able to demonstrate after completion of his or her education. At the same time, a lot of attention is paid to competencies related to mathematical training and ability to use mathematics in real life applications. These competencies are even more important in the field of information and communication technologies. As part of the project TUNING RUSSIA (Petrova, et al., 2013) the subject area group (SAG) on ICT conducted sociological research aimed at identifying the importance of specific subject competences for graduates in ICT. Representatives of students, teachers and graduates of some of the leading Russian universities, as well as representatives from leading Russian and international companies in the field of ICT were given a list of competencies and were asked to rate their importance for professional work and estimate the level of their formation in existing Russian system of higher education. The evaluation was conducted on the four-point scale. Among others, the list included competence for a deep mathematical training: “to apply and develop fundamental and interdisciplinary knowledge, including mathematical and scientific principles, numerical methods ...”. Table 2 shows the results of the survey. These data clearly demonstrate the need for this competence in the education process (the average level of importance).

Table 2. Result of the survey Group of Respondents

Importance

Achievement

Academics

3.46

2.62

Employers

3.09

2.75

Students

3.07

2.77

Graduates

3.09

2.7

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 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education

The fundamental importance of mathematical competencies for professional work in the field of ICT has been reflected in the design of Russian Sectoral Framework of qualifications and competency characteristics for Computer Science degree programs (TEMPUS project INARM (Kuzenkov&Tikhomirov, 2013)). In this framework labor functions were correlated with the areas of fundamental knowledge necessary for their successful acquiring. An example of such correlation is shown in Table 3. Possession of fundamental mathematical knowledge (optimization methods, operations research, systems analysis, discrete mathematics, etc.) was included to the passports of all groups of labor functions of this framework as an obligatory component.

RESULTS OF COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND APPROACHES FOR MODERNIZATION In order to achieve the goal of upgrading system of mathematical education, the structure and content of educational process in math-related engineering courses in the selected Russian and European universities have been studied, comparative analysis was held and, as a result, recommendations for the best practices implementation in the educational process of Russian universities were elaborated. Comparative analysis shown that thematic contents and learning outcomes in Russian and European universities are almost identical. The main difference is observed in active use of information technologies and, in particular, e-learning systems in European universities. This allows to take out some of the material for independent study and focus on difficult topics. E-learning systems also allow to automate and, as a result, simplify the knowledge assessment process. One of the goals of modernization was to minimize this difference. The following ways for courses modernization were developed: •

There are two ways of teaching math: theory-oriented and practice-oriented. We should find a golden mean but make emphasis on practice. Give more real-life practical examples in math subjects from the very beginning to justify necessity of math.



Table 3. Correlation of labor functions and fundamental knowledge Groups of Labor Functions

A.1. Harmonization of information system (IS) and business strategies

170

Labor Functions

Foresee long-term prospects for business development and determine the IS infrastructure in accordance with organizational policy

Areas of Knowledge as an Instrument of Formation of Learning Outcomes (Based on the CS 2014) AL. Algorithms and Complexity AR. Architecture and Organization HCI. Human Computer Interaction IAS. Information Assurance and Security GV. Graphics and Visualization IM. Information Management

Knowledge Modules for Building Education Programs

Fundamentals of management; fundamentals of economics; math modelling; systems analysis; optimization methods; operations research; software engineering; Cybernetics basics

 Math-Related Problems in Russian Engineering Education

• • • • •

Involve business community in participation in students practice: starting from term papers and finishing with diplomas and industrial practices. Increase the role of independent work of students. Use project method in teaching. The main purpose of this method is to provide students with possibility of independent knowledge acquiring as well as solving practical problems that require integration of skills from different subject areas. Use bridging courses to simplify students’ transition from school to university. Use ICT tools and technologies more actively to enhance and support education process.

As for requirements system Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod in the framework of TEMPUS project developed maps of mathematical competencies, carried out modernization of programs for mathematical disciplines and created adequate funds of assessment tools in the field of ICT (Zakharova, et al., 2014). Competence map contains description of a set of indicators that show the specific quality aspects of mastering the competence and descriptors that characterize them. SEFI framework was actively used in the process (SEFI, 2013). Here is an example of competence map fragment for PC3 “The ability to understand and apply in research and applied activities modern mathematical apparatus and the basic laws of science” in preparation of bachelors in the program “Fundamental science and information technologies” (Gugina&Kuzenkov, 2014; Bedny, et al., 2014). The fragment given in the Table 4 belongs to the first level of mastering – “technology literacy”, which corresponds to the first and second year of bachelor program and also corresponds to the first level of SEFI Framework. This fragment contains only material from “Calculus”. Groups of competence Table 4. Fragment of competence card Indicators

Descriptors

To know the concept: converging and diverging sequences; continuity of the function; differentiability; smoothness; derivative

lack of knowledge

presence of major errors in the knowledge of basic material

knowledge of basic material with a number of minor errors

knowledge of basic material with a number of notable errors

knowledge of basic material without errors

To be able to: find limits of sequences; find derivatives of complex functions; differentiate inverse functions; differentiate functions defined implicitly; differentiate functions defined parametrically

no ability to solve standard problems

major errors in solving standard tasks

ability to solve standard problems with minor errors

ability to solve all standard problems with minor errors

ability to solve standard and nonstandard tasks

lack of skills

lack of a number of important skills

presence of the minimum required skills

presence of most of the basic skills, demonstrated in standard situations

presence of all the skills demonstrated in standard and nonstandard situations

To know a variety of methods and ways of calculating limits, methods of differential calculus

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indicators consist of knowledge, skills and abilities that correspond to the understanding of a competence as a dynamic entity that unites them. Thus, SEFI standard is a useful and effective tool that allows adaptation of mathematical education in the Russian state educational standards to international requirements. Another approach to the modernization of higher education has been undertaken in the framework of the project “Scientific and methodological support for the development of exemplary basic professional educational programs for different fields of education” in which groups of authors developed exemplary basic educational programs aimed at the formation of general and universal competences for combined groups of education programs. Work (Zakharova, et al., 2016) describes the development of an exemplary basic educational program for group 02.00.00 “Computer and Information Sciences”. An analysis of professional standards was conducted with the goal to verify compliance of optimized general professional competences with labor functions, related to the professional activities of graduates of corresponding education programs (Zakharova, et al., 2016; Zakharova, et al., 2015; ECTS, 2009).

4. PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF AN EXPERIMENT During the project an experiment was conducted and approbation of the developed modernization methodology in the Russian universities was carried out. As part of the experiment, several groups of students in each institution took the modernized courses. Not only the selected disciplines were modernized but also some changes to curricula were made. This work was conducted in accordance with the general process of refining of federal state standards of higher education in Russia, due to the participation of authors of the chapter in the relevant working groups of the Ministry of Education. At the beginning of the course, testing of input level of students was carried out and at the end – testing of output level. Input and output tests were made in the same framework of competencies on the same level of complexity therefore it helped to reveal the knowledge gain of students. The following tables show test results. The first table shows level of mastering aggregated groups of SEFI competences. The test results are indicated as a percentage of correctly accomplished tasks. Table 5. The relative level of mastering aggregated groups of SEFI competences at the beginning and end of the course #

SEFI Competences (Aggregated Group)

1st Group (Traditional Program)

2nd Group (Modernized Program)

Pre-test (%)

Post-test (%)

Pre-test (%)

Post-test (%)

1

ordinary differential equations

33,60

40,69

43,33

63,75

2

equations of the first order

63,00

52,59

62,50

73,44

3

second-order equations

57,14

54,19

40,48

67,86

4

tasks associated with eigenvalues

91,20

78,62

63,33

72,50

5

nonlinear optimization

92,00

75,86

83,33

100,00

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Table 6. Relative increase / decline in the level of mastering SEFI competencies (knowledge gain = (output – input) / input) # 1

SEFI Competencies (Aggregated Group)

1st Group (Traditional Program)

2nd Group (Modernized Program)

ordinary differential equations

21,10

47,13

2

equations of the first order

-16,52

17,50

3

second-order equations

-5,16

67,64

4

tasks associated with eigenvalues

-13,79

14,48

5

nonlinear optimization

-17,54

20,00

The results of the test show that for a number of competencies modernized program provides a higher degree of mastering by students in absolute terms. It is even more noticeable that the modernized program gives best results in knowledge gain (Table 6). However, the most interesting thing is that traditional program gives negative knowledge gain for number of competencies, while the modernized program shows no decline anywhere. This can be explained by the fact that during the process of traditional education not much attention is given to these competences. It is believed that they were mastered during previous courses and there is no need or time to repeat it. As a result, students forget even what they knew before. On the contrary, the modernized program allows students to update their basic.

CONCLUSION The chapter describes problems in engineering education in Russia. These problems were addressed by international TEMPUS project which involves several Russian and European universities and Association for Engineering Education of Russia. The chapter analyses the experience of modernization of educational programs based on produced methodology. Obtained results of approbation of the methodology showed that the chosen modernization methods are an effective tool for solving the specified math-related problems in engineering education in Russian universities. As a part of the project analysis of possible ways of modernization of requirements system for mathematical education in Russia basing on SEFI framework approach was carried out.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT Tempus project MetaMath has been funded with support from the European Commission [grant number 543851-TEMPUS-1-2013-1-DE-TEMPUS-JPCR]. This chapter reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.

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REFERENCES Bedny, A., Erushkina, L., & Kuzenkov, O. (2014). Modernising educational programmes in ICT based on the Tuning methodology. Tuning Journal for Higher Education, 1(2), 387–404. doi:10.18543/tjhe1(2)-2014pp387-404 ECTS. (2009). ECTS User’s Guide. Brussels, Belgium: European Commission /Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities. doi:10.2766/88064 Gugina, E. V., & Kuzenkov, O. A. (2014). Education standards of Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod. Herald of Lobachevsky State University of Nizhniy Novgorod, 3-4, 39-44. Retrieved from https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=22862964 Kuzenkov, O. A., & Tikhomirov, V. V. (2013). Using the methodology of “Tuning” in the development of national ICT competences framework. In Modern Information Technology and IT Education. Moscow, Russia: Fund for Promotion of Internet media, IT education, human development League Internet Media. Retrieved from https://elibrary.ru/contents.asp?issueid=1371690 MetaMath. (2016). Objectives. In MetaMath project official web-site. Retrieved from http://www. metamath.eu/objectives/ Petrova, I., Zaripova, V., Ishkina, E., Militskaya, S., Malikov, A., Kurmishev, N., ... Zakharova, I. (2013). Tuning Russia: Reference Points for the Design and Delivery of Degree Programmes in Information and Communication Technologies. Bilbao, Spain: University of Deusto. Retrieved from http://www.deustopublicaciones.es/index.php/main/libro/1041/eu SEFI. (2013). European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI), Brussels. A Framework for Mathematics Curricula in Engineering Education. A Report of the Mathematics Working Group. Brussels, Belgium: European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI). Retrieved from http://www.sefi.be/?page_id=125 Zakharova, I. V., Dudakov, S. M., & Yazenin, A. V. (2016). On the development of an exemplary curriculum for UGNS (combined group of specialties) “Computer and Information Sciences” in accordance with professional standards. Herald of Tver State University. Series: Pedagogy and Psychology, 2, 84100. Retrieved from https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=26555960 Zakharova, I. V., Dudakov, S. M., Yazenin, A. V., & Soldatenko, I. S. (2015). On methodological aspects of the development of exemplary educational programs of higher education. Educational Technology & Society, 18(3), 330-354. Retrieved from https://elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=24102764 Zakharova, I. V., Kuzenkov, O. A., & Soldatenko, I. S. (2014). The use of modern educational technologies for the improvement of mathematical education within the engineering courses in Russian universities. Modern Information Technology and IT Education, 10, 159-171. Retrieved from https:// elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=23020629

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Bologna Process: A series of ministerial meetings and agreements between European countries to ensure comparability in the standards and quality of higher-education qualifications. FSES: Federal state educational standard – a set of mandatory requirements for education of a certain level and (or) to the profession, specialty and direction of training. Labor Functions: An activity that is performed by a person occupying a certain position in the staff list of the enterprise and possessing a specific skill level. SEFI: The largest organization for engineering education in Europe. An acronym for its French name, Société Européenne pour la Formation des Ingénieurs. STEM: A term that refers to the academic disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. TEMPUS: The TEMPUS (Trans-European Mobility Programme for University Studies) program encourages higher education institutions in the EU Member States and partner countries to engage in structured cooperation.

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Chapter 16

The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education Olga Alexandrovna Dotsenko Tomsk State University, Russia Andrey Alexandrovich Zhukov Tomsk State University, Russia Tatiana Dmitrievna Kochetkova Tomsk State University, Russia Elena Gennagyevna Leontyeva Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain

ABSTRACT Problem-based learning takes a well-deserved place in the educational programs of leading universities in the world. Meanwhile it is known that this approach has been well developed for training students of economy and medicine. There are certain difficulties in setting targets as well as in teaching methods in basic technical subjects, in particular in the mathematical courses. The chapter presents an analysis of the peculiar features of problem-based learning in a research university for basic courses of the first two years of study. The discipline “Numerical Methods and Mathematical Modeling” is given as an example of the application of this approach. The main topics are proposed and lesson plans are provided. The information support of the courses is carried out in the learning management systems. The elements of this approach have been put into practice of training course and it was shown that the material was achieved much better.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch016

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 The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND Tomsk State University (TSU), located in the south of Western Siberia, opened in 1888 as the first university in Russia behind the Urals. There are 22 faculties, three institutes of applied sciences, the scientific library, and the Siberian Botanic Garden. In 2016, TSU was listed as one of four leaders in the Project 5-100 in Russia. In addition, the university continues to improve its position in the world rankings of institutions of higher education.

INTRODUCTION PBL takes a well-deserved place in the educational programs of leading universities (Barrett, 2010; Cotič, & Zuljan, 2009; Mertins, 2012). It can be a challenge to develop teaching research students’ independent learning skills and transformation of reality (Hung, 2011; Schmidt, Rotgans, & Yew, 2011). The creative portion of the learning process includes the research of new facilities, storage of acquired knowledge, and identification of task and method solutions. Students develop and show personal competences, including original thought, problem recognition, quick orientation in new conditions, and intuition in the process of solving creative nonstandard tasks. PBL meets the full requirements of modern engineering education. It can be used as a means of developing trainees’ learning activities and independence. The basic concept of PBL is an educational problematic situation. PBL is a complex theoretical or practical question. It contains a latent contradiction and, upon solving, leads to different (and often opposing) viewpoints. PBL is a mental state (or cothinking interaction) of a student or group of students under the guidance of a teacher. This chapter will elucidate the peculiarities of applying the problem-oriented approach in teaching mathematical disciplines. It will also describe the use of PBL in the Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling course during the second year of the radiophysics faculty engineering specialty (Radio Electronic Systems and Complexes) at National Research TSU. The chapter will provide main topics and lesson plans. It will analyze problems encountered by participants and teachers during the educational process. The conclusion will discuss the implementation of PBL elements.

BACKGROUND This approach has been successfully developed to educate students in the fields of economy and medicine (Iskrenko & Poulton, 2008; Spencer & Jordan, 1999). A review of the references shows that PBL has been widely used in medicine. Recently, this approach had made spectacular progress in engineering education. However, there are limited methodological developments in educational disciplines, including mathematics (see Figure 1). Figure 1, which is based on data from the international citation database Scopus, shows a nine-year containing publications and key words. Articles focusing on PBL in both exact sciences and engineering contain, as a rule, a description of the experience of applying this method in a university and for a specific subject. During the last two years, some articles reviewed existing developments and offered generalizations of experiences (Merritt, Lee, Rillero, & Kinach, 2017).

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Figure 1. PBL in various disciplines

Dionysiou and Ktoridou (2012) reviewed a computer security course for senior students from the Department of Computer Science at the University of Nicosia, Cyprus. Through the application of problem-oriented teaching, students learned how to make decisions and were encouraged to plan continuous self-education. Bevinakoppa, Ray, and Sabrina (2016) pointed out that pure forms of PBL were used in medical schools, business courses, and economic disciplines. They found that hybrid training in computer science combined the problem-oriented method, traditional lectures, seminars, and laboratory work. The authors used experiences from Australia’s University of Sydney and Melbourne Institute of Technology as examples. El-Khalili (2013), after reviewing the use of the problem-oriented approach in software engineering courses at Petra University in Amman, Jordan, found positive student feedback in end-of-semester surveys. Valtanen et al. (2012) concluded that the analysis of a real-world problematic situation in training is required to offer standard solutions. It is important to understand the problem’s meaning, causes, and features as prescribed by the system analysis. The authors found a lack of research on student opinions surrounding the application of problematic education in higher education, particularly in the field of information technology at the University of Tampere in Finland. Student, teacher, and expert views helped in the development of effective training programs promoting in-depth training. Their view also helped in the understanding of problem scenarios and problem-solving processes.

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Figuera et al. (2011) described the experience of applying problem learning for engineers in the field of telecommunications at King Juan Carlos University, Spain. During the project, students were tasked with developing a complex device, including a radio control system for a car. As learners linked knowledge in individual disciplines, they understood the practical applications and interconnections. Learners simultaneously acquired skills in teamwork, planning, and communication. Figuera et al. (2011) argued that this type of innovative approach ensures multidisciplinary training of engineers with business skills. Fortelius and Akerman (2015) described the implementation experience of a PBL project in the field of materials, food, and chemical engineering at Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Finland. They emphasized that this approach was necessary for the creating of the conceiving, designing, implementing, operation (CDIO) model in engineering education (Crawley, Malmqvist, Östlund, Brodeur, & Edström, 2014). This model was a response to the needs of society in the face of the rapid progression of science and technology. This chapter will elucidate the peculiarities of applying the problem-oriented approach in teaching mathematical disciplines. It will describe experiences in using PBL for TSU students in the Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling course.

CASE DESCRIPTION The Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling course contains the basic methods for solving mathematical problems. These tasks are based on models, which describe the different physical processes. By solving abstract tasks, it is possible to identify a problem in electrical engineering, electronics, electrodynamics, and other disciplines within the basic educational program. These disciplines are studied after the Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling course. Problem definition from these special disciplines is the students’ problem-based situation because they are unfamiliar with the theory. In the first lesson, the teacher describes a problematic situation in an area of knowledge or practice familiar to the students. The problem’s solution requires the use of numerical methods from the current lesson theme. During the discussion, brainstorming and idea reduction occur under the guidance of a teacher. Algorithms and methods of solution are offered. This technique motivates students to take an interest in the subject and demonstrate their connection to the practice. It also involves independent work outside of the classroom. To participate in the discussion, students must be theoretically prepared on the current theme. It is assumed that students and teachers analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the methods used to solve the problem. The discussion, which can be in the form of a workshop, should include presentations. During this step, students will understand the use of the methods. Teachers should allocate time to work with students who arrive unprepared to the workshop. There is also an individual-collective method of materials, in which small groups of students formulate and discuss questions related to a portion of the reading material. The next stage focuses on solving analysis problems in the individual assignments. This task deals with computing programs implementing a numerical solution. Most of the students are unable to achieve this task without the teacher’s assistance or availability of appropriate samples. A control test with theoretical questions is given upon completion of this stage.

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A control task relating to group work consists of nonspecific practical problems. During the task, students work independently. They present their decisions during the next lesson. Consultations to address emerging issues are appointed between classes. The eight topics in the Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling course contain a task related to future professional activities. Topic 1: Features of computer arithmetic Topic 2: Methods for solving nonlinear equations Task: Identify the lower and upper limits of the passband of the RCL filter with the level K0. To solve the task, form an expression for the transfer coefficient of the filter K(ω). The student must solve the nonlinear equation K(ω) – K0 = 0, which has two roots. Topic 3: Methods for solving linear algebra problems Task: Locate the currents flowing in a closed circuit using mesh current method. Topic 4: Data interpolation Task: The results of measurements of the gain-frequency characteristic of a microstrip resonator are given. It is necessary to construct an interpolation polynomial function and a spline function according to proposed data. Next, compare interpolation error for both cases. Topic 5: Ordinary least square technique Task: An experimental data table is provided. This is a result of measuring the permittivity of a certain material (for example, wood, soil, or cement on moisture content). It is required to fit the experimental data by the least squares method and to determine the optimal number of basic functions for the known measurement error of the dielectric constant. Using the inverse interpolation method, determine the value of the moisture content of the sample for a value of the permittivity according to the instruction of the teacher. Topic 6: Numeric integration methods Task: A rectangular pulse sequence is provided. Every continuously differentiable periodic function can be expanded in a Fourier series, in which the summands are definite period integrals. Values of amplitude, period, and duty cycle are given by the teacher. Find the amplitude of the second harmonic of the given signal. Topic 7: Methods for solving ordinary differential equations Task: A linear circuit is given. It consists of two resistors (R1, R2) and two capacitors (C1, C2). The transient processes in this circuit are described by a second-order differential equation. The initial conditions are u(0) = 0, u’(0) = 0; e (t) = U0 sin (ω1t) is the external signal. It is necessary to determine the value of the voltage on the capacitor C2 at time t0 ≠ 0 for set values of resistances, capacitances, 180

 The Problem-Oriented Approach in the Basic Mathematical Courses for Engineering Education

and the frequency of the external signal f1 (ω1 = 2π f1). Parameters of a circuit, a signal, and a method of numerical solution of a differential equation are given in several variants. Topic 8: Methods of unconditional optimization of functions Task: An oscillating circuit containing a resistor, a capacitor, and an inductor is given. It is necessary to find the maximum and minimum values of the complex impedance module at the frequency range from 1 kHz to 100 kHz. The parameters of the circuit are specified in several variants. “Methods for Solving Linear Algebra Problems” is a task solved by students. The input data for the task is an electrical diagram with two or three closed circuits. The circuit includes resistance values of the resistors and voltage of the power supply. The electrical schematic diagram is also given. The students must find currents flowing in the diagram’s electrical loops. To solve this problem in electric engineering, it is necessary to choose an appropriate method to calculate electric circuits (i.e., Kirchhoff’s law, mesh current method, nodal analysis, etc.; Ivanov, Lukin, & Soloviev, 2002). Students should be familiar with theoretical material from the recommended literature. Diagrams are selected in such a way that the students must solve a system of linear algebraic equations to calculate the currents. At the end of the work, testing is carried out using an electronic schematic capture and simulation program called MultiSIM. See Figure 2.

Figure 2. Electrical circuit and solution check in MultiSIM

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The information support is carried out in the learning management system’s modular object-oriented dynamic learning environment (MOODLE). This widespread system established itself as a convenient tool for the organization of students’ independent work (Macías, 2012; Martinez, Herrero, & de Pablo, 2011; Regueras, Verdú, Verdú, & de Castro, 2011; Rodriguez, Fuertes, Piera, & de Castro, 2012). Students of the faculty use the system’s electronic resources from the first years of study in the educational process (Zhukov & Korotaev, 2015). Theoretical material, rehearsal and control tests, recommended literature, and a glossary are provided for each topic. A set of individual targets was compiled, including detailed examples of solutions in multiple programming environments (i.e., PascalABC, MathCad, Matlab, Oktave).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Results of the study were announced at the conclusion of the 2016 spring semester. Tools for analyzing student activity are provided by MOODLE. The results were as follows: 1. E-learning course attendance in the 2015/2016 academic year increased by one-third in comparison to the previous academic year when studying was carried out with a traditional method. It amounted to more than 120,000 applications with the number of students to 80 people. 2. The number of students who learned the theoretical material online (before studying the topic in class) increased by approximately 30%. 3. In the 2015/2016 academic year, the average grade of the final course test increased significantly (20%). 4. The number of students who were given a credit test according to the results of semester work increased by 20%. These figures indicate that students have become more active during the semester. By the end of the training, the students improved their knowledge of the subject. Students positively evaluated the seminars and teamwork assignments on the end-of-semester survey.

FEATURES OF PBL FOR MATHEMATICAL COURSES Setting targets and creating teaching methods in basic technical subjects can be difficult, particularly in mathematical courses. As a rule, it is not problematic to formulate the case study in economic and health problems. PBL has been applied in mathematical, physical, and engineering disciplines. TSU’s Control Systems and Radioelectronics (TUSUR) Department of Mathematics proposed a method of teaching students advanced mathematics while considering challenges in the study of special technical disciplines (Magazinnikova, 2015). In order for the students to successfully understand the Foundations of the Chain Theory course, the Linear Algebra and Analytical Geometry course was supplemented with an in-depth study of the polar coordinate system using sections titled “Complex Numbers: Forms of Their Representation, Operations on Complex Numbers, and Some Information About Polynomials.” Attention was also given to the topic “Cylindrical and Spherical Coordinate Systems,” which was required for special disciplines related to radar, radio navigation, electrodynamics, and propagation of radio waves.

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Mathematics teachers simultaneously collaborated with teachers of special disciplines to find and set problem-based cases. Each topic in advanced mathematics was associated with another professional or special discipline. The task of defining frequency transmission coefficients or impedance of electric circuit was chosen for the topic “One-Variable Function.” Problems related to the spectral analysis of rectangular pulses were solved in the topic “Fourier Transform.” When elements of PBL were introduced in the educational process, the teachers faced the following problems: 1. Although some students were familiar with PBL, other students needed to be prepared or “woken up.” 2. It was difficult to identify problematic situations for solving mathematical and technical tasks to perform with one or two classes. 3. Poor school training limited the number of tasks used in the implementation of problem-oriented approach. 4. Students wanted to solve the problem on the example’s model (the stencil). 5. Mathematics called for consistent presentation of items. However, breaking down to smaller problems provided an incomplete knowledge base. High levels of professional training in mathematical subjects cannot occur without generalization and systematization. 6. Thinking inertia of teachers (the habit of traditional relay learning affect) prevented good teaching practice. Students also faced difficulties that manifested as resistance. Therefore, it was impossible to use this approach during the first two years of study. 1. During the first two years of study, students were not good acquaintances. 2. A large number of the young individuals were poorly motivated for acquiring knowledge, which is necessary for the more intensive independent work. 3. Poor training in school demands students’ time and effort to solve problems. Otherwise, an achievement of result becomes impossible. In science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines, it is important to preserve the fundamental component of education. It is necessary to avoid the situation when training is reduced to learning the recipes for solving a certain range of tasks.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Engineering education, following the requirements of society, is in constant development and is undergoing continuous changes. This process is as unstoppable as scientific and technological progress. In addition, the search for new methods of teaching, effective and attractive, has become necessary in the conditions of competition of universities. Therefore, an approach such as PBL has good prospects for application in engineering education. The movement towards PBL is a fascinating and interesting process. The application of this approach to learning process at Radiophysics Faculty of TSU will also continue. The next steps will be following:

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1. Modification of the course “Materials and Components for Electronics” with application of elements of a problem-oriented approach. The necessary lecture material can be submitted with examples of solving practical problems, thereby understanding and internalizing the course can be improved. For example, practical task: to choose the components of the dielectric material with needed mechanical and electrophysical properties from the existing database of materials and to calculate the effective permittivity of the material for manufacturing the capacitor ceramics. This task shows where and how the theoretical material can be useful, helps to submit it in a logical connection with practice and to remember better. 2. Development of a set of tasks for the course “Basics of Programming” for the specialty “Electronic systems and complexes”. That is, the conditions (texts) of tasks will have a practical focus; for example, they contain specific information about experimental data. Currently, there is the possibility for some classes to use the ARDUINO microcontroller, whose software is publicly available on the Internet. This device allows formulating tasks for programming the operation of individual external devices that are compatible with it. 3. Development of a set of cases for practical classes on the course “Basics of designing and production technology of radio electronic systems”. Finding a solution to a particular problem, for example, increasing the reliability of a control unit for Christmas tree garland or choosing an electronic device cooling system, helps to get necessary skills faster. 4. Modification of the lecture course “Virtual Instruments LabVIEW” with application of elements of the problem-oriented approach. The lecture material will be supplemented with examples of solving practical problems of data collection and processing, and practical lessons on the course will be supplemented by a set of individual tasks for creating virtual instruments for automating electric engineering measurements. Skills that students will assimilate in the implementation of these assignments will contribute to the successful execution of their course projects and final qualification work.

CONCLUSION PBL elements have been used in the Numerical Technique and Mathematical Modeling training course. The following conclusions are based on the experience of practical over-notions during the spring semester of 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 academic years: 1. A topic’s problem statement creates interest and motivation for learning. 2. Students were more successful at grasping material. 3. It is necessary to combine traditional lectures with practical lessons to use various active methods and approaches. These combinations are especially important for engineering subjects in the mathematical disciplines during the first and the second years of study.

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REFERENCES Barrett, T. (2010). The problem-based learning process as finding and being in flow. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 47(2), 165–174. doi:10.1080/14703291003718901 Bevinakoppa, S., Ray, B., & Sabrina, F. (2016). Effectiveness of problem-based learning implementation. International Journal of Quality Assurance in Engineering and Technology Education, 5(3), 46–58. doi:10.4018/IJQAETE.2016070104 Cotič, M., & Zuljan, M. V. (2009). Problem-based instruction in mathematics and its impact on the cognitive results of the students and on affective-motivational aspects. Educational Studies, 35(3), 297–310. doi:10.1080/03055690802648085 Crawley, E. F., Malmqvist, J., Östlund, S., Brodeur, D. R., & Edström, K. (2014). Rethinking engineering education: The CDIO approach (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Springer International Publishing; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-05561-9 Dionysiou, I., & Ktoridou, D. (2012). Enhancing dynamic-content courses with student-oriented learning strategies: The case of computer security course. International Journal of Cyber Ethics in Education, 2(2), 24–33. doi:10.4018/ijcee.2012040103 El-Khalili, N. H. (2013). Teaching agile software engineering using problem-based learning. International Journal of Information and Communication Technology Education, 9(3), 1–12. doi:10.4018/ jicte.2013070101 Figuera, C., Morgado, E., Gutiérrez-Pérez, D., Alonso-Atienza, F., del Arco-Fernández-Cano, E., Caamaño, A. J., ... Requena-Carrión, J. (2011). A multidisciplinary problem based learning experience for telecommunications students. International Journal of Human Capital and Information Technology Professionals, 2(3), 15–28. doi:10.4018/jhcitp.2011070102 Fortelius, C., & Akerman, M.-L. (2015). Project/problem based learning in the field of materials, food, and chemical engineering at Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. International Journal of Quality Assurance in Engineering and Technology Education, 4(4), 39–46. doi:10.4018/ IJQAETE.2015100103 Hung, W. (2011). Theory to reality: A few issues in implementing problem-based learning. Educational Technology Research and Development, 59(4), 529–552. doi:10.100711423-011-9198-1 Iskrenko, E. V., & Poulton, T. A. (2008). Problemno-orientirovannoe obuchenie: osobennosti metodiki prepodavaniya v Velikobritanii [The specificity of problem based learning: the technique of operation in St. St. George University of London, Great Britain]. Nauchnyie vedomosti – Scientific statements, 10(50), 214-218.

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Ivanov, I., Lukin, A. F., & Soloviev, G. I. (2002). Elektrotehnika. Osnovnyie polozheniya, primeryi i zadachi [Electrical engineering. The main provisions, examples and exercises]. Sankt-Peterburg, Russia: Lan Publishing house. Macías, J. A. (2012). Enhancing project-based learning in software engineering lab teaching through an e-portfolio approach. IEEE Transactions on Education, 4(55), 502–507. doi:10.1109/TE.2012.2191787 Magazinnikova, A. L. (2015). Ob izmeneniyah kursa matematiki dlya studentov-radiotehnikov [The alteration of mathematics course for students-radio engineers]. Izvestiya vyisshih uchebnyih zavedeniy. Fizika, 8/3(58), 324-326. Martinez, F., Herrero, L. C., & de Pablo, S. (2011). Project-based learning and rubrics in the teaching of power supplies and photovoltaic electricity. IEEE Transactions on Education, 1(54), 87–96. doi:10.1109/ TE.2010.2044506 Merritt, J., Lee, M. Y., Rillero, P., & Kinach, B. M. (2017). Problem-based learning in K-8 mathematics and science education: A literature review. Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 11(2). Retrieved online at 10.7771/1541-5015.1674 Mertins, K. V. (2012). Higher liberal education prediction by way of educational technologies. European Researcher. Series A, 2(17), 205–209. Regueras, L. M., Verdú, E., Verdú, M. J., & de Castro, J. P. (2011). Design of a competitive and collaborative learning strategy in a communication networks course. IEEE Transactions on Education, 2(54), 302–307. doi:10.1109/TE.2010.2053933 Rodriguez, S. B., Fuertes, M. C., Piera, A. F., Garcia, I. P., & Solsona, F. J. A. (2012). Lessons learned in the use of WIRIS quizzes to upgrade Moodle to solve electrical circuits. IEEE Transactions on Education, 3(55), 412–417. doi:10.1109/TE.2011.2181381 Schmidt, H. G., Rotgans, J. I., & Yew, E. H. J. (2011). The process of problem-based learning: What works and why. Medical Education, 45(8), 792–806. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2923.2011.04035.x PMID:21752076 Spencer, J., & Jordan, R. K. (1999). Learner centred approaches in medical education. British Medical Journal, 318(7193), 1280–1283. doi:10.1136/bmj.318.7193.1280 PMID:10231266 Valtanen, J., Berki, E., Georgiadou, E., Hatzipanagos, S., Ross, M., Stamelos, I. G., & Staples, G. (2012). Features for suitable problems: IT professionals’ and IT students’ opinions. International Journal of Human Capital and Information Technology Professionals, 3(3), 27–41. doi:10.4018/jhcitp.2012070103 Zhukov, A. A., & Korotaev, A. G. (2015). Metodicheskoe i informatsionnoe obespechenie kursa “Osnovyi rabotyi v SDO Moodle” [Methodical and information support of the course “Basics LMS Moodle”]. Innovatsii na osnove informatsionnyih i kommunikatsionnyih tehnologiy – Innovations based on information and communication technologies, 1, 46-49.

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS CDIO: CDIO in engineering education involves teaching future specialists to work throughout the lifecycle of the product using conceive-design-implement-operate. Multidisciplinary Training: Methods of teaching to reveal the interconnection of sciences in practice, as well as solving complex problems requiring knowledge in various fields of science. Problem-Based Learning (PBL): Learning based on self-searching for solutions to specific problems under the guidance of a teacher. Student-Oriented Educational Environment: Training aimed at developing a student’s professional skills on an individual trajectory in a creative atmosphere. Teacher: A teacher is a leader as the independent students work and search for information. The teacher discusses the scientific approach to solving a problem.

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A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses Tatiana Nikolaevna Romanova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Tatiana Ivanovna Vishnevskaya Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dorjsuren Odselmaa Mongolian University Science and Technology, Mongolia

ABSTRACT This chapter suggests a method for practicum on software engineering methodology course using a projectoriented approach. The chapter features basic organization principles of the approach and examples of methodical support for laboratory works based on these principles, and provides recommendations on choice and use of methodologies and technologies of software engineering for the development of distributed information systems. The experience of using this technique for teaching students studying for a Master’s degree in Software Engineering in Bauman Moscow State Technical University is presented.

INTRODUCTION Wide software application in numerous spheres of life calls for dramatically higher standards of software quality, reliability and security. Software engineering is an integral part of all the stages of the production of complex software and software-technical systems starting from the very beginning of software creation to its deployment and maintenance (Gomes, Mendes, & Marcelino, 2015). The main concepts of software engineering are formalized in a set of international standards and are studied in the Methodology of software engineering (MSE), which is a theoretical course (Lipaev, 2006). The course is taught to students studying for a master degree in Software engineering. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch017

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 A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses

The course comprises lectures and practical classes. Different universities have different approaches to practical classes. For example, students studying at the department of Software Engineering of the faculty of Computer Science of NRU HSE write a paper on a specified topic as a report on the practicum and build an application using the techniques studied in the course (Saleh, 2016). In Southern Federal University students studying for the master’s degree explore existing software tools for program verification within laboratory classes. In BMSTU our target is to organize practicum in such a way, as to not only study the theory of MSE but also use it to ensure the development of quality software. Students studying for the master’s degree in Software engineering are to be well versed in the fundamental principles and systematic approaches namely solving issues of development, deployment and maintenance of software systems, described in (Lattanze, 2008), and as well as in methods of their application (Bass, Clements, & Kazman, 2012).

METHOD Within their professional training master students encounter some difficulties in studying the following disciplines: Distributed systems of information processing (DSIO) and Methodology of software engineering. Thus, a new, distinct from traditional, approach of training was required. A project-oriented approach described in (Zamyatina, & Mozgaleva, 2014) was chosen as such. Implementation of the project-oriented approach features shaping master students’ professional skills through completing real engineering tasks. As such, within their laboratory works on MSE, the students are tasked to perform the information systems design, which is also constitutes a part of their course paper on the DSIO discipline. In addition, the subject area to be analyzed as well as development tools are selected for each master on the basis of his/her personal professional interests, activity areas and experience of relevant software developments. This allows the teacher to work with each master individually or in small teams of two or three students (Pressman, 2009). The level of competence of an expert is determined by the amount of knowledge and experience gained through his/her own activities in a particular subject area. As the proposed approach to shaping professional competences of master students is based on their own professional experience and activities, such an educational approach can also be classified as a competence-oriented approach. The projectoriented approach has been further complimented by a methodological educational model, which allows to bring together the theory of the methodology of software engineering and practical experience of the master students. The proposed method objective: To form the professional competence of master students in the process of studying the Methodology of software engineering. To achieve this goal the following tasks are to be solved: • • • •

To develop the skills of formalization of customer requirements; To develop the skills of using modern paradigms, methods and notations of software engineering for building problem domain models; To develop the skills of process and data structures modeling ; To develop the ability for team-work;

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To develop the ability of application of the international ISO standards and the Standards of the Russian Federation at each stage of software development.

The Model of the proposed methodology is shown in Figure 1. The assignments for master students featured within the presented methodology reflect their future professional environment and requirements and are shaped by the current trends / demands of the time. At the same time, the theoretical information provided in the lecture course in the discipline Methodology of software engineering, should comprise the interdisciplinary connections that play an important role in the formation of the basic competencies that result from a combination of different disciplines. Therefore, the choice of topics for laboratory works is based on topics of lectures within the disciplines Methodology of software engineering and Distributed systems information processing. The master student based on his/her personal programming experience and areas of interest chooses the subject area. In addition, the tasks requirements of the workshop are to use object-oriented approach to describe a system as a series of objects interactions. The system development should start with the analysis of the subject area, definition of the aim and purpose of the future system, its quality requirements and functional characteristics. Per the results of such analysis, a technical specification for a distributed information system and a conceptual model of the designed system are further developed. To describe system models in object-oriented approach it is appropriate to use a visual modeling in a fairly complete UML notation (Unified Modeling Language), which is further expanded during the transition from analysis to design (Schmidt, Hatebur, & Heisel, 2015)

Main Topics of Laboratory Works 1. Analysis Phase: At this stage, the student chooses the topic of the coursework in the Distributed systems of information processing discipline (DSIO) and describes the selected subject area. He outlines the purpose of the proposed system, the existing counterparts, assesses the topicality of development and describes the concept of the information system. 2. Planning Phase: At this stage, the working schedule of individual and collective development is formed; the resources and timing of the project development are assessed. Also the financial and strategic values are estimated and the risk level of the project is described. 3. Composing of the Technical Assignment for the Development of a Distributed Information System: This phase consists of the development of functional system requirements, requirements to functional characteristics, the system topology, the requirements to the technical means and requirements for system reliability. 4. Project development of a distributed system in one of the standard notations (UML, IDEF0, etc.). 5. Development of a structure and architecture of the distributed information system and the distribution of tasks between the project participants. 6. Development of a logical and physical design of the project. 7. Description of Testing phase. The information system should be thoroughly tested. In the report the student must describe the used testing methods and cite the performed tests. 8. Preparation of the report.

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Figure 1. Model of method

Today many information systems are distributed and heterogeneous. Distributed systems allow us to solve more complex problems and improve efficiency of production processes, but at the same time they are much more complex to implement and support. Design of distributed systems has much in common with the design of regular information systems, but we should take into consideration some specific features (Delgado, 2015). To build correctly the architecture of a distributed information system in the laboratory work within the discipline of Methodology of software engineering it is necessary to use the theoretical material the master students obtain in a course of lectures on DSOI. They should know the principles of databases and Front-Ends scaling, the principles of the protocols and methods of ensuring secure data transmission through networks. Students should understand the difference between ServiceOriented Architecture (SOA) and micro services, have the knowledge of the existing approaches for building asynchronous communication Back-Ends and the modern soft engineering approaches to the resolving of irregular situations in the operation of distributed information systems.

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EXPERIENCE IN IMPLEMENTING PROJECT-ORIENTED APPROACH IN LABORATORY WORKS FOR SOFTWARE ENGINEERING METODOLOGY COURCE Following the proposed method, based on project-oriented approach, the training process of students studying for master’s degree in Software engineering is implemented according to the following scheme: • • •



In the first semester master students study the basic course in Distributed systems of information processing (DSIO); In the beginning of the second semester they are assigned individual or group tasks for the course project on the development of a specific distributed system of information processing; In the second semester within the framework of Software Engineering Methodology laboratory works they design the distributed information systems for their course work (by using the theoretical basis of the Methodology of software engineering and meanwhile developing design skills under the guidance of a tutor); At the end of the second semester the master students develop the technological part of the course project on their own (write the code of the DSIO).

Methodological support plays a big role in the performing of laboratory works for the course «Methodology of software engineering». Manuals (Vishnevskaya, & Romanova, 2012, 2017) developed at the Computer Software and Informational Technologies Department describe every step in the development of an information system. As a DSIO design sample the guidelines describe a Web-portal designing process (which is still relevant). Typically, portals use service oriented architecture (SOA) which requires splitting the system into independent subsystems (services). This approach is useful for it provides for the work to be split between team members as well as allows for the use of various techniques and separately scaling services. All the laboratory works for “Software Engineering Methodology” course are divided into four stages of DSIO development: 1. The Formalization of Customer Requirements: Master students must write a general technical assignment for the development of DSIO on the chosen topic, analyze and evaluate risks in the development of a complex set of programs, describe performance requirements toward the quality of the developed information system and write a profile of standards governing the development of a distributed information system in a chosen subject area. 2. The Design Phase - Designing the Structure and Architecture of DSIO: Master students must perform the following tasks: a. describe the topology of a distributed system; b. describe the requirements for implementation of the subsystems in detail; c. define the basic communication protocols; d. design the architecture of a distributed information system; e. develop high-level requirements for services. 3. The Design Phase - The Construction of Object-Oriented Models of the System Architecture Using UML Modeling Language: Master students must perform the following tasks within the laboratory works.

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a. Create a conceptual design of the developed system. The conceptual design allows us to view the developed information system from the point of view of users. b. Describe the object-oriented models of the system architecture: i. static models that describe the structure of the system in terms of object classes and interactions between them; ii. dynamic models that describe the structure of the system and the interaction between the objects of the system. c. Develop a logical design of DSIO which describes the organization of the elements of the software solution, and how they interact. At this stage we analyze the created system from the point of view of the project team. d. Develop a prototype of the user interface. e. Develop models of data organization in the system. f. Perform the analysis and selection of tools to ensure the life cycle of the software. 4. Report on DSIO project: Master students should hand over the scientific-technical report on the software design to be composed of: a. The technical assignment for the development of a distributed system of information processing, written in accordance with the standard of the Russian Federation; b. The design of the system in the form of diagrams on the UML modeling language c. The text providing justifications for the choice of OS, DBMS, language of DSIO component development and framework, as well as technologies, to ensure reliability. Using these methodological recommendations allows the students to meet the tasks of the laboratory works in accordance with the curriculum of «Software Engineering Methodology» and provides for the shaping of the required professional skills: • • • • •

Ability to formalize customer requirements and compose the technical assignment in accordance with the standards for software development; The skill of using modern paradigms, methods and notations of software engineering for building problem domain models and modeling processes and data structures; Ability to identify the main components within software development, to define the relationships between them, to describe the interface and behavior of all software components; Ability to justify the choice of technological platform for the development of DSIO; The skill of writing scientific-technical reports on the results of the performed work.

Under previous method, students received separate tasks in DSIO and MSE disciplines and spent a lot of time on designing and implementing a large number of projects. As a result, 30% of students failed to submit the course project on DSIO in time. Application of the proposed method for MSE practicum boosted the motivation of students to perform a high qualified design of the distributed system, the task chosen in accordance of their professional orientation on different classes of tasks. The extracts from the course project on DSOI by a master student Dorjsuren Odselmaa and entitled “Communication portal for foreign students” are given as a demonstration of the proposed methodology. The main purpose of the developed portal is to provide a platform for communication of foreign students studying in Russia. The portal main languages are English and Russian. The particular feature

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of this platform will be that it will enable foreign students studying in different universities of Russia, to exchange opinions about their universities, find someone to talk to and to obtain detailed answers to all their questions related to studying in different cities of Russia. For the course of the project DSOI, in the laboratory works on discipline Methodology of software engineering, Dorjsuren Odselmaa developed a detailed technical specification for the development of the portal. It presents the topology of the developed distributed information system (Figure 2) and describes the functionality of all subsystems. The specification substantiates that for the realization of its basic purpose, the system should consist have front-end and four back-ends. The front-end should accept requests from users by the means of the HTTP Protocol and analyze them. Based on the analysis, the front-end is to make requests to the back-ends, aggregate them, and send the back-end responses to the user. The front-end must also include a module to gather statistics. The profile back-end must implement the following functions: • •

To add, remove and modify the profile of a particular student; To get a list of students with specific filtering criteria. The location back-end must implement the following functions:

• • •

To add a new location; To get a list of locations with the filter conditions; To obtain, modify, and delete specific location. The message back-end must implement the following functions:

• • •

To get the list of message filtering criteria; To obtain, modify, and delete a specific message; To add a new message. The session back-end should be responsible for user registration and authentication. In addition, the specification defines requirements for the system implementation:

• • • • • •

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All the back-ends and front-end must be running separately and in isolation from each other. The system uses micro services. The development of server applications can use different frameworks for different back-ends, since back-ends don’t need to be closely related to each other according to the requirement of the micro-service approach to development. The front-end should have two interfaces: a web interface and a mobile interface. Interfaces must be accessible via thin client, browser and mobile app. The administrator interface should be implemented with the use of the command line (console), enabling the configuration of the nodes system, adding and removing nodes. The back-end servers are unavailable for users, which is secured by their location in the internal network.

 A Project-Oriented Approach to Practicum on Software Engineering Methodology Courses

Figure 2. Topology of system



Validation of input data should be carried out on the user side using JavaScript scripts and on the front-end. Back-ends should not validate input because the user cannot refer to them directly, the back-end is to receive filtered input from the front-end.

In accordance with the presented methodology requirements, Dorjsuren Odselmaa in her DSOI course project in detail designed the system behavior using UML notation, which allowed her to integrate in her distributed information system design such important features as the latent period in the presence of geographically remote sites, and the distribution of information across nodes. Dorjsuren Odselmaa described and justified the choice of the database management system, protocols, and technology for remote data access. Furthermore this approach allowed to implement the group work of students for the development of information systems. For example, a team of five students using the proposed method developed a portal to automate the control of the educational process: the assignment of educational tasks, automated and manual testing of program codes issued tasks and the reception of reports on all information disciplines. The portal also implements the collection of statistics and provides the possibility of rapid interaction between students and teachers. In addition, the number of tasks decreased, thus the attention of students concentrated on the solution of larger and more complex projects. This led to higher academic achievements in both disciplines – DSIO and MSE. The application of the proposed method for teaching students studying for the master’s degree allowed to bring the number of underperforming students in both disciplines down to 5%. Moreover, the number of excellent marks in the MSE exam amounted to about 80%.

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CONCLUSION The work presents the methodology of practicum conducted within the Software Engineering methodology course and featuring the project-oriented approach and it is unique. Furthermore, this technique is used by students in the design of information systems for master’s degree. However, a project-oriented approach can also be applied in the study of other disciplines in the field of IT-education, such as Operating systems and Databases.

REFERENCES Bass, L., Clements, P., & Kazman, R. (2012). Software Architecture in Practice. New York, NY: AddisonWesley Professional. Delgado, J. C. (2015). Distributed Interoperability in Heterogeneous Cloud Systems. In S. Bagchi (Ed.), Emerging Research in Cloud Distributed Computing Systems (pp. 1–40). IGI Global; doi:10.4018/9781-4666-8213-9.ch001 Gomes, A. J., Mendes, A. J., & Marcelino, M. J. (2015). Computer Science Education Research: An Overview and Some Proposals. In R. Queiros (Ed.), Innovative Teaching Strategies and New Leaning Paradigms in Computer Programming (pp. 1–29). IGI Global; doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-7304-5.ch001 Lattanze, A. J. (2008). Architecting Software Intensive Systems: A Practitioners Guide. New York, NY: Auerbach Publications. doi:10.1201/9781420045703 Lipaev, V. V. (2006). Programmnaya engeneria. Metodologicheskie osnovy [Software Engineering Methodological Foundations]. Moscow: TEIS. Pressman, R. (2009). Software Engineering: A Practitioner’s Approach. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education. Saleh, H. M. (2016). Program of discipline “Software Engineering Methodology’’. Retrieved from https:// www.hse.ru/data/2016/10/04/1117071415/program-1513156455-EHWApXuS2m.pdf Schmidt, H., Hatebur, D., & Heisel, M. (2015). Developing Secure Software Using UML Patterns. In V. Diaz, J. Lovelle, & C. Garcia-Bustelo (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Innovations in Systems and Software Engineering (pp. 32–70). IGI Global; doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-6359-6.ch002 Vishnevskaya, T. I., & Romanova, T. N. (2012). Techonologiya programmirovaniya: Metodicheskie ukazaniya k laboratornomu praktikumu – Ch. 3 [Programming Technology: Methodical instructions for laboratory works – P.3]. Moscow: Moscow State Technical University Publishing House. Retrieved from http://www.catalog.inforeg.ru/Inet/GetEzineByID/293408 Vishnevskaya, T. I., & Romanova, T. N. (2017). Metodologiya programmnoy ingenerii: Metodicheskie ukazaniya k laboratornomu praktikumu [Methodology of software engineering: Methodical instructions for laboratory works]. Moscow: Moscow State Technical University Publishing House. Retrieved from http://ebooks.bmstu.ru/catalog/199/book1531.html

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Zamyatina, O., & Mozgaleva, P. (2014). Competence component of the project-oriented training of elite engineering specialists. In Proceedings of the 2014 IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference. New York, NY: IEEE. 10.1109/EDUCON.2014.6826077

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Conceptual Design of the Developed System: The conceptual design allows to view the developed information system from the point of view of users. DSIO: Distributed information system is a system in which data storage and processing are not concentrated within one computing machine, but are distributed between multiple computers, which appear to users as a single system. Dynamic Models of DSIO: Dynamic models that describe the structure of the system and the interaction between the objects of the system. Front-End and Back-End: Terms in software engineering, which are distinguished according to the principle of shared responsibility between external representation and internal implementation, respectively. Front-end interaction interface between the user and the main software and hardware (back-end). Front-end and back-end can be distributed across one or more systems. In software architecture there may be many levels between the hardware and the end user, each of which may also have front-end and back-end. Front-end is an abstraction that provides a user interface. Logical Design of DSIO: The developed a logical design of DSIO which describes the organization of the elements of the software solution, and how they interact. At this stage we analyze the created system from the point of view of the project team. MSE: Methodology of software engineering. Object-Oriented Models of DSIO: The construction models of the system architecture using UML modeling language. Static Models of DSIO: Static models that describe the structure of the system in terms of object classes and interactions between them. SOA: Service-oriented architecture. A modular approach to software development based on the use of distributed, loose coupling model components, which have standardized interfaces to communicate according to standardized protocols. Topology of DSIO: Describes the requirements for implementation of the subsystems in detail, defines the basic communication protocols, the architecture design of a distributed information system and the developed high-level requirements for services.

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Application of Interactive Technologies in Engineering Education in the Research University Gennady Konstantinovich Baryshev Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Aleksandr Vasilyevich Berestov Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Yuri Valentinovich Bozhko Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia Nadezhda Aleksandrovna Konashenkova Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter describes the problem of application of interactive technologies of engineering education in the contemporary world-class research university: National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI” (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute). The results of the ongoing process of transformation of engineering education in compliance with the CDIO (conceive-design-implement-operate) international and Russian federal national educational standards are discussed. The pilot projects on the modernization of engineering educational programs have demonstrated that interactive technologies are effective in fixing sustainable results of developing and monitoring the students’ project-implementational and other engineering skills.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch018

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 Application of Interactive Technologies in Engineering Education in the Research University

INTRODUCTION Engineering programs aimed at training qualified bachelors, specialists and masters capable of accomplishing personal goals, should be implemented by nuclear, are-earth and other high-tech industries. On the one hand, since its very establishment, the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute has a longestablished tradition of training engineers through combining research and developmental activities. This was reflected in the way the educational process was formed. Along with strong fundamental academic training in Mathematics and Physics, it was obligatory for students to be involved in scientific research and development projects (R&D), carried out by the Institute’s departments together with industry leaders. Students were also actively engaged in the designing of high-technology devices, appliances and systems that were well ahead of their time; the development and production of pilot models; the perfomance of technology intensive experiments, including, those in reactor conditions (high temperatures, ionizing radiation, mechanical loads).

BACKGROUND Science constituted the basis for educational process in the second-generation university model (research university) (Fedorov & Medvedev, 2011, Saprykin, 2012, Vladimirov, 2011). However, nowadays, the practical, innovative activity is becoming the key driver of changes in education. Generally, entrepreneurial universities are the leading trend in the world today (Altbach & Salmi, 2011, Clark, 2004, Delbanco, 2012, Grasso & Burkins, 2010, Simonyants, 2014). Considerable efforts are made in the National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI” to modernize basic educational program on nuclear physics and technologies, based on the international engineering educational standards by the Worldwide CDIO Initiative (CDIO, 2017) and other programs taking into account the project-implementational approach and the active role of innovations in the educational process of a modern research university (MEPhI MA Educational programs, 2017). According to the requirements of the CDIO international standards (Crawley, 2001), relevant laboratory infrastructure is essential for the high-quality engineering education that provides future engineers with necessary knowledge and skills. The practice-oriented approach applied in engineering education cannot be pursued without developing skills of designing and setting up physical experiments in nuclear, aerospace and medical technologies. Such an approach has been historically pursued in MEPhI. It comprises fundamental training and mastering practical skills of working with technical devices and systems through laboratory works in combination with individual designing and development of constructions, devices, installations and systems (Yakovlev et al., 2015). The Department of Engineering Science and Technology of the National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI” employs the above-described approach too. Furthermore, let us examine the examples of the development of these principles of sustainable practice-oriented engineering education in a modern research university with the help of current interactive technologies.

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MODERNIZATION OF ENGINEERING MODULES OF MAJOR EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS WITH THE HELP OF INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGIES: EXAMPLES The development of network and interactive technologies allows to reformat the elements of the educational process. Thus, it is now possible to develop and organize distance laboratory works for some disciplines within engineering modules of the core educational programs, which enables students to obtain the skills of working with the basic instruments of computer-aided engineering and designing. Various computer software solutions are used in engineering projects, namely, Mathcad and Matlab, LabVIEW system for the development of virtual instruments and various CAD systems for engineering devices and systems (Surin et al., 2013). Laboratory works are vital for providing students with the skills of working with these systems. Pilot projects of such laboratory works on Mathcad and LabVIEW basics have been developed within the framework of the project realization. Another example of the modernization of the engineering modules of the core educational programs with the help of interactive technologies is the integration of social media tools into the educational process and individual work management. Nowadays, social media (Facebook, Vkontakte, Instagram, etc.) are a popular and effective communication tool. Almost all of us have a social media account. The overwhelming majority of students visit the “Vkontakte” social network on a daily basis, communicate with friends, post and comment photos and videos, share information and take part in discussions in special communities. In this regard, it is a long-held fact that students also use social media to do homework together. Vkontakte has a range of useful tools for that purpose, namely, the opportunity to organize a multiparticipant online chat, to share photos, documents, etc. Nowadays, global smartphones and tablets market size exceeds the personal computers and laptops market size. Consequently, a considerable part of the visits to social media are made via mobile gadgets (phones, smartphones and tablets). The development of modern wireless networks (Wi-Fi, LTE, etc.) makes it possible to use all the technological opportunities of modern devices such as exchangeing not only messages but also multimedia content (photo, audio and video) to maintain communication and to be online. According to the roadmap of the “Education 2035” foresight by the Agency for Strategic Initiatives to Promote New Projects, the “Everybody online” is a trend gaining momentum by 2020 (ASI Foresight “Education 2035”, 2017). Its name clearly reflects the fact that a considerable part of communication will move online. That will be a natural process for the modern digital generation. A substantial part of educational processes will obviously move online as well. Communication in social media eliminates the limitations of space and time coming from people being in different cities, regions and time zones. This circumstance may spread to the educational process, providing students, teachers and other subjects of the process with the opportunity to communicate interactively regardless of the limitations of time, space, etc., inherent to the traditional format of classroom education. Therefore, the opportunity of using Vkontakte, being the most popular social network in the Russian Federation, the Customs Union and the CIS countries, was quite evident in the context of the organization of education of bachelor and specialist students at the Faculty of Physics and Technology in compliance with international engineering educational standards by the CDIO.

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A community named “Basics of Design, Development and Engineering” was created on Vkontakte for the “Machine Elements and the Basics of development” course for the continuous communication between teachers, experts and students, promptly informing, working out any organizational matters, and, most importantly, assisting students in their individual and team work on engineering projects. The community name reflects the prospective changes in the program of the discipline within the framework of the implementation of international engineering educational standards by the CDIO in MEPhI. The community is private, but visible for potential members. Moderators from among the teachers have been appointed managers (administrators) of the community in order to post publications on the behalf of the community (for all members to see these publications in their newsfeed) and to provide effective technical administration. There is a possibility to post the community status update with this information appearing in the members’ newsfeed, which is useful for posting short important announcements about current activities, schedules, exams, etc. Publications are the main instrument within the community. Administrators, moderators and community members are authorized to post publications. All the community members also can post comments, including those personally addressed to the teachers, students, experts, etc. The following may be posted in the community: • • • • •

Discussions in a forum format; Documents (administrative regulations, examples of technical specifications and reports, educational books, etc.); Photos and pictures, including technical drawings; Videos, including video lectures, workshops, etc.; Online voting, polls, getting feedback, etc.

It is noteworthy that the tone of community publications is independent from any regulations or requirements applied to formal letters and is semantically and stylistically closer to the common way of communication between ordinary social media users. The community instruments make it possible to use various social practices to diversify the process of teaching: • • •

Discussing the uploaded materials for background studies (science fiction, video lectures on system engineering, TRIZ, system-activity methodology, lectures by leading nuclear industry experts such as S. Kirienko, Y. Adamov and others); Publishing the biographies of outstanding engineers and inventors using a special hashtag; Organizing small local contests, flash mobs and discussing topical engineering events in Russia and worldwide.

One may upload to the community’s photo albums various pictures about engineering of the past, the present and the future (with the ability to discuss them with other members), photos from lectures, seminars, workshops and business games. The community’s videos contain useful and entertaining videos and lectures by leading experts and scientists. The community “The Basics of Design, Development and Engineering” has become an effective and useful instrument of providing e-learning and online communication between students and teachers. It enables students to broaden their horizons, worldview and

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engineering thinking by uploading diverse multimedia content. It is hardly possible within class hours to manage to touch upon and discuss such an abundance of materials aimed at developing the students’ personal and project skills. At the same time, these materials do not seem to be an extra work for students because looking through and discussing such content automatically fit into the daily process of students’ activity on Vkontakte. Getting new information, considering and discussing it becomes an inherent part of the students’ communication in social media. This synergy between educational objectives and sharing and discussing information in social media catalyzes the all-round development of students and the process of providing them with not only knowledge and skills connected with the engineering disciplines of the Department of Engineering Science and Technology, but also with personal and project skills necessary for becoming the engineers of the future.

INTERACTIVE METHODS OF THE ASSESSMENT OF COMPETENCIES IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION Designing new educational programs in compliance with the international CDIO standards implies the modification of basic engineering disciplines programs. For instance, the “Basics of Development” discipline for the Physical and Technical Faculty undergraduates (third-year students). Designers of the discipline’s teaching materials qualify the following as the types of educational activity: lectures, tutorials, practical training, laboratory works, examinations, colloquiums, individual works, research projects, practical training and term projects (term theses). Institution of higher education may introduce other types of educational activity (Baryshev, Berestov & Konashenkova 2016). According to the “Basics of Development” lectures and seminars are the types of teaching activity. The development and realization of the “Basics of Design, Development and Engineering” course in compliance with the CDIO standards made it possible to introduce the additional elements of educational technologies (business games, workshops, etc.) on the basis of this format, which promotes the development of engineering thinking and training to work in groups on engineering projects. Due to the specifics and syllabus of the educational format, it is necessary to assess the students’ skills by a range of directions: •





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Teamwork and Leadership: At the beginning of project work the teams were formed on the ground of personal relations between students. The boundary condition was to form a team from classmates. Mixed teams were also permitted without prejudice to educational process. Such cases took place and were managed individually. In general, 35 teams of students were formed with their own leaders, idea providers and executors. Feasibility of an Engineering Solution: Undoubtedly, developing and solving an engineering challenge is a creative process. That is why the discipline’s program engages workshops on design engineering, theory of the resolution of invention-related tasks methods and other instruments that may help students find original, creative, high-tech and quality solutions. Report Design Correctness: An important assessment criterion is the compliance of reporting documentation with the requirement of the Unified system of engineering drawings and GOST (national standard). As experience has shown, the students should be particularly trained to design reports correctly.

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Accuracy of Engineering Designs: Within the framework of developing engineering solutions students designed separate units and elements of constructions in accordance with the “Machine Elements and Basics of Development” discipline. Most computations were performed using automatic means and software solutions such as Mathcad. Understanding an engineering project within the context of the product’s life cycle.

It is an inherent part of designing a device in compliance with the international CDIO standards. All projects are relevant developments for nuclear and other high-tech industries, implemented within the framework of R&D conducted by the Department of Engineering Science and Technology and “SignalMIFI” LLC. For example, a number of engineering tasks was formulated so that to involve the best students with engineering skills in solving high-priority tasks for development of systems of quality control of newtype perspective nuclear fuel elements for increasing reliability and economic effectiveness of nuclear power plants – the R&D performed by National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (the Department of Engineering Science and Technology). They included patent research on the problem as well as development documents for information measuring systems, software and prototypes. Understanding the product’s life cycle is an inherent part of solving an engineering challenge because educators are at the same time the employees of enterprises responsible for larger projects and integrating the students’ developments. The modular structure of the student work on engineering projects created competitional conditions when the best project was chosen. On the other hand, the competitional format should have provided the opportunity to assess the students’ skills related to all the above-stated aspects of project work. An ordinary format of academic presentation does not provide such an opportunity. That is why the Department of Engineering Science and Technology established a group engineering projects contest with experts of the “Constructing Future” research group involved for the organization of the contest and the business game. The objectives of the contest’s steering committee were the following: • • • •

organizing the contest; organizing the work of the program committee; organizing the work of the contest commission; organizing the distribution of awards to the winners and runners-up. The objectives of the program committee were the following:

• • •

organizing and holding a business game; developing the procedures of assessment for the contest commission; organizing the conversion of contest results into the students’ academic assessment scores at term examinations. The objectives of the contest commission were the following:

• •

assessing the students’ skills by the criteria developed by the program committee; choosing winners and runners-up.

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Using social media, particularly the community on Vkontakte, during preliminary selection and the analysis of projects made it possible to increase the efficiency of the work of the experts and to keep timely discussions and cooperation with contestants. Vkontakte is a Russian social network that provides a number of instruments sufficient for daily online communication. Every student has 24/7 access to its services via their smartphones of tablets. It was considered a much better and more comfortable way for project day-to-day communication between students, teachers and experts, that any other system, including MEPhI’s own ICT instruments. Standard 5 of the CDIO, according to which the curriculum of an educational program should include two or more projects involving the familiarization of a student with project implementation, plays a crucial role in the implementation of the CDIO concept. A project will be understood to be a training and practical task related to the design and production of products, which are realized with the help of the engineering disciplines complex. By solving the training and practical tasks integrated in the curriculum, the students improve their skills of the design and production of new products and systems, as well as their ability to apply theoretical knowledge in the engineering practice. The tasks on the design and creation of new products and systems could vary from basic to advanced depending on their intensity, difficulty and place in the curriculum. The development and creation of products and systems in the context of actual engineering practice allows students to determine the fields of their future professional interests. To implement Standard 5, a team project-based learning methodology was developed by the Department of Engineering Science and Technology. The methodology was successfully tested on the Department’s bachelor students. A team project is a hands-on training that is aimed at the development of engineering, designing, technological etc. projects in the real-life environment (Baryshev, 2016).

CONCLUSION All in all, the pilot projects on the modernization of engineering educational programs have demonstrated that interactive technologies are effective in fixing sustainable results of developing and monitoring the students’ project-implementational and other engineering skills in compliance with international engineering educational standards by the Worldwide CDIO Initiative, federal national educational standards and the university’s own educational standards (National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI”, 2017). More efforts are planned to be made to distribute the successful examples and practices, to enhance the use of interactive technologies in engineering education, and specifically within the framework of competitive growth of MEPhI in the global educational environment. The future of application of interactive technologies of engineering education in the contemporary world-class research university is connected with competitive engineering educational bachelor, specialist and masters programs, aimed at training skilled engineers for high-tech industries, including companies of State corporation for nuclear energy Rosatom. At the moment, these programs are at the stage of development, such as brand-new programs for training specialists with fundamental knowledge, engineering and management skills required to develop electrophysical and electromechanical equipment and its implementation in high-tech industries of digital economics (MEPhI admission office, 2017).

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REFERENCES Altbach, P. G., & Salmi, J. (Eds.). (2011). The road to academic excellence: the making of world-class research universities. Washington, DC: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank. doi:10.1596/978-0-8213-8805-1 Baryshev, G. K., Berestov, A. V., & Konashenkova, N. A. (2016). The Application of Online Team Project Training in Nuclear Engineering Education. Communications in Computer and Information Science, 674, 370–379. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-49700-6_35 CDIO. (2017). Retrieved from http://cdio.org/about Clark, B. R. (2004). Sustaining Change in Universities. Continuities in Case Studies and Concepts. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Crawley, E. F. (2001). The CDIO syllabus: a statement of goals for undergraduate engineering education. Cambridge, MA: The Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Delbanco, A. (2012). College. What It Was, Is, and Should Be. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Fedorov, I.B., & Medvedev, V.E. (2011). Engineering education: problems and tasks. [Inzhenernoye obrazovaniye: problemy i zadachi]. High Education in Russia, 12. Foresight, A. S. I. “Education 2035”. (2017). Presentacia forsaita “Obrazovanit 2035”. etrieved from http://asi.ru/molprof/foresight/12254/ (in Russian) Grasso, D., & Burkins, M. B. (Eds.). (2010). Holistic Engineering Education. Beyond Technology. Springer Science+Business Media. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-1393-7 MEPhI MA educational programs. (2017). Unikal’nyye obrazovatel’nyye programmy dlya nabora v 2017 godu [Unique Educational Programs for the 2017 Recruitment]. Retrieved from https://admission. mephi.ru/admission-2017/magistracy/unique National Research Nuclear University. (2017). Obrazovatelniye standarty vyshevo obrazovaniya Natsionalnovo issledovatelskovo yadernovo universiteta MIFI. Napravleniye podgotovki 14.03.02 Yaderniye fizika I tehnologii [Educational Standard of Higher Education of National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI”. Direction of training 14.03.02 Nuclear Physics and Technologies]. Retrieved from https:// mephi.ru/obrdeyat/edst-vo.php Saprykin, D.L. (2012). Inzenernoe obrazovanie v Rossii: istoriya, kontseptsiya, perspektiva [Engineering education in Russia: history, conception, future trends]. Vyssheye obrazovaniye v Rossii., 1, 125-137. Simonyants, R. P. (2014). Problems of engineering education and their decision involving industry. Moscow, Russia: BMSTU. (in Russian)

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Surin, V. I., Biryukov, A. P., & Dubkov, B. A. (2013). Ispol’zovaniye CAD-sistem v uchebno-tekhnicheskikh uchebnykh kursakh dlya studentov Natsional’nogo issledovatel’skogo yadernogo universiteta MIFI [The use of CAD-systems in educational engineering training courses for the students of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI]. In V trudakh Mezhdunarodnoy konferentsii «Sistemy proyektirovaniya, predplanirovaniya i upravleniya zhiznennymi tsiklami promyshlennogo produkta CAD / CAM / PDM 2013». Moscow, Russia: V.A. Trapeznikov Institute of Control Sciences of Russian Academy of Sciences. Vladimirov, A. I. (2011). Ob injenerno-tekhnicheskom obrazovaniy [About engineering-technical education]. Moscow, Russia: Nedra Publishing House. Yakovlev, D., Pryakhin, A., Korolev, S., Shaltaeva, Y., Samotaev, N., Yushkov, E., & Avanesyan, A. (2015). Engineering competitive education using modern network technologies in the NRNU MEPhI. In Proceedings of the 2015 IEEE Workshop on Environmental, Energy, and Structural Monitoring Systems. Trento, Italy: IEEE. 10.1109/EESMS.2015.7175849

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Chapter 19

The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center Andrey V. Proletarsky Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Konstantin A. Neusypin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kai Shen Beijing Institute of Technology, China

ABSTRACT Research directions for carrying out scientific works are presented within the Avionics Engineering Center at Bauman Moscow State Technical University. The structure of Avionics Engineering Center is illustrated and prospective areas of working are highlighted. Methods on implementation of perspective scientific research and educational programs are developed for innovative development of the Avionics Engineering Center. Symbiosis of new developed programs allows training and getting a set of better quality specialists and innovative technologies in the defense and aerospace industry.

INTRODUCTION For the education of high-level professionals, the “Russian method of engineering training” was originally developed and successfully implemented at Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU). Nowadays, for implementation modern innovative technologies (Knyaginin, Meshkov, & Utolin, 2016), the Avionics Engineering Center was built as a joint project of Bauman Moscow State Technical University and Ramenskoye Design Company. In this sense, the project “Avionics Engineering Center” is a practical implementation of the method “Russian method of engineering training” in modern information society.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch019

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center

Avionics Engineering Center has been working on the following main research and educational directions: • •

Preparation of bachelors, engineers, masters and highly qualified specialists in the priority areas; Improvement of training methods, creating a highly effective system for training technical professions; Carrying out joint research projects; Participation in scientific competitions, grants, awards, including Grants of Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation; Joint organization of international conferences and symposia; International cooperation, for example, international laboratory; Organization of joint scientific journal, scientific and methodical bases; Joint intellectual property rights (patents); Joint participation in competitions, grants, awards and research funds.

• • • • • • •

THE EQUIPMENT AND RESEARCH WORKS OF THE CENTER The equipment of the Avionics Engineering Center located in three main areas: •

The multipurpose multifunctional exerciser based on four-generation aircraft cabin with spread spectrum of functionality: simultaneous work for several students, practicing coalition cooperation, advanced training of flight crews under conditions that are close to combat, practicing dueling and group interaction of several aircrafts, and further complication for training purposes; The Laboratory of Intelligent Systems at Bauman Moscow State Technical University includes several operational working stations for pilots which are adapted to current and future requirements, such as formation of flight mission during multi-conflict flight situation, coalition, interaction and formation of models of external environment; The research is in progress with real navigation and piloting systems and platforms of modeling aerodynamic characteristics.





The research works are carried out in the following directions: • • • •

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The research in the field of aerodynamic characteristics, application of nanotechnology and research of aerodynamic properties, creation of models and working out on modeling complex engineering center; The work on dynamic formation of flight mission on the basis of predictive models with Genetic Algorithms to meet changing operational conditions of aircraft and conditions of our aircrafts against coalition enemies; The development of measurement systems and complex of modern aircraft from the concept of measuring complex synthesis with variable structures which can provide information as accurately as possible under conditions of intensive maneuvering. Perspective areas of research works are:

 The Educational and Academic Innovation of the Avionics Engineering Center

Figure 1. The View of Testing Platform and Navigation Systems at the Avionics Engineering Center

◦◦ ◦◦ ◦◦ ◦◦ ◦◦

Development of the theory of intelligent control systems (Proletarsky, Shen, & Neusypin, 2015); Creation of intelligent systems for space applications; Development and application of intelligent technologies for control systems of atmospheric flight vehicles; Research in the field of control theory; Global aggregation and management of multi-site complexes and coalitions.

THE TASKS OF THE AVIONICS ENGINEERING CENTER The primary purpose of the Avionics Engineering Center is to provide scientific and engineering school of world level. The main tasks of Avionics Engineering Center are: • •

The involvement of prominent scientists as supervisors of creative groups of young researchers to research current and future problems of equipment, technologies and educational programs through innovative projects; The development and coordination of fundamental and applied research works which are carried out in Ramenskoye Design Company and Bauman Moscow State Technical University;

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• • • • • • • • •

The increase of level of fundamental education and engineering training of young professionals through several ways: ◦◦ The organization of new lecture courses with the participation of leading scientists; ◦◦ The preparation of new textbooks, monographs, training manuals, new labs using the latest scientific achievements in the course and degree design works of students; ◦◦ The preparation of a new generation of young scientists through the involvement of graduate students to carry out scientific subjects; ◦◦ The active involvement of graduate and undergraduate students to participate in international seminars, conferences, symposia; ◦◦ The training of young scientists and specialists at the world’s leading research centers and universities; The creation of specialized scientific research stands, simulators equipped with modern equipment, instrumentation, multi-channel high-speed communication devices and information display; The development of international cooperation in the field of research and educational activities, the implementation of joint research work with foreign partners in the framework of international projects and on the basis of bilateral agreements and contracts; The organization of international scientific and technical conferences, symposiums, competitions, seminars, exhibitions; The creation of modern laboratory workshop for students and postgraduates at Bauman Moscow State Technical University; The organization of research works for students and graduate students; The promotion and popularization of engineering knowledge, advanced information technology, the creation of a joint scientific journal; The attraction of additional resources for the development and strengthening of material and technical scientific and methodological base; The work on the creation of joint intellectual property right (patents); The joint participation in competitions, grants, awards and research funds.

Thus, the establishment and successful operation of the engineering center will help to solve one of the most important tasks of present stage – the training of a new generation of young scientists which are capable of creating breakthrough technologies in the aerospace and defense industry.

SOME SCIENTIFIC METHODS OF THE AVIONICS ENGINEERING CENTER Vehicles that are capable of sustained motion through air and space are termed flight vehicles, and are generally classified as aircrafts, spacecrafts and rockets. All flight vehicles require manipulation (i.e., control or adjustment) of position, velocity and orientation for efficient flight mission completion based upon measurement information about operation state of flight vehicles. Whereas, measurement information is usually disturbed by external noise in practice. In order to realize effective control of flight vehicles, it is highly required to improve the accuracy of on-board measurement complex, including Inertial Navigation System (INS), Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), Radio Navigation System

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(RNS) and other kinds of information measurement systems (Brown, 1973). For working concordance of various measurement systems of navigation information above and accuracy improvement of whole measurement complex, some state estimation algorithms must be employed, such as Linear Kalman Filter (LKF) (Brown, 1973; Kalman, 1961). Based on Linear Kalman Filter, information processing in measurement systems of navigation may be easily fulfilled without high-accuracy. In order to improve the accuracy of navigation information estimation, nonlinear filtering methods (Stepanov, & Toropov, 2010), such as Nonlinear Kalman filter (NKF) (Carvalho, Moral, & Monin, 1997), Bayesian Algorithm (Stepanov, & Vasiliev, 2010), were suggested to apply in on-board measurement complex. Nevertheless, because of the nonlinear properties in dynamical measurement sensors, it also ineluctably appears some unpredictable errors during the process of information estimation and filtering. Hence, adaptive nonlinear estimation algorithms must be designed to adapt to external changing environment. Self-organization Algorithm (SOA) (Ivachnenko, 1971) as one kind of adaptive estimation algorithm was invented to settle complex nonlinear problems by academician USSR A.G. Ivachnenko. Especially, Self-organization Algorithm with Redundant Trends (Neusypin, Proletarsky, & Shen, 2014) can not only reduce the calculation capacity, but also enable to obtain a better optimal solution during information processing of measurement. During intensive maneuvering of flight vehicles, it is impossible to apply priori models of measurement systems of navigation obtained under laboratory tests. Therefore, it is necessary to reconstruct some high-accuracy and adaptive measurement models during the functioning process of flight vehicles based on more intelligent algorithms. Thus, Neural Networks (NN) and Genetic Algorithms (GA) were proposed to use for constructing novel complex measurement system of navigation information. In terms of processing and filtering of navigation information, one of the most applied algorithms might be the well-known Kalman Filtering algorithm and its modifications, such as Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF) and etc. Nowadays, research interests on estimation algorithms might be divided into two different orientations. One of the orientations is in-depth study and analysis of Bayes theory, while another way is to apply advanced intelligent algorithms, such as Neural Networks, Self-organization Algorithms, Genetic Algorithms or their combinations, to modify traditional Kalman Filter and design novel measurement systems of navigation information. The Kalman Filter (KF), also known as linear quadratic estimation (LQE), was firstly proposed by Hungarian-born American mathematician R.E. Kalman in his paper “A new approach to linear filtering and prediction problems” published by Transactions of the ASME in 1960. Kalman Filtering algorithm provides a recursive solution to the linear optimal filtering problem Linear Kalman Filtering algorithm can only solve linear problem. For nonlinear information processing, Nonlinear Kalman filter was suggested to employ in measurement complex As for Self-organization Algorithms, Group Method of Data Handling algorithm represent as a sorting-out method that are usually employed to process navigation information in complex measurement systems. Whereas, during the full self-organizing processing for updating new states, it is inevitable to cause aging and inbreeding effects that have a negative impact on the accuracy of this algorithm. To some extent, Self-organization Algorithm with Redundant Trends can overcome those negative influences above and thus may be applied to process navigation information with less calculation workload and better optimal solutions via rebuilding real-time nonlinear estimation models by utilizing redundant trends.

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What’s more, Neural Network is a general mathematical computing paradigm that models the operations of biological neural systems. In 1943, McCulloch and Pitts (1943) published a seminal paper titled “A logical calculus of ideas imminent in nervous activity”, which inspired the development of the modern digital computer and the electronic brain. At approximately the same time, Rosenblatt (1957) investigated the computation of the eye, which eventually led to the first generation of Neural Networks, known as the perceptron. Artificial Neural Networks generally might be used as nonlinear filter of a signal for the purposes of noise reduction and signal enhancement. For applying Neural Networks as nonlinear filter, an extensive set of training samples to cover all possible situations must be collected so as to adapt to the given training set. During the operation of highly dymanic objects, such as combat aircrafts, the mathematic models of studied system are usually employed for control of the aircraft to run as we want to be. When we know nothing about the prior information of studied objects, we can put Neural Networks into use for the sake of building mathematic models during operation. Thanks to Neural Networks, some high accuracy mathematic models can be established after long time training. The training of Neural Networks might be progressed as follows: i) giving initial weights randomly; ii) realizing training epoch; iii) testing the formed models of neural network. One of the most popular Neural Networks is Backpropagation (BP) algorithm, a method for learning in multi-layer networks. After choosing initial weights of the network randomly, the Backpropagation algorithm can be applied to compute the necessary corrections. The BP algorithm generally is decomposed as the following four steps: i) feed-forward computation; ii) Back propagation to the output layer; iii) Back propagation to the hidden layer; iv) weight updates. Similarly, Neural Networks may also be used to make prediction of system states, and thus can be implemented for further building linear or nonlinear prediction models that might offer essential compensation information to correct deviations of measurement systems. Based upon natural selection and natural genetics, Genetic Algorithms were initiated as stochastic search techniques by Holland (1975). Standard genetic algorithm was first described in his monograph “Adaptation in Natural and Artificial Systems” published by the University of Michigan press. Later, variations of basic Genetic Algorithms were proposed, but few of them significantly represent as new methodologies. During the performance of flight vehicles, we may compare estimates INS errors from Kalman Filter with predictions INS errors obtained with GA to correct deviations on the output terminal of measurement complex. During the function of highly dynamic objects, such as aircrafts, rockets and spacecrafts, the theoretical values or reference values are impossible to be obtained. Therefore, it is highly required to apply some accuracy analysis and evaluation methods to evaluate the efficiency of traditional and advanced intelligent estimation algorithms in complex measurement systems. In this case, the formulae of location errors, functioning as an accuracy evaluation criterion, can be formulated according to the movement model of gyro-stabilizing platform. By applying this accuracy evaluation criterion, the performance and accuracy available of estimation algorithms above can be evaluated during semi-physical modeling of complex measurement systems.

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SOME SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH RESULTS OF THE AVIONICS ENGINEERING CENTER At the Avionics Engineering Center, some perspective scientific research tasks are carrying out based on advance multifunctional experiment platforms. In the following studies, we would like to select the errors model of navigation systems as the object of our study. The mathematical model of navigation errors has a form as: x k = Φk −1x k −1 + wk −1

(1)

 1 −gT 0       δVk   0  T  T  is the transfer where x k =  ψk  is state vector, wk −1 =  0  is input noise, Φk =  1     R   εk  ϖk −1  0 1 − µT  0   matrix, δV is the velocity error, ψ is the misalignment angle, ε is the drift rate, g is the acceleration of gravity, R is the Earth radius, T is the sampling time, ϖ is the Gaussian white noise with zero mean and covariance matrix Qk . In general, part of the state can be directly measured as: z k = H k x k + vk

(2)

Figure 2. Multipurpose multifunctional exerciser based on four-generation aircraft

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where z k is the vector of state measuring, H k is the measuring matrix, vk is the discrete matrix of Gaussian white noise with zero mean and covariance matrix Rk .

Results of the Study of Estimation Algorithms As for estimation algorithms, the most applied algorithm might be the Kalman filter. The equations of nonlinear Kalman filter are xˆk = xˆk /k −1 + K k (xˆk −1 ) z k − H k xˆk /k −1    xˆk /k −1 = Φk (xˆk −1 ) −1

K k (xˆk −1 ) = Pk /k −1H kT H k Pk /k −1H kT + Rk   

Pk /k −1 =

∂Φk (xˆk −1 ) ∂x Tk −1

(3)

T

 ∂Φ (xˆ ) k k −1  Pk −1   + Qk T  ∂x k −1 

Pk = I − K k (xˆk −1 ) H k  Pk /k −1   where K k – optimal Kalman gain, Pk – covariance matrix of estimation errors, I – identity matrix. In order to analyze the efficacy of estimation algorithms, i.e. Kalman filter, modified Kalman filter with self-organization algorithms and genetic algorithms, the real laboratory tests were applied to evaluate the achievable estimation accuracy under a half-real environment. The navigation errors model serves as a system model, while velocity errors function as a measurement. The tested complex measurement system of navigation information CompaNav-2 can provide position coordinates and attitude angles of an aircraft. Besides these parameters above, the measurement system can also output accelerations and angular rates of aircraft-body motion with respect to the local-level frame. By utilizing various estimation algorithms for processing navigation information, Kalman Filter, Self-organization Algorithms and Genetic Algorithms were subsequently tested corresponding to structure blocks of novel measurement complex of navigation information. The result is illustrated in Figure 3. According to the results of laboratory experiments above, we can make conclusions as follows: In terms of navigation information processing, self-organization algorithms and genetic algorithms work better than Kalman filter; Kalman filter can reliably process navigation information, and thus the estimated values with Kalman filter might be function as a reference for evaluating the efficacy of navigation algorithms. The achievements of this research are beneficial for increasing the accuracy of navigation systems.

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Figure 3. The estimated misalignment angles with different estimation algorithms

1 – estimated navigation errors with classical Kalman filter, 2 – estimated navigation errors with self-organization algorithms, 3 – estimated navigation errors with genetic algorithms, 4 – reference of navigation errors during laboratory experiments.

Results of the Study of the Degree of Observability Generally, the criterion for the degree of observability (Ham, & Brown, 1983; Ma, Fang, Wang, & Li, 2014) has the following form as: λi =

E [(x i )2 ]R E [(y i )2 ]Ri

(4)

where E [(x i )2 ] is the variance of i-th state-variable, E [(y i )2 ] is the variance of measured values. The degree of observability (Yu, Cui, & Zhu, 2015; Wang, & Xia, 2015) can serve as an index to select better external aided navigation systems with time goes on. To clearly illustrate this function, we calculate the degree of observability with measurement from two sensors and show their relative relationship in Figure 4. On the basis of the results illustrated above, it is easily to make the decision on which aided sensors should be selected during current time period and how to change the structure of integrated navigation systems to adapt to the changes of internal state and external environment.

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Figure 4. The degree of observability of angular error with different sensors

SUMMARY The Avionics Engineering Center as a joint project was briefly introduced, and main research and educational directions of this center were also presented. Functioning as a scientific and engineering school of world level, the main tasks of Avionics Engineering Center were illustrated. Then, methods on implementation of perspective scientific-research and educational programs were developed for innovative development in the Center. The symbiosis of new developed methods and programs allows training and getting a set of better quality specialists and innovative technologies in the defense and aerospace industry.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Nowadays the establishment and successful application of engineering center allows to solve one of the most important and urgent tasks at the current stage, that is the creation of a new generation of young scientists capable of creating breakthrough technologies in industry. One of the methodological foundations of innovative developments in the Avionics Engineering Center is the use of a large amount of “Russian method of engineering training”. Within the framework of the advanced training system of “Russian method of engineering training”, training programs for aviation specialists are implemented. At the Avionics Engineering Center, dynamic stands and aircraft cabin simulators are used to consolidate the acquired theoretical knowledge and develop the basic scientific knowledge.

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In the process of preparation in Scientific and Educational Center (SEC), students get acquainted with the methods of work at specific enterprises, join scientific collectives, adopt the accumulated scientific and production experience, concentrated in the enterprises. Students who have been trained in the system of advanced training in the SEC complex have priority in finding a job in specialized enterprises. Thus, the mechanism of adaptation of students and young specialists can be realized at the most difficult and fateful stage of individual professional trajectory. The annual summarizing of the student’s activity allows him to correct individual professional trajectory. The implementation of an individual professional trajectory in SEC provides for the self-realization of a student in various research directions. For example, a student has the opportunity to gain basic knowledge and try himself in the tasks of developing intelligent systems for general use in the engineering centers, and then try himself at the SEC “Avionics” when solving highly specialized tasks. The implementation of the presented adaptation mechanism is carried out within the framework of advanced training system, the consumer organizations assess the level of graduates of the university. For example, the company “Mail.ru” carries out the integration of departments of “promising technologies” and “cloud computing” by 80% from students of BMSTU. Geomification is a promising educational technology, which allows you to adjust the educational process so that the learner learns from his mistakes. For example, a student trained in cabin simulator of SEC “Avionics” systematically corrects the deviation when imitating the launch of a missile at a target. It is not possible to correct the situation by correcting the navigation process. There is an interest to correct the situation, to understand the technology of missile guidance, to understand the algorithms and models of guidance, and then improve it. The cabin-simulator of the SEC “Avionics” is a research cabin, that is, there is a possibility of access to the modeling complex. A feature of gaming used in the advanced training system is the realization of the learner’s ability to learn not only on his own mistakes, but also on other people’s mistakes, working in small mixed creative groups. Competitions for teamwork of the two crews motivate the student to search for new tactical solutions when imitating the real situation, etc., instill team interaction skills, and strengthen the motivation to learn new things. The peculiarity of the advanced training system applies for students who have already been working as part of small mixed creative groups. There is competition within a small creative group and between groups, which increases the effectiveness of the learning process. Geomification calls for constant feedback from the teachers (the leaders of a small creative group, tutor) who performs: • • • •

Constant correction of the educational process through gaming technologies; Setting new goals, increasing goals and maintaining motivation for the realization of goals; Combination of individual competition and teamwork; Monitor over the student’s educational potential’s enhancement and the accumulation of knowledge and skills, which enable the transition of specialist from the “scarlet ocean” to the “blue ocean”.

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In contrast to the current gaming format adopted in the advanced training system, simulators are auxiliary elements in the process of realizing gaming. Thus, through the implementation of advanced training system of “Russian method of engineering training”, a personnel selection – selection of future employees for enterprises is carried out in the preliminary stage. The world view of the students are formed involved in the process of training and scientific research activities.

REFERENCES Brown, R. G. (1973). Integrated navigation systems and Kalman filtering: A perspective. Navigation, 19(4), 355–362. doi:10.1002/j.2161-4296.1972.tb01706.x Carvalho, H., Moral, P. D., & Monin, A. (1997). Optimal nonlinear filtering in GPS/INS integration. IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems, 33(3), 835–850. doi:10.1109/7.599254 Ham, F. M., & Brown, R. G. (1983). Observability, eigenvalues, and Kalman filtering. IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems, 19(2), 269–273. doi:10.1109/TAES.1983.309446 Holland, H. J. (1975). Adaptation in natural and artificial systems. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press. Ivachnenko, A. G. (1971). Polynomial theory of complex systems. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, 1(4), 364–378. doi:10.1109/TSMC.1971.4308320 Kalman, R. E. (1961). A new approach to linear filtering and prediction problems. Transactions of the ASME –. Journal of Basic Engineering, 82(1), 35–45. doi:10.1115/1.3662552 Knyaginin, V. N., Meshkov, N. A., & Utolin, K. V. (2016). Advanced education in the information society. International Review of Management and Marketing, 6(3), 89–99. Ma, Y., Fang, J., Wang, W., & Li, J. (2014). Decoupled observability analyses of error states in INS/GPS integration. Journal of Navigation, 67(03), 473–494. doi:10.1017/S0373463313000829 McCulloch, W. S., & Pitts, W. (1943). A logical calculus of the ideas immanent in nervous activity. The Bulletin of Mathematical Biophysics, 5(4), 115–133. doi:10.1007/BF02478259 Neusypin, K. A., Proletarsky, A. V., Shen, K., Liu, R., & Guo, R. (2014). Aircraft self-organization algorithm with redundant trend. Journal of Nanjing University of Science and Technology, 5, 602–607. Proletarsky, A. V., Shen, K., & Neusypin, K. A. (2015). Intelligent control systems: Contemporary problems in theory and implementation in practice. In Proceedings of the 2015 5th International Workshop on Computer Science and Engineering: Information Processing and Control Engineering. Moscow: The Science and Engineering Institute. Rosenblatt, F. (1957). The Perceptron: a perceiving and recognizing automaton. New York: Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory.

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Stepanov, O. A., & Toropov, A. B. (2010). A comparison of linear and nonlinear optimal estimators in nonlinear navigation problem. Gyroscopy and Navigation, 1(3), 183–190. doi:10.1134/S2075108710030053 Stepanov, O. A., & Vasiliev, V. A. (2010). Comparison of the Bayesian and neural network algorithms in nonlinear navigation estimation problems. In Proceedings of the 2010 International Joint Conference on Neural Networks. Barcelona: IEEE Computational Intelligence Society. 10.1109/IJCNN.2010.5596834 Wang, L., & Xia, Y. (2015). Observability analysis of Mars entry integrated navigation. Advances in Space Research, 56(5), 952–963. doi:10.1016/j.asr.2015.05.016 Yu, Z., Cui, P.-y., & Zhu, S.-y. (2015). Observability-based beacon configuration optimisation for mars entry navigation. Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics, 38(4), 643–650. doi:10.2514/1.G000014

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Avionics: The electronic systems used on aircraft, artificial satellites, and spacecraft. The term avionics is a portmanteau of the words aviation and electronics. Genetic Algorithm: A metaheuristic inspired by the process of natural selection that belongs to the larger class of evolutionary algorithms. Global Navigation Satellite System: A system that uses satellites to provide autonomous geo-spatial positioning. Group Method of Data Handling: A family of inductive algorithms for computer-based mathematical modeling of multi-parametric datasets that features fully automatic structural and parametric optimization of models. Inertial Navigation System: A navigation aid that uses a computer, motion sensors (accelerometers) and rotation sensors (gyroscopes) to continuously calculate via dead reckoning the position, orientation, and velocity of a moving object without the need for external references. Intelligent System: A system with artificial intelligence. Kalman Filter: An algorithm that uses a series of measurements observed over time, containing statistical noise and other inaccuracies, and produces estimates of unknown variables that tend to be more accurate than those based on a single measurement alone, by using Bayesian inference and estimating a joint probability distribution over the variables for each timeframe. The filter is named after Rudolf E. Kálmán, one of the primary developers of its theory. Neural Network: A computational model used in computer science and other research disciplines, which is based on a large collection of simple neural units (artificial neurons), loosely analogous to the observed behavior of a biological brain’s axons.

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APPENDIX A student of BMSTU M. Selezneva has been successfully trained in the advanced training system of “Russian method of engineering training”: laureate of the program “Step into the Future”, student of the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, PhD student (thesis prepared in 2 years), the algorithm developer of the aiming and navigation complex of aircrafts (the results of the works were used in the Ramenskoye Design Company). Graduates of the BMSTU, trained at Avionics Engineering Center, have the experience of solving real scientific and production problems, own modern engineering methods and software skills, published scientific works, skills and abilities to set prospective tasks and develop their original solutions, are included in the workflow of enterprises even as a student. The advanced training system of “Russian method of engineering training” can not only help the enterprises attract prospective specialists capable of meeting the challenges in the future, but also at the present stage obtain reliable personnel, ensure continuity and not lose the invaluable experience of generations. Young specialists from the school of SEC complex get the opportunity to realize the individual professional trajectory more effectively. Figure 5. A student of the BMSTU with the cabin-simulator at Avionics Engineering Center

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Figure 6. Exercise of group interaction in the cabin-simulator at Avionics Engineering Center

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Chapter 20

Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of EngineerGeological Specialties: Using the Example of Solving a Task Concerning the Processing of Technogenic Mineral Resources

Vadim Vitalievich Ponkratov Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia

Tatiana Alekseevna Bloshenko Financial University Under the Government of the Russian Federation, Russia

Andrey Sergeevich Pozdnyaev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

Alena Fedorovna Kireyeva Belarus State Economic University, Belarus

ABSTRACT Practice-oriented models are essential when teaching economics to engineering students. This chapter will discuss how to set and solve the applied scientific task of processing technogenic mineral reserves. Tools will be offered relating to engineering geological, economic, and mathematical sciences, as well as to form a group of students with various specialties. Experiments will aim to find solutions to these tasks with a generalized gradient method. This chapter will use evolutionary algorithms to calculate ad valorem MET rates. Technogenic raw materials are of economic interest to extract valuable components and produce finished goods. Often, the content of valuable components in technogenic deposits (TD) exceeds the content in natural fields. While secondary mineral resources harm the ecosystem, it is impossible to prevent environmental risks due to the lack of subsoil use. Differentiated rates will be selected based on maximum MET capacity on all valuable components extracted from deposits provided that each deposit is considered an investment project for the stated problem.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch020

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties

INTRODUCTION Training students of engineering specialties is growing due to modern conditions. Graduates can apply their fundamental knowledge of basic economics and experience in making calculations in the following areas: • • • •

Innovative entrepreneurship and technological start-up; Collaborative initiatives with economic agencies within large corporations; Integration into modern hi-tech businesses; High-level research and engineer studies, as well as their subsequent commercialization.

Aside from traditional workshops and lectures, practice-oriented teaching methods (i.e., a case study method, brainstorming sessions, etc.) are required. It is effective to conduct classes in mixed groups depending on their field specialization (i.e., merging engineers, technologists, economists, etc.). As Russian universities abolish the engineer-economist specialty, this approach will be valuable. The following section will consider the extended example of interrelated application of engineering geological, economic, and mathematical tools to solve the applied scientific task concerning the processing of technogenic mineral reserves.

Statement of the Praktiko-Focused Task The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) collects information about the quantity and quality of all mineral resources. In 1976, the USGS and the U.S. Bureau of Mines developed a common classification and nomenclature, which was published as USGS Bulletin 1450-A—”Principles of the Mineral Resource Classification System of the U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological Survey.” Experience with this resource classification system showed that some changes were necessary in order to make it more workable in practice and more useful in long-term planning. Therefore, representatives of the USGS and the U.S. Bureau of Mines collaborated to revise Bulletin 1450-A. Their work was published in 1980 as USGS Circular 831— “Principles of a Resource/Reserve Classification for Minerals” (USGS Bulletin, 1976). Domestic science gives several definitions of technogenic fields (TF). For example, K. Troubetzkoy and V. Umanets consider TF as the technogenic formations containing minerals, which are suitable for effective use in material production at the moment in quantity and quality (Troubetzkoy & Umanets, 1998). It should be noted that the research of K. Trubeckoy, V. Umanets and A. Tolumbaeva is very significant in science for the theoretical development of TF. According to their opinion, the comparative characteristics of technogenic objects should be evaluated using the criterion of the benefit maximization. From the standpoint of V. Chainikov and E. Goldman, TF is the accumulation of waste tonnage of mineral raw materials, which provides the economic effect by using (Chainikov & Goldman, 2000). According to Pruss (2013), it was reasonable that the MET rate for mineral resources extracted from TDs should not be greater than 2%. Yet, no calculations or feasibility analysis of the indicated MET rate (Pruss, 2013) have been carried out. Other studies recommend to conduct MET differentiation in view of mining and geological, economic, and geographical peculiarities and the depleted status of deposits (Hung & Quyen, 2009; Lund, 2009; Pittel & Bretschger, 2010; Ponkrratov & Pozdnyaev, 2016). Bloshenko, Pozdnyaev, and Pozdnyaev (2016) and Ponkratov (2014) theoretically justified a method to identify the differentiated MET rates in relation to TDs.

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D. Lund considers that at the same time, this tax is neutral in relation to companies that are well diversified. Although the information needed to implement an exactly optimal tax rate may be difficult to obtain (Lund, 2009). Pittel K. and Bretschger L. (2010) analyze an economy in which sectors are heterogeneous with respect to the intensity of natural resource use. Long-term dynamics are driven by resource prices, sectoral composition, and directed technical change. We study the balanced growth path and determine stability conditions. Technical change is found to be biased towards the resource-intensive sector. Resource taxes have no impact on dynamics except when the tax rate varies over time. Constant research subsidies raise the growth rate while increasing subsidies have the opposite effect. We also find that supporting sectors by providing them with productivity enhancing public goods can raise the growth rate of the economy and additionally provide an effective tool for structural policy. To engage the secondary mineral resources for processing, it is supposed to implement the investment project. For this the data on TF in Russia are necessary: their composition, volume, recycling, etc. Selection criterion to choose tax rates on mining is the maximum flow of MET in the budget for all TF (Bloshenko, 2013). Currently, there is no formalized approach to define MET rates relating the resources extracted from TDs. To define differentiated MET rates, this article will show a balance of state’s interest (determination of tax potential) and a subsoil user’s interest (profitability of a project for developing new deposits). To develop methods of defining ad valorem MET rates, this article will identify factors of rent that arise during mineral resources extraction and comprehensive processing of minerals. The contents of the valuable component and its amount in the base product is a fundamental requirement for economically feasible level of exemption from taxation at the stages of production of mineral resources and of procession of mineral resources. Common types of mineral resources are not considered when searching the solution of this problem as they may be taken for processing losses and by-products.

Research Methods Within the proposed methods of identifying MET differentiated rates, it is expected that involvement of TDs into processing will be implemented with an investment project. To implement this approach, data are required on TD of Russia enshrined in a TD registry. This would contain: • • •

Mining and geological figures, including the amounts of valuable components in initial raw materials Amounts of valuable components extracted into the base product Prices, expenses, volumes of secondary mineral resources processing, development cost, etc.

In proposed methods, MET rate selection criterion is the maximum MET potential for the valuable components extracted from TD. The following symbols build a model: • • • •

224

М: Number of considered TD rm: Minimum rate of return at which the m-deposit development project is implemented (the m value may vary depending on region and deposit) K: Amounts of valuable components in considered TDs tm: Duration of m-deposit development investment project

 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties

• •

• • •

cmt: Cost of the m-investment project per t-year qmtk: Finished product made up of chemically pure metal in which the value is a product of extracted minerals mass multiplied by the amount of valuable component (g/t) in this mass and throughout recovery of k-component at the m-deposit per t-year in accordance with the established procedure ptk: Anticipated exchange price of a k-component per t-year ηk: Required MET rate for k-valuable component (%) dt: Discount rate for t-year (defined as zero-component rate of return for state bonds or G-curve) The following indicator function is introduced:

0, x < 0 F (x ) =  ; 1, x ≥ 0 

(1)

It is assumed that the m-deposit development project will be implemented if (1) its internal rate of return (IRR rate) is not lower than the known minimum rate of return (rm) or (2) if the project NVP calculated by the rm rate is greater than or equal to zero, which is essentially the same. In case MET is calculated regarding the total component sales income, the condition of implementation of the m-deposit development project would be the following: K

tm

NPVm (rm ) = ∑ t =1

∑ ((1 − η )q k

k =1

mtk

)

ptk − cmt

(1 + rm )

t

≥ 0 ;

(2)

Looking at the right-hand side of Equation 2, the product of qmtkptk proceeds from the sale of kvaluable component extracted from m-deposit during the t-year. Accordingly, (1 − ηk )qmtk ptk stands for the economic benefits on k-valuable component that arise after MET taxation. The term of a fraction of the Equation 2 is the surplus on m-deposit development after MET on the whole valuable component per t-year has been calculated and paid. Given values are discounted at the rm rate of return. This would provide the implementation of the m-deposit development investment project. Under given TD parameters, the fulfillment of Equation 2 condition depends on established MET rates. Tax potential for MET shall be considered as the present value of revenues received from MET payments: M

NPVTM (ηk , k = 1, … K ) =

max(tm ,m =1,…M )

∑ t =1

K

∑ F (NPV (r )) ∑ η q m =1

m

m

k =1 t

(1 + d )

k mtk

ptk

;

(3)

t

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 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties

(

)

(

)

In this equation, F NPVm (rm ) = 1 , if m – TD developed and F NPVm (rm ) = 0 in the contrary case. The production of ηkqmtkptk equals MET revenue to budgets of the budgetary system of the Russian Federation per yeart from a TD m upon its development. Therefore, the term of the fraction at the righthand side of Equation 3 stands for MET tax revenues to budgets of the budgetary system of the Russian Federation per year (calendar tax period)t from all the TDsm under development. To calculate present value of future MET payments, it is necessary to conduct discounting at rate of return of state bonds represented, as already stated, in the form of the G-curve. To calculate the optimum differentiated MET rates, if the tax base is determined by the exchange prices for finished products (chemically pure metal) providing the development of cost-effective deposits and maximization of tax potential for MET, it is required to solve the optimization problem in Equation 4: M

max(tm ,m =1,…M )



max

t =1

K

∑ F (NPV (r )) ∑ η q m =1

m

m

k =1 t

(1 + d )

k mtk

ptk ;

(4)

t

ηk , k = 1, … K

ηk ≥ ηk*, k = 1, … K In this equation, ηk*, k = 1, … K is the minimum value of MET rates on the relevant components. In a particular case, any or all of the values of ηk*, k = 1, …, K can be negative. When Equation 4 is solved, the corresponding MET rates ηk , k = 1, … K can be also negative. Negative MET rates on certain valuable components extracted from the TD would mean subsidies payments. These are the financial payments made by the state (i.e., the Russian Federation Government Decree #1339 dated September 12, 2014, with amendments and additions), as well as other benefits stipulated by the existing legislation of the Russian Federation. In some cases, negative MET rates promote the development of deposits that would not be developed without subsidies. As a result, tax potential will increase for MET calculated by using Equation 3. If the subsidy is not permitted, it will be required to determine ηk* ≥ 0, k = 1, … K . The following method for identifying differentiated MET rates consists of calculating the estimated value of the extracted minerals resources as a basis for the determination of the taxable base for MET. In this case, cmtk is a part of the costs that relate to the k valuable component: cmtk = cmt

qmtk K

∑q k =1

;

mtk

The condition of implementation of the investment project is:

226

(5)

 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties

K

tm

NPVm (rm ) = ∑

∑ (q k =1

mtk

ptk – (1 + ηk )cmtk )

(1 + r )

t

t =1

≥ 0 ;

(6)

m

The term of a fraction stands for the benefits after MET on a specific deposit per t-calendar period has been calculated and paid. As in Equation 2, payment discounting is carried out at the rm rate. Given cost of MET revenue (tax potential) from the development of TD amounts to: M

NPVTM (ηk , k = 1, … K ) =

(



m =1

K

)∑ η c

max(tm ,m =1,…M ) ∑ F NPVm (rm )

k =1

(1 + d )

t

t =1

k mtk

;

(7)

t

The optimization problem in identifying differentiated MET rates takes the following form: M

max

max(tm ,m =1,…M )

∑ t =1

K

∑ F (NPV (r )) ∑ η c m =1

m

m

k =1

(1 + d )

t

k mtk

;

(8)

t

ηk , k = 1,… K

ηk ≥ ηk*, k = 1, … K If the subsidies or/and tax benefits are not granted, the values of the ηk* ≥ 0, k = 1, … K parameters should be used. Equations 1.4 and 1.8 are complicated optimization problems due to F(x) constant function (Equation 1) in the functions to be optimized.

RESULTS The following are consequences of built optimization models for identifying differentiated MET rates when developing TD: • • • •

Clarify the number of discussed TDs, as well as invest in a development project for each TD Clarify the minimum internal rate of return for investment projects providing the implementation of the project and its profitability (the rates vary depending on region and deposit); Set the duration terms of the investment project according to the business plan Determine the percentage of valuable components contained in the deposit in 1 ton of extracted minerals according to the business plan;

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• • • • •

Determine the direct and indirect costs per 1 ton of each valuable component according to the business plan (in presentation currency such as USD); Set the value of products manufactured from the specific type of valuable component (without VAT), in USD per 1 ton, for the entire implementation phase; Write the expression for the net present value (NPV) depending on MET rates at given rate of return; Write the expression for calculating MET tax revenues to budget that arise from development of deposits, to determine the optimal value for the ad valorem MET rates for each component that is contained in TD, by solving the appropriate optimization problem; Solve the optimization problem using the MS Excel Solver add-in.

As an example of solving complex problems (Equations 1.4 and 1.8), three deposits containing three valuable components were considered: nickel, copper, and zinc. Prices for the specified period relating to the implementation of the investment projects were determined by Bloomberg (n.d.). The notional value of project implementation has been calculated with allowance for the gradual increase in costs caused by inflation. It was expected that the extraction of each component would be conducted on a continuous basis. This does not consider the setting and the final stages of project implementation because the deposit is not natural. Therefore, there is no provision for enhancing the production capacity, extraction volumes, and extension of mining claim borders. Results have been received by solving the optimization problem (Equation 4). The first calculation was conducted by considering the subsidy constraints. The second calculation allowed for a negative MET rate value up to -20%. Identification of differentiated tax rates on the estimated value of extracted mineral resources contains the result of the (Equation 8) problem solution. The same project parameters were used. Provided that exchange prices for the finished products were used when defining the tax base for MET, then subsidy of up to 20% of proceeds received for a valuable component would make it possible to initiate the process of developing two out of three considered TDs. As a result, the tax potential grows from US$9,012,293 to US$14,186,767. This is more than 57% higher. Using the estimated cost of the mineral resources as a base for MET in given conditions has made it impossible to develop more than one deposit. In case of negative rates, the development of the first field remains profitable. However, the tax potential slightly increases due to changes in financial flows considered when using Equation 7. To determine the tax base for MET with regard to the exchange prices of finished product, the differentiated MET rates have been determined for the following natural deposits: •



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Kamchatskaya Copper Company, LLC: This is an investment project titled “Construction of Maletoyvayamsky Area Ore Mining and Processing Enterprise.” Its value is 534 mln roubles with VAT (to calculate MET potential and to determine the optimal MET rate, the value given is without VAT). The project duration is estimated to be 20 years with projected capacity of 140 tons. Bystrinskaya Mining Company, CJSC: This is an investment project titled “Construction of ‘Kumroch’ Ore Mining and Processing Enterprise.” Its value is 10,590 mln rubles with VAT (to calculate MET potential and determine the optimal MET rates, the value given is without VAT). The project duration is estimated to be 15 years with 30 tons of reserves and 170 tons of resources.

 Practice-Oriented Approach to the Study of Economics to Students of Engineer-Geological Specialties

Industry classification of projects—extraction of precious metals ores (gold, silver, platinum, and palladium). Additional mechanisms for implementing the projects include receiving the status of the regional investment project in accordance with Section 3.3 Part 1 of Tax Code of the Russian Federation (n.d., 2002, 2016). At present, taxation of precious metals is conducted in accordance with Section 5, Article 340 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. This defines that the estimated value of precious metals extracted from the primary, placer, and TDs is calculated based on taxpayer’s sale prices put on the chemically pure metals without VAT, reduced by the taxpayer’s expenses for refining and delivery, for the specific taxable period (in the absence thereof, for the nearest preceding taxable period). The methodology used to determine the tax base on the basis of the estimated value for the specific deposits cannot be applied. Regarding the fact that the format of the specified investment projects does not contain information on the content of the valuable component and the volume of its extraction to the finished products, the following values were used to solve the problem: content of gold (4 g/t); silver (8 g/t); platinum (5 g/t); palladium (6 g/t); and average coefficient of extraction (0.75) considering the ore dilution factor. To define MET potential, the resources and the reserves are aggregated. As an assumption for calculating the price on palladium, the value of US$670 per ounce was increased by 10% on an annual basis. This was in accordance with terms of the project implementation and inflation. When conducting calculations using the method suggested in this section (see Equation 4), the optimal ad valorem MET rate will be: gold (10%); silver (8.6%); platinum (3.2%); and palladium (0%). Calculations are conducted with regard to non-negativity constraint. In accordance with the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, current MET rates compared to those received show that MET rate for gold comprise 6% and MET rate for multicomponent raw materials comprises 8% (n.d., 2002, 2016). According to this example, the tax potential for MET comprises US$731,536. Both deposits are under development.

CONCLUSION The authors suggest to determine the database of investment projects (mining of solid minerals), and based on this database to calculate differentiated MET rate at which the profitability of investment projects is ensured. MET rates are determined by solving optimization problems, the basic conditions of which are stock prices for finished products, key performance indicators of the investment project (NPV, IRR), and G- curve. The economic implications of the suggested method are as follows: with positive MET rates the field should be developed, and with negative ones the field mining needs the subsidies from the state. Methods for determination of optimal MET-rates calculate income to the budget with secondary mineral resources recycling in TD. Involvement of secondary resources in recycling is directed to the full withdrawal of all useful components from the mining wastes. Rational use of resources is aimed at reducing the negative impact on the environment. An alternative idea is to use not the best severance tax rate for the taxation of TM. Then taxes will be lower. This algorithm is implemented in a standard Excel add-in. Here it is necessary to specify in the article. A description of the algorithm wo uld require a separate article (maybe not the same). The article makes it clear that there are some variables, what is the criterion of optimization and constraint.

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Methods for determination of optimal MET - may be used for Russian Federation, because Tax Code of the Russian Federation hadn’t the Differentiated MET Rates Relating to the Recovery of Solid Minerals the Differentiated MET Rates Relating to the Recovery of Solid Minerals. If we wont to use these Methods for determination of optimal MET for anything Countries we mast know Tax Code of this Countries.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The countries that use the JORC system to calculate reserves and resources must identify the procedure for forming the cadastre of secondary mineral resources containing useful components. The conducted work will require applying the models presented above. To adapt these models to foreign countries, it is advisable to consider the discount rates and the possibility to substitute the Heaviside step function with Monte Carlo methods and to impose restrictions depending on the amount of extraction and processing waste and the scope of state support, namely to establish the linkage between tax and environment policies of a country. Foreign countries preform complex processing of minerals, so on the basis of the foreign experience it is possible to make a conclusion that complex processing of minerals implies zero waste. The tax assessment of by-products acquired in integrated technological process in various taxation systems of China, Kazakhstan, the USA, the UK, Germany and France is of greatest interest. In India, for example, differentiated royalty rates are defined by the content of useful components and the processing level. High rate level means higher content of useful components in raw materials. Calculation of differentiated rates requires identifying whether the component is a staple or a by-product. Ad-valorem rate is higher for metals produced during the integrated technological process known as by-production. International fiscal systems provide various tools to perform mine rent withdrawal, so the international experience will provide basis to adapt models aimed at defining tax rates and resource tax potential.

REFERENCES Bloomberg Market. (n.d.). Retrieved December 18, 2016, from http://www.bloomberg.com/markets Bloshenko, T., Ponkratov, V., & Pozdnjaev, A. (2016). Development of methods for determining differentiated rates of mineral extraction tax in recovery of solid commercial components from technogenic and natural fields. Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 9(27). doi:10.17485/ijst/2016/v9i27/97683 Hung, N. M., & Quyen, N. V. (2009). Sales tax: Specific or ad valorem tax for a non-renewable resource? Economics Letters, 102(2), 132–134. doi:10.1016/j.econlet.2008.12.001 Lund, D. (2009). Rent taxation for nonrenewable resources. Annual Review of Resource Economics, 1(1), 287–308. doi:10.1146/annurev.resource.050708.144216

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Pittel, K., & Bretschger, L. (2008). Sectoral heterogeneity, resource depletion, and directed technical change: Theory and policy (Working paper 08/96). CER-ETH – Center of Economic Research at ETH Zurich, Switzerland. Retrieved from https://www.ethz.ch/content/dam/ethz/special-interest/mtec/cer-eth/ cer-eth-dam/documents/working-papers/wp_08_96.pdf Ponkratov, V. V. (2014). Tax maneuver in Russian oil production industry. Neftyanoe khozyaystvo – Oil Industry, 9, 58-61. Ponkratov, V. V., & Pozdnyaev, A. S. (2016). The oil production taxation in Russia – consequences of tax maneuver. Neftyanoe khozyaystvo – Oil Industry, 3, 24-27. Pruss, Y. V. (2013, February). To the problem of exploration of technogenic complex of Kolyma. Gornyi Zhurnal, 2, 38–40. Tax Code of the Russian Federation. (2017). Russian Federation.

ADDITIONAL READING Anisimov, V. N., Adamchuk, A. M., Uvarov, V. M., & Scherbakov, A. Y. (2016). Environmental safety in mining and processing of mineral raw materials under the conditions of rational nature management as exemplified by the Kursk magnetic anomaly region. Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 46, 74–86. Bloshenko, T. A. (2014). Methods for Determination of the Optimal Mining tax Rates when Secondary mineral resources are involved. Social Educational Project of Improving Knowledge in Economics: Journal L’Association 1901 “SEPIKE”. – Poitiers (pp. 102–104). Los Angeles: Osthofen. Bloshenko, T.A. (2014). Taxation Of Mineral Products In Russian Federation. Review of European Studies / Canadian Center of Science and Education, 6-4, 91-99. Lipina, S. A., Zaikov, K. S., & Lipina, A. V. E. (2017). Introduction of innovation technology as a factor in environmental modernization in Russian arctic. Economic and Social Changes: Facts, Trends. Forecast, 2, 164–180. Ponkratov, V. (2015). Oil production taxation in Russia and the impact of the tax maneuver. Journal of Tax Reform, 1(1), 100–112. doi:10.15826/jtr.2015.1.1.007 Rylnikova, M. V. (2011). Combined geo-technology is a way to increase of fullness and complex using of mineral resources. Twentieth International Symposium on Mine Planning and Equipment Selection MPES, 267-279. Saliyeva, R.N. & Fatkudinov Z.M. (2011). Some points concerning legislation regulating relations in the sphere of technogenic deposits. Concise compilation of articles from Representative power – 21 st century: legislation, commentary, problems, 1-4, 6-15. Samarina, V., Skufina, T., Samarin, A., & Baranov, S. (2016). Some System Problems of Russian Mining Enterprises of Ferrous Metallurgy. International Review of Management and Marketing. Special Issue for «Socio-Economic and Humanity-Philosophical Problems of Modern Sciences», 6, 90-94. URL: http://econjournals.com/index.php/irmm/article/view/1882/pdf 231

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Cadastre of Technogenic Deposit: Should be supplemented by the information: 1) capital and operating project costs on the development of each TD; 2) annual extraction of each useful component in the case of realization the investment project when NPV is more than zero; 3) price forecast for all components in the raw materials for the term of investment project. Categories of Reserves: А, В, С1, С2. Reserves of categories A and B are geologically the most detail investigated deposits of operating mines where the current or prior operational prospecting by underground drilling has been fulfilled. Reserves of category C1 are the basic category created by detail prospecting which are used together with A and B for compilation of mine projects, estimation of profitability of ores refinement. Reserves of category C2 are amassed on the flanks of deposits of rich cupriferous ores and deep mines. Besides balance and off-balance reserves in deposits and ore regions еру the forecasted recourses of categories P1, P2 and P3 are estimated. IRR: Internal rate of return. MET: Severance tax. It is paid when developing fields proceeding from quantity or cost of the extracted mineral raw materials. NPV: Net present value, the sum of the discounted values of the flow of payments given to today. Tax Base: Cost, physical or other characteristic of an object of the taxation. Tax Rate: The size of tax charges on a unit of measure of tax base. Technogenic Deposit (TD)/Technogenic Fields (TF): Mining mineral wastes. Technical difficulties to reproduce them are usually absent.

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The Use of Active Learning in Biotechnical Engineering Education Sergey I. Suyatinov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter presents information-computing complex of modular type to perform interdisciplinary laboratory work. The object of the study is a complex biosystem – the human body. Feature of informationcomputing complex is the developed hardware and software for identification and study of systems and processes. Unique biosignal sensors allow to record electrocardiograms and sphygmograms in the process of laboratory work, to realize various algorithms of digital processing of signals and to use them in the process of structural and parametrical identification of cardiovascular system. Other sensors estimate an individual’s psychophysiological state in different conditions. Thus, the student becomes the object of the research. This, undoubtedly, increases their motivation to assimilate new knowledge.

INTRODUCTION Creating and delivering meaningful learning opportunities require a thoughtful and deliberate approach. Often, learning opportunities use innovative technology in course design to motivate and entertain students (Moats, 2015). In this case, it is necessary to consider the characteristics and content of innovative education. Innovative education involves the purposeful formation of certain knowledge, skills, and methodological culture. This imposes special demands on the educational program content and teaching methodology. The following principles of an organization’s educational process in innovative education system contains the following:

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• • •

Problem-oriented interdisciplinary approaches to the study of natural and technical disciplines Active methods of contextual learning, learning from experience, and learning through research Case studies of methods (based on practice)

This chapter represents a conceptual model for implementing the noted principles of an innovative education system. Their implementation is illustrated through an example of a methodology for studying a complex biological system (Anishchenko et al., 2009). This chapter presents information-computing complex for the study of methods and algorithms to assess the functional state of human health based on the registration and processing of biosignals (Buldakova & Suyatinov, 2002).

Problem Orientation and the Research Object The problem orientation of innovative education is determined by the dominant strategy of scientific and technological development. A new technological paradigm based on the synthesis of nano-, bio-, information, and cognitive technologies (NBIC) is dominant (Roco & Bainbridge, 2003). This primarily applies to studies of natural processes for technologization of knowledge and the creation of new anthropomorphic systems. By their efficiency and profitability, these would be like living systems. Successful implementation of this strategy will provide essential competitive advantages and create conditions for economic and social domination (Kamensky, 2015). NBIC-systems are complex and poorly formalized. Therefore, the key moments in the development of NBIC-technologies are the application of interdisciplinary approaches and convergence of sciences and technologies in the study of complex systems characterized by synergistic behavior (Fedorov, Norenkov, & Korshunov, 2006). Poorly formalized complex systems represent real objects in the fields of industry, medicine, economics, and ecology. They are the object of close theoretical study because the successful solution of the problems of diagnostics and forecasting depends on the formal description of the complex system and the construction of its model. The main difficulties in studying complex systems are their abstract representation and complexity of their experimental study. There is a limited choice of complex systems convenient for experimental research under laboratory conditions. The human body is a complex system of natural origin. In modern technical, physical, economic, and other sciences, such complex systems are considered to behave like biological systems. Therefore, using the example of identification and research of the human body, it is possible to study fundamental principles of the functioning of complex systems of various nature. From the standpoint of synergetics, a complex system of natural origin has many degrees of freedom. However, in the process of natural evolution, several degrees are distinguished as order parameters (the others are adjusted accordingly). The dynamics of a limited number of these parameters reflect basic properties of the entire complex system. This chapter will use this to base the principle of the model representation of complex systems of different physical nature. The essence is that it is a priori assumed that, firstly, there are characteristic types of motion inherent in systems of different physical nature. Secondly, the entire physical variety can be presented in the form of enough simple model equations.

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Implementation of Active Learning Methods The methodology of innovative education includes active methods of contextual learning, learning from experience, and learning through research. It is shown that learning opportunities have innovative technology integrated into the course design to engage and entertain the learners (Moats, 2015). One example is the use of virtual reality simulations to train police officers and firefighters on proper response to high-risk situations. While these appear to be full-size simulations, the interactive video games provide learners with stressful experiences and kinesthetic activities without the risk of serious or grave injury. Another example is the use of simulated disaster response props to teach team building and decision making to students in the master of business administration (MBA) program. However, these examples are more student entertainment than contributions to the assimilation of knowledge. Experience shows that laboratory and practical works are of great interest to students. The organization of laboratory works depends on (or is defined by) the level of technological development. The content is determined by the dominant strategy of scientific and technological progress. The paradigm of technological development considered by NBIC has its own peculiarities. The complexity of NBIC systems is not determined by the number of known elements with deterministic constraints. It is determined by the impossibility of decomposition. The leading features of such systems are evolutionary development, synergy of action, and complex interconnections between subsystems. Such systems are available only from the results of indirect measurements and observations. Therefore, it is not possible to use known identification methods. This circumstance imposes the special requirement to a training system in higher education, particularly the organization of laboratory occupations. There is an increase in student training on systems analysis and information processing. These disciplines are the cornerstone of the comprehensive analysis of various natural processes and complex systems. Natural systems are classified as complex. Their research methods use a study course without adequate reflection. If, for example, concepts like research modeling, multi-scale models, basic models, or entropy assessment of the state are discussed at lectures, then their practical demonstration in the laboratory is not possible. Substantially it is caused by the absence of a suitable object of research. At the same time, the cardiovascular system represents a unique object for research, as well as approbation of new methods and approaches to the study of complex systems (Lantsberg, Troitzch, & Buldakova, 2011; Lia, Fua, & Dong, 2008). Practical lessons on the study of complex systems and methods of data processing can be conducted with biotechnical complex. Biotechnical complex, which registers biosignals, allows for the use of various methods of information processing. The student becomes the object of research. This, in turn, increases the student’s motivation. At laboratory sessions, the student studies the methods of identification and learns the state of his/her organism. The initial information for identification is presented in the form of recorded biosignals.

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Organization of the Biotechnical Laboratory The current organization of laboratory work in a technical university is characterized by the following features: • • •

Various courses Unique equipment, particularly specific for a course object Educational (yet, not research nature of laboratory work)

The dominant feature in technological development adds requirements to the practical training of specialists. This includes: • • •

Development of laboratory work using interdisciplinary integration Research-focused laboratory work Research of certain laws rather than private manifestations (fundamental principles of the organization and functioning of living systems)

In addition, there are limited resources for the purchase of expensive equipment and fixed space under laboratories. This adds requirements of aggregation, flexibility, extensibility, and interchangeability of equipment. Until recently, the study of the human state was possible in special laboratories with the use of bulky and expensive hardware. Improvements to microelectronic devices—primarily sensory and computer technology—allows for the creation of safe compact information-computing systems (Paradiso, Loriga, & Taccini, 2005; Winters & Wang, 2003). These systems are used for studying and testing methods of complex systems on the human body. The generalized structure of the complex is shown in Figure 1. The structure is an implemented modular principle of design and organization of mathematical software providing easy reconfiguration. Reconfiguration allows for the adaption of the complex for various laboratory works. The presented biotechnical complex can carry out laboratory works on various disciplines, including: • • • • • •

Programming and debugging of microprocessor technology Digital signal processing Methods and algorithms of identification Methods of diagnosing systems Research of nonstationary systems Identification and methods for assessing the state of complex systems

A feature of a complex is the use of measuring instruments made by the “lab-on-a-chip” technology. With several sensors, the measuring instrument turns on when the microprocessor controls the measuring process and data preprocessing. The lab-on-a-chip expands the functionality of the complex, which makes it suitable for laboratory work in related disciplines (i.e., microprocessor-based systems, telecommunication systems, digital signals processing, etc.). Producer companies do not charge for the delivery of debugging tools.

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Figure 1. Generalized structure of the complex

The complex uses different sensors to satisfy the ease of use requirement. For example, in the presented version of the complex, biosignals of the cardiac cycle are registered by PS25201B and SFH 7050 sensors. PS25201B is an ultra-high impedance solid state electrocardiograph (ECG) sensor. It can be used as a dry contact ECG sensor without the need for potentially dangerous low impedance circuits across the heart. The resolution is good as conventional wet electrodes. The device uses active feedback techniques to lower the effective input capacitance of the sensing element and boost the input resistance. These techniques realize a sensor with a frequency response suitable for both diagnostic and monitoring of ECG applications. The new SFH 7050 is the first integrated optical sensor from OSRAM Opto Semiconductors for automatic fitness tracking. The compact sensor includes three light-emitting diodes of different wave lengths. These are based on high-efficiency chip technology to ensure low energy consumption and high signal quality for extremely reliable simultaneous measurements. A built-in photo detector receives the reflected optical signals, which are separated from the emitters by an opaque barrier.

Methods of Nonlinear Dynamics in the Identification of Complex Systems The presented biotechnical complex investigates methods of nonlinear dynamics in the identification of complex systems. Recently, methods of identification or reconstruction of equations of dynamic systems on the registered signals developed within nonlinear dynamics. The solution of the identification problem allows us to answer the following question: What are the parameters of the system that generated this signal? These parameters can identify (or recognize) the system (i.e., distinguish it from others).

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A similar problem arises in the decision of application-oriented tasks. For example, in tasks of medical diagnostics, it is necessary to distinguish a norm from various pathologies by using measurement characteristics (i.e., heart rate, external breathing functions, pulse signal, etc.). The organization of biological systems is extremely complex and interdependent. These systems belong to the class of nonlinear dissipative systems functioning in the conditions of self-organization. The study of such systems is called synergetics. Synergetics relies on the fundamental laws of nature. Therefore, it operates with abstract mathematical relationships satisfying these laws. These relationships can be referred to as a “model” in the sense that they are applicable to a variety of systems (i.e., physical, biological, economic, etc.). An absolute majority of these model equations were obtained before the emergence of synergetics in the research of concrete physical processes. A typical example is the model equation of the Van der Pol oscillator. In comparison with biological systems, physical systems described by model equations are relatively simple and available for experimental research. Therefore, it seems reasonable to use them as a basis for identifying biosystems. Model approach is perspective in medical applications. The most important biomedical information about the state and dynamics of the subsystem is not contained in the amplitude-frequency spectrum and structure of the recorded biosignals (i.e., ECG, sphygmogram, pneumotachogram, phonogram, etc.). It is contained in models of the studied subsystems and the nature of their interrelations. A big class of complex systems of a natural origin, including the human body, represents various ensembles of interacting subsystems functioning in the oscillatory mode. For example, a person’s heart and vascular systems can be presented in the form of the coupled dynamic systems. The description of the interacting oscillators in the cardiovascular system with use of the basic models used for example in the theory of nonlinear fluctuations is advisable. These relationships can be called “model” in the sense that they are applicable to a variety of systems (i.e., physical, biological, economic, etc.). Biosignals information is available surrounding an organism’s activity. Each signal has its own specificity caused by the concrete physiological nature of its generative organ. Together, they reflect collective and purposeful interaction of the main subsystems of an organism. Their joint analysis judges both the state of the concrete organ and the functional state of the organism. Among recorded biosignals, a special role is played by the signal group generated by elements of the heart-vessels-lungs system. This group includes ECG, phonocardiogram, sphygmogram of the carotid artery, pneumotachogram, and kinetocardiogram. It is proposed to use the mathematical model of the heart-vessels-lungs biosystem as the base object for determining the functional state of the human body. This biosystem is the basis of the body’s oxygen supply. Dynamics of the system elements’ (i.e., heart, vessels, lungs) mechanical movements obey the laws of mechanics. Circumstance makes it possible to construct the components of the structural information models of these elements using the laws of mechanics. Hidden or unknown functioning mechanisms of considered elements, which are available in the form of observable biosignals, are proposed to be described in the form of neural network information models. Thus, the task of structural identification of the model of the heart-vessel-lung biosystem is solved. Parametric identification is carried out on the basis of registered biosignals. Knowledge of the functional state of one’s organism is a motivating factor in the learning process. This is an advantage of the proposed approach to the organization of laboratory and practical works. In summary, the subjects of possible laboratory work in shown in Figure 2 (with participation of students as objects of complex systems). 238

 The Use of Active Learning in Biotechnical Engineering Education

Figure 2. Subjects of laboratory work

As an example, consider the solution of a problem of structural and parametrical identification of the human cardiovascular system (Buldakova & Suyatinov, 2014). The problem is solved with research modeling and basic model approaches. Electrocardiogram signal inputs and sphygmogram signal outputs define parameters of the neural network model describing mechanics of the heart and parameters of the Van der Pol-Rayleigh equation as a model of vessel wall dynamics. At the same time, the state of the system is determined by calculating the approximated value of entropy (Yentes et al., 2013). Optimum (the maximizing of the functional capabilities) implementation of the complex is achieved on the national instrument technical platform and LabVIEW system design software.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS NBIC technological paradigm is based on the fundamental laws inherent in living systems. These laws, in particular, are manifested in the cardiovascular system of man. The presented software and hardware complex allows the student to study the manifestations of these laws on the example of own organism. On the other hand, the described the software and hardware complex allows to combine the learning and research processes. This will improve the presented method of active learning, allowing the student to acquire the skills of the researcher. Such skills are very important characteristic for the modern engineer. Future research can be aimed at developing an active learning methodology that combines learning and research processes in a unified process.

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CONCLUSION This chapter presents an approach to the implementation of active learning methods involving the use of a biotechnical complex in the study of complex systems. The information-computing biotechnical complex intends to study methods and algorithms for the assessment of the functional state of human health on the registration and processing of various biosignals. It is noted that student motivation increases as they become the object of research. Biotechnical complex can be used during laboratory work in disciplines like system analysis and identification, methods and information processing tools, Internet technologies, and automated information-control systems.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT This research was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research [grant number 16-07-00878].

REFERENCES Anishchenko, V. S., Buldakova, T. I., Dovgalevskij, P. Y., Lifshic, V. B., Gridnev, V. I., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2009). Konceptual’naya model’ virtual’nogo centra ohrany zdorov’ya naseleniya [Conceptual model of the virtual center of public health protection]. Informacionnye tekhnologii - Information Technology, 15(12), 59-64. Buldakova, T., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2014). Reconstruction method for data protection in telemedicine systems. Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of the Society for Photo-Instrumentation Engineers, 94481U, 1–6. Buldakova, T. I., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2002). Registration and identification of pulse signal for medical diagnostic. Proceedings of SPIE-The International Society for Optical Engineering, 4707, 343–350. Fedorov, I. B., Norenkov, I. P., & Korshunov, S. V. (2006). Organizacionnaya podgotovka specialistov v oblasti komp’yuternyh nauk, tekhniki i tekhnologij [Organizational training of specialists in the field of computer science, technics and technology]. Informacionnye tekhnologii - Information Technology, 12(9), 73-77. Kamensky, E. G. (2015). Context of NBIC-technologies development: Institutions, ideology and social myths. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(6), 181–185. Lantsberg, A. V., Troitzch, K. G., & Buldakova, T. I. (2011). Development of the electronic service system of a municipal clinic (based on the analysis of foreign Web resources). Automatic Documentation and Mathematical Linguistics, 45(2), 74–80. doi:10.3103/S0005105511020075

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Lia, B. N., Fua, B. B., & Dong, M. C. (2008). Development of a mobile pulsewaveform analyzer for cardiovascular health. Computers in Biology and Medicine, 38(4), 438–445. doi:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2008.01.008 PMID:18328471 Moats, J. (2015). Influences on the acceptance of innovative technologies used in learning opportunities: A theoretical perspective. In F. M. Nafukho & B. J. Irby (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Innovative Technology Integration in Higher Education (pp. 262–281). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-8170-5.ch013 Paradiso, R., Loriga, G., & Taccini, N. (2005). A wearable health care system based on knitted integrated sensors. IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine, 9(3), 337–344. doi:10.1109/ TITB.2005.854512 PMID:16167687 Roco, M. C., & Bainbridge, W. S. (Eds.). (2003). Converging technologies for improving human performance: Nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology and cognitive science. Kluwer Academic Publishers. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-0359-8 Winters, J., & Wang, Y. (2003). Wearable sensors and telerehabilitation. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, 22(3), 56–65. doi:10.1109/MEMB.2003.1213627 PMID:12845820 Yentes, J. M., Hunt, N., Schmid, K. K., Kaipust, J. P., McGrath, D., & Stergiou, N. (2013). The appropriate use of approximate entropy and sample entropy with short data sets. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 41(2), 349–365. doi:10.100710439-012-0668-3 PMID:23064819

ADDITIONAL READING Bolshakov, A., Glaskov, V., Egorov, I., Lobanov, V., Perova, L., & Pchelintseva, S. (2014). Methods and tools for software development to improve the effectiveness of engineering education in the direction of “mechatronics” using grid-computing technologies. In Communications in Computer and Information Science (466 CCIS, pp. 123-133). doi:10.1007/978-3-319-11854-3_12 Buldakova, T. I., & Dzalolov, A. S. (2012). Analysis of data processes and choices of data-processing and security technologies in situation centers. Scientific and Technical Information Processing, 39(2), 127–132. doi:10.3103/S0147688212020116 Chistyakova, T. B., & Novozhilova, I. V. (2016). Intelligence computer simulators for elearning of specialists of innovative industrial enterprises. In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Soft Computing and Measurements (SCM 2016, pp. 329-332). 10.1109/SCM.2016.7519772

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Chistyakova, T. B., Novozhilova, I. V., & Zelezinsky, A. L. (2016). Electronic information and education environment as instrument of forming and quality evaluation of professional competences of the international industrial enterprises specialists.In IEEE 5th Forum Strategic Partnership of Universities and Enterprises of Hi-Tech Branches, Science. Education. Innovations (pp. 12-14). 10.1109/IVForum.2016.7835839 Gavrilina, E., Zakharov, M., Karpenko, A., Smirnova, E., & Sokolov, A. (2016). Model of integral assessment quality of training graduates of higher engeneering education. In CEUR Workshop Proceedings (vol. 12, no. 3-2, pp. 11-16). Kamensky, E. G. (2015). Context of NBIC-technologies development: Institutions, ideology and social myths. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(6), 181–185. Kilpatrick, W. H. (1918). The project method. Teachers College Record, 19, 319–335. Ryneveld, L. V. (2016). Introducing educational technology into the higher education environment: A professional development framework. In K. Dikilitaş (Ed.), Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 126–136). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-9471-2.ch008 Shpak, M. A., Smirnova, E. V., Karpenko, A. P., & Proletarsky, A. V. (2016). Mathematical models of learning materials estimation based on subject ontology. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 450, 271–276. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-33609-1_24

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Anthropomorphic Systems: The humanoid system. Biosignals: Signals recorded by sensors on the human body (i.e., ECG, sphygmogram, pneumotachogram, phonogram, etc.). Cardiovascular System: The circulatory system, including the heart and blood vessels. Information-Computing Complex: Sensors connected to a computer to convert recorded signals. Laboratory Work: Training sessions to carry out experiments.

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The Significance of Interdisciplinary Projects in Becoming a Research Engineer Tatyana I. Buldakova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey I. Suyatinov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter presents the importance of interdisciplinary projects for modern engineer education. The components of the educational process influencing the quality of engineer education are allocated. The importance of the “learning through research” principle is noted. Examples of projects centered on the creation of information-analytical systems in various subject domains, and also, professional tasks which were solved by students are given. The conclusion is drawn that experience in the development of systems in one area can effectively be used in the development of systems in another area. The features of the project centered on the creation of a remote monitoring system of the human state, and the protection of the transferred physiological data are considered.

INTRODUCTION The quality of engineer learning depends on many components directly related to the organization of the educational process (Ryneveld, 2016). The most important ones among them are: the use of modern forms and methods of learning based on information technology; high-quality software and information support of the educational process; integration of the scientific and educational activities of students; widespread introduction of the results of scientific research into the educational process; and practical orientation of the graduation projects (Sinicyna, Kurdyukova, & Abramova, 2013).

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 The Significance of Interdisciplinary Projects in Becoming a Research Engineer

These components are most effective when using active forms of learning; for example, ones based on the project approach (Knoll, 1997). The application of the project method of teaching has a long history. It appeared in the first 20-30 years of the 19th century in the USA and was based on the principle of “Learning-by-doing” (Dewey, 2009) (Kilpatrick, 1918). At present, the methods of project-based learning are the subject of many publications. For engineering education, the fundamental ideas (Hall, 1962) that were described over half-a-century ago have remained relevant. The project approach is also widely applied in the industry when developing new equipment and techniques. Therefore, it is logical to acquaint students with the main ideas of the project approach at the implementation of not only educational, but also real-world, projects. The Internet and modern information technologies provide quick access to a huge amount of diverse information (Proletarskij & Neusypin, 2014). In Aleksandrov et al.’s work (Aleksandrov, Proletarskij, Neusypin, & Sharkov, 2012), features of innovative information technologies are highlighted for application in education. In particular, it becomes possible to set simple but real-world project tasks and to find their solutions in a short time. Although the obtained solutions may not always be correct, the process of obtaining them – in terms of learning – is effective. In modern engineering education, the combination of the project approach with innovative information technologies is most effective when implementing the “Learning-through-Research” principle (Fedorov, Norenkov, & Korshunov, 2006). It involves engaging students in scientific research and development work. At the same time, researches of interdisciplinary character are of great importance. Moreover, in terms of modern technological development, interdisciplinarity is the key factor. It should be noted that in this case, unlike in the classical project method, students not only use the knowledge they have gained, but they also acquire new competencies—which increases their qualifications. In the process of implementing interdisciplinary projects the students acquire skills of joint collective work on projects and competencies related to searching the solutions of professional interdisciplinary tasks. The proposed approach complements the traditional forms of education. First of all, it is aimed at students who wish to acquire additional competencies. Similar situations arise with the target preparation of specialists, early employment, etc. In this chapter, the examples of projects involving the creation of information-analytical systems for various purposes, and the problems solved by students during the implementation of those systems, are given. The professional knowledge gained during the work on such projects helps future engineers to design, develop, and implement information-analytical systems; to perform their operations and upgrade; to conduct experimental research of information processes; and to make informed management decisions.

The Generalized Process of Data Collection and Data Processing in Information-Analytical Systems: Identification, Diagnosis, and Management In information-analytical systems (as realized in various subject areas), the data transformation process is performed according to the same scheme, including: data collection, identification of the functional state, diagnosis, and decision-making. Although the descriptions of researched objects are different, the methods and algorithms of data processing and decision-making have a common theoretical basis. Therefore, the structure of the information-analytical (expert) system has a universal type (Figure 1).

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Figure 1. Generalized structure of the system

Considering the unified theoretical basis of methods and algorithms, and considering the universal structure of information-analytical systems and the technology of databases and knowledge bases, it is possible to claim that the experience of developing systems in one area can effectively be used in the development of systems in another area. Tasks typical to the development of decision support systems are allocated as follows (Buldakova & Dzalolov, Analysis of Data Processes and Choices of Data-processing and Security Technologies in Situation Centers, 2012): 1. Formalization of the subject domain, and the creation of a conceptual representation (model) of the information-analytical system – including definitions of the types of information sources (the major entities) and the relations between them; object models of data (type of data, nature of data, and use of data); and solvable problems; 2. The development and analysis of the information models of business processes (inputs and outputs, objectives and types of processing, and existing relationships). The creation of a hierarchy of IDEF0-diagrams; 3. The formation of state classes and diagnostic feature space (based on developed models, and taking the opinions of experts into account); 4. Coding and generalization of heterogeneous information (qualitative, quantitative, verbal, and interval) for the development of integrated identification indicators; 5. Data structuring and knowledge model creation. Development of decision rules; 6. Choice of software and hardware; and also, physical implementation of the system;

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7. Testing of components and the system as a whole. The technology presented here – the creation of information-analytical systems – has been realized with students’ participation in the following projects: •





The development of a new technological means of intelligent information processing in management systems for the supply and production of technological equipment and tools (Buldakova & Suyatinov, Informacionno-analiticheskaya sistema upravleniya snabzheniem i proizvodstvom instrumenta [Information-analytical system of supply and production management], 2002); The development of a new technological means of state identification, failure prediction, and control of grinding equipment; and its implementation on the SWaAGL-50 grinding machine (Buldakova & Suyatinov, Informacionno-analiticheskaya sistema upravleniya snabzheniem i proizvodstvom instrumenta [Information-analytical system of supply and production management], 2002); The development of an information-analytical medical complex for monitoring the cardiovascular system and decision-making support (Buldakova, Koblov, & Suyatinov, Informacionnoizmeritel’nyj kompleks sovmestnoj registracii i obrabotki biosignalov [Informational and measuring complex of the joint registration and processing of biosignals], 2008).

Currently, the RFBR (Russian Foundation for Basic Research) project is being implemented, which relates both to the creation of a remote monitoring system of the human state of health and to the protection of the transmitted physiological data. Students and postgraduates participate in this project, which makes it possible to implement the “Learning-through-Research” principle.

Features of Remote Monitoring System The process of modernization of the health care system (Lantsberg, Troitzch, & Buldakova, 2011) is followed by the active introduction of information and communication technologies and the creation of telemedicine systems by which doctors in medical centers can remotely provide high-quality assistance to patients in remote areas (Prado, Roa, & Reina-Tosina, 2002). The modern telemedicine complex integrates powerful computers which easily interface with various medical equipment by means of (both area network and satellite network) wireless communication; videoconferencing tools; and IP broadcasting. A most promising direction of development of remote monitoring of the human state is the integration of sensors into clothes and various accessories including mobile phones (Paradiso, Loriga, & Taccini, 2005). A built-in sensor system allows you to control a variety of physiological parameters including heart rate, respiration rate, electrocardiogram (ECG) readings, body temperature, blood oxygen saturation level, etc. (Winters & Wang, 2003). In biomonitoring systems, assessment of the human state of health can be carried out in different ways (Anishchenko, et al., 2009): under the supervision of an attending physician; based on the analysis of monitored parameters (ranging from normal to pathological); or automatically via computer model of the patient (virtual physiology) (Prado, Roa, & Reina-Tosina, 2002).

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Regardless of the assessment method, the sources of primary information are various sensors allowing registration of the person’s biosignals. Therefore, they are the most important part of the monitoring system, and their characteristics determine the effectiveness of the entire system. Pulse, ECG, and respiration rate sensors are the most widespread such sensors. A modern pulse sensor usually consists of a steel sensor and a smartphone. The principle of pulsator operation is based on the measurement of a potential difference at the time of reduction of a cardiac muscle. Further, the pulsator transmits pulse signals to the receiving device (smartphone), which processes these signals by means of an installed application. If necessary, data can be transferred to a medical center for a more in-depth analysis by the physician. Mobile ECG sensors are capable of recording the electric activity of the heart and transferring that data to the smartphone for a preliminary assessment of the human state. For in-depth analysis, the signals must also be sent to a specialist. A respiration rate sensor is designed to study the process of human respiration. It is a belt within which is embedded a hollow rubber chamber with a gas pressure sensor. Further results of the sensor’s measurements may be transformed into analyses of the frequency and period of human respiratory movements. Thus, the technological level which has been reached allows for the creation of compact mobile terminals which can perform primary analysis functions and transmit physiological data to medical centers for more insightful analysis (Lia, Fua, & Dong, 2008). The inclusion of such mobile measuring systems in the common information space will allow interested parties (for example, insurance companies, local clinics, research hospitals, privately-owned companies) to carry out continuous monitoring of the human state, irrespective of a person’s geographically location (Figure 2). Figure 2. Remote monitoring, based on the common information space

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At the same time, however, there is a problem with ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of the transferred physiological data. Moreover, violation of the integrity and confidentiality of information, and the theft of personal medical data, would lead not only to financial losses, but also to undesirable social consequences, causing moral damage to the patient. Results of the analysis of possible threats of information security – applicable to all monitoring system components – are given in Table 1. Analysis of the threat model showed that there is a problem with the information security of patient data transmitted from the sensor to the repository. At the same time, the protection of personal medical data –transmitted through a communication channel from the sensor to the cloud-based medical database – is of crucial importance. In this regard, for the protection of personal information transmitted, it is necessary to select a method of cryptography data protection. Despite the growing flow of research in the field of information security (Appari & Johnson, 2010), very few research efforts are directed towards the studying of information security risks in the health sector – a sector which is substantially regulated and which uses business models, rather different from the models of other industries (Malhotra, Gardner, & Patz, 2007). The analysis of various approaches to distribution of cryptographic keys is made in work (Buldakova & Suyatinov, 2014). All traditional approaches to the safety of health systems are based on asymmetric cryptosystems. Asymmetric encryption uses two different keys: one for encryption (also called a “public” key) and another for decryption (called a “private” or “secret” key). Such an approach is rather reliable for ensuring the confidentiality and integrity of transmitted data; but due to the large key lengths, a regular data exchange in a real-time system is expensive as it demands large expenditures of resources and time. Therefore, it is inexpedient to use asymmetric enciphering in remote monitoring systems where the data is being processed in real time. Table 1. Possible information security threats Components

Threats

Comment

Sensors

Malefactor access to the sensor

It is necessary to use reliable sensors; limiting access

Communication

Malefactors can overhear all types of talk, and also distort signals

In-system communication is unreliable; therefore, it is necessary to encrypt signals

Smartphone

Malefactor can affect the performance of the smartphone

Protection of applications on the smartphone

Data storage in the cloud

Possible access to the data in the cloud

Only after successful authorization can the physician access a patient’s information

Medical staff

Transmission of information to malefactor

It is assumed that medical staff will not open access to information under the influence of malefactors

Patient

Transmission of information to malefactor

It is assumed that the patient will not open access to information under the influence of malefactors

Patient’s body

Malefactor can have physical contact with the patient (for example, shake his hand), therefore patient’s biological signals can be distorted by the malefactor’s signals

Reliable sensors don’t allow the malefactor to distort signals. Besides, all information on the past history of a patient’s health is unknown to the malefactor

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An alternative approach is to protect the transmitted data by creating a symmetric key pair for the sensor and the receiver. In a symmetric cryptosystem, the same cryptographic key is applied both for encryption and for decryption. As a result, algorithms with the closed key work three orders faster than do algorithms with an open key—which is very important for real-time telemedicine systems. However, a problem with the lack of symmetric codes is the impossibility of their use for confirmation of authorship, as the key is known to each party. In a number of works, it is suggested that biosignals registered by sensors be used in the construction of cryptographic keys. Such biosignals reflect physiological features of the patient and can be used for the concealment of information. For example, in Banerjee et al.’s work (Banerjee, Gupta, & Venkatasubramanian, 2013), some morphological features of biosignals, which are unique for each person and which change a little eventually, are marked out. It is suggested that these features be used in the construction of cryptographic keys and for receiving a model of an individual “physiological” signature. However, in this method it is necessary to apply matching of functional dependences by the form of the registered biosignals that it is not really effective. In Buldakova & Suyatinov’s work (Buldakova & Suyatinov, 2014) it is suggested that the mathematical model of a biosignal generator (in the form of a system of differential equations) be used as morphological features. This approach is more universal than that offered in the work by Banerjee et al. (Banerjee, Gupta, & Venkatasubramanian, 2013). The problems to be performed in this project require interdisciplinary knowledge in the fields of biomedicine, system engineering, signal processing, web technologies, modeling, information security, and other fields. At the same time, it is easy to find – online – the solution prototypes for most of the technical issues considered in this project.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The problem of improving the quality of engineering education necessitates a thoughtful and deliberate approach to the organization of educational process and the use of innovative technologies to motivate students. Currently, active learning forms (for example, based on the project approach) are widely used for this purpose. The combination of the project approach with innovative information technologies is most effective when implementing the “Learning-through-Research” principle. Inclusion of elements of research activity in educational process is a distinctive (characteristic) tendency of the development of engineering education. An important idea that comes out of this chapter is follow: experience of development of informationanalytical systems in one area can effectively be used by development of systems in other area. However, the considered examples are local in nature and relevant for the specific university community. At present, there is no generalized conceptual model illustrating the embedding of elements of research activity in traditional educational forms of education. Future researches in this area are warranted.

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CONCLUSION In the context of the chapter, such educational aspects of active learning as project approach, learning through research, and interdisciplinarity are presented. The emphasis is on expanding the capabilities of the project approach in engineering education based on modern information technologies, and on implementing the “Learning-through-Research” principle. Modern information technologies allow for improving the classical methods of the project approach in education. The Internet, and the availability of information, provides promptness in the formulation and solution of real-world project problems. Each such problem is unique. Its solution includes the research stage and is based on an interdisciplinary approach. The practical orientation of the educational-scientific process allows future engineers to quickly master new information technologies in solving interdisciplinary problems, and to acquire the necessary professional competencies. The article contains examples of interdisciplinary projects which have already been implemented, along with an example of a project currently being implemented. Problems solvable upon the implementation of projects centered on the creation of informationanalytical systems in various subject domains, are given. Features of remote monitoring systems of the human state of health are delineated; and possible ways of protecting transmitted data are analyzed. The solution of the problems under consideration contributes, in the authors’ opinion, to improving the quality of learning for engineers.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT This research was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research [grant number 16-07-00878].

REFERENCES Aleksandrov, A. A., Proletarskij, A. V., Neusypin, K. A., & Sharkov, A. A. (2012). Koncepcija kompleksnogo nepreryvnogo obuchenija s ispol’zovaniem innovacionnyh informacionnyh tehnologij [The concept of integrated continuous learning using innovative information technologies]. Nauchnoe obozrenie: gumanitarnye issledovanija - Scientific Review: Humanitarian researches, 4, 38-42. Anishchenko, V. S., Buldakova, T. I., Dovgalevskij, P. Y., Lifshic, V. B., Gridnev, V. I., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2009). Konceptual’naya model’ virtual’nogo centra ohrany zdorov’ya naseleniya [Conceptual model of the virtual center of public health protection]. Informacionnye tekhnologii - Information Technology, 15(12), 59-64. Appari, A., & Johnson, M. E. (2010). Information security and privacy in healthcare: Current state of research. International Journal of Internet and Enterprise Management, 6(4), 279–314. doi:10.1504/ IJIEM.2010.035624

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Banerjee, A., Gupta, S. S., & Venkatasubramanian, K. K. (2013). PEES: Physiology-based end-to-end security for mHealth. Proceedings of the 4th Conference on Wireless Health, 2. Buldakova, T., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2014). Reconstruction method for data protection in telemedicine systems. Progress in Biomedical Optics and Imaging - Proceedings of the Society for Photo-Instrumentation Engineers, 9448(94481U), 1–6. Buldakova, T. I., & Dzalolov, A. S. (2012). Analysis of data processes and choices of data-processing and security technologies in situation centers. Scientific and Technical Information Processing, 39(2), 127–132. doi:10.3103/S0147688212020116 Buldakova, T. I., Koblov, A. V., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2008). Informacionno-izmeritel’nyj kompleks sovmestnoj registracii i obrabotki biosignalov [Informational and measuring complex of joint registration and processing of biosignals]. Pribory i sistemy. Upravlenie, kontrol’, diagnostika - Devices and systems. Management, control, diagnostics, 6, 41-46. Buldakova, T. I., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2002). Informacionno-analiticheskaya sistema upravleniya snabzheniem i proizvodstvom instrumenta [Information-analytical system of supply and production management]. Informacionnye tekhnologii - Information Technology, 8(11), 28-33. Dewey, J. (2009). Democracy and education: An introduction to the philosophy of education. New York: WLC Books. (Original work published 1916) Fedorov, I. B., Norenkov, I. P., & Korshunov, S. V. (2006). Organizacionnaya podgotovka specialistov v oblasti komp’yuternyh nauki, tekhniki i tekhnologij, otrazhennaya v rossijskih i zarubezhnyh dokumentah [Organizational training of specialists in the field of computer science, technics and technology; as reflected in Russian and foreign documents]. Informacionnye tekhnologii - Information Technology, 12(9), 73-77. Hall, A. D. (1962). A Methodology for Systems Engineering. Princeton, NJ: Van Nostrand. Kilpatrick, W. H. (1918). The project method. Teachers College Record, 19, 319–335. Knoll, M. (1997). The project method: Its vocational education origin and international development. Journal of Industrial Teacher Education, 34, 59–80. Lantsberg, A. V., Troitzch, K. G., & Buldakova, T. I. (2011). Development of the electronic service system of a municipal clinic (based on the analysis of foreign web resources). Automatic Documentation and Mathematical Linguistics, 45(2), 74–80. doi:10.3103/S0005105511020075 Lia, B. N., Fua, B. B., & Dong, M. C. (2008). Development of a mobile pulsewaveform analyzer for cardiovascular health. Computers in Biology and Medicine, 38(4), 438–445. doi:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2008.01.008 PMID:18328471 Malhotra, K., Gardner, S., & Patz, R. (2007). Implementation of elliptic-curve cryptography on mobile healthcare devices. IEEE International Conference on Networking, Sensing and Control, 239-244. 10.1109/ICNSC.2007.372784

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Paradiso, R., Loriga, G., & Taccini, N. (2005). A wearable health care system based on knitted integrated sensors. IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine, 9(3), 337–344. doi:10.1109/ TITB.2005.854512 PMID:16167687 Prado, M., Roa, L., Reina-Tosina, J., Palma, A., & Milan, J. A. (2002). Virtual center for renal support: Technological approach to patient physiological image. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 49(12), 1420–1430. doi:10.1109/TBME.2002.805454 PMID:12542237 Proletarskij, A. V., & Neusypin, K. A. (2014). Osobennosti ispol’zovanija sovremennyh informacionnyh tehnologij v obrazovanii [Features of using modern information technologies in education]. European Social Science Journal, 1-1(40), 63-65. Ryneveld, L. V. (2016). Introducing educational technology into the higher education environment: A professional development framework. In K. Dikilitaş (Ed.), Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 126–136). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-9471-2.ch008 Sinicyna, E. Y., Kurdyukova, G. N., & Abramova, E. Y. (2013). Razvitie paradigmy kreativnogo obrazovaniya posredstvom obucheniya cherez issledovaniya [Creative education paradigm development via ‘Learning through Research’]. Vestnik MJEI - MPEI Vestnik, 6, 217-219. Winters, J., & Wang, Y. (2003). Wearable sensors and telerehabilitation. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine, 22(3), 56–65. doi:10.1109/MEMB.2003.1213627 PMID:12845820

ADDITIONAL READING Bolshakov, A., Glaskov, V., Egorov, I., Lobanov, V., Perova, L., & Pchelintseva, S. (2014). Methods and tools for software development to improve the effectiveness of engineering education in the direction of “mechatronics” using grid-computing technologies. In Communications in Computer and Information Science (466 CCIS, pp. 123-133). doi:10.1007/978-3-319-11854-3_12 Buldakova, T. I., & Suyatinov, S. I. (2002). Registration and identification of pulse signal for medical diagnostic. Proceedings of SPIE-The International Society for Optical Engineering, 4707, 343–350. Chistyakova, T. B., & Novozhilova, I. V. (2016). Intelligence computer simulators for elearning of specialists of innovative industrial enterprises. In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Soft Computing and Measurements (SCM 2016, pp. 329-332). 10.1109/SCM.2016.7519772 Chistyakova, T. B., Novozhilova, I. V., & Zelezinsky, A. L. (2016). Electronic information and education environment as instrument of forming and quality evaluation of professional competences of the international industrial enterprises specialists.In IEEE 5th Forum Strategic Partnership of Universities and Enterprises of Hi-Tech Branches, Science. Education. Innovations (pp. 12-14). 10.1109/IVForum.2016.7835839

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Gavrilina, E., Zakharov, M., Karpenko, A., Smirnova, E., & Sokolov, A. (2016). Model of integral assessment quality of training graduates of higher engeneering education. In CEUR Workshop Proceedings (vol. 12, no. 3-2, pp. 11-16). Kamensky, E. G. (2015). Context of NBIC-technologies development: Institutions, ideology and social myths. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(6), 181–185. Moats, J. (2015). Influences on the acceptance of innovative technologies used in learning opportunities: A theoretical perspective. In F. M. Nafukho & B. J. Irby (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Innovative Technology Integration in Higher Education (pp. 262–281). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-8170-5.ch013 Roco, M. C., & Bainbridge, W. S. (Eds.). (2003). Converging technologies for improving human performance: Nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology and cognitive science. The Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers. doi:10.1007/978-94-017-0359-8 Shpak, M. A., Smirnova, E. V., Karpenko, A. P., & Proletarsky, A. V. (2016). Mathematical models of learning materials estimation based on subject ontology. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 450, 271–276. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-33609-1_24

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Active Forms of Learning: The methods that stimulate cognitive activity of students in the process of mastering the educational material. Biosignals: Signals recorded by sensors located on the human body (ECG, sphygmogram, pneumotachogram, phonogram, etc.). Information Security: The process of ensuring the confidentiality, integrity, and accessibility of information. Information-Analytical Systems: Automated systems which carry out the storage, processing, analysis, and provision of information in a user-friendly form. Interdisciplinarity: The combining of two or more academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). Learning Through Research: The principle of learning in which the basic knowledge is acquired by students themselves during research activities. Remote Monitoring: The assessment of an object’s state at a distance. Scientific Research: The systematic collection and analysis of data to obtain new knowledge.

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Chapter 23

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation Vladimir V. Syuzev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Kirill Kucherov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir Gurenko Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Gurgen Khachatrian American University of Armenia, Armenia

ABSTRACT In this chapter, a spectral method of deterministic signals simulation is proposed. The target is to solve the teaching methodological problem of individual tasks creation for students: future engineers in the field of real-time control systems’ development and research. The tasks are related to the correlation theory. The method of simulation algorithms tuning with the help of specified spectrally correlation of signal characteristics and their parameters in the harmonic Fourier and Hartley basis is presented. To expand the set of task’s variants for the independent student self-preparation the task of signals simulation has been formulated mathematically and solved in arbitrary complex and real systems of orthogonal basic functions. The requirements have been underlined on how teacher can teach basic functions for the practical applications. During such kind of decision task, the student will be able to counts the multiplicity, precision, and computational complexity of the resulting spectral simulation algorithms.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch023

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

RELEVANCE Practical classes including course design, homework assignments and research works are important components of the teaching process in engineering field. The teaching efficiency depends on individual tasks for the student’s independent work. These individual tasks should be prepared for the large number of students, should be multivariate and informative, as well as should cover a large number of competencies, which are specified in the curriculum. Disciplines, which are related to the design of computer systems and real-time control systems, need training and methodological tools for student’s independent work. This paper gives an example of such kind of methodological tool using signal’s simulation methods and algorithms. The methodological tool set could be applied to the tasks of the subject on “Information’s storing, processing and transformation” teaching.

INTRODUCTION This paper proposes Science-Based Approach in Engineer’s Preparation which is a continuation of Project-Based Approach. Students took part in a research project which been supported by Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation (Project Contract ID 2.7782.2017/BC). The project is concern to simulation algorithms, which use spectral representation of signal in different orthogonal bases. Such an approach allows students to produce simulation algorithms, which are differ in accuracy and computation complexity due to the proper basis function systems choice. The approach provides the multivariate tasks for the student’s individual work. Moreover, the independent research on the variety of spectral representations will expand the scope of learner’s knowledge and his skills in analog and digital signal spectral processing - theoretically and in practice. The results of the students work give statistical material for further ideas of the scientists. From the large number of known base systems the most attractive ones to meet different authors’ goals are parametrical bases containing changing parameters in the structure of their functions. They affect their properties. Examples of such bases systems are complex exponential functions, Vilenkin – Chrestenson functions, the generalized Hartley functions. The control over their properties is achieved by using variation of different bases. In this paper the deterministic signals are under consideration only in the framework of the correlation wide sphere of practical applications because they are useful components of input signal processing in different control and management systems. The variation of such signal’s frequency characteristics provides an extension for many options in simulation algorithms, which are helpful for student’s individual task’s creation from the side of teacher too. The authors of the chapter develop an enrolled course named “Digital Signal Processing” (DSP) supported by industry enterprises working in the field of automation. First part of the chapter is about how teacher could create variants of tasks for the individual student’s work. The authors paid attention to the mathematical description of tasks assigned to students (see the Appendix) for performing laboratory work with the aim that teacher who carries on similar DSP course could use this mathematical device to create their own versions of tasks. The main emphasis in the paper is made precisely on the fact that this is a methodical material for conducting new form laboratory

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works, while each student or each group of students investigates new mathematical calculations and creates new solutions. Second part of the chapter is about software environment which student use for his/her individual research work. An example of student’s research work is given. The explanation is given about how student’s engagement ensured and promoted. Third part concerns to students’ experiences feedbacks in their research of the fast algorithms of signal’s transformation, which confirms the interactive and motivated science based approach to engineer’s preparation. Fourth part contains some students’ feedbacks. The Conclusion is dedicated to further development of the individual task’s variants using different theoretical bases.

VARIANTS OF TASKS FOR INDIVIDUAL STUDENT’S WORK Variants of Tasks for Individual Student’s Work Background for signal simulation algorithms may be found in the Appendix. The common part for the student’s homework was as follows: Using the theoretically grounded connection of the signal spectrum and the Power Spectral Density Function (PSDF), as well as the initial data of the personal variant of the task (see Table 1), write the program using programming language on your choice to perform algorithm’s modeling. Construct and show the autocorrelation functions of the original and simulated signals and after that compute absolute modelling error for 20 realizations (present it in table form) and estimate it by computing its average value. The Table 1 presents the variants of individual tasks for students’ homework based on theoretical knowledge listed above for the complex exponential basis.

SOFTWARE FOR THE STUDENT’S RESEARCH The students were advised to use programming language Python 3.5 to obtain results faster. This programming language has tools for visual modeling and for errors’ estimation as well as for vector operations. At the beginning of laboratory work every student gets Python virtual environment with packages that are necessary to perform individual study: “matplotlib” for plotting (A. Devert, 2014) “numpy” for efficient calculations and vector operations and “scipy” for advanced usage (E. Bressert, 2012). The structure of individual virtual environment’s working directory is shown at the Figure 1. Using the Python virtual environment student writes his own script to perform simulation algorithm due to individual task variant (Table 1). The script can be started using local environment Python interpreter installed at Windows (cmd command) or Linux operation system (console command). Initially the script plays role of testing one – it allows student to check whether Python virtual environment works properly.

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Table 1. The variants of individual tasks for students’ homework Variant’s Number

Signal Type

Time Interval

Spectral Density Maximum/Dispersion

Cut-Off Frequency

NºNº

x (t )

T s 

S 0 / σ 2 J 

 rad   ω2   s   

100

5



60

10

20π

160

15



150

3



180

9

20π

80

8

25π

50

6



120

4

10π

240

10



1 2

White noise

3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Triangular spectral density signal

Exponential spectral density signal

Figure 1. Structure of Python virtual environment

AN EXAMPLE OF STUDENT’S EXPERIENCE Initial data: Type of signal is white noise;

S ω ≤ ω  2 , S 0 = 5 J  ; The spectral power density (SD) function has the form S (ω ) =  0,  0, ω > ω2  Cut-off frequency ; The duration of the signal reception interval is T = 50 [s], The interval is two-sided, that is, −25s, 25s  ;

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Initial conditions The simulation algorithm takes as an input data the following set of parameters: 1. The interval of the signal T; 2. Spectral density signal, specified in the form of an analytical expression, a table of values ​​or some other way. Within the framework of this version, an approximate approach to analytical formulations is considered (a predetermined number of SDs). For white noise, the SD has the form, where are taken from the initial conditions; 3. Cut-off frequency of the SD ; π is the sampling step taken by the 4. The time sampling interval ∆t c  ≤ ∆tk , where ∆tk = ωε Kotel’nikov theorem; 5. The frequency sampling interval T 6. The number of discrete signal samples N = . ∆t The particular variant of student task is shown at the Table 2. The number of discrete signal samples N =

T = 150 , ∆t

however, in order to obtain a performance gain when converting spectra, the condition N id = 2n , where n =  log2 (N ) (operation  x  here is rounding x to the nearest larger integer).   Hence N = N id = 28 = 256 Table 2. The particular variant of student task.

258

Parameter

Meaning

T

50 s 

ω2

 rad   3π   s   

S0

5 J 

∆t

0.33 s 

∆ω

 rad   0, 1257   s   

 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

The simulated signal is shown at the Figure 2 for the exponential basis. The accuracy of signal reception can be estimated by comparing the ideal autocorrelation function (ACF) with the experimental one (obtained from the simulated signal). The graphs of the theoretical (from above) and the experimental ACF are shown at the Figure 3. Obviously the forms of the graphs do not coincide. This is due to the fact that the ideal form of the ACF graph can be obtained only for N → ∞, which could not be achieved in practice. The larger N, the stronger the shape of the graph of the experimental ACF approaches the theoretical one. To estimate the accuracy, the absolute error at points N, calculated as E = max  X −Y  ,   where − is the operation of two vectors term difference. Here X is a vector of the theoretical ACF samples and Y is the sample vector of the experimental ACF. The Table 3 gives estimates of the maximum error for 20 realizations at N = 256.

THE STUDENTS’ FEEDBACKS After the students passed the enrolled course, they were asked to give some feedback. The questions were concerned to: 1. Whether they find course applicable in their working experience (see student’s feedback about practical applicability of course at Table 4);

Figure 2. Signal in the exponential basis

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 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

Figure 3. The graphs of the theoretical (above) and the experimental (below) autocorrelation function

2. How they consider complexity of course (see Table 5); 3. Whether they believe the course should be improved (see Table 6).

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The main emphasis in the chapter is a methodical material for conducting new innovative form of laboratory works, while each student or each group of students investigates new mathematical calculations and creates new solutions. It can be concluded that the task of deterministic signals simulation in the framework of correlation theory, and spectral algorithms for its solution are an effective methodological tool for the formation of wide variety of customized tasks on all types of independent work of students (homeworks, course work, projects in scientific research work in the subject area related to the study of real-time control systems). As well the authors paid attention to the mathematical description of tasks assigned to students for performing laboratory work with the aim that teacher who carries on similar DSP course could use this mathematical tool to create their own versions of tasks for laboratory works.

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 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

Table 3. The estimates of errors Number of Experiment

Maximum Error, %

1

10.540251200154879

2

10.049834351918072

3

11.022740100197371

4

7.8523315419693045

5

8.18375876274209

6

10.8202909669208

7

11.067793977583067

8

10.143977032452643

9

10.285152165281206

10

9.184353083065337

11

10.981953587902993

12

8.397526266566993

13

10.276303918586438

14

9.93328327131869

15

7.681415524479086

16

8.798219826675322

17

10.505741873344858

18

8.798184061014213

19

9.520308068680409

20

9.6916559124436

The average error value

9.686753774664869

Table 4. Students’ feedback about practical applicability of course I have found the course…

Surely Applicable

Partially Applicable

Neutral

Not Applicable at All

5

12

3

0

Table 5. Students’ feedback about complexity of course I Have Found the Following Component of Course…

Very Clear for Understanding

Understandably

Clear, but Needs Hard Work to Understand

Not Clear at All

Theory

0

7

13

0

Special calculations

0

12

8

0

Laboratory works

3

5

12

0

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 Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

Table 6. Students’ feedback about improvement of course I Have Found the Following Component of Course Should Be Improved…

Deeply

Some Minor Improvements

Some Aspects

Doesn’t Need Improvement

Theory

0

0

4

16

Special calculations

0

3

7

10

Laboratory works

0

0

12

8

Variable parameters providing a multiplicity of the proposed algorithms are function characteristics on the power spectral density, the interval definition signal, the step of sampling time, accuracy requirements and the complexity of the simulation and, especially, chosen system of bases functions. By changing the radix and choosing different ways to sort the functions in the systems, the teacher can obtain a large family of ortho-normalized basis systems with fast algorithms of spectral transformations. Special cases of these systems are been widely used in signal processing with the basic system of the Walsh, Paley, Hartmut, exponential and Haar for the methodological educational materials’ development (Syuzev V.V., 2017). All mentioned systems will be used to start the student’s engagement into research project.

CONCLUSION The authors of the chapter gave a description of innovative enrolled course named “Digital Signal Processing” (DSP) where the student’s laboratory work results are the raw material for the scientific research. Such Science Based Approach in Engineering Education is been supported by Russian industrial enterprises working in the field of automation. Authors paid a lot of attention to the theoretical bases of fast algorithms of signal’s transformation because they guess that other teachers could create their own variants of tasks for the individual student’s work. To sum up the student’s feedbacks, it might be said that they understood material on a good level. Authors plan to work on complicated theoretical aspects, as well as to work on mathematical background to make students better understand special calculations. Beside the questions the students also noted that it would be desirable to use the toolkit of unit tests in Python and the version control system to automate testing procedures. This note will be taken into account during course improvement.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The authors would like to thank students at Computer Systems and Network Department of the Bauman State Technical University who willing their insights while they carried on research homework. The part of this chapter concerned to new bases for fast algorithms of spectral transformation is done under support of Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (Project Contract ID 2.7782.2017/BC).

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REFERENCES Ahmed, N., & Rao, K. (1975). Orthogonal Transforms for Digital Signal Processing. Berlin: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-45450-9 Bracewell, R. (1990). The Hartley Transform. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Bressert, E. (2012). SciPy and NumPy: An Overview for Developers. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media. Devert, A. (2014). A matplotlib Plotting Cookbook. Birmingham, UK: Packt Publishing. Harmuth, H. (1977). Sequence Theory: foundations and applications. New York: Academic Press. Kotel’nikov, V. (1959). The Theory of Optimum Noise Immunity. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co. Oppenhein, A., & Schafer, R. (2012). Digital Signal Processing. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Smirnova, E., Suzev, V., Proletarsky, A., & Gurenko, V. (2017) Signal’s Simulation Methodologies used in Scientific and Educational tasks of real-time Information System’s Modelling. In Procceedings of 11th International Technology, Education and Development Conference INTED2017 (vol. 11, pp. 9140 – 9143). Valencia, Spain: IATED Academy. Syuzev, V. V. (2015). Fast generalized Hartley transform in single-base number systems. [in Russian]. Bauman University Journal of Machinary Devices, 6, 63–81. Syuzev, V.V. (2014). Introduction to digital signal processing. Moscow: RTSoft. (in Russian)

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Fast Transformation (FT) Algorithms: A computational procedure using fast spectral transformations in order to save computational resources, for example, fast Fourier transform (FFT). Independent Study: Is a form of education offered by many high schools, colleges, and other educational institutions. It is sometimes referred to as directed study, and is an educational activity undertaken by an individual with little to no supervision. Science-Based Approach in Engineer Preparation: New trend in future engineer preparation when students do their homework as a practical research on of theoretical problem given by teacher. Spectral Method for Engineering and Scientific Computing Applications: Actual modern course in engineer preparation curricula.

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Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

APPENDIX SIGNAL SIMULATION THEORY Algorithms for Simulation in Complex Exponential Bases While students solve a signal simulation task in the framework of correlation theory they need to use a spectral field of the complex exponential bases. The power spectral density function (PSDF) has been presented by (Ahmed N., Rao K., 1975; Bracewell R., 1990; Oppenhein A. and Schafer R., 2012) and others. The equation for the spectral field of the complex exponential bases see at (1): S (ω ) = lim

X (ω ) X * (ω )

T →∞

T

= lim

X (ω ) T

T →∞

2

,

(1)

where ω is a cyclic frequency; X (ω ) is an integral Fourier transform of the signal x (t ) . An integral Fourier transform of the signal could be represented by equation (2): X (ω ) =

+∞

∫ x (t ) exp (−j ωt )dt.

(2)

−∞

An integral Fourier transform of the signal x (t ), is determined at the double-side infinite intervals

(j =

)

−1 . The spectral function X * (ω ) in the expression (1) is the complex conjugate spectrum

X (ω ) and it could be described by expression: 2

2

X (ω ) = Re X (ω ) + Im X (ω ) .     The equation (3) describes the amplitude spectrum, where the notations Re and и Im mean here the real and imaginary parts of the complex quantity. If the signal x (t ) is an integrable function with a square function, it has final average power and it is determined at the final symmetrical time interval with duration T, then infinite interval in spectrum (2) becomes finally equal to 1 (one), and the passage to the limit in the expression (1) could be removed. Thus in this case S (ω ) = ST (ω ) =

264

2 1 1 XT (ω ) = Re XT (ω )]2 + Im  XT (ω )]2 ,   T T

{

}

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

where XT (ω ) =

T /2

∫ x (t ) exp (−j ωt )dt.

−T /2

As such the teacher needs to consider a power spectral density function and an integral Fourier’s spectrum in selected points of the frequency axis, which is taken with the constant sampling interval ∆ω = 2π / T . The functions in these points will be accordingly: ST (k ∆ω ) =

2 1 XT (k ∆ω ) , k = 0, 1, 2, …; T

XT (k ∆ω ) =



T /2



∫ x (t ) exp −j T

−T /2

(3)

 kt dt, k = 0, 1, 2, … 

(4)

Teacher then should ask students to compare the Fourier spectrum (4) with the spectral coefficients of the direct Fourier transformation of the signal x (t ) limited in time in the complex exponential Fou 2π   rier functions exp  j kt  which have been described in books (Ahmed N., Rao K., 1975; Bracewell   T   R., 1990; Oppenhein A. and Schafer R., 2012). The expression to obtain k’s Fourier transform spectral coefficient is shown here: 1 X F (k ) = T

 2π  −j x t exp kt dt, ( ) ∫   T  −T /2 T /2

Teacher should draw the student’s attention to the following expression (5): XT (k ∆ω ) = TX F (k ).

(5)

Then from the expressions (5) and (3) the following dependence (6) for the the specified function of power spectral density can be obtained: 2

{

}

ST (k ∆ω ) = T X F (k ) = T Re X F (k )]2 + Im  X F (k )]2 .  

(6)

The expression (6) could be used for the definition of spectral coefficients X F (k ) using the specified

function of power spectral density ST (k ∆ω ) :

265

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

X F (k ) = Re X F (k ) − j Im X F (k ) .    

(7)

It should be taken into account that an expression (6) alone does not allow to find two unknown components of the spectrum (7). It is due to the fact that power spectral density could consider amplitude component of the complex spectrum only XT (ω ) , and does not consider his phase component as other researchers described already (Bracewell R., 1990; Oppenhein A. and Schafer R., 2012). Therefore function ST (ω ) defines not only one proper signal but some cortex of signals with different phase components. If the phase density is as the following expression

{

}

ψ (ω ) = arctg Im[XT (ω )  / Re[XT (ω ) ,   and if the phase density has already determined, then by doing quantization with the same frequency interval ∆ω , the expression (8) will be obtained: tg ψ (k ∆ω ) = Im[XT (k ∆ω )  / Re[XT (k ∆ω )  = Im  X F (k ) / Re  X F (k ) = λk , k = 0, 1, 2, …  

(8)

The dependence (8) for the phase coefficients λk gives the second expression for Fourier spectrum definition (7). The dependence (8) along with the expression (6) determines a tuning procedure of the signal simulation algorithm in the complex exponential Fourier bases. The algorithm itself could be shown by the inverse Fourier transform in the same bases, as such it has the following view:  2π  T T x (t ) = ∑X F (k ) exp  j kt , − ≤ t < .   2  T  2 k =0 ∞

(9)

If the phase component does not set, then phase dependence (8) for simulation needs to be provided. The simplest case is when all coefficients λk are equal to 1. The tuning algorithm for a given amplitude and phase spectrum (6) and (8) could be written more conveniently for the practical usage. To do this, students should know that the real component of the  2π  complex Fourier functions is an even function cos kt  , but the imaginary component is an odd T    2π  kt  . Therefore the Fourier spectrum X F (k ) could be presented by even X Fe (k ) and function sin T   odd X Fo (k ) components as follows: X F (k ) = X Fe (k ) − jX Fo (k ), where

266

(10)

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

X Fe (k ) = Re X F (k )  , X Fo (k ) = Im X F (k )  .    

(11)

Thus, the expressions (6) and (8) in the tuning procedure can be rewritten as: 2 ST (0) = TX Fe (0); ST (k ∆ω) = T XFe2 (k ) + XFo2 (k ) ,    X Fo (k ) = λk X Fe (k ). 

(12)

The solution of the expression system (12) lead to more compact expressions (13) for X Fe (k ) and

X Fo (k ) :

 ST (k ∆ω )  X Fe (0) = , X Fe (k ) = ,  T T 1 + λk2    ST (k ∆ω )  , , , . k = 1 2 … X Fo (k ) = λk 2  T 1 + λk  ST (0)

(

(

)

(13)

)

Simulation algorithm (9) is a continuous Fourier series in the complex exponential bases. The series with infinite number of terms is reduced to the signal x (t ) . The existence of the negative time values in the series does not have a principal importance for simulation. In practice the realization of the algorithm (9) of Fourier series is limited by N members, and the signal is calculated on the basis of M discrete time points i ∈ −M / 2, M / 2) in total, where i = t / ” t , а M = T / ” t . The magnitude of the sam-

pling interval at time ” t is selected under consideration of desired fidelity of the signal x (t ) , and the number of set terms N – spectral-correlation properties of the signal. The algorithm (9) is interesting, because his Fourier series, truncated to N terms, allows to playback of signal x (t ) with the power spectral density function matching with a given function ST (ω ) exactly at points k∆ω . In the interim frequency values theoretical and practical densities will be different from each other. With the increase of number N of matched points, the error of the representation ST (ω ) in the interim will decrease accordingly. In general it is not necessary for the series (9) that values N and M match. The discussed simulation algorithm could be used also for the discrete signals representation x (i ) , defined on the interval −N / 2, N / 2) . In this case the simulation algorithm uses a discrete Fourier  2πki    , the expression (14) for the simulated series in the lattice complex exponential basis exp  j   N    signal is shown:

267

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

N −1  2πki  N N , − ≤ i < , x (i ) = ∑X F (k ) exp  j  2 2  N  k =0

(14)

where the spectrum X F (k ) consists of even X Fe (k ) and odd X Fo (k ) components (see (10)), which are calculated on the ratio of (13). In discrete series (14) the values N and M match, and the sampling interval in time ” t must be confirmed by Nyquist theorem. In Russia there is the same theorem and Russian author (Kotel’nikov V., 1959). This theorem proofs the upper frequency (the cutoff frequency) ω2 of the frequency spectrum of the continuous signal. The value N is selected from the conditions required fidelity of signal representation ST (ω ) between points ST (k ∆ω ) . In this described signal simulation algorithm the nature of the transformation of the spectral density function is simple: it is sampled with a frequency of ∆ω in the interval of its definition. For its detection the autocorrelation function of a time limited signal x (t ) is as: 1 RT (τ ) = T

T /2

∫ x (t )x (t + τ )dt

−T /2

Substitute it by the expression of the signal through the double-sided Fourier spectrum in the complex exponential basis. Autocorrelation function is shown here 1 RT (τ ) = T

 ∞    x (t + τ )dt X k exp( jk ∆ ω t ) ( ) F ∫ k∑   −T /2  =−∞ T /2

By multiplying the integrand in this expression to additional expression exp ( jk ∆ωτ ) ⋅ exp (−jk ∆ωτ ) = 1 obtain: RT (τ ) =

 1 X k  ( )  F ∑ T k =−∞ ∞

  exp −jk∆ωτ . x t + τ exp jk ∆ ω t + τ dt ( ) ( ) ( )  ∫  −T /2 T /2

(

)

Bracketed part of this expression defines complex-conjugate spectrum X F* (k ) of the original signal. Thus

268

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

RT (τ ) =



* ∑ XF (k )XF (k ) exp (−jk ∆ωτ ) =

k =−∞





2

X F (k ) exp (−jk ∆ωτ ).

k =−∞

Taking into account the parity summable functions on the index k , this series could be simplified and the autocorrelation function will have a the following view: ∞

2

2

RT (τ ) = X F (0) + 2∑ X F (k ) cos (k ∆ωτ )

(15)

k =1

The relationship between the communication spectra X F (k ) and XT (k ) (expression (5)) as well as

with the function of power spectral density (expression (3)) allows to represent RT (τ ) as it shown at the expression (16):RT (τ ) =

XT2 (0) T2

2 + T



∑ k =1

XT (k ∆ω ) T

2

cos (k ∆ωτ ) =

ST (0) T

+

2 T



∑S (k ∆ω) cos (k ∆ωτ ). T

(16)

k =1

The expressions (15) and (16) could be used for practical study of the autocorrelation function of the signal x (t ) .

Algorithms for Signal Simulation in Specific Bases There exist simulation algorithms in specific bases, namely: for complex exponential bases; for trigonometric bases, for Fourier and for Hartley bases. All four type of algorithms could be used by teachers to create variants for student’s independent work. The list of Russian chapters describing these simulation algorithms in detail can be found in a chapter, which authors published in the Russian journal in Russian language (Syuzev V.V., Gurenko V.V., Smirnova E.V., 2016). All above mentioned simulation spectral algorithms use the same analytical relation between simulation series spectrum and given spectral-correlation characteristics of the signal. The same is true for all bases systems which use the same harmonic even and odd functions. In this sense, the algorithms of the simulation are related, reproduce the same signal and differ only in their computational complexity. However note that in the complex Fourier basis and the real Harley basis, there are so called fast algorithms of spectral transformation for students learning (Ahmed N., Rao K., 1975; Harmuth H., 1977; SyuzevV.V., 2014), and for the trigonometric bases there are special recursive algorithms for computing the trigonometric functions (SyuzevV.V., 2014). Their application allows to create fast algorithms’ modifications in harmonic bases. Simulation algorithms in harmonic bases are core simulation algorithms. Imitation Algorithms in Harmonic bases can be used also as base imitation algorithms in an arbitrary orthogonal bases.

269

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation

Algorithms for Signal Simulation in an Arbitrary Orthogonal Bases If the simulation signal spectrum is defined in harmonic bases, then by using mathematical apparatus of generalized spectrum analysis (SyuzevV.V., 2014) it is possible to determine the spectra of the same signal in any other orthogonal basis. As such the signal itself could be restored by using an inverse Fourier transform in this basis. The teacher chooses a proper basis while he/she creates tasks for independent homework, otherwise student could choose himself the proper basis considering optionally conditions of computational complexity and accuracy of needed simulation algorithms. In the case if the chosen basis will have a complex character, it is advisable to take the simulation algorithm in complex exponential Fourier bases. If the real bases was chosen, then the simulation algorithm should be created using a real simulation algorithms in trigonometric bases or in Hartley bases. Let’s obtain the tung algorithms for both basis choose cases. Let’s start from the complex base ϕ (m, t ) with the power Pm , defined at the interval −T / 2,T / 2) . The signal spectrum (9) in these

}

{

bases is:

  1 x t ϕ m , t dt = X k ( ) ( ) ( )  F ∫ ∑ TPm k =0 −T /2 T /2

1 X ϕ (m ) = TPm



*

  2π  * .  j  exp , kt ϕ m t dt ( )  ∫  T   −T /2 T /2

The obtained expression describes an operator for Fourier spectra conversion into the в spectra of arbitrary basis ϕ (m, t ) for the same signal x (t ) . An expression in square brackets gives a Fourier

}

{

core F (m, k ) for spectra conversion:  2π  * exp  j kt  ϕ (m, t )dt.  T  −T /2 T /2

1 F (m, k ) = TPm



(17)

 2π  Mathematically it is in a range of basic exponential functions exp  j kt  in basic function ϕ (m, t ) .  T  The function ϕ * (m, t ) here is a complex conjugate function ϕ (m, t ) .

{

}

Taking into account (17) the desired spectrum X ϕ (m ) will be equal: ∞

X ϕ (m ) = ∑X F (k ) F (m, k ), m = 0, 1, 2, ….

(18)

k =0

The spectrum X F (k ) . here will be determined by expression (13) as well. For normalized basis

{ϕ (m, t )} all P

m

= 1 , and the formula for core calculation will be simplified.

{

}

The signal simulation algorithm in basis ϕ (m, t ) will take a view of the following Fourier series:

270

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation



x (t ) = ∑X ϕ (m ) ϕ (m, t ), t ∈ −T / 2,T / 2).

(19)

m =0

s tuning to set the function of the power spectral density is performed according to formulas (13), (17) and (18). The tuning procedure becomes complicated in general case, but however it has no principal importance, since the procedure could be executed before simulation and with use of computer. During a practical realization the series (19) is truncated just as it was done in the harmonic bases. The spectrum transformation core series (18) is also truncated. In discrete version the simulation and tuning algorithms have the following view: N −1

x (i ) = ∑X ϕ (m ) ϕ (m, i ), i ∈ −N / 2, N / 2), m =0

N −1

X ϕ (m ) = ∑X F (k ) F (m, k ), m = 0, 1, 2, …, N − 1, k =0

1 F (m, k ) = NPk

 2π  *  j exp ki  ϕ (m, i ). ∑  N  i =−N /2 N /2−1

}

{

Note, that the basis ϕ (m, t ) is a system of valid basis functions. To create the simulation algorithm, it is advisable to use the algorithms in trigonometric bases or in Hartley bases. In the case of Hartley bases the spectrum X ϕ (m ) is determined by the signal x (t ) and will be equal: X ϕ (m ) =

1 TPm

T /2

∫ x (t )ϕ (m, t )dt =

−T /2

From this expression it follows that: ∞

X ϕ (m ) = ∑ X Fe (k ) + X Fo (k ) F (m, k ), m = 0, 1, 2, …,  

(20)

k =0

1 F (m, k ) = TPm

T /2

 2π

∫ cas  T

−T /2

 kt  ϕ (m, t )dt, 

(21)

and

271

Spectral Algorithms for Signal Generation as Learning-Methodical Tool for Engineer Preparation



x (t ) = ∑X ϕ (m ) ϕ (m, t ), t ∈ −T / 2,T / 2).

(22)

m =0

The last formula (22) for the Fourier series matches with expression (19). Components X Fe (k ) and

X Fo (k ) of the Fourier spectrum in expression (20) could be obtained from expression (13) and will have a view: x (t ) =

ST (0) T

ST (k ∆ω )(1 + λk )

2

N −1

+∑

(

2 k

T 1+λ

k =1

)

 2π  cas  kt ,  T 

where t = i∆t, i = −M / 2, −M / 2 + 1, …, M / 2 − 1 and values N, M and ∆t are chosen, according to the same requirements as for the bases described above. In discrete version N −1

x (i ) = ∑X ϕ (m ) ϕ (m, i ),i ∈ −N / 2, N / 2); m =0

N −1

ST (k ∆ω )(1 + λk )

k =0

T 1 + λk2

X ϕ (m ) = ∑

1 F (m, k ) = NPk

2

(

)

F (m, k ),

 2π   ki  ϕ (m, i ). cas ∑  N  i =−N /2 N /2−1

Here ∆ω = 2π / (N ∆t ), and λ0 = 0 .

272

Section 4

Communication in Learning

274

Chapter 24

New Trends in Teaching English at a Russian Technical University Tatiana Margaryan Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Natalia Alyavdina Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT Today, English for specific purposes (ESP) in its various aspects is taught all over the world. In Russia, ESP is a requirement of tertiary education. Educators must develop students’ language proficiency relative to professional communication, with respect to the new Federal State Educational Standard. The academic staff of the Linguistics Department at Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) skillfully combines traditional teaching approaches and modern techniques. This chapter discusses modern trends in teaching ESP at Russian technical universities and looks into current approaches in this field. The chapter may contribute to a better understanding of primary challenges in ESP, which must be considered when implementing the Federal State Educational Standard.

INTRODUCTION English language proficiency for an engineer is no longer a luxury since English is consistently replacing all other languages around the globe and has become an international language. In the dynamic international context of global information exchange, the professionals of any industry need a tool that can actually enable effective professional communication. That tool is a professionally oriented language—in other words, English for Specific Purposes (Hutchinson & Water, 1987). Since it was first discussed in the 1960s (Swales, 1971) English for Specific Purposes (ESP) has represented a separate direction in teaching English as a foreign language (Strevens, 1988). This aspect of English Language Teaching (ELT) has developed considerably and taken a leading position in teaching English at Russian technical universities (Prudnikova, 2013). But the term ESP, as it is known now, DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch024

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 New Trends in Teaching English at a Russian Technical University

began to be widely used by Russian educators only in early 2000 when the concepts of the Bologna process were considered. At that time the main class activities at BMSTU were reading, translation and learning terms. Since 2009 new tertiary education standards have been elaborated in Russia. According to them, students’ engineering skills are divided into professional and wider cultural (interpersonal) (State educational standards, 2009). The development of a professional communication competence has become a primary task of the university education and the main trend in teaching English at Bauman University. Actually, the level of English proficiency among students at Russian technical universities is very diverse, and often leaves much to be desired. Students are often disappointed when they graduate from universities and face the real situation in the workplace where they will use their ESP background. Their communication competence is often inadequate to meet the requirements of the professional world they enter. It becomes evident when engineering students apply for well-paid jobs in international companies where applicants are required to pass the job interview in English. Unfortunately, the graduates of Bauman University quite often fail it. During traditional annual reunions the alumni of Bauman University admit that they can easily read, understand and translate various English texts dealing with their fields of engineering, but the main challenge for them is communication with their foreign colleagues. They feel the lack of speaking skills since they often are not able to discuss ideas or to negotiate projects with their foreign partners at a professional level. Besides, at the Russian labor market professionals with good command of spoken English have much more opportunities for their career development. Big companies and enterprises, such as Boeing, Cisco, Unilever and others, promote their Russian employees with high proficiency in English more readily. But a typical course in English at a Russian technical university usually does not provide students pursuing either academic or professional and business careers with sufficient or even adequate speaking skills. That is why most graduates feel discontented with the syllabus that was taught, which they find does not meet their needs. Many must rely on extra lessons to learn how to communicate effectively with overseas colleagues (Frumina & West, 2012). The situation is changing. Now Russian ESP teachers try to play a new role in professional education. They set new learning objectives for the ESP syllabus (first of all, there is a shift to developing students’ speaking skills), organize special English courses for students to facilitate their communicative skills. Developing training programs and syllabi for teaching ESP in technical universities has become vital. However, such initiatives must take into account the requirements for proficiency in a foreign language, based on the following principles: • • •

Teaching a foreign language is an integral part of professional training. A foreign language course is multilevel, and developed in the context of lifelong learning. Learning a foreign language occurs on an integrated, interdisciplinary basis.

Foreign-language training aims at comprehensive development of communicative, cognitive, informational, sociocultural, professional, and general cultural competence of students (Basturkmen, 2006). Nonetheless, the specifics of each institution or its departments, as well as the needs of customers and the students themselves, must always be considered. In this context, engineering students desperately need to obtain and develop their communication skills. The goal of this chapter is to present new approaches to teaching English at Bauman Moscow State Technical University.

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METHODS The educators of the Linguistics Department at Bauman Moscow State Technical University have designed a professionally oriented syllabus and developed new course materials, in order to facilitate and evolve students’ communication competence. A newly designed course was launched in the autumn semester of the academic year 2015/2016. The syllabus consists of 12 modules, each designed to last five weeks. Rybushkina and Sidorenko (2015) define a module as a universal structure with similar tangible characteristics including a number of in-class academic hours, credits, tests and others. Each module of the designed course has a various content which is tailored to syllabus objectives. The module material includes topical questions to start the discussion, short texts relating to the subject of the discussion, video or audio files for listening comprehension, and many activities to facilitate the development of students’ communication skills for their academic and professional needs. The target audience is the undergraduate students majoring in mechanical engineering, in their first and the second years of study (totally 80 subgroups, 8-12 students in each subgroup). The students attend one 90-minute class each week. The English-language course at Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) lasts three years. During the first two years, students study General English, and in the third year, they deal with professionally oriented education. Only then they have the opportunity to learn specific vocabulary and terms, and to use English for their professional needs. But the educators of the BMSTU Linguistics Department came up with the idea of integrating some elements of ESP into the General English course, by introducing a vocationally-orientated training toolkit: topics for discussions, vocabulary and texts, audio and video material. In addition, innovative teaching approaches and techniques, such as project work, WebQuests (http://webquest.org), debate, and mini-conferences are applied. The course includes various assignments to combine face-to- face and online learning. The BMSTU educators tried to shape a blended learning environment, as they agree completely that teaching and learning with blended formats provides a learning environment that enhances “real time” interaction with learning materials, discussions with instructors and among colleagues, and students needn’t wait until the “next class meeting”, as it usually happens with the traditional learning environment (Agamba, 2015, p.2). To research the actual situation in various groups and evaluate the efficiency of the syllabus as designed, 42 teachers were offered questionnaires. The results are presented in Tables 1 and 2.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Syllabus Effect Teaching ESP at technical universities embraces a range of ideas and options (Teaching ESP, 2012). As in any other form of training, for teaching ESP many methods and approaches are used, depending on course objectives and resources available. ESP philosophy divides them all into three groups: problembased learning (PBL), autonomous learning, and learning based on Information and Communications Technology (ICT). These are all learner-centered methodologies (Hutchinson & Water, 1987).

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Table 1. Priority of language activities Nº

Kinds of Speech Activity

Conducted or Not (Yes/No)

How Much Use of It Did You Make (in Minutes of the Total Classroom Time)

How Much Use of It Did You Make (in % of the Total Classroom Time)

1.

Lexical/grammar exercises

yes

15 -20

16-22

2.

Reading

yes

12-15

13-16

3.

Translation

yes

8-10

9-11

4.

Speaking

yes

30-45

30-50

5

Listening

yes

15

16

6.

Writing

yes

5-10

5,5-11

Prioritized classroom activities (in %, in order of decreasing)

Speaking: 30%-50% Lexical/grammar exercises: 16%-22% Listening: 16% Reading: 13%-16% Translation: 9%-11% Writing: 5,5%-11%

7.

Table 2. Skills assessment Types of Skills Assessment (tests, presentations, etc.)

#

% of Successful Results

1

Speaking : Presentation Debate Report Other

80

2

Grammar/vocabulary knowledge: Test

75

3

Readingcomprehension: T/F exercises Multiple choice exercises Question-response exercises Other

95

4

Listening comprehension: T/F exercises Multiple choice exercises Question-response exercises Other

75

5

Translation: Test Other

78

Writing: Letter (formal/informal) Review Student’s profile Forms/accounts/applications Blog Postcard Short story Report Essay Other

60

6

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Today, with new priorities in language education and the transformation of educational cooperation between teacher and student, the ESP teacher must clearly realize his/her mission. Bauman ESP teachers establish learning goals and then transform them into an instructional program with a timing of activities. Their main tasks include selecting materials, designing the syllabus and organizing course materials, supporting students in their efforts, and providing them with feedback on their progress. BMSTU English teachers try to establish a positive learning environment in the classrooms and set up long-term goals and short-term objectives for student achievements. But the most crucial thing in designing a syllabus is taking students’ potential and concern into account. The items or units that the teachers or course developers specify as the course content, and how they organize them, reveal their ideas of the language and learning. The seemingly straightforward procedure of specifying and ordering content actually involves one or more of a number of theoretical stances. A syllabus can be synthetic when the language is segmented into separate language elements, or analytical when the language is not split up and is presented at a time when there is no linguistic control. The BMSTU educators prefer the latter one. They construe a language as a set of communicative purposes that involve a variety of pragmatic language functions, such as request, report, presentation, role-playing games, and debate as course contents (Basturkmen, 2010). The syllabus uses the term “students’ communicative competence” which represents not only the sum of students’ knowledge and skills but also a set of their personal qualities and abilities. In this respect, Bauman syllabus designers consider that the evaluation criteria of students’ skills should be their ability to solve complicated problems and find answers in various situations. The BMSTU educators have tried to align the syllabus with the overall philosophy of the new course. It is generally agreed that students acquire skills in speaking English when they have opportunities to use the language to communicate with other speakers. Actually, a teacher with limited time for communication with students may be the only English-speaking person with whom students can speak during a class. Therefore, the Bauman teachers try to shape an effective and friendly communication environment in their classrooms, because they know that good learners are often great risk-takers, who might make many mistakes in order to succeed, and in ESP classes they are handicapped by the inability to use their native language competence to present themselves as well informed. Thus, the BMSTU teachers have developed and adopted effective techniques to facilitate students’ communication skills, to involve them in various classroom speaking activities, and to encourage their communication outside of the classroom. We cannot ignore the fact that students master the English language as they work with materials that they find interesting, uncomplicated, relevant to their major, and useful in their professional work or further studies. The more students speak the language that they hear or read, the more successfully they master it. On the other hand, the longer they are forced to focus their attention on the purely linguistic, grammatical, and other aspects of the language or its individual structures that seem difficult, the less willing they are to attend classes. Engineering students are particularly well disposed to focusing on meaning in the subject matter (Gablasova, 2015). Fiorito (2005) also cautions against presenting ESP English as a subject to be learned in isolation from real use, or as a mechanical skill or habit to be developed. On the contrary, presenting English in authentic contexts will acquaint learners with a particular usage of the language for functions they will need to perform in their fields of specialty or their jobs.

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The designers of the new “blended” syllabus for BMSTU undergraduates have considered all these ideas, and its practical implementation has a remarkable effect. The results of the launched course were evaluated by questionnaires, and are presented in Tables 1 and 2. They show that the major portion of classroom time is devoted to developing students’ speaking skills (not less than 30%). It means that BMSTU students are engaged in classroom speaking activities regularly for 30 - 45 minutes from total 90 minutes. The final assessment for each module consists of two parts: 1) vocabulary-and-grammar test and 2) one of the speaking activities (a report or a presentation on the module topic; debate; roundtable discussion). According to the survey results, 80% of students are successful in these activities. But previously, the majority of undergraduate students could participate only in short dialogues or ask and answer questions, and it took them not more than 10-15 minutes every lesson. Besides, the final assessment included only vocabulary and grammar assignments or a written translation of a short text, and it had no speaking assignments. So, the BMSTU ESP teachers managed to shape the communication environment at their classes and motivate students to speak out by developing new course materials and adopting innovative ESP techniques.

Innovative ESP Techniques and Technologies Presently, ESP teachers have many textbooks at their disposal for work in the classroom, but they do not always satisfy the learners’ needs and goals. As a result, most ESP colleagues use their in-house materials for ESP teaching tailored to the specific purposes and needs of their students (Dudley-Evans, 1999). More essential in creating the learning environment is the integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and multimedia resources (Neshchadim, 2013). Nowadays, computers and the Internet are commonplace, so they should assist in mastering the language. Frick, Sautter, and Ovrebekk (2003, p.180) consider that new information and communication technologies (ICTs) provide new possibilities for flexible deliveries of courses and communication. Professionals apply various ICT techniques and approaches to develop students’ communication skills (Turro & Farell, 2013). One activity is creating and editing a Wiki, with its website structure and content that users can modify by themselves, using the tools provided by the site. Wiki markup enables text formatting and inserting various objects. The possibility of collective development, storage, structuring text, hypertext, and files that include multimedia make the Wiki attractive to students for working both in the classroom and, to a greater extent, autonomously. WebQuest can also benefit ESP learners. WebQuest is the Internet site where students work on performing a particular learning task. Usually, WebQuests are designed for one to three lessons. This technology helps to shape and develop learner competencies, including: Employment of IT solutions for professional tasks (e.g., searching for information needed to enable making computer presentations, websites, flash movies, databases); • • • •

Autonomous learning and self-control; Teamwork (planning, allocation of responsibilities, mutual aid, mutual control); Ability to find multiple ways to solve a problem, determine the most rational option, and explain the choice; and Public-speaking skills needed to present a project, answer questions or take part in debate (Margaryan, 2014).

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Another online resource Listen and Write (http://www.listen-and-write.com) can be helpful in mastering listening skills and improving spelling, since it has obvious advantages: • • • • •

Free listening practice; Based on the authentic material; Available in multiple languages; Graded according to the language proficiency; Suitable for homework assignments.

WebQuest technique is applied by Bauman educators in groups with more advanced language proficiency as it is time and efforts consuming for students. While learning a module “Renewable sources of energy” students are offered with the WebQuest “A Power Plant of my dream”. It includes the Internet links to search the information on various energy sources and a set of assignments with evaluation criteria. Students are divided into triads. Each group is a team presenting a country (up to their choice) at the international conference. They are required to search the information on renewable sources of energy, to make a list of their priorities, to interview at least 10 peers or family members, to find the opinions of experts in this field in order to present a report at the mini-conference or a project for a roundtable discussion. Such kind of an activity helps to develop not only the speaking and communicative skills, but also is very beneficial for facilitating team-building skills. Bauman University instructors also rank group discussions and project work to form communication skills highly. Actually, project work promotes collaborative learning and learner autonomy. Therefore, the main value of this type of students’ activity is the process of a team working towards the endpoint and collective success (Ahluwalia, 2010). The process involves several stages: an introductory (or input session), interim discussions and final presentations (e.g. an oral presentation, a poster session, a bulletin board display, a report at a mini-conference). A Debate is another modern trend in ESP teaching at Bauman University. A Debate can supplement the traditional speaking tasks, i.e. discussions, dialogues, role plays and interviews, engaging every learner in the process and making them active and independent participants of speaking classes and more autonomous language learners. While getting ready for debate students learn to work autonomously with media resources, encyclopedias, and books. It enhances critical thinking through investigating arguments, engaging in research, gathering information, performing analysis, assessing arguments, questioning assumptions, and demonstrating interpersonal skills. Besides, during the debate, students have a chance to demonstrate their linguistic and professional competence (Talalakina, Brown, & Eggington, 2014). Almost every module of the newly designed English course at Bauman University includes debate on different issues. All of these techniques are helpful in encouraging students’ communication skills, involving them in research activity and enabling them to acquire experience working in teams. But sometimes adopting innovative technology into learning opportunities may increase the complexity and create additional challenges and anxieties for learners and instructors (Moats, 2015, p. 262). For this reason, teachers need regular encouragement and guidance in using new technologies. Not surprisingly, younger teachers are often better demonstrators of technology, so they might become excellent instructors for older peers trying to adopt new technologies to their classes.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS As it was mentioned above, the Bauman educators have just started implementing the newly designed syllabus. It could be helpful for them to capture qualitatively the experiences of those peers who have had mixed or negative experiences since the analysis of different results would assist them in material design. A more integrated approach is needed in order to examine the syllabus effects. One of the possible ways can be a classroom research .We should take into account that different speaking activities are appropriate to a particular level of students’ language proficiency. So, the next step is to specify what type of speaking activities is rewarding for students of a certain level of language proficiency. Then, one more essential step is required. Since the main focus in teaching ESP at BMSTU has been shifted to developing speaking skills instead of reading and translating, the concept of a final assessment (an exam in English) is to be modified as well. The Bauman educators are going to study various experiences both of local and foreign professionals. They intend to arrange seminars, workshops, conferences on the issues. The discussions have already started.

CONCLUSION Teaching English for specific purposes at technical universities mostly focuses on practical professional applications. But like any other aspect of English-language teaching, it is based on knowledge of the language’s nature, and the basic methods and forms of teaching and learning. A blend of traditional teaching methods and new technologies, including the use of a virtual environment to support student motivation, is becoming one of the productive approaches to teaching English at technical universities in Russia. A critical reevaluation of the material that students study contributes to shaping and developing student skills and abilities, and forms their linguistic, sociocultural, communicative, and professional competence. The educators in the Linguistics Department of Bauman Moscow State Technical University considered all of these aspects while designing the syllabus and course materials. The interim course evaluation is rather positive, as students have demonstrated better results in speaking skills, compared to previous years. The course based on the new ESP approaches will benefit the implementation of the Federal State Educational Standard.

REFERENCES Agamba, J. (2015). Optimizing Blended Teaching and Learning in Brick-and-Mortar Institutions. In J. Keengwe & J. Agamba (Eds.), Models for Improving and Optimizing Online and Blended Learning in Higher Education (pp. 1–11). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-6280-3.ch001 Ahluwalia, G. (2010). Language Learning with Internet-based Projects: a Student-centered Approach for Engineering Students. ESP World, 9(27). Retrieved June 5, 2016, from http://www.esp-world.info/ Articles_27/lang%20learn.pdf Basturkmen, H. (2006). Ideas and options in English for Specific Purposes. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

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Basturkmen, H. (2010). Developing courses in English for Specific Purposes. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/9780230290518 Dodge, B. (n.d.). WebQuest.Org. Retrieved June 5, 2016, from https:// www.webquest.org Dudley-Evans, T. (1999). Developments in English for Specific Purposes: A multi-disciplinary approach. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Fiorito, L. (2005). How is English for Specific Purposes (ESP) different from English as a Second Language (ESL), also known as general English? Retrieved May 20, 2016, from https://www.usingenglish. com/articles/teaching-english-for-specific-purposes-esp.html Frick, J., Sautter, M., & Ovrebekk, S. (2000). Effective Online Learning – Both a Utilization of Technology and Methods. In F. Albalooshi (Ed.), Virtual Education: Cases in Learning & Teaching Technologies (pp. 179–184). Hershey, PA: IRM Press. doi:10.4018/978-1-93177-739-1.ch012 Frumina, E., & West, R. (2012). Internationalization of Russian higher education: The English language dimension. Moscow, Russia: British Council. Retrieved May 30, 2016, from https://www.teachingenglish. org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/RussianBaselineReport2012.pdf Gablasova, D. (2015). Learning technical words through L1 and L2: Completeness and accuracy of word meanings. Journal Elsevier: English for Specific Purposes, 39, 62–74. doi:10.1016/j.esp.2015.04.002 Hutchinson, T., & Water, A. (1987). The development of ESP. In English for Specific Purposes: A learning-centered approach (pp. 9–15). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/ CBO9780511733031.005 Margaryan, T. (2014). Formy avtonomnogo obuchenia v tekhnicheskom vuze v gruppakh ESP (angliyskiy dlia specialnykh tseley [Autonomous learning in ESP groups at a technical university]. Gumanitarny Vestnik MGTU im. N.E. Baumana - Journal of Humanities Bulletin of BMSTU, 2(16). Retrieved May 27, 2016, from http://hmbul.ru/articles/166/166.pdf Moats, J. (2015). Influences on the Acceptance of Innovative Technologies Used in Learning Opportunities: A Theoretical Perspective. In F. Nafukho & B. Irby (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Innovative Technology Integration in Higher Education (pp. 262–281). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-8170-5.ch013 Neshchadim, I. (2013). Developing communicative competence in engineering students through Internetbased project work. In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Teaching English for Specific Purposes in Serbia (pp.372-376). Nish, Serbia: University of Nish. Prudnikova, N. (2013). ESP teaching at the institutions of higher education in modern Russia: problems and perspectives (pp. 390-396). In BCES Conference Books: Education in one world: Perspectives from different nations (vol. 11). Sofia, Bulgaria: University of Sofia. 10.2139srn.2232203 Russian state tertiary educational standards. (2009). Retrieved May 20, 2016, from http://fgosvo.ru/ uploadfiles/fgos/15/20111115151321.pdf

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Rybushkina, S., & Sidorenko, T. (2015). Modular approach to teaching ESP in engineering programs in Russia. In Proceedings of 2015 International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning (ICL) (pp. 105-108). Florence, Italy: IEEE. 10.1109/ICL.2015.7317988 Strevens, P. (1988). ESP after twenty years: A re-appraisal. In M. Tickoo (Ed.), ESP: State of the Art (pp. 1–13). Singapore: SEAMEO Regional Centre. Swales, J. (1971). Writing Scientific English. London, UK: Thomas Nelson and Sons. Talalakina, E. V., Brown, N. A., & Eggington, W. (2014). Mastering English through global debate. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press. Teaching, E. S. P. (2012). Best Practices. Moscow, Russia: REPETITOR Multi Media. Turro, L. J., & Farell, M. P. (2013). Higher Education and IT. In P. Pablos & R. Tenisson (Eds.), Strategic Role of Tertiary Education and Technologies for Sustainable Competitive Advantage (pp. 120–127). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-4233-1.ch004

ADDITIONAL READING Kavaliauskienė, G. (2006). Good Practice in Teaching ESP Presentations. ESP World. 5(13). Retrieved from http://www.esp-world.info/Articles_13/article%20GOOD%20PRACTICE%20IN%20TEACHING%20EFFECTIVE%20PUBLIC%20SPEAKING.htm Kavaliauskienė, G. (2013). Ongoing research into speaking skills. English for Specific Purposes World. 14 (38). Retrieved from http://www.esp-world.info/Articles_38/Kavaliauskiene_Ongoing_Research_ into_Speaking_Skills.pdf Kirsanova, G., & Lasarev, V. (2016) Binarny podkhod k predmetno-yazykovomu integrirovannomu obucheniu v tekhnicheskom vuze. [Binary approach to language integrated teaching in a technical university]. In Proceedings of the International science congress “Science and Engineering Education. See–2016” (pp.223-234). [Russian]. Moscow, Russia: Bauman Moscow State Technical University. Komissarova, N., Gleason, K., & Matukhin, P. (2017) Knowledge hub: spiral matrix thinking as a communication technology for individual and group learning in one drive and word online. Vestnik Rossiiskogo universiteta druzhby narodov. Seriya: Informatizatsiya obrazovaniya, 14 (2), 194-204. [ Bulletin of Russian Peoples’ Friendship University. Series Informatization in Education, 14 (2), 194204]. Moscow, Russia: RUDN University Stuart, C. (Ed.). (1989). Be an Effective Speaker. Chicago, USA: NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company. Timmis, I. (2012). Spoken Language Research and ELT: Where Are We Now? [Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.]. ELT Journal, 66(4), 514–522. doi:10.1093/elt/ccs042

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Troufanova, N., & Parshina, N. (2016). Ob itogakh diagnosticheskogo testirovania po angliyskomu yazyku studentov pervogo kursa [On the results of the first year students’ diagnostic English testing]. Gumanitarny Vestnik MGTU im. N.E. Baumana - Journal of Humanities Bulletin of BMSTU, 1. [Russian]. Retrieved from http://hmbul.ru/catalog/edu/pedagog/336.html Vanicheva, T., Kah, M., & Ponidelko, L. (2015). Critical thinking within the current framework of ESP curriculum in technical universities of Russia. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 199, 657–665. Retrieved from https://ac.els-cdn.com/S1877042815046145/1-s2.0-S1877042815046145-main. pdf?_tid=f4a246bc-0481-11e8-bd1b-00000aab0f02&acdnat=1517181863_83bc7f5350fb246cb3f8da6 bb00786bb. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.07.595

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Bauman University: Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) is a center of higher education and research engineering. It was founded in 1830 and offers study programs leading to Bachelors and Master degrees, Diploma of Engineer, Ph.D., and Doctor of Science in various engineering majors. Blended Learning: An English course combining traditional classroom activities with online learning and multimedia resources. Communication Skills: Skills for effective spoken communication, promoting free-flowing communication, when you are able to express your ideas and views clearly, confidently and concisely. English for Specific Purposes (ESP): Teaching English (as a part of English as a Foreign Language) at a tertiary level institution or in a professional work situation. Multimedia Technology: A technology involving interactive, computer-based applications that allow people to communicate ideas and information with digital and print elements. Project Work: A learning experience which aims to provide students with the opportunity to synthesize knowledge from various areas of learning, including a foreign language, and then critically and creatively apply it to real-life situations. Teaching Approaches: An approach is a way of looking at teaching and learning. Underlying any language teaching approach is a theoretical view of what language is, and of how it can be learned. An approach gives rise to methods, the way of teaching something, which use classroom activities or techniques to help learners learn. Vocational Education: Tertiary qualification level when theoretical teaching is accompanied by practical experience. Vocationally Oriented Training: Applied educational courses concerned with skills needed for an occupation, trade, or profession. WebQuest: An inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the Internet. It can be created using various programs, including a simple word processing document that includes links to websites.

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Chapter 25

Content- and LanguageIntegrated Learning:

A New Approach to Teaching Engineering Galina V. Kirsanova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russian Vladimir A. Lazarev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT Content- and language-integrated learning (CLIL) has been considered from the perspective of communicative competence development in the context of teaching professionally oriented English language in a technical university. The chapter outlines the main aspects underlying CLIL and describes the experience of teaching English to students majoring in Photonics in the format of “binary” classes involving two teachers: of English and of physics of lasers. Classes have been designed for 3rd- to 4th-year students who had mastered basic linguistic-cultural communicative competences and went on to continue using English in professionally oriented situations. This way of team teaching contributes to the development of communication skills in the students’ professional area and facilitates the assimilation of curricular material by students.

INTRODUCTION The role of languages in education has never been as important as it is now. According to A Guide to Languages in the European Union, the European Union actively encourages its citizens to learn other European languages, both for reasons of professional and personal mobility within its single market, and as a force for cross-cultural contacts and mutual understanding (“EUbusiness,” 2008). The Federal Educational Standard (FES) for bachelor’s studies in Physics introduced in 2014 requires that a graduate should possess speaking and writing competences in both Russian and foreign languages for efficient interpersonal and intercultural interaction; should be able to use his or her knowledge of a foreign language in their professional activities and carry out research in theoretical and fundamental DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch025

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 Content- and Language-Integrated Learning

physics using state-of-the-art instruments and information technologies based on domestic and foreign experience (Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, 2014). Without a doubt, any person wishing to improve his or her social standing, expand their cultural horizons and improve their career opportunities should possess a good level of foreign language skills. The knowledge of a foreign language is indispensable for an engineering student considering the processes of globalization and academic mobility. Without a good command of English, an engineering university graduate might have difficulty in gaining full-fledged access to professional information as most scientific papers are published in English and the working language of most international workshops and conferences is English. The Russian Federation State Programme on the Development of Education for the period of 20132020 prioritizes the internationalization of Russian higher education. It points out the necessary to take measures to significantly increase Russian teachers and students’ academic mobility and supports innovative projects of teaching English in Russian universities. One of the ways to cope with this task is ‘the development and implementation of educational programmes in foreign languages, primarily in English’ (Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, 2013) At the same time, with the introduction of FES the amount of teaching hours at Russian technical universities allocated for foreign language instruction has decreased leaving English teachers with just two academic hours (90 minutes) per week for 1st to 3rd-year students. Under existing conditions, it is necessary to use new approaches to language teaching. Using CLIL (content and language integrated learning) methodology at an engineering university might be a good way to address the task of teaching professionally oriented English, as it does not require additional hours on the curriculum. David Marsh, who introduced this ‘umbrella’ term to incorporate various methods of bilingual education more than two decades ago, in his interview on CLIL says, ‘People in languages education say that something needs to change’. The purpose of this paper is two-fold: to look at CLIL as an innovative, at least for Russia, method of teaching English and a non-English subject simultaneously and describe the experience of using CLIL in the English classroom for Bauman university students majoring in Photonics.

BACKGROUND CLIL is a method, which on the one hand allows teaching a foreign language using the concepts and terminology typical of a student’s professional area, on the other hand using a foreign language as a tool for teaching a subject a student is majoring in. According to David Marsh, CLIL refers to situations where subjects, or parts of subjects, are taught through a foreign language with dual-focused aims, namely the learning of content and the simultaneous learning of a foreign language (Marsh, 1994). There are CLIL schools in Europe, where school subjects are taught in German, Russian, French, English and Swedish. The variety of languages of instruction justifies the use of the letter L for ‘language’ in the abbreviation while according to (Dalton-Puffer, 2011) it would be more preferable to substitute it for the letter E to mean English as the dominant language. As Christiane Dalton-Puffer puts it, ‘CLIL languages tend to be recruited from a small group of prestigious languages, and outside the Englishspeaking countries, the prevalence of English as CLIL medium is overwhelming’ (Dalton-Puffer, 2011). A good command of English makes it possible for a graduate of a technical university to communicate efficiently with his or her peers abroad taking part in international scientific conferences, to read scientific articles, most of which are published in English.

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CLIL has been around for quite a long time. It is a popular method used in some schools worldwide and it is primarily aimed at students of primary to tertiary levels. Interest in CLIL is on the increase in Russia but in spite of an abundance of theoretical studies on the subject (Lapteva, 2012; Inozemtseva, Bondaletova, & Borisova, 2016; Grigoryeva, 2016; Lebedeva, 2014; Grigoryan, & Lebedeva, 2014) there is an obvious lack of successful teaching practices, especially in higher education environment. While CLIL has been a very popular and successful method of dual-focussed teaching in many European countries, especially at primary and secondary levels of school education, there is little evidence of systematic implementation of this method at universities in Russia. CLIL’s use in higher education in Russia has been mostly limited so far to pilot projects, a good example being the implementation of a CLIL-based method of teaching at Kazan Federal University (Zaripova, 2015). The methodology of content and language integrated learning suggests that a foreign language teacher is sufficiently prepared for teaching both the language and content but there are very few English teachers teaching university students who would meet this requirement. We can hardly imagine an English teacher capable of professionally explaining the principles behind the laser. A good way to deal with the task of teaching both a language and content in a professional way is delivering classes performed by two teachers: an English teacher and, in our case, a teacher of Physics of Lasers who has a good command of English, the experience described in this article.

USING CLIL AT AN ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY The popularity and importance of CLIL are due to its unquestionable advantages, the main plus being increased motivation of students studying a foreign language and a non-language subject simultaneously. In the classroom students concentrate on their subject, e.g. Types of Lasers, rather than English grammar focusing on communication rather than theoretical language-related issues. Texts and terminology are explained and discussed in English thus allowing students to acquire both communication competencies in the field of their professional interest and knowledge of the subject matter. The enthusiasm and motivation of a teacher can also be powerful motivating factors. Many university teachers of English in Russia are quite happy analyzing sentence structures, explaining the difference between the types of conditional clauses, reading and translating texts and making their students write word dictations. However, the world is changing at a rapid pace and conventional methods of teaching no longer meet its requirements. ‘What we need are students who can perform, who can act in accordance with a given situation. They will need to identify objectives, adjust their message to the nature of their audience, and employ the appropriate media. Such is the framework of a competence, and CLIL-based methodology is much closer to this practice than is conventional language teaching’ (Ball, Kelly, & Clegg, 2015). Another advantage of CLIL is the possibility to use two languages in the classroom making it possible to simulate real-life situations important for the students’ professional activities, e.g. simultaneous Russian-English or English-Russian interpretation at international conferences on Physics. The ability to communicate in English on professional topics makes the students more self-confident preparing them for fulfilling professional tasks. With CLIL English is studied to be used here and now rather than in the future (Coyle, Hood, & Marsh, 2010), which makes the method attractive for both students and teaching enthusiasts.

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At the same time CLIL method, or rather using it within Russian engineering university environment is not without minuses. Firstly, an English teacher might not know laser physics to the extent that would allow him or her to explain physical processes while an expert in this field might not know English well enough to teach this subject in English. Without a doubt, teacher development programs or interdisciplinary projects involving master and graduate programs students of corresponding departments might improve the situation. Secondly, despite a large number of scientific and methodological papers on CLIL there is a lack of instructional materials based on this method and intended for engineering university teachers. Thirdly, the problem of assessment in CLIL courses needs to be looked at since what we are teaching is two subjects as ‘It does not give emphasis to either language teaching or learning or to content teaching and learning, but sees both as integral parts of the whole’ (Marsh, 2002). Therefore, CLIL curricula should be developed which would incorporate both language and content competencies and assessment strategies. Another problem is that teachers might be overloaded, which might deprive them of the time needed for preparation for CLIL classes.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Today the problem of transition to the teaching of engineering subjects in English is very important for many technical universities in non-English speaking countries. At the same time, the problem is twofold: on the one hand, the insufficient level of students’ English skills required for the understanding of lectures delivered in English, seminars and laboratory works conducted in English, on the other hand, the lack of engineering subjects’ knowledge in teachers of English. With this in mind, we decided to conduct an experiment to organize binary classes based on the CLIL methodology at Bauman University, which, in our opinion, will create conditions for a smoother transition to the teaching of engineering disciplines in English. There have been attempts at engineering universities to switch to English when teaching non-English subjects, but these were based on the enthusiasm of individual teachers, no systematic approach has been implemented so far. Typically, such attempts to switch to teaching in English come down to organizing conferences, English-language seminars, internships for Bachelor and post-graduate students. However, such single approaches do not solve the main systemic problem. That is why we decided to use the CLIL methodology to address the comprehensive problem of improving the level of language training for both students and teachers of engineering disciplines. The project undertaken by the Department of Linguistics and the Photonics Center of Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) is the first step towards the development of Master’s degree program aiming at creating a course to incorporate English studies and the study of fundamental physics of lasers and intended for students majoring in Photonics and Lasers. Serving as a basis for this course are the existing courses in Russian, foreign practices of teaching similar courses in English as well as pedagogical groundwork obtained as a result of ‘binary’ classes planned and delivered by a teacher of English and a teacher of Laser Physics at BMSTU for third-year Bauman students. The classes were conducted for a year and finished with a conference on lasers with students’ presentations in English.

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Teaching materials were developed based on English for Students of Optics textbook published by Bauman University Press in 2015 (Kuznetsova, & Kirsanova, 2015). Each text was provided with contextual notes in Russian as shown in Fig. 1. The example of a text with contextual notes in Russian is given below. Laser sources are commonly classified in terms of the state of the active medium: gas, liquid, and solid. Each of these classes is further subdivided into one or more types.

Gas Lasers. Gas lasers are conveniently described in terms of six basic types, two involving electronic transition in atomic active species (neutral and ionic), three based on neutral molecular active species (differentiated by laser action occurring in electronic, vibrational, and rotational transitions), and one based on molecular-ion active species.

Gas lasers are pumped using a wide variety of excitation methods, including several types of electrical discharges (cw, pulsed, dc or rf, glow or arc), electron beam excitation, gasdynamic expansion, electrically or spontaneously induced chemical reactions, and optical pumping using primary lasers. Liquid Lasers. Liquid lasers are commonly described in terms of three distinct types: organic dye lasers which are most well known for their spectral tunability, rare-earth chelate lasers which utilize organic molecules, and lasers utilizing inorganic solvents and trivalent rare earth ion active centers. Liquid lasers are optically pumped using three basic methods: flashlamps, pulsed primary lasers, or cw primary lasers.

Semiconductor lasers are usually differentiated in terms of the means by which the hole-electron pair population inversion is produced. Semiconductor lasers can be pumped optically (usually with other laser sources), by electron beams, or more commonly by injection of electrons in a p-n junction. . Given below are examples of tasks aimed at increasing the students’ vocabulary and improving their speaking skills. Give the verbs the following nouns are derived from. conductor, semiconductor, conduction, conductivity; injection, emission, absorption, participation, composition, treatment, transition, recombination. Match synonyms. gain, occur, large, rate, general, amplification, take place, broad, velocity, common. Match antonyms. low, simple, general, excitation, short, specific, initial, relaxation, high, long, complex, terminal. Translate the adjectives below paying attention to the negative prefixes.

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direct – indirect, efficient – inefficient, convenient – inconvenient; probable – improbable, practical – impractical, possible – impossible; radiative – nonradiative, nuclear – nonnuclear, conducting – nonconducting; continuous – disсontinuous; fortunate – unfortunate; comfortable – uncomfortable. Match the verbs with nouns to obtain meaningful word-combinations in Table 1. In each group find the word that doesn’t belong. 1. ultraviolet, unique, various, possible, incoherent, spectacular, infrared, optical; 2. associated, terminated, stored, precluded, released, unoccupied, described, tuned; 3. sufficient, different, coefficient, magnificent, fluorescent, efficient. Complete the sentences. 1. The output wavelength of the FEL can be varied from the ultraviolet to the far infrared spectral region by a. utilizing one laser source to generate coherent radiation in a second medium; b. properly choosing the kinetic energy of the electron beam and the c. periodicity of the magnetic field. 2. The extreme power and energy parameters were attained with a. simple laser oscillators; b. laser systems rather than with simple laser oscillators. Match the words and definitions in Table 2. Supply the missing prepositions. that will help to get rid _____the deflection; according ____ statistics; population suffers ____this defect; an insignificant defect is capable ____ causing big trouble; the technology is based ____directing the laser ray; ____a short time period; the scientists at the institute are engaged ____ developing technology. Other tasks included the reading and discussion of texts related to Physics of Laser, skimming authentic articles on lasers from scientific journals; jigsaw reading; presentations by the students; listening to, watching and discussing relevant audio and video clips; asking and answering questions from the expert;

Table 1. Meaningful word-combinations 1. radiative

4. valence

a. gap

d. lifetime

2. quantum

5. energy

b. transition

e. carrier

3. excess

6. band-to-band

c. efficiency

f. band

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Table 2. Words and definitions 1. operation

a. a transposition in the relative numbers of atoms, molecules, etc. occupying particular energy levels

2. application

b. the process in which an atom or other particle adopts a higher energy state when energy is supplied

3. inversion

c. the fact or condition of functioning or being active

4. combination

d. the factors or prevailing situation influencing the performance or the outcome of a process

5. excitation

e. the emission of energy as electromagnetic waves or as moving subatomic particles, especially highenergy particles which cause ionization

6. absorption

f. the use of something in a particular situation

7. solution

g. a reduction of the intensity of any form of radiated energy as a result of energy conversion in a medium, such as the conversion of sound energy into heat

8. radiation

h. a change of an atom, nucleus, electron, etc. from one quantum state to another, with emission or absorption of radiation

9. transition

i. a joining or merging of different parts or qualities in which the component elements are individually distinct

10. conditions

j. a liquid mixture in which the minor component (the solute) is uniformly distributed within the major component (the solvent)

discussing terminology and concepts of Physics of Lasers; role-play games (conferences, interviews, simultaneous English-Russian or Russian-English interpretation). Third-year students were chosen as the target audience for the project as they had accumulated sufficient knowledge in English and, which is more important, had started focusing on the Physics of Lasers. An attempt has been made recently to implement the same approach when teaching Bauman secondyear students majoring in Optics but this has not proved a success. The third-year students the project had been designed for proved to be sufficiently prepared for receiving major-focussed English language instruction and since classroom practices concentrated on communication, they showed interest and participated actively in mini-conferences and discussion doing well-thought-out presentations on their subject area in English. The experiment was crowned with a simulation of a scientific conference, with some of the features of a real conference attached, e.g. paper presentations, question and answer sessions, discussion, simultaneous translation, the conference proceedings’ publication and even a coffee break. The course was designed to address the following tasks: 1. to make the students understand the importance of English communication skills for successful careers in engineering and science; 2. to lay the necessary foundation for the students’ unsupervised work with academic sources in English; 3. to develop innovative methods of teaching English and subject matter in the context of an engineering university; 4. to enhance the international reputation of Russian university education in general and that of BMSTU in particular.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The authors are planning to conduct a similar experiment in the next academic year, for which two groups of third-year students majoring in Optics have been chosen, only one of these using CLIL approach. Entry and exit tests are being developed to compare the results of knowledge acquisition in Optics and English at the end of the project. Questionnaires aimed at receiving the students’ feedback are also under development.

CONCLUSION The article discussed the main principles of content and language integrated learning methodology, and its appropriateness for use in higher engineering education environment in Russia. The results of using this approach by teachers of Bauman University Linguistics Department and Photonics Center proved to be motivating and rewarding for both the students and the teachers.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The authors should like to extend their thanks to the Vladimir Potanin Foundation (grant number GK140000172), with the support of which the project was implemented.

REFERENCES Ball, Ph., Kelly, K., & Clegg, Jh. (2015). Putting CLIL into practice. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Coyle, D., Hood, P., & Marsh, D. (2010). CLIL: Content and Language Integrated Learning. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Dalton-Puffer, Ch. (2011). Content-and-Language Integrated Learning: From Practice to Principles? Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 31, 182–204. doi:10.1017/S0267190511000092 EUbusiness. (2008). A Guide to Languages in the European Union. Retrieved from http://www.eubusiness.com/topics/Languages/eu-languages-guide/ Grigoryan, S., & Lebedeva, E. (2014). Peculiarities of the introduction of the model of integrated mastery of content and foreign language teaching into the Russian educational system. Science and Education: Economy and Economics. Entrepreneurship Law and Management, 5, 17–21. Grigoryeva, K. (2016). Formation of technical college students’ foreign language competence in the field of professional communication based on CLIL technology (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Kazan State University, Kazan, Russia.

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Inozemtseva, K., Bondaletova, E., & Borisova, T. (2016). Evolution of ESP as a methodology for teaching a foreign language for professional purposes in non-linguistic universities in Russia. Humanitarian Research, 2. Retrieved from http://human.snauka.ru/2016/02/13994 Kuznetsova, T., & Kirsanova, G. (2015). English for students of Optics. Moscow, Russia: Bauman State Technical University Press. Lapteva, T. (2012). Some aspects of using the CLIL methodology for teaching foreign languages. The Siberian State Geodesic Academy Journal. Lebedeva, E. (2014). Improvement of foreign language competence of law students. Science and education: Economy and Economics. Entrepreneurship Law and Management, 7, 17–21. Marsh, D. (1994). Bilingual Education & Content and Language Integrated Learning. Paris, France: University of Sorbonne & International Association for Cross-cultural Communication, Language Teaching in the Member States of the European Union (Lingua). Marsh, D. (2002). CLIL/EMILE – The European Dimension: Actions, Trends and Foresight Potential Public Services. Contract DG EAC. European Commission. Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. (2013). The Russian Federation State Programme on the Development of Education for the period of 2013-2020. Retrieved from http://government.ru/programs/202/events/ Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. (2014). Federal Educational Standard (FES) for bachelor’s studies in Physics. Retrieved from http://www.edu.ru/db/mo/Data/d_14/m937.pdf/ Zaripova, R. (2015). CLIL-based method of teaching in a foreign language at university (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Kazan Federal University, Kazan, Russia.

ADDITIONAL READING Butzkamm, W. (1998). Code-Switching in a Bilingual History Lesson. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 1(2), 81–92. doi:10.1080/13670059808667676 Cummins, J. (1979). Cognitive/academic language proficiency, linguistic interdependence, the optimum age question and some other matters. Working Papers on Bilingualism, 19, 121–129. Mehisto, P., & Genesee, F. (2015). Building Bilingual Education System: Forces, Mechanisms and Counterweights. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Pavesi, M. (2014). Teaching through a foreign language. Retrieved from www.ub.edu/filoan/CLIL/ teachers.pdf Wolff, D. (2004). Integrating language and content in the language classroom: Are transfer of knowledge and of language ensured? Proceedings of the GERAS. Paris, GERAS.

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Bilingual Education: A way of teaching academic content in two languages, in a native and secondary language with varying amounts of each language used in accordance with the program model. Content- and Language-Integrated Learning: A term created in 1994 by David Marsh as a methodology similar to but distinct from language immersion and content-based instruction. Cross-Cultural Communication: A field of study that looks at how people from differing cultural backgrounds communicate, in similar and different ways among themselves, and how they endeavor to communicate across cultures. Intercultural communication is a related field of study.

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Developing Engineering Students’ Language Skills Julia Kurovskaja Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT At present, language training is part and parcel of engineering education in Russia. A modern engineer must have both a communicative competence in the professional sphere and an intercultural view of the world. Accordingly, the topic of the assessment of foreign language textbooks for technical universities is highly relevant. This chapter is dedicated to this issue. The analysis of foreign language textbooks for technical universities is conducted through a cognitive-linguistic approach, using its toolkit, namely the diagnostic matrix. The diagnostic matrix is based on criteria that allow analyzing training materials, carrying out their diagnostics from the point of view of the specifics and regularities of the formation of students’ language picture of the world. This pedagogical research innovation will allow pedagogical science to effectively solve issues related to the elaboration of pedagogical semiology as a new area of pedagogical knowledge.

INTRODUCTION Current global world has a significant impact on education (Ivanova, & Ivanov, 2016; Lorenzo, & Gallon, 2015; Sorina, 2016; Thindwa, 2015). The quality of engineering personnel is one of the major factors of the competitiveness of each state. Therefore, the enhancement of engineering education becomes a topical issue in the world (Gill, Ayre, & Mills, 2017; Steuer, Bouffier, Gaedicke, & Leicht-Scholten, 2017). In this regard, the development of educational content is of great importance. Indeed, which should be based on understanding education as an integrative and multidimensional process, forming the personality of a future engineer, specifically, in the sphere of foreign language proficiency. Obviously, thanks to the knowledge of foreign languages, which in turn represent a socially significant value of modern society, a specialist possesses indisputable advantages, such as: The opportunity to integrate into a rapidly changing society, to find a job in the best way, to fully enjoy the achievements of the culture of world civilizations, to understand the modern world and its problems, and also to realize DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch026

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himself/herself as a part of this world. Therefore, the study of the “Foreign Language” subject within the educational program of a university is a vital necessity. Also, professional communicative competence, taking into account the knowledge of a foreign language, is the most important quality of a contemporary specialist in general and of a modern engineer in particular.

BACKGROUND Russia will be able to enter the international educational community and implement the right of technical university graduates for academic mobility only when the whole system of language training in higher education institutions will be modernized. Going into depth, some of the primary objectives of the Bologna Process were to promote transparency, increase the mobility of the citizens, create joint academic programs, create networks for the exchange of information, and provide language teaching, employability and student-centered learning. (Bologna Declaration, 1999; Ghinea, 2014, p. 63) The new system implies transition to multistage education in conformity with international standards, helps learners acquire the skills of interaction in a global world, and requires that a future engineer complies with modern levels of communicative competence in professional spheres and, generally, of intercultural perception (Caschera, D’Ulizia, Ferri, & Grifoni, 2014; Faletta, Meier, & Balderas, 2016). In this respect, the question of software support and methodological guidance of the language training of students of technical universities becomes particularly relevant. The purpose of the training is to acquire the communicative and professional competencies which are necessary for qualified information and creative activity in various fields and situations of both professional communication and day-to-day interaction. Indeed, the textbook is the most important didactic tool and an integral part of the software and methodological support for future engineers’ language training. The textbook is the source from which knowledge about professional life activity is extracted. It is also the source from which knowledge about the specifics of a student’s future profession as well as professional mission is determined. In the process of mastering the textbook in the context of language training at technical university, the terminological and conceptual content of professional disciplines are clarified. This contributes to the improvement of the professional thinking of future engineering personnel and to the development of students’ general cultural worldview as a whole. The above features of the modernized system necessitate innovative instructional strategies and new approaches to examination of foreign language textbooks in STEM higher education.

СOGNITIVE-LINGUISTIC APPROACH TO EXAMINATION OF TEXTBOOKS One of the new approaches to examination of foreign language textbooks is a cognitive-linguistic approach, which implies analyzing language modeling of a student’s world and revealing the concepts contained in exercises, texts, and illustrations. As initial conceptual position, this chapter takes the postulate of dialectical relationship between language, consciousness, and culture which a number of works on cognitive linguistics mention (Arutyunova, 1999; Boldyrev, 2001; Karasik, 2004, 2009;

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Kubryakova, 1996; Lakoff, 1987; Langacker, 1987, 1991; Rosch, Varela, & Thompson, 1991; Talmy, 2000a,b; Winters, Tissari, & Kathryn, 2010). A textbook is considered from the point of view of cognitive linguistics, with the focus on the interrelation and interdependence of languages and cultures in the given context of social and historical socialization of a certain generation. Cognitive-linguistic analysis also concentrates on the mentality of the generation in question, particularly in the spheres of pedagogy and training, and on the ways the mentality is reflected in language, in the ways of language teaching and learning. In terms of cognitive linguistics, language is understood not just as a means of communication, but wider: as a means of cognition and world structuring. In this regard, the chapter refers to the idea that human consciousness has an innate ability for language learning, and that language itself, being so closely intertwined with human life, is a window to the nature of humankind and the world (Chomsky, 2005; Pinker, 2013a; Pinker, 2013b). The basic notion of cognitive linguistics is a concept, which the author understands, in terms of pedagogy, as a unit of meaning, an element of the learners’ picture of the world embedded into the educational discourse of textbooks, where it is typographically embodied and thus transmitted along with the educational material (which is always sign-and-symbol). A concept is also a cognitive structure that appears in the learner’s consciousness while studying a given textbook, and is objectified through linguistic (sign-and-symbol) tools of a given language. A textbook, then, becomes an agent transmitting meanings (concepts), inducing an adequate response to the presentation of the latter, and stimulating the learner to reproduce those meanings in real life. In other words, textbooks are construction material for the forming language picture of the world. seethe following section illustrates how the learner’s language picture of the world is being structured and filled with meanings while they study a textbook.

METHODOLOGICAL BASIS: DIAGNOSTIC MATRIX AS A TOOL OF СOGNITIVE-LINGUISTIC APPROACH TO EXAMINATION OF TEXTBOOKS A cognitive-linguistic approach is being developed as a part of a research in pedagogical semiology. This research focuses on the ways of transmitting culture, in the form of signs and symbols, to learners during the process of education and teaching, and on how sign-symbol consciousness, forming in the learner in a certain educational context, influences future ways of discovering the world and communicating with other people. The basics of pedagogical semiology are developed at the Institute for Strategy of Education Development of the Russian Academy of Education. The founder and head of this direction of research is M.A. Lukatskii (see, in detail: Lukatskii, 2013; Kurovskaya, 2014, 2016). In order to study modeling of concepts as elements of learners’ language picture of the world, researchers developed the diagnostic matrix Conceptosphere of Learner’s Consciousness. The diagnostic matrix represents a set of valid assessment criteria (see Table 1), which, when taken as a whole, are designed to enable one to exert continual control over the construction and completion of the student’s linguistic world picture as well as to evaluate adequately the effectiveness and validness of a textbook as a student’s former linguistic world picture. This analysis aims to determine how a textbook contributes to the formation of the linguistic world picture and how the student, as a textbook user, forms, completes, and deepens his/her knowledge.

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Table 1. Diagnostic matrix as a tool of a сognitive-linguistic approach to examination of textbooks Nº

Criterion

Textbook Assessment Scale

1

Frequency of references to the concept.

High

Low

2

Correspondence of concept meaning in text to its definition.

Full

3

Level of conceptual meaning disclosure.

High

Low

4

Level of linguistic presentation of the concept.

High

Low

5

Inclusion of central meanings of the concept.

Yes

No

6

Inclusion of peripheral (out-of-core) meanings of the concept.

Yes

No

7

‘Design’ (composition) of study text

Adequate

Inadequate

8

Compliance of concepts used with culture, communication, and history peculiarities.

Full

Partial

Zero

9

Compliance of concepts used with students’ psychology, age, and way of thinking.

Full

Partial

Zero

10

Authenticity of learning material in terms of concepts core to textbook contents.

Authentic

Partially authentic

Non-authentic

11

Logic in the presentation of concepts core to textbook structure and contents.

Present

Absent

12

Systematic and logical disclosure of concept meanings.

Present

Absent

Partial

Zero

The table could be divided into two parts. The first six criteria are centered on the concept and its features, such as its meaning, contents, linguistic presentation, and structure, including its center and periphery. The last six criteria (the second part of the table) regard the concept in its relation to other concepts which are employed in the textbook as well as to the general context. These criteria allow to assess the structure, cultural, and historical authenticity, contents, logic and psychological appropriateness of textbooks. These are the crucial notions to study texts and educational discourse. The assessment scale of the concepts that are included in the concept sphere is thoroughly verified and aimed at t differentiating concept facets in accordance with their features.

THE PROCEDURE OF COGNITIVE-LINGUISTIC ANALYSIS USING DIAGNOSTIC MATRIX (BY EXAMPLE OF THE TEXTBOOK IN GERMAN DEDICATED FOR TECHNICAL UNIVERSITIES AND INSTITUTIONS) The cognitive-linguistic analysis of study texts represents a step-by-step process that follows the abovementioned criteria. In order to illustrate the process, the author will use the textbook which is adopted to learn German at technical universities and institutions (with interactive exercises and texts on CD)

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(Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009)–in particular, Part 1 that concentrates on the concept “Technical University”. This textbook is targeted for first- and second-year students’ language training. The practical mastering of the German language is supposed in both the field of reading professionally-oriented literature and oral speech in accordance with modern software requirements. These requirements are imposed on the teaching of a foreign language in nonlinguistic universities. The textbook promotes the development of skills in various types of reading, as well as written and spoken language. The textbook provides preparation of students for the next stage of teaching a foreign language, which is aimed at the formation and development of skills of professional communication in a foreign language. The textbook is the basic part of the German course. This course includes various teaching aids for listening and speaking through audio-video equipment and computers. The textbook consists of 14 sections, which include texts for extracurricular reading, a grammar guide, a dictionary and applications in the form of conjugation tables for nonstandard verbs, names and dimensions of physical quantities, a list of mathematical symbols, and operations with their lexical description. Each of the sections is devoted to the specific topic and consists of texts on the relevant topics, such as: Higher education in Russia and Germany; Moscow, Berlin, and Cologne cities; Outstanding scientists of Russia and Germany; Countries in which the language that is studied is official nationally; Ecological problems of our time; Natural sciences; Energy and its types; Development of computer technology (from the first counting devices to modern computers and the Internet); Material science and the fundamentals of mechanical engineering; Fundamentals of electrical engineering; Superconductivity. The majority of the texts were derived from original German sources (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009). Criterion one, frequency of references to the concept, serves to determine the frequency of concept references in the learning material. The frequency level may be high or low. The author argues that the frequent multiple use of a concept in different contexts lets the student form a multilateral understanding of the notion in question. The word phrase “Technical University” (or its shortening TU) is employed 27 times in Part 1. The high frequency level of references means that it is multiple times connected to the subject, its image, and its features, which makes the link between the name and the notion stronger, and the image of the notion (of the Technical University) in the student’s mind more detailed and developed. Criterion two, correspondence of concept meaning in text to its definition, determines whether the concept contents in study material correspond to its definition from the dictionary. The correspondence may be full, partial, and zero. The German word for “university”, in its first meaning, is a building for the study of science and academic research, which consists of several faculties [which embraces a number of sciences], colleges; in its second meaning, it is a group of university teachers and students; in its third meaning, it is a building where the university is located (University, 2017). In the part under analysis, all three meanings of the German word “university” are provided. When it is combined with the attribute “technical”, it describes the aim, essence, basic features, and achievements of Russian education in engineering. The first meaning in German is: “Die Moskauer Staatliche Technische Bauman-Universität (BMSTU) ist eine der ältesten Hochschulen unseres Landes. Sie bildet hochqualifizierte Diplomingenieure und Wissenschaftler aus” (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009, p.7). The second meaning in German is: “An der Spitze der TU steht der Rektor. Zum Lehrkörper der TU gehören Professoren. Dozenten. Lehrer und auch hochqualifizierte Fachleute aus der Produktion” (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009, p.8).

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The third meaning in German is: “Den Studenten stehen ein Sportklub und ein Kulturhaus zur Verfügung” (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009, p.8). The analysis shows that the concept “Technical University” completely corresponds to the norm of the word usage. Criterion three, level of conceptual meaning disclosure, assesses how concept meaning is disclosed and developed. The disclosure level may be high or low. It is determined on the basis of conceptual features (minimal components of a concept) that build up its complete image in the variety of its meanings and their shades. The concept “Technical University” has the following conceptual features: “Technical University-Building for the Study of Science and Academic Research”; “Technical University-Teachers and Students”; “Technical University–Location”; “Technical University–The best Traditions of Engineering Education”; “Technical University–Pride of the Country”; “Technical University–Structure”; “Technical University–My Study”; “Technical University–Schedule”; “Technical University–Communication”; “Technical University–Food”; “Technical University–My Future Profession”; “Technical University–My Identification”; “Technical University–Graduates”; “Technical University–Diligence”. The analysis demonstrates that, first, the variety of linguistic means that develop the meaning of the concept “Technical University” describes it from multiple sides and enhances the nominative density of the learning material. Secondly, the use of a concept which is characterised by nominative density allows the student to obtain a more detailed image of a technical university and training in engineering. The large number of facets and shades of meaning as well as characteristics and features forms a better representation of the concept “Technical University” in the student’s mind. Criterion four, level of linguistic presentation of the concept, allows to analyse the linguistic presentation of the concept in the text. The linguistic presentation may be high or low. Hereby, the author suggests to determine and discuss the peculiarities of linguistic means that serve to illustrate expressiveness and emotionality of the concept, and to present its meaning in a more illustrative way. Such linguistic means include, for instance, proverbs and sayings that are given at the end of each textbook part. Some examples are: “Aller Anfang ist schwer (It’s always difficult the first time). Übung macht den Meister (Practice creates masters). Ein voller Bauch studiert nicht gern (A full belly does not like to study). Trink.was klar ist (Drink what is clear). Sag, was wahr ist (Say what is true)” (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009, p. 19). They provide an emotional impact on students, encourage thinking what it is like to be hard-working, determined, honest, and noble, contribute to the creative usage of the linguistic means they have just learnt, and make the formation of the concept “Technical University” more effective and stable. Criterion five, inclusion of central meanings of the concept, answers whether a text includes core meanings of the concept or not. The concept core consists of the direct nominations of the concept itself as they are codified by dictionaries. In other words, they are its primary basic images that, on the analysis stage, are mapped on the contents of the part under consideration and compared to the extent they are represented in this text. Criterion five proved that the textbook included core meanings of the notion “Technical University”. This conclusion allows to say that, in its turn, the student’s linguistic world picture will include a relevant understanding of the notion corresponding to the concept. Criterion six, inclusion of peripheral (out-of-core) meanings of the concept, is closely connected to criterion five and serves to detect the presence/absence of peripheral meanings (those which do not belong to the concept core) of conceptual units which are used in a textbook. Peripheral meanings represent nominations of separate cognitive features of a concept. They are complementary, specific features, which are either directly or indirectly linked to the basic features and foreground those peculiarities of the concept that come to the surface in other (in a certain way different from the core context) concepts. 301

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According to criterion six, the concept under analysis contains peripheral meanings of the concepts used. “Technical University” may also stand for a healthy life style (diet), hard work, and studies that combine specific knowledge and general awareness of the achievements of Russian engineers, the country, its history, and its present and future. In the end, students get one of the most important ideas, which is that they can be proud of being the students of the Technical University, as the title implies respect and responsibility with it. The analysis showed that the broad peripheral zone of a concept that includes evaluative, associative, and contextual senses, presents the concept in a more illustrative way from the national, cultural, and evaluative aspect. Criterion seven, ‘design’ (composition) of study text of learning material analysis, helps to assess the chosen ‘design’ (composition) of a text. It discusses the acceptability and adequacy of its ‘design’ (composition). The ‘design’ (composition) may be acceptable and suitable or not. The present criterion, in particular, demonstrates how convenient the textbook ‘design’ is for learning purposes. Part 1 as well as the whole textbook follow the everything-is-at-hand principle: Exercises, texts, visual supplements, references, and commentaries are conveniently placed in the book. Each part is introduced bt a short summary of lexical and grammatical topics that are consecutively commented on in the following. Then, the reader can find active vocabulary on the topic and, after that, texts that are followed by exercises on reading comprehension and grammar. At the end of the textbook, the learner may consult the reference (grammar rules divided in topics and vocabulary with its words set in the alphabetical order). It helps the student to easily find and use it when necessary. The criterion proved that a well thought-out textbook composition that meets all the of the student’s aims minimizes his effort in the knowledge acquisition, procession, and assessment, and, as a result, may contribute to the more productive formation of the concept “Technical University” and shape it better. Criterion eight, compliance of concepts used with culture, communication, and history peculiarities, helps to decide whether concepts from a textbook correspond to culture, communication, and history peculiarities. The correspondence may be full, partial, and zero. Concept resembles a clot of culture in man’s mind; it is the form, in which culture enters the mental world of man. And, on the other hand, concept is what man - a common, ordinary man, not “a creator of cultural values”– enters the culture himself, and in some cases influences it. (Stepanov, 1997, p. 40) As the main unit of culture in man’s mental world, concept contains the essence of spiritual culture notions, the awareness of which lets the individual be part of this culture, unawareness of which deprives him/her of cultural heritage. The specifics of this part is that it tells the students about the modern Russian language culture with the help of German linguistic means. It sets the objective to show the modern technical university, the studies, as well as students’ life on a particular example, that is the Bauman Moscow State Technical University. In this way, the students get acquainted with the life of the university and their future profession–the profession of an engineer–which represents their vocation. They may also feel their destiny, their place in the modern world through texts, exercises, questions, and commentaries to the definition of basic concepts. The analysis demonstrates that concepts of the part correspond to the full extent to the peculiarities of communication in the modern society–communication of future engineers–and can put students in the cultural and historical domain of the concept in question, that is Technical University.

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Criterion nine, compliance of concepts used with students’ psychology, age, and way of thinking, determines to which extent the concept from the text meets the student’s age, way of thinking, and other psychological features. The correspondence may be full, partial, and zero. The inclusion of the present criterion is dictated by the idea that the material should be appropriate for the student’s mental capabilities; otherwise, it may result in cognitive dissonance, and the student cannot process a text. According to this criterion, the textbook is in conformity with the program of technical university students. The idea of a course implies creating conditions for learning the information of communication about themselves, about their study, about their alma mater and future profession, understanding speech, and building a structured grammar base. Grammar exercises are designed on the inductive basis, which facilitates full understanding and easy learning. While studying the material, students use the acquired language knowledge in study situations, memorize words and word combinations mainly through monologs, dialogs, and discussions. All this is accomplished sequentially, with regard to the learners’ age features. The textbook contents completely meet the age and psychological characteristics of the student’s thinking and therefore they may be effectively perceived and comprehended. Criterion ten, authenticity of learning material in terms of concepts core to textbook contents, tests the authenticity of study material in terms of the concepts core to its contents. Learning material may be authentic, partially authentic or nonauthentic. The concept under analysis is characterized by use of adaptations that are created specifically for learning purposes. It serves to introduce and entrench lexical or grammatical topics, language structures, models, and patterns. The authenticity is judged by its originality, correspondence to the necessary topic (technical university, training for engineers in Russia), and suitability of linguistic means in particular genres of study texts. It enhances students’ motivation and provides conditions for a more effective immersion into the foreign language during classes. Criterion eleven, logic in the presentation of concepts core to textbook structure and contents, serves to check the logic of the textbook in terms of its concepts that build up the structural and content base of the material. Part 1 includes basic logical operations, in other words, operations on utterances that let produce new utterances by combining simpler ones. The operations are as follows: Conjunction, logical operation that is close to the conjunction ‘and’; disjunction, logical operation that is close to the conjunction ‘or’ in the meaning ‘either..or, or both’; implication, binary logical operation that in its use resembles the conjunction ‘if… then’; logical negation, unary operation on propositions, which results in another proposition (in its meaning) that is opposite to the initial proposition (is synonymous to the logical ‘NOT’). Criterion twelve, systematic and logical disclosure of concept meanings, allows to evaluate concepts from the point of view of their consecutive and systematic development in the textbook. The system principle is usually understood as a didactic principle that regards the language as a system that consists of interconnected elements of different structural levels forming a whole. In the process of the system principle realization, Part 1: a) in the student’s mind, forms the image of the target language as a complete system that consists of a set of elements (phonetic, lexical, and grammatical) and rules of their use; b) teaches morphology on the basis of syntax; c) teaches grammar in combination with vocabulary. The material of Part 1 is given in a consecutive manner, following the easy-to-difficult principle (in grammar) and the familiar-to-unfamiliar principle (the familiar experience is mapped on new language material). In the course of the systematic and consecutive development of the concept “Technical University”, the researcher takes into account both the interrelation of all language aspects and the process of skill development that is expressed in the content and formal (language) facets of speech. 303

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According to this criterion, students’ realization of systemic links between the notions they learn and consecutive development of their cognitive representations of the technic university as well as, in a more general sense, training of engineers in the country, their place in the modern world, builds a stable and well-formed image of the notion that underlies the concept.

SOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS On the whole, the results of the cognitive-linguistic analysis of the concept “Technical University” in the textbook which is adopted for German learning in technical universities and institutions (with interactive exercises and texts on CD) (Bogdanova, & Semenova, 2009) are as follows. The concept has high frequency level of references means. This indicates it is multiple times connected to the subject, its image, and its features, which makes the link between the name and the notion stronger, and the image of the technical university in the student’s mind more detailed and developed. The concept “Technical University” completely corresponds to the norm of the word usage. The large number of facets and shades of meaning as well as characteristics and features forms a better representation of the concept “Technical University” in the student’s mind. The linguistic presentation of the concept is high. Linguistic means serve to illustrate expressiveness and emotionality of the concept “Technical University” and present its meaning in a more illustrative way. The textbook includes core meanings of the notion “Technical University”. Therefore, the student’s linguistic world picture will include a relevant understanding of the notion corresponding to the concept. The concept under analysis contains peripheral meanings: “Technical University” may also stand for a healthy life style (diet), hard work, and studies that combine specific knowledge and general awareness of the achievements of Russian engineers, the country, its history, its present, and its future. In the end, students get one of the most important ideas, which is that they can be proud of being the students of the Technical University, as the title implies respect and responsibility with it. As for ‘design’ (composition) of study text” of learning material analysis, Part 1 as well as the whole textbook follow the everything-is-at-hand principle: exercises, texts, visual supplements, references, and commentaries are conveniently placed in the book. It helps the student to easily find and use it when necessary. A well thought-out textbook composition that meets all the student’s aims minimizes his/her effort in the knowledge acquisition, procession, and assessment, and, as a result, may contribute to the more productive formation of the concept “Technical University” and shape it better. As for criterion “compliance of concepts used with culture, communication, and history peculiarities”, the specifics of this part are that it tells the students about the modern Russian language culture with the help of German linguistic means. It sets the objective to show the modern technical university, the studies, as well as students’ life on a particular example, the Bauman Moscow State Technical University. In this way, the students get acquainted with the life of the university and their future profession–the profession of an engineer–which represents their vocation. They may also feel their destiny and their place in the modern world through texts, exercises, questions, and commentaries to the definition of basic concepts. The analysis demonstrates that concepts of the part correspond to the full extent to the peculiarities of communication in the modern society–communication of future engineers–and can put students in the cultural and historical domain of the concept in question, that is Technical University. According to criterion “compliance of concepts used with students’ psychology, age, and way of thinking”, the textbook is in conformity with the program of technical university students. The textbook 304

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contents completely meet the age and psychological characteristics of the student’s thinking, and therefore they may be effectively perceived and comprehended. The concept under analysis is characterized by the use of adaptations that are created specifically for learning purposes. As for the criterion “logic in the presentation of concepts core to textbook structure and contents”, the part under analysis includes basic logical operations: Conjunction, disjunction, implication, and logical negation. According to criterion “systematic and logical disclosure of concept meanings”, students’ realization of systemic links between the notions they learn and consecutive development of their cognitive representations of the technic university as well as, in a more general sense, the training of engineers in the country and their place in the modern world, build a stable and well-formed image of the notion that underlies the concept. Therefore, the students receive necessary cognitive understandings about the concept “Technical University”. Besides, through the prism of a concept–a unit of mental lexicon–the students see themselves and the world, improve their linguistic and cross-cultural skills for communication in global world (Briguglio, 2014; Gray & Lundy, 2017; Moore, May, & Wold, 2014), and understand their position on the map of life path.

CONCLUSION In sum, the teaching of foreign languages is one of the priorities of Russian higher education and an integral part of the training of engineering specialists. Competent knowledge of a foreign language includes not only understanding and translating texts in a specific field, but also proficiency in professional language. This will allow professionals to establish and maintain business and interpersonal contacts at different levels of international cooperation and is aimed at the international integration of Russian science and production. Language training of specialists-engineers contributes to the social and professional formation of their personality, to the successful socialization of graduates of technical universities, to the acquisition of professional knowledge and skills, taking into account the needs of the modern labor market in the global world. In addition, in the process of teaching foreign languages, the intercultural competence of the student is formed, which is an important characteristic for effective cooperation with international professional organizations. A foreign language textbook is the main tool for future engineers’ language training. A textbook is an important factor in the formation of a linguistic picture of the world, of a system of values and perceptions about the world, of a worldview, of professional thinking of specialized engineers. Therefore, the question of a new cognitive-linguistic approach to the examination of the textbook is very important. Thus, the assessment table allows to analyze and verify learning material from the cognitive and linguistic point of view, assess it with the help of the cognitive and linguistic approach, and draw conclusions about their cognitive and linguistic appropriateness. It enables to regard educational procedures connected with the formation of students’ linguistic world picture for the purposes of evaluation and prediction. The cognitive-linguistic examination of textbooks that the author suggests is a reliable tool to evaluate the quality of educational materials, and thus it facilitates the development of language preparation of future engineers, which equals the development of Engineering Education in Russia as a whole.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT This research is conducted in compliance with the State Assignment of the FSBSI Institute for Strategy of Education Development of the Russian Academy of Education within the project 27.8520.2017/BP. The author expresses the deepest gratitude for his consultations to Head of Pedagogical Semiology Direction, Dr.Sc. (Education), Professor, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Education Lukatskii M.A.

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Gray, M., & Lundy, C. (2017). Engineering Study Abroad: High Impact Strategy for Increasing Access. In M. Gray & K. D. Thomas (Eds.), Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Engineering Majors and Careers (pp. 42–59). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-2212-6.ch003 Ivanova, S. V., & Ivanov, O. B. (2016). Society demands for the quality of education as a factor of modern education space forming. In S.V. Ivanova & E.V. Nikulchev (Eds.), SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 29). 2016 International Conference on Education Environment for the Information Age (EEIA-2016). Moscow, Russia: SHS. Retrieved April 10, 2017, from: http://www.shs-conferences.org/articles/shsconf/ abs/2016/07/contents/contents.html Karasik, V. I. (2004). Yazykovoi krug: lichnost’, kontsepty, diskurs [Language Circle: Personality, Concepts, and Discourse]. Moscow, Russia: Gnozis. Karasik, V. I. (2009). Yazykovye klyuchi [Language Keys]. Moscow, Russia: Gnozis. Kubryakova, Y. S. (Ed.). (1996). Kratkii slovar’ kognitivnykh terminov [Concise Dictionary of Cognitive Terms]. Moscow, Russia: MSU Press. Kurovskaya, Y. G. (2014). Osnovy kognitivnoi lingvistiki cherez prizmu pedagogicheskoi nauki [Basics of cognitive linguistics through the prism of pedagogical science]. Novoe v psikhologo-pedagogicheskikh issledovaniyakh, 3, 90-97. Kurovskaya, Y. G. (2016). Linguistics and Cognitive Linguistics as Tools of Pedagogical Discourse Analysis. In S.V. Ivanova & E.V. Nikulchev (Eds.), SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 29). 2016 International Conference on Education Environment for the Information Age (EEIA-2016). Moscow, Russia: SHS. Retrieved April 10, 2017, from: http://www.shs-conferences.org/articles/shsconf/abs/2016/07/ contents/contents.html Lakoff, G. (1987). Women, fire, and dangerous things: What categories reveal about the mind. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. doi:10.7208/chicago/9780226471013.001.0001 Langacker, R. W. (1987). Foundations of cognitive grammar: Vol. 1. Theoretical prerequisites. Redwood City, CA: Stanford University Press. Langacker, R. W. (1991). Foundations of Cognitive Grammar: Vol. 2. Descriptive Application. Redwood City, CA: Stanford University Press. Lorenzo, N., & Gallon, R. (2015). Higher Education and Globalization. In F. M. Ribeiro, Y. Politis, & B. Culum (Eds.), New Voices in Higher Education Research and Scholarship (pp. 127–156). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-7244-4.ch007 Lukatskii, M. A. (2013). O mezhdistsiplinarnoi issledovatel’skoi initsiative, ob”edinivshei pedagogiku i kognitivnuyu lingvistiku, i o perspektivakh razrabotki pedagogicheskoi semiologii [On Interdisciplinary Research Initiative, Uniting Pedagogy and Cognitive Linguistics, and on the Perspectives of Pedagogical Semiology]. Otechestvennaya i zarubezhnaya pedagogika, 5(14), 62–76.

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Moore, S., May, D., & Wold, K. (2014). Developing Cultural Competency in Engineering through Transnational Distance Learning. In Information Resources Management Association (Ed.), CrossCultural Interaction: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 1571-1589). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-4979-8.ch089 Pinker, S. (2013a). Substantsiya myshleniya: Yazyk kak okno v chelovecheskuyu prirodu [The Stuff of Thought: Language as a Window into Human Nature]. Moscow, Russia: Knizhnyi dom LIBROKOM. Pinker, S. (2013b). Language, Cognition, and Human Nature: Selected Articles. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199328741.001.0001 Rosch, E., Varela, F. J., & Thompson, E. (1991). The Embodied Mind: Cognitive Science and Human Experience. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Sorina, G. V. (2016). Cross-cultural communications in national educational spaces in a global world. In S.V. Ivanova & E.V. Nikulchev (Eds.), SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 29). 2016 International Conference on Education Environment for the Information Age (EEIA-2016). Moscow, Russia: SHS. Retrieved April 10, 2017, from: http://www.shs-conferences.org/articles/shsconf/abs/2016/07/contents/contents.html Stepanov, Y. S. (1997). Konstanty. Slovar’ russkoj kul’tury. Opyt issledovaniya. [Constants. Dictionary of Russian culture. Study experience]. Moscow, Russia: Shkola Yazyki russkoj kul’tury. Steuer, L., Bouffier, A., Gaedicke, S., & Leicht-Scholten, C. (2017). Diversifying Engineering Education: A Transdisciplinary Approach From RWTH Aachen University. In M. Gray & K. D. Thomas (Eds.), Strategies for Increasing Diversity in Engineering Majors and Careers (pp. 201–235). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-2212-6.ch010 Talmy, L. (2000a). Toward a Cognitive Semantics: Vol. 1. Concept structuring systems. Cambridge: MIT Press. Talmy, L. (2000b). Toward a Cognitive Semantics: Vol. 2. Typology and process in concept structuring. Cambridge: MIT Press. Thindwa, H. (2015). The Role of Technology in Improving Quality of Teaching in Higher Education: An International Perspective. In F. M. Nafukho & B. J. Irby (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Innovative Technology Integration in Higher Education (pp. 54–73). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-8170-5.ch003 University. (2017). In Duden Online-Wörterbuch [Duden Online Dictionary] (27th ed.). Berlin, Germany: Bibliographisches Institut GmbH, Dudenverlag. Retrieved July 1, 2017, from: http://www.duden.de/ rechtschreibung/Universitaet#b2-Bedeutung-1 Winters, M. E., Tissari, H., & Kathryn, A. (2010). Historical Cognitive Linguistics. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter. doi:10.1515/9783110226447

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Cognitive Linguistics: A field of linguistics which studies the relationship between language and consciousness. Cognitive-Linguistic Approach to Examination of Textbooks: An approach which implies analyzing language modeling of a student’s world and revealing the concepts contained in exercises, texts, and illustrations. Concept: A minimal unit of meaning. In the educational context, it is: 1) a unit of meaning, an element of the learners’ picture of the world embedded into the educational discourse of textbooks, where it is typographically embodied and thus transmitted along with the educational material (which is always sign-and-symbol); 2) a cognitive structure that appears in the learner’s consciousness while studying a given textbook and is objectified through linguistic (sign-and-symbol) tools of a given language. Criterion: A principle or standard by which educational materials are judged. Diagnostic Matrix: Criterial system of analysis and diagnostics of educational materials. Pedagogical Semiology: A pedagogical field which focuses on the ways of transmitting culture, in the form of signs and symbols, to learners during the process of education and teaching, and on how sign-symbol consciousness, forming in the learner in a certain educational context, influences future ways of discovering the world and communicating with other people. Textbook: An agent transmitting meanings (concepts), inducing an adequate response to the presentation of the latter, and stimulating the learner to reproduce those meanings in real life.

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Technology-Enhanced Learning

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Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies Ilya Andreyevich Kozlov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Dmitry Valeryevich Berezkin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Marwa Ahmed Shouman Menofiya University, Egypt

ABSTRACT This chapter will describe an approach to monitoring and forecasting the development of innovative educational technologies based on text stream analysis. The approach will involve detecting educationrelated events in the stream of text documents, constructing situations, determining possible scenarios of further development of situations, and generating recommendations for successful introduction of detected innovations into the educational process of the university. The authors will propose a multicriteria model of an event reflecting its key aspects. The chapter will describe an event detection method based on incremental clustering, as well as a scenario generation method based on the principle of historical analogy. The authors will discuss several experiments to evaluate the quality of the methods.

INTRODUCTION Novel methods and technologies constantly emerge in education with a goal to provide students with knowledge and skills demanded by modern society. To meet modern standards of education, universities introduce methods into their educational process. However, it is risky to introduce innovative teaching approaches because it is impossible to guarantee future success. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch027

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 Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies

There is a need to discover new educational technologies, track their development, and predict their future development to determine whether it is reasonable to introduce them into the educational process of a university. This can be achieved by periodically downloading and analyzing text documents from Web sites and domain-specific sources. However, experts cannot manually analyze a text stream because of the huge amounts of documents generated by the sources. This chapter will describe an approach to automated monitoring and forecasting of educational technologies development based on text stream analysis. The authors will use the term educational technologies in broad sense, which will include teaching methods and promising innovations in science and engineering that should be considered when planning and implementing study programs in universities.

Background The authors will consider the process of the monitoring and forecasting of educational technologies development as a sequence of the following steps: Step 1: Detecting events in the text stream related to educational technologies. Step 2: Tracking situations development based on detected events. Step 3: Determining possible scenarios for development of tracked situations. Step 4: Generating recommendations for decision-makers.

• • • •

The original task has been divided into four subtasks which will be described in the following sections.

Event Detection Subtask Researchers who deal with event detection in text streams use various definitions of the event concept. According to Raimond and Abdallah (2007, para. 2), event is “the way by which cognitive agents classify arbitrary time/space regions.” Allen and Ferguson (1994, p. 3) proposed a similar definition when considering events as “the way by which agents classify certain useful and relevant patterns of change.” When speaking of an event, a person classifies a change of the situation occurring within a certain area during a certain time interval. The person assigns the change to a certain pattern, such as scientific conference, invention of a new technology, or introduction of a new teaching method into the educational process of the university. Real-world events are reflected in a stream of text documents, including scientific articles, media news, and regulatory documents. Therefore, the problem of event detection in the text stream can be defined as the task of detecting and interpreting changes in this stream (Yang, Pierce, & Carbonell, 1998). Kumaran and Allan (2005), as well as Dobrov and Pavlov (2010), proposed multicriteria descriptions of an event reflecting the following aspects: who, when, where, and what. Raimond and Abdallah (2007) presented an ontological model of an event in which the event has the following characteristics: • • • • •

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Area where the event takes place Time interval when the event occurs Active agents participating in the event Factors under which the event occurs Products of the event

 Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies



Subevents occurring within the event

Table 1 demonstrates a model constructed for a real-world event. Experts consider the aforementioned characteristics when manually analyzing the text stream. Therefore, automatic event detection should also take these aspects into account. The importance of the aspects may vary depending on the task. For example, when detecting events related to scientific conferences, one should pay specific attention to areas (because each conference is held at a particular area). However, if being used to detect achievements of certain scientific schools, the event detection method should consider the set of actors as the important aspect (actors are representatives of the schools). Therefore, the event detection method should have an agile adjustment ability according to the domain and specifics of the task. The proposed approach to describing events implies the existence of an inclusion relation. A complex event may be split into simpler events (subevents); these events occur in tighter time/space regions and have smaller sets of actors. For instance, zSpase’s stand titled “Inspiring STEAM Using Virtual Reality in Schools” is a subevent of a larger event titled “International Technology and Engineering Educators Association’s Conference” (see Table 2). The set of events can be represented as a hierarchy, with the elements connected via the inclusion relation. Each level of the hierarchy contains events of a similar degree of localization (in terms of space, time, set of actors, and other aspects). Event detection consists in the identification of elements of this hierarchy within a certain level. Table 1. Event description in accordance with the ontological model Event

Conference titled “Virtual Reality: The Future of Education?”

Area

Putney High School, London, UK

Time Interval

March 21, 2017

Active Agents

Speakers from virtual and augmented reality companies

Factors

Rising impact of virtual reality on the educational process

Products

Demonstration of the latest virtual reality technologies designed for educational purposes

Subevents

Reports and presentations by participants

Table 2. Example of an event and its subevent Complex Event Event Description Area

Subevent

International Technology and Engineering Educators Association’s 79th Annual Conference

Stand “Inspiring STEAM Using Virtual Reality in Schools”

Dallas, Texas, USA

Dallas, Texas, USA

Time Interval

March 16-March 18, 2017

March 16, 2017

Active Agents

Teachers, administrators, local boards of education, national departments of education, and technology companies

Representatives of zSpace

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While addressing tasks, users may need to detect events at various levels of localization. When studying the development of a certain technology over a considerable period, users first need to obtain a coarse-grain overview of major events related to this technology. This must be completed before they can thoroughly analyze events. In contrast, when monitoring information on educational technologies daily, users aim to detect tightly localized events. The method, therefore, should be adjustable to detect events at various localization levels. Users should be able to learn about the occurrence of an event, as well as obtain its complete information. In addition to detecting an event in the text stream, the method should assemble a cluster of documents describing the event.

Situation Tracking Subtask Automatic event detection allows a user to learn about individual occurrences related to a certain educational technology or method. However, to evaluate the technology’s potential, the user must track its development over time. This can be achieved by constructing chains of related events reflecting the development of certain real-world processes. The authors use the term situation to denote this type of chain. Situations should be automatically constructed based on the output of the event detection method. It is also important to consider the nonlinearity of the analyzed processes. Events may be elements of multiple chains. For example, the event “Discussion of Hybrid Models of the Educational Process” is an element of both “Conference on e-Learning” and “The Development of Hybrid Models of the Educational Process” situations.

Scenarios Determination Subtask To decide on the introduction of a certain technology into the university’s educational process, it is necessary to track its development to the present time, as well as forecast future development. For example, if commercial application of the technology is expected soon, it is worth considering the introduction of courses on this technology into the curriculum. Automatic forecasting of the technology’s development can be implemented by constructing scenarios. These are hypothetical chains of events that may occur in the future. Each of these chains can be considered as a potential continuation of the current situation. It is also important to assess the probability of the current situation’s development in accordance with the generated scenarios. Decision-makers must know which scenarios are the most probable. They can pay attention to these scenarios when preparing the university’s development strategy and study programs. To effectively utilize forecasting results, it is necessary to identify two scenarios impacting decisions in education management. This includes both optimistic and pessimistic scenarios. The optimistic scenario allows for the assessment of advantages that can be obtained in case of the optimal development of the situation. The pessimistic scenario demonstrates negative consequences that may occur in case of the most unfavorable development of the situation.

Recommendations Generation Subtask Generated scenarios provide a means to analyze and evaluate technologies and methods. However, the main objective of the monitoring and forecasting process is managerial decision-making in education.

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To make the best decisions, the user should be provided with recommendations regarding actions to promote the situation’s development according to propitious scenarios and to prevent its development in accordance with unfavorable scenarios. Such recommendations should specify what measures need to be taken, by whom, and in what timeframe.

Related Work A complex approach to text stream analysis, which allows automated monitoring and forecasting of situations development, does not exist. Existing approaches can forecast events but they do not provide possible scenarios of the current situation’s further development (Radinsky & Horvitz, 2013). However, many articles exist that deal with the task of event detection. Methods described in those articles fall into two categories according to the formulation of the task: (1) methods for new event detection (NED); and (2) methods for event-based text stream clustering. NED-methods consider event detection problem as the task of identifying important new information in the text stream. The moment of a new event’s occurrence may be determined by: • • • •

The appearance of a document with large weight that reflects its novelty and significance (Lande, Braichevskii, Grigoryev, Darmokhval, & Radetzkii, 2007).. The change of documents distribution on topical clusters (Aggarwal & Subbian, 2012) The appearance of a document containing information about an event that was not described in previously downloaded documents (Brants, Chen, & Farahat, 2003; Yang, Zhang, Carbonell, & Jin, 2002). The appearance of a document containing a fragment that matches one of the specified lexical-syntactic or lexical-semantic patterns (Hogenboom, Frasincar, Kaymak, & de Jong, 2011; Prishchepa, 2017).

These methods have a common shortcoming in terms of the aforementioned requirements: they cannot form a cluster of documents describing the same event. Methods of the second category perform clustering of the text stream by placing each document into a group corresponding to a certain event. Zhao, Mitra, and Chen (2007) proposed a method that performs the distribution of documents by partitioning them by topics and then aggregating documents into clusters within every topic. Dobrov and Pavlov (2010) and Yang et al. (1998) considered using various hierarchical and flat clustering methods to detect events in a static collection of documents. Such methods can only be used for retrospective analysis; they are not applicable for dynamic text stream processing. Li, Wang, Li, and Ma (2005) and Ahmed et al. (2011) proposed clustering methods based on generative models. While these models reflect key aspects of an event, they cannot be adjusted according to various domains. One of the most popular approaches of this category is based on dynamic text stream clustering (Aggarwal & Yu, 2010). This clustering method assigns incoming documents to events immediately after a download. This approach meets most of the aforementioned requirements. However, existing methods based on dynamic clustering do not consider important aspects of an event, such as area and actors.

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THE PROPOSED APPROACH Taking the described requirements into account, the authors propose the following approach to the automated monitoring and forecasting of educational technologies development. Text stream is analyzed to detect events εi relevant to the topic of educational technologies. Detection is based on the partitioning of the stream into clusters in such a way that each cluster contains documents describing a certain event. Each new document should be processed immediately after its download from the source; the partitioning is performed via the incremental clustering algorithm, which consists of the following steps: 1. New document dj is compared to each of the existing events εi. The similarity Sim(εi,dj) between the document and the event is computed. 2. The event εo that is the closest event to dj is identified: εo = arg max[Sim(εi , d j )] . εi

3. If the similarity Sim(εo,dj) exceeds a threshold value T, the document dj is assigned to the event εo and added to the corresponding cluster Co. 4. Otherwise, a new event εn is created. Document dj is assigned to it and becomes the first element of the corresponding cluster Cn. Function Sim(εi,dj) should compare the document and the event in terms of the event’s aspects to make the event detection method adjustable to various domains and tasks. Threshold value T should be determined via machine learning to make it possible to tailor the localization level according to the user’s needs (low values of T will result in detecting large events, while high values of T will detect tightly localized events). The detected events are combined into chains by identifying pairs pij = (εi,εj) of events that potentially belong to the same situation. Each of the constructed chains is a current situation sc = (εs1 , εs2 ,..., εsn ) c

c

c

reflecting the present development of a certain process related to educational technologies. The possible ways to develop the current situation sc are described as a set of scenarios: Ξ = {ξi } , ξi = s ξ , recξ , Ρξ , where: i

i

i



s ξ = (εξ1 , εξ2 ,..., εξn ) is a sequence of events that may happen in the future.



recξ = action ξ , actorξ , period ξ

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

is a recommendation regarding action ξ that should be taken

i

i

by the actorξ within the period ξ to facilitate or hinder the current situation’s development in i



i

accordance with the scenario ξi. Ρξ is the probability of the current situation’s development in accordance with the scenario ξi. i

Scenario generation is based on the principle of historical analogy. The current situation sc is compared to chains of events reflecting the development of certain educational technologies and methods in the past. Detection of an analogous chain se for the current situation allows the prediction of its possible result, as well as explains what events can lead to this result. Such a prediction can be obtained if

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the whole current situation sc is analogous to the initial part st(se,sc) of se. In this case, one can assume that the future events of sc will be similar to events of the final part fin(se, sc) of se. This final part can be considered as a possible scenario for the further development of the current situation. The described approach to scenario generation requires a collection of sample situations Se. The samples are prepared by experts in accordance with the specifics of the task. When analyzing a text stream, the current situation sc is compared to each sample situation se ∈ Se. The probability of the conformity of sc and st(se,sc) is estimated by pairwise comparison of the situations’ events. If the probability exceeds the threshold value, se is determined to be an analogue of sc. In this case, the final part fin(se, sc) of se is considered a potential scenario for the future development of sc. Figure 1 demonstrates comparison of the current situation with the sample. Dotted lines indicate the correspondence between the chains’ events. The result of the current situation’s comparison with the sample chains is a set of situations analogous to sc. Final parts of these situations are possible scenarios to further development of the current situation. The prepared scenarios are intercompared to calculate their priority. The scenario with the highest priority is considered optimistic; the scenario with the lowest priority is considered pessimistic. The recommendation recξ depends on the sample situation se that is the base for ξi and on the event i

ε of this situation that corresponds to sc. Each event of se should contain its own recommendation k se

recεk = action εk , actorεk , period εk se

se

se

se

.

Figure 1. Comparison of the current and the sample situation

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Models of an Event and a Document To perform multicriteria comparison of events and documents, the model of an event should contain components corresponding to various event aspects: εi = εi1, εi2 ,..., εiK

(1)

where K is the number of considered aspects. The model’s components are generated based on the set of documents constituting the cluster Ci corresponding to the event. To calculate the similarity between a document and an event, each document must be represented by a similar multicomponent model: d j = d j1, d j2 ,..., d jK

(2)

A group of experts have manually analyzed a collection of documents downloaded from 70 news sources to determine criterions that should be considered while detecting events in a text stream. The analysis yielded the following set of characteristics.

Text and Title Content In most cases, the principal criterion considered by experts is text content of the documents. Text content w is represented in the document model by a vector d jw = (w 1j , w j2 ,.., w jN ) , where Nw is the amount of words present in the analyzed documents, w kj is the weight of the kth word in the jth document calculated via TF-IDF method. Text content of an event is represented by the centroid of the vectors dlw of w

documents dl constituting the cluster Ci: εiw = (wi1, wi2 ,.., wiN ) where wik =

∑w

dl ∈C i

k l

| C i |.

The distance between the event and the document in terms of this criterion is determined based on the cosine similarity between the vectors: Nw

ρiw, j = 1 − ∑ k =1 [wik w kj ]



Nw

(wik )2 k =1



Nw k =1

(w kj )2

(3)

Titles of documents should also be considered. Two documents that describe different sides of the same event may be significantly distinguished by text content. However, their titles often contain matching keywords. Generation of the respective components of models of a document (d jtw ) and an event ( εitw ), as well as calculation of the distance ρitw, j between them, are performed in analogy with text content.

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Named Entities “Area” and “actors” aspects are represented by names of persons, organizations, and geographic locations mentioned in documents’ texts. To take these aspects into account, named entity detection is applied to the texts. As a result, the following components are included in the document model: e



A vector of actors (names of persons and organizations) d ej = (e 1j , e j2 ,.., e jN ) .



A vector of areas (geographic names) d jg = (g 1j , g j2 ,.., g jN ) .

g

The vectors’ components are weights of names calculated by the TF-IDF method. The respective components of the event model ( εie and εig ) are formed identically to the vector εiw . Distances ρie, j and ρig, j are calculated in analogy to ρiw, j .

Topics Users are interested in detecting events relevant to certain topics, including engineering education, innovations, and teaching methods. The document model should contain a component describing it in t terms of topics: d jt = (t j1, t j2 ,..., t jN ) , where Nt is the amount of monitored topics and t jk is the value of relevance of the jth document to the kth topic. Each topic is described by an expert as a search query containing keywords and query language operators. An example is “innovative NEAR/5 (technology | method) NEAR/10 education.” Values t jk are obtained by means of the Sphinx search engine via the modified Okapi BM25 method (Sphinx Technologies Inc., 2010). The respective component of the event model εit and the distance ρit, j are determined in analogy with the aforementioned aspects.

Paragraphs and Sentences Information sources may partially reprint news published on other sites. However, copied material may be supplemented with the original text. Therefore, such documents should not be considered as duplicates and excluded from consideration. As a result, documents describing the same event may contain identical structural text elements, including sentences and paragraphs. Nc

To take this factor into account, a document is represented by a set of sentences d jc = {c 1j , c j2 ,.., c j j } , where N jc is the amount of sentences in the jth document. The weight ω(c kj ) of the kth sentence is calculated as a sum of weights of its words. The respective component of the event model is the union of sets of sentences of documents describing the event: εic = ∪ dlc . dl ∈C i

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The similarity measure for comparing the corresponding components of the models must be asymmetric. The set εic may contain sentences that are absent in the text of the document dj describing the event εi (such sentences may be extracted from other documents belonging to the cluster Ci) and it should not decrease the value of similarity. In contrast, every sentence of dj that does not belong to εic lowers the probability that the document describes the event. Therefore, the similarity is calculated via a weighted inclusion measure: c siminc (d jc , εic ) =



∑ ω(c)

ω(c)

c ∈|εic ∩d cj |

(4)

c ∈d cj

The distance between the document and the event in terms of this criterion is determined as c ρ = 1 − siminc (d jc , εic ) . c i, j

Models’ components d jp and εip representing the document and the event as sets of paragraphs are constructed in a similar manner. The distance ρip, j is calculated in analogy to ρic, j .

Numeric Values In addition to text, documents often contain numbers. In some cases, such numerical values play a significant role in event detection as they bear important quantitative information about events. To consider this aspect, the document model includes a set of numeric values extracted from the Nn

document’s content: d jn = {n 1j , n j2 ,.., n j j } , where N jn is the amount of various numbers in the jth document. The respective component of the event model is the union of sets of numeric values of documents describing the event: εin = ∪ dln . dl ∈C i

Calculation of the distance between the document and the event is also based on the inclusion measure. However, in this case, elements of the compared sets are not weighted: ρin, j = 1 − | εin ∩ d jn | | d jn |

(5)

Time Other factors needed to determine whether a document describes a particular event are the date and time of publication. News coverage of the event is limited to a period of time. If an interval between publication times of documents is long, the probability that they are describing the same event is low. To take the temporal aspect into account, the publication time of the document d jdt is added into the model. The respective component of the event model is the average publication time of all documents describing the event: εidt = ∑ dldt | C i |. dl ∈C i

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The distance between the document and the event in terms of the temporal aspect is defined as the difference between the corresponding components of the models: ρidt, j =| d jdt − εidt | . Thus, the model of an event is an ensemble of components characterizing the event in terms of various aspects: εi = εiw , εitw , εic , εip , εin , εidt , εie , εig , εit

(6)

The document model contains similar components: d j = d jw , d jtw , d jc , d jp , d jn , d jdt , d ej , d jg , d jt

(7)

Event Detection Method After construction of the models dj and εi, the value of similarity Sim(εi,dj) between them is computed. For this purpose, a pairwise comparison of the models’ components is performed, which results in a vector: ρi, j = ρiw, j , ρitw, j , ρic, j , ρip, j , ρin, j , ρidt, j , ρie, j , ρig, j , ρit, j

(8)

Each component of this vector represents the distance between dj and εi in terms of a certain aspect. The task of determining whether a document dj belongs to a cluster Ci is considered as a binary classification problem. The vector ρi,j is assigned to one of two classes. One denotes that the document belongs to the cluster; the second denotes that it does not belong to the cluster. The training set for a classifier contains: • •

Vectors representing pairs “event – document that relates to this event” (positive examples). Vectors representing pairs “event – document that doesn’t relate to this event” (negative examples).

Classification is performed using a support vector machine (SVM). This method is based on separating objects of two classes represented by vectors in the K-dimensional space by constructing a (K-1)dimensional dividing hyperplane. The vector ρi,j is assigned to one of the two classes depending on its location relative to the hyperplane. The distance from the vector to the hyperplane r(ρi,j) characterizes the confidence of the classification result. The distance r(ρi,j) assumes positive values for vectors of the first class and negative values for vectors of the second class. The value r(ρi,j) can be used as a similarity measure Sim(εi,dj) between the event and the document. The larger is this value, the higher is confidence that the document dj relates to the event εi. The proposed method of similarity measure calculation allows determining the event εo that is closest to the document dj. If Sim(εo,dj)>0, then the vector ρo,j is assigned to the first class. This means that the document dj relates to the event εo and must be added to the corresponding cluster Co. Otherwise, a new event is created on the basis of the document dj.

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Detected events track the development of situations. For this purpose, a situational graph is constructed. A situational graph is an oriented graph G = (E, P) where nodes E = {εi} correspond to events and edges P = {pij} correspond to pairs of events that potentially belong to the same situation. These pairs are detected by pairwise multicriteria comparison of the detected events in terms of the event’s aspects. Each path in G is a potential situation s = (εs1, εs2 ,..., εsn ) . The graph model reflects the non-linearity of situations. A node with outdegree exceeding 1 corresponds to the split of a situation into several parallel situations. A node with indegree exceeding 1 corresponds to the junction of several situations into a single situation.

Scenario Generating Method The situational graph is analyzed to discover events that are analogous to some events from sample situations. Chains that contain such analogous events are identified in the graph. Figure 2 demonstrates the identification of a situation sc in the graph based on analogous events detection. Each identified situation sc is compared to sample situations se ∈ Se. The situations comparison is considered a logistic regression task. For this purpose, a variable y is introduced that may assume one of two values:

1, if se is not analogous to sc y=  0, if se is analogous to sc It is assumed that the probability of event (y = 1) is defined by logistic function: Figure 2. Identification of a situation in the situational graph

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(9)

 Automated Monitoring and Forecasting of the Development of Educational Technologies

Ρ(y = 1 | se , sc ) =

1 1 + e −θW

T



(10)

W=(Wdel,Wadd,Wrep,Wtrep) is a vector that reflects the difference between the chains. The difference is defined by the weight of operations necessary to convert se into the current situation sc: • • • •

Wdel is the summarized weight of operations of deleting events of se that do not have analogues in sc. Wadd is the summarized weight of operations of adding events of sc that do not have analogues in se. Wrep is the summarized weight of replacing events of se to their analogues. Wtrep is the summarized weight of modifying time intervals between events.

θ = (θdel,θadd,θrep,θtrep) is a parameter vector. The values of parameters are selected by maximum likelihood. The probability of the conformity of the situations se and sc is calculated as Pan(se,sc) = P(y = 0|se,sc) = 1-P(y=1|se,sc). If Pan(se,sc) ≥ 0.5, the sample situation is declared as an analogue of the current situation. The final part fin(se, sc) of se is considered as a scenario of further development of sc. The value Pan(se,sc) is regarded as the probability of the further development of sc in accordance to this scenario. The recommendation associated with the last event of st(se,sc) is taken as a suggestion to facilitate optimal development of the current situation. While the total of the scenarios may be considerable, users are interested in obtaining three of them: (1) the most probable; (2) the optimistic; and (3) the pessimistic. The most probable scenario is the ending part of a sample situation sepr with the highest probability of conformity with sc: sepr = arg max Ρan (se , sc ) se

(11)

To identify the optimistic and pessimistic scenarios, the optimality of each scenario is determined via analytic hierarchy process (AHP). AHP is used to prioritize several alternatives regarding a certain goal taking into account a group of criteria (Saaty, 1980). In this case the goal is to select the best scenario from a set of generated scenarios (which are the alternatives). The choice of criteria depends on the task for which the forecasting of situations development is used. To determine priorities of educational methods one should consider their influence on students’ intellectual skills, real-world problem solving abilities, critical and analytical thinking skills, interest in learning (Heinecke, Blasi, Milman, & Washington, 1999; Jones & Rocco, 1999). Costs of implementation of methods and their economic benefits also should be taken into account. When evaluating promising innovations in science and engineering in the context of their potential introduction into the educational process, one can choose such criteria as safety, rate of development, economic effectiveness and environmental influence. The priorities of criteria regarding the goal are calculated during the training stage based on pairwise criteria comparison performed by experts. The priorities of scenarios regarding each criterion are determined automatically based on criteria values of each sample situation set by experts during the preparation of the sample situations collection. Therefore, comparison of the scenarios generated for the current situation and calculating their priorities regarding the goal can be performed automatically.

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The optimistic and pessimistic scenarios are identified as scenarios with the highest and lowest priority respectively.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROPOSED APPROACH A System for Monitoring and Forecasting the Development of Innovative Educational Technologies The authors have developed a text stream analysis system to implement the described models and methods. The system consists of two subsystems as depicted in Figure 3. The training of event detection subsystem is carried out by experts based on a collection of sample events related to technology, science and education. The trained subsystem automatically analyzes the text stream and provides a list of detected events and situations to the user. Figure 4 demonstrates an example of detected situation that is a chain of four events related to testing of driverless car service by Uber. Events of the chain reflect steps of the situation’s development including the launch of the testing and its halt caused by negative reaction from the local authorities. Training of the scenario generation subsystem is carried out based on a collection of sample situations reflecting the development of certain innovative technologies in the past. Experts furnish every event of a sample situation with recommendations that describe actions that should be taken in case of an analogous event for optimal further development of the situation.

Figure 3. The scheme of the text stream analysis system

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Figure 4. An example of event detection and situation construction

The subsystem compares current situations to the samples, while generating scenarios and offering recommendations for university administration based on the comparison. For the above situation, a number of analogous sample situations were found that also reflect problems encountered by companies while using certain technologies. The selected sample situations were used as a base for generating scenarios of the further development of the analyzed situation. The most probable, optimistic and pessimistic scenarios were identified via logistic regression and AHP. Figure 5 demonstrates the identified scenarios as well as recommendations regarding introduction of the analyzed technology into educational process.

Experimental Results An experiment tested the quality of the system. The experiment’s goal was to evaluate the ability of the proposed method to detect events identified by experts. Data set used for the experiment contained 22,162 documents from 33 news Web sites. After experts manually analyzed the documents, 27 events were identified. Part of the events were used to train the event detection subsystem. The remaining events were used for testing. The subsystem divided documents into clusters; a certain system-generated cluster Si was assigned to each test event εi. Depending on if they belonged to clusters Si and Ci (an expert-formed cluster for εi), each document was assigned to one of the groups presented in Table 3. The quality of the method was evaluated by traditional machine learning measures, including precision P, recall R, and F-measure F:

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Figure 5. An example of scenarios and recommendations generation

Table 3. Division of the documents into four groups Documents Dedicated to εi

Documents Dedicated to an Event Other Than εi

Documents Assigned to Si

TPi = {d:d∈Ci∧d∈Si}

FPi = {d:d∉Ci∧d∈Si}

Documents Assigned to a Cluster Other Than Si

FNi = {d:d∈Ci∧d∉Si}

TNi = {d:d∉Ci∧d∉Si}

P=

∑ | TP | ∑ | TP | R= ∑ | TP | + ∑ | FP | ∑ | TP | + ∑ | FN i

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

i

|

F=

P ⋅R . P +R

(12)

Figure 6 illustrates the dependency between an amount of training examples and values of the quality measures. The authors have also analyzed the dependency between the set of criteria that are used for documentevent comparison and the values of aforementioned quality measures. Three sets of criteria have been considered: (1) words of documents; (2) words of documents and titles; and (3) the whole set of criteria. The results are presented in Table 4. The experiment demonstrated that 1,300 document-event pairs (generated from six sample events) were enough for the training. An increase in the amount of training examples did not impact the quality measures’ values. The experiment also proved the appropriateness of nine-criterion document-event comparisons. The use of the whole criteria set resulted in the highest values of quality measures.

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Figure 6. Dependency between an amount of training examples and precision (thin solid line), recall (dashed line), and F-measure (thick solid line) of event detection

Table 4. Dependency between the set of criteria used for comparison and the values of quality measures Criteria

Precision

Recall

F-measure

Words of documents

65.8%

65%

65.2%

Words of documents and titles

72.2%

63%

67.2%

Nine criterion

85.2%

76%

79.8%

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS A possible direction for future research is the enhancement of models used at the scenario generation stage. The current simple model of a situational graph may be replaced by a more complex model reflecting causal and hierarchical relations between events. Such a model may be created based on complex graphs suited for modeling of hierarchical systems (for example, a metagraph). On the other hand, models of sample situations may be enhanced. Currently, sample situations are represented by linear chains of events. Introduction of a graph model of a sample situation would allow for the combining of various ways of situation development in one model rather than dividing into separate event chains.

CONCLUSION This chapter described an approach to automated monitoring and forecasting of the development of situations related to educational technologies. The proposed approach was based on sequential implementation of the following steps of text stream analysis: detecting events in the text stream; constructing situations; and generating potential scenarios for further development.

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An event detection problem is considered an incremental clustering task consisting in the partitioning of the text stream into groups of documents in such a way that each group corresponds to a certain event. Partitioning is based on a multicriteria comparison of document and event models. Components of the proposed models reflect an event’s key aspects considered by experts while manually analyzing the text stream. These include: keywords; names of persons and organizations; geographic names; time intervals; etc. As the models consider these aspects, the method was adjustable according to the domain and specifics of the task. Assignment of a document to a certain event was performed by means of a support vector machine. The machine’s parameters could be adjusted to detect events at the demanded localization level. The chapter described a method for generating scenarios for further development of situations. The proposed method was based on the principle of historical analogy. Probabilities of the generated scenarios were calculated via logistic regression. Analytic hierarchy process identified the optimistic and pessimistic scenarios. Scenarios were supplemented with recommendations regarding actions that should be taken to promote the situation’s development according to the optimal scenario. The proposed approach tracked an emergence of innovative technologies in higher education. It forecasted their possible future developments and generated recommendations for their introduction into the educational process of a university.

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Dobrov, B. V., & Pavlov, A. M. (2010). Issledovanie kachestva bazovyh metodov klasterizatsii novostnogo potoka v sutochnom vremennom okne [Basic line for news clusterization methods evaluation]. In Elektronnye biblioteki: perspektivnye metody i tekhnologii, elektronnye kollektsii: Trudy XII Vseros. nauch. konf. (RCDL’2010) (pp. 287–295). Kazan, Russia: Kazan Federal University Publishing House. Retrieved from http://rcdl.ru/doc/2010/287-295.pdf Heinecke, W. F., Blasi, L., Milman, N., & Washington, L. (1999). New Directions in the Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Educational Technology. Paper presented at The Secretary’s Conference on Educational Technology, Washington, DC. DOI: 10.1300/J025v18n02_07 Hogenboom, F., Frasincar, F., Kaymak, U., & de Jong, F. (2011). An overview of event extraction from text. In CEUR Conference Proceedings, Workshop on Detection, Representation, and Exploitation of Events in the Semantic Web (DeRiVE 2011) at Tenth International Semantic Web Conference (ISWC 2011) (Vol. 779, pp. 48-57). Koblenz, Germany: CEUR-WS.org. Retrieved from http://ceur-ws.org/ Vol-779/derive2011_submission_1.pdf Jones, T. H., & Rocco, P. (1999). Research framework and dimensions for evaluating the effectiveness of educational technology systems on learning outcomes. Journal of Research on Computing in Education, 32(1), 17–27. doi:10.1080/08886504.1999.10782266 Kumaran, G., & Allan, J. (2005). Using names and topics for new event detection. In Proceedings of the Conference on Human Language Technology and Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing (pp. 121-128). Stroudsburg, PA: Association for Computational Linguistics. 10.3115/1220575.1220591 Lande, D. V., Braichevskii, S. M., Grigoryev, A. N., Darmokhval, A. T., & Radetzkii, A. B. (2007). Vyyavlenie novyh sobytiy iz potoka novostey [Detection of new events from news flow]. In Kompyuternaya lingvistika i intellektualnye tekhnologii. Trudy mezhdunarodnoy konferentsii «Dialog–2007» (pp. 349-352). Moscow, Russia: Nauka. Retrieved from http://dwl.kiev.ua/art/dia07/dia07.pdf Li, Z., Wang, B., Li, M., & Ma, W.-Y. (2005). A probabilistic model for retrospective news event detection. In Proceedings of the 28th Annual International ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval (pp. 106-113). New York, NY: ACM. 10.1145/1076034.1076055 Prishchepa, S. V. (2017). Vyyavlenie sobytiya, ego subekta i obekta v tekstovyh dokumentah. [Identification of an event, its subject and object in text documents] In Informatsionnye tekhnologii i bezopasnost. Materialy XVI Mezhdunarodnoy nauchno-prakticheskoy konferentsii ITB-2016 (pp. 121–129). Kiev, Ukraine: Institute for Information Recording of the NAS of Ukraine. Retrieved from http://dwl.kiev.ua/ art/itb2016/ITB-2016-pdf.pdf

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Radinsky, K., & Horvitz, E. (2013). Mining the web to predict future events. In Proceedings of the Sixth ACM International Conference on Web Search and Data Mining (pp. 255-264). New York, NY: ACM. 10.1145/2433396.2433431 Raimond, Y., & Abdallah, S. (2007). The event ontology. Retrieved April 21, 2017, from http://motools. sourceforge.net/event/event.html Saaty, T. L. (1980). The Analytic Hierarchy Process. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Sphinx Technologies Inc. (2010, August). How Sphinx relevance ranking works. Retrieved April 21, 2017, from http://sphinxsearch.com/blog/2010/08/17/how-sphinx-relevance-ranking-works/ Yang, Y., Pierce, T., & Carbonell, J. (1998). A study on retrospective and on-line event detection. In Proceedings of the 21st Annual International ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval (pp. 28-36). New York, NY: ACM. 10.1145/290941.290953 Yang, Y., Zhang, J., Carbonell, J., & Jin, C. (2002). Topic-conditioned novelty detection. In Proceedings of the Eighth ACM SIGKDD International Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (pp. 688-693). New York, NY: ACM. 10.1145/775047.775150 Zhao, Q., Mitra, P., & Chen, B. (2007). Temporal and information flow based event detection from social text streams. In Proceedings of the Twenty-Second AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence. AAAI-07 (Vol. 2, pp. 1501–1506). Palo Alto, CA: AAAI Press. Retrieved from http://www.aaai.org/ Papers/AAAI/2007/AAAI07-238.pdf

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Educational Technologies: Innovative technologies and methods that should be considered while planning curriculum in universities. Event: A significant change in the real world that is reflected in the text stream. Scenario: A hypothetical chain of events that is a potential continuation of current situation. Situation: A sequence of interrelated events that reflects the development of a certain educational technology or method. Situational Graph: An oriented graph in which vertices correspond to events. A pair of vertices connect by an edge if the respective events belong to the same situation. Text Stream: A sequence of text documents that are regularly downloaded from web sites and domain-specific sources.

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Chapter 28

Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research:

Network Traffic Analysis as an Example Samih M. Jammoul Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Vladimir V. Syuzev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ark M. Andreev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT Information technology and telecommunication is considered a new and quickly evolving branch of science. New technologies and services in IT and telecommunications impose successive changes and updates on related engineering majors, especially in practical qualification that includes using software facilities. This chapter aims to join the efforts to spread the use of open source software in academic education. The chapter consists of two main sections. The first presents the trend of using open source software in higher education and discusses pros and cons of using open source software in engineering education. The second section presents network traffic analysis as an example of recent effective research topics and provides a set of open source tools to perform the research’s practical steps. The research example with the suggested tools is valid as practical lab work for telecommunication and IT-related majors.

OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE IN EDUCATION AND RESEARCH Tendency to Use Open Source Software in Higher Education By definition, open source software (OSS) is software that is available to everyone, including the source code, along with the copyright license that permits using, studying, modifying, or redistributing the software (Beal, 2008). OSS covers a wide range of user needs, ranging from simple programs such as DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch028

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 Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research

editing utilities, to very advanced software such as operating systems. The most famous successes in OSS are the operating systems Linux and Android. Using OSS in education is a current tendency in some of the leading universities around the world, including the USA and Europe (Wilson, 2013; Roach, 2016). Some of these universities, such as MIT and Stanford, effectively participate in developing open source projects through their dedicated research labs. The main reasons for choosing OSS in many educational institutions are the cost, which plays a key role especially in limited-budget educational systems; its high effectiveness and success with some important educational platform systems such as Moodle (Cole & Foster, 2008); and better suitability than closed software for research environments in higher education. Nowadays, there is a tendency in some countries to share information and make education available to everyone (e.g., the #GoOpen campaign in the USA) (Office of Educational Technology, 2016). Open source and open education complement each other, and both focus on transparency and sharing information. The next section presents pros and cons of using OSS in engineering education.

Pros and Cons of Using OSS in Engineering Education Due to the particularity of the learning activities in engineering education, specifically in IT and telecommunications engineering, the advantages and drawbacks of using OSS are not the same as in other domains. In engineering institutions, the students and professors use the software as an educational tool, and, at the same time, they may develop it as a part of practical training. Table 1 shows a summary comparison of using OSS and closed software in engineering education. Table 1 shows that OSS is better than closed software with respect to cost, fitting lab needs, possibility of using the software as a common platform for joint projects, interoperability with other systems,

Table 1. Comparison between OSS and closed software in engineering education Criteria

OSS

Closed Software

The cost

-OSS is free -No limitation on usage duration or number of copies

-Not free of change -Limited number of copies -Could be for limited duration

Cooperation between Academic Institutions

-Valid to be used as a common platform for joint projects

-Less likely to be used for joint projects

Interoperability with other Systems

-Possibility to compile different versions for different OSs -Possibility to change the source code and the input/ output format

-Software is intended to work on specific OS -Limited or fixed input/output format

Fit Lab Needs

-Predefined options and scenarios -Possibility to change the source code to adapt lab needs

-Predefined options and scenarios

Availability for Specific Research Purposes

-Many OSS has been developed in academic institutions for specific research purposes

-Closed software development is based on market needs

Support

-Support depends on contributors (not guaranteed) -Lack of documents and materials

-the software companies support their products -Availability of documents, help, and support materials

User Interface Quality

-In general, has a poor GUI quality, especially in the old versions (command line only)

-Most commercial software has a good GUI quality

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and availability for specific research purposes. Closed software is better for support and graphical user interface (GUI). In the following section, advantages and drawbacks of using OSS in engineering education are discussed in more detail.

Advantages of Using OSS in Engineering Education •









Cost: The educator can choose whatever he/she needs from the available OSS to enhance the quality of the practical work, without concern for the cost; and can also change and update lecture content according to the emerging technologies and available resources. Students too can benefit from using the OSS to perform their projects without any charge. The total cost of closed software is not a negligible amount of money, considering the limited budget of educational institutions. Cooperation between Academic Institutions: Scientific cooperation between academic institutions requires using similar teaching environments, such as educational contents, technologies, and software. The availability of no-cost OSS enhances the chance to establish such cooperation in practical terms. Furthermore, OSS can be used as a common software environment to establish joint scientific and research projects among universities and research groups, which enhances the educational level and the scientific experience of both the educators and the students. Interoperability with Other Systems: The possibility of interoperating various kinds of commercial software is low if they are issued by various companies. Moreover, some versions of commercial software are intended to work under a specific version of operating system. Unlike commercial software, the OSS shows more interoperability. The developer can get the suitable executable version for his/her operating system by compiling the source code on the specified operating system. Moreover, the developer can modify the input/output format, data structure, parameters, and other necessary conditions to make the OSS interoperate properly with other installed software. Fit with Lab Needs: OSS can fit lab needs more readily than commercial software, for two reasons. First, the educator can choose the OSS based solely on its functionalities and features. Second, the educator, as well the students, can develop the software source code to meet research or laboratory requirements. Availability of OSS for Specific Research Purposes: Much OSS was originally developed in research laboratories or in academic institutions, for the purpose of completing specific scientific tasks, regardless of the number of eventual users or the returned value. On the other hand, commercial software is developed to get a good return on investment, which is related to the expected number of eventual sold copies and software cost.

Drawbacks of Using OSS in Engineering Education •

Lack of Support: Usually, commercial companies provide a good level of support for their products. The support may include training, new updates, and fixing bugs. On the other hand, OSS is developed by various contributors, and may not have the same level of support as closed software (Wilson, 2014). Usually, the OSS support comes from the contributors themselves, but it is notable that recently documentation and support for OSS has been enhanced. Some commercial companies offer support for specific kinds of OSS, including training, installation, and fixing bugs, but such support is not free of charge.

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Poor User Interface Quality: Users frequently complain about OSS interfaces; most do not have good quality GUI (Wilson, 2014); some even use command-line interface for installation and configuration, which is not easy for a nontechnical user. On the other hand, commercial software usually has a user-friendly interface, and in most cases the installation and configuration are straightforward processes. In fact, the primitive versions of the Linux operating system and OSS were not that easy to use, with problems of library dependency and compilation issues. Current versions are much easier for nontechnical users, and most have been supported with GUI.

OSS for Research Environments OSS is preferred more than the closed software in academic research. The nature of research tasks imposes extra constraints on the software, for example, the need to understand and evaluate the internal work methods or develop a specific part of the code. In some cases, the researcher must either develop the needed software locally or use OSS directly, as in the case of unavailability of qualified commercial software, or high cost of software. For most research domains, several available kinds of OSS can be used to perform research tasks, though they differ from each other in features and performance. The comparison of available OSS may facilitate the task of choosing the appropriate tool for specific tasks. Network traffic analysis is getting more attention in recent years, due to rapidly evolving telecommunication infrastructure and services. This subject could be a useful part of engineering preparation in the network’s lab, as it is a current issue in the industry. The next section presents motivations of network traffic analysis for the industry. Then, traffic-analysis methods are presented. Finally, traffic-analysis steps with a complex of available OSS for each step are explained.

NETWORK TRAFFIC ANALYSIS AS EDUCATIONAL LAB MATERIAL Network Traffic Analysis Motivation Network traffic analysis is one of the most researched topics in the last decade (Li, Springer, Bebis, & Gunes, 2013), due to its importance to Internet service providers (ISP) and network administrators. Network traffic analysis is the process of recording, reviewing, and extracting information on network traffic. Network traffic analysis enables getting statistics on user activities, the performance of the network, and the used protocols. Network traffic classification is a part of network traffic analysis, which focuses more on recognizing traffic according to certain levels—e.g., according to application type, such as web, streaming, peer to peer; or according to the used protocol, such as HTTP, FTP, or Skype’s protocol. Controlling Internet traffic is one of the most important and difficult tasks, due to the extensive usage of Internet applications and diversity of contents, as well as the evolution of concealing methods to escape monitoring and filtering. Network traffic analysis is required to enhance the quality of service, network security, investigating issues, and for business trends.

Example of Practical Issues in ISPs BitTorrent is one of the most widely known peer-to-peer file-sharing applications. ISPs try to block this application, because it uses Internet resources, and because of the nature of the exchanged contents. The

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users of BitTorrent may exchange legal contents without the license of the original owner, including movies, software, or any e-materials; or exchange illegal e-materials such as those related to drug trade or violence. ISPs use different methods to block this application, such as blocking the application ports, the seeds websites (the information files), or the traffic that contains the BitTorrent signature (pattern recognition). On the other hand, BitTorrent developers constantly create new methods to avoid filtering, using different port numbers and encryption. As a result, BitTorrent traffic still has a very high percentage of Internet traffic—for example, 24.02% of the fixed Internet access in the Asia-Pacific area in 2016 is BitTorrent traffic (Sandvine, 2016).

Network Traffic Analysis Methods Port-Number Method The port number is the first method used to classify network traffic. It is based on the assigned port numbers for standard Internet applications and services, as defined by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA, 2017). The port-number method is simple and fast, but it is not considered an accurate method for classification, for two reasons. First, many current applications are not standard IANA applications (i.e., have no registered port number). Second, some forbidden applications dynamically change their port numbers, using ports of legal applications to avoid filtering; or a tunnel application, such as Skype, that could be configured to use TCP ports 80 and 443 if the original port is blocked by the firewall (see Figure 1).

Deep Packet Inspection Method Deep packet inspection method is based on finding an application’s pattern recognition within the traffic (White, Daniel, & Teague, 2012). Most known applications have pattern recognitions (application signature) in their payload. Usually, the pattern recognition consists of a sequence(s) of bytes in specific order and of specific value. The advantage of this approach is that it recognizes the application regardless of the port number. The two main drawbacks of this method are that it violates user privacy, since the content of the packets is considered confidential information; and this method does not work in cases of encrypted traffic. Figure 1. Example of applications that use different protocols

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Machine Learning Method The most recent traffic-analysis studies are based on machine learning method, which overcomes the issues of user privacy, application tunneling, and encryption technique (Dainotti, Pescape, & Claffy, 2012). Machine learning method is based on discovering common flow features that belong to the same application. A flow feature is any characteristic value of the flow (e.g., mean packet size, number of packets within the flow, acknowledgment [ACK] number). Moore, Crogan, and Zuev (2005) state that the complete number of flow features is 249. In network traffic analysis, the most widely known method is supervised learning, where the relationship between the applications and flows can be derived from learning examples (training data sets). Recent research shows that machine learning methods can identify many known applications with a very high rate of accuracy (e.g., BitTorrent can be identified with accuracy over 95%) (Wang, Zhang, & Ye, 2015).

Practical Steps of Network Traffic Classification for New Lab Development This section presents practical steps of a traffic-classification process using the machine learning method. Figure 2 presents traffic-classification flow, which consists of capturing network traffic, traffic labeling, features extraction, and classification using machine learning steps.

Figure 2. Traffic classification steps using machine learning

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Capturing Network Traffic Capturing network traffic (logs) is the first step in traffic classification. Depending on the purpose of the study, traffic capturing can be done at different levels of the network hierarchy (e.g., network interface of a local machine for studying local applications behavior; network switches to study distributed attacks; or at the ISP level to study global bandwidth usage). Capturing network traffic on the local machine can be done using special software called a sniffer. There are two ways to capture traffic on the local network switch. First, by using port forwarding on the main switch from all ports to a specific port, the sniffer captures the traffic at that specified port. Second, traffic can be captured at the exit firewall or the exit router directly. The sniffer can work in two modes. The first is called promiscuous mode, where the sniffer collects all traffic running through the network. The second mode is the usual mode, where the sniffer captures only the traffic that belongs to the local host. Table 2 shows the available OSS for network sniffing. Table 2 shows the available open source sniffers, with some general information about each. The most simple and efficient sniffer is Tcpdump (Sloan, 2001). Network and system administrators frequently use this tool, as it is fast, simple, and an essential GNU package. For academic use, the most widely known and recommended tool is Wireshark (Chappell, 2014). It can capture and monitor traffic both online and offline, and is provided with a wide range of filtering options, with detailed graphical display for protocols (headers and payload) at various network levels. Students can use it as well, to monitor and analyze the traffic directly in various formats (ASCII, hexadecimal, and binary).

Table 2. The available open-source tools for network sniffing Capturing Network Traffic Tools

Developer

User Interface

Last version/ date

Available for OS

License

Supported protocol level

Brief info

Wireshark

The Wireshark team

GUI, CLI

2.2.7/ Jun 01, 2017

Linux, BSDs, MacOSX, MS Win, Solaris

GNU General Public License

App. level – wide range of protocols

Most popular tool, practical and easy with several display and filtering options

Tcpdump

The Tcpdump team

CLI

4.9.0/ Jan 18, 2017

Linux, BSDs, MacOSX, MS Win, Solaris

BSD License

TCP/IP

An essential package of Linux OS releases, well known for network admin

Netsniff-ng

Daniel Borkmann

CLI

0.6.3/ Apr 11, 2017

Linux

GNU General Public License

TCP/IP

Used for protocol analysis, reverse engineering, and network debugging

Junkie

The Junkie team

CLI

2.6.4/ Oct 15, 2013

Linux

GNU General Public License

App. Level, Limited number of Protocols

Packet reordering, reassembling tracking connections

CapAnalysis

Gianluca Costa

Web

1.2.2/ Aug 22, 2016

Linux

GNU General Public License

TCP/IP

Gives geographical representation of connections

EtherApe

Juan Toledo

GUI

0.9.15/ Feb. 10, 2017

Linux

GNU General Public License

Application level, Wide number of protocols

Network monitoring and analyzing connections

Ettercap

Contributors

GUI and CLI

0.8.2 -Ferri/ March 14, 2015

Linux, BSDs, MacOSX

GNU General Public License

App. Level, Limited number of protocols

Can be used to perform Man in Middle Attack

Snoop

Sun Microsystems

CLI

Solaris10/ Dec. 11, 2006

Solaris

Common Development and Distribution License

TCP/IP

Similar to tcpdump

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Tools for Labeling Data Sets The second step of the traffic-classification process using machine learning method is labeling the training data set. This step is very important since the training data set is used as ground truth (learning model) for the learning algorithm. The most widely known open-source tools for traffic labeling are LibProtoIdent (Alcock & Nelson, 2012), “L7 Filter” (Santos, 2008), and nDPI (Deri, 2014). They use different classification methods to classify traffic, like deep packet inspection, port number, and simple statistical methods. Table 3 shows a list of available open-source tools for traffic classification, most of them based on deep packet inspection technique. The precision of protocol identification depends on the studied protocol. A detailed comparison between popular DPI tools for traffic classification (Bujlow, CarelaEspañolb, & Barlet-Ros, 2014) shows identification accuracy of the most used protocols using the chosen tools. Velan, Cermak, Celeda, and Drasar (2015) mention that LibProtoIdent generally has the highest classification accuracy among the other tools. It identifies the maximum number of protocols among the other open-source classification tools (375 protocols), and is very fast and designed to work in a limited-resources environment.

Extracting Flow Features Flow feature is any characteristic value of the flow that can be used to predict the application or application type. For example, flow duration, mean packet size, and total packets number are flow features that can be calculated from traffic logs. Features selection is the third step in the traffic classification process using machine learning method. In this step, the selected flow features are studied based on their efficiency in predicting the expected results. Most of the flow features can be extracted (calculated) from the flow trace directly, but some of them, such as the statistical features, need more processing. If the machine learning tool is supported by mathematical and data-processing libraries, then the flow features can be calculated using the machine learning tool itself; otherwise, they should be processed in separate steps using an appropriate tool. Table 3. The available open-source tools for network traffic classification and traffic marking Developer

Last Version/date

User Interface

Number of identified protocols

LibProtoIdent

the University of Waikato WAND research group

2.0.10/ Jan. 06, 2017

CLI

375

Linux, MacOS X, FreeBSD

nDPI

ntop - Deri Luca

1.16 May 31, 2015

CLI

185

Linux, FreeBSD, MacOSX

Traffic Labeling Tools

Available for Operating system

L7 Filter

L7 Filter

May 28, 2009

CLI

110

Linux

Traffic Identification Engine TIE

TIE Team - University of Napoli Federico II

v1.2.0-alpha Jul 30, 2014

CLI

297

Linux, FreeBSD, MacOS X

NeTraMark

NeTraMark

Dec 8, 2010

GUI

93

Linux

Tstat

Tstat

3.1.1 May 30, 2016

Web

38

Linux

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 Open Source Software Usage in Education and Research

Some special open-source tools for extracting flow features from raw traffic are used mostly for research purposes. However, there are no dedicated commercial tools for extracting flow features, the available open source tools for this task are: •



Fullstats: Fullstats (Moore & Zuev, 2005) is аn open-source tool to extract flow features from raw data logs (.pcap) or directly from local network interface (online). This tool was developed at Cambridge University using C language. The output of the tool contains 268 flow features in comma-separated values format. The output can be used directly as an input for machine learning tools. NetMate: NetMate (Zander & Schmoll, 2009) is OSS, used to extract flow features from raw network logs (.pcap format) or from local network interface (online). The output of NetMate consists of only 40 features that are the most effective features among the others. A subset of the features collection can be specified using the configuration file. The output file can be used directly as an input feature file for machine learning software.

Classification Based on Machine Learning Method Machine learning is the most promising approach for traffic analysis and classification; it classifies encrypted network traffic very effectively, and it does not violate user privacy. Table 4 shows a list of most featured and used machine learning tools; most of them support statistical and deep learning solutions. These tools have been developed and used in academic institutions, e.g., Weka (Witten, Frank, & Hall, 2011) and MLlib (Pentreath, 2015). In addition, they support the famous programming languages, including Python, Java, and C++. Most of the famous learning algorithms (Naïve Bayes, Support vector, decision tree, and others) are implemented in most of the software listed in Table 4. Machine learning algorithms differ from each other in learning model, speed, accuracy, and method of classification. According to Jovic, Brkic, and Bogunovic (2014), Weka is one of the most featured tools for general data-mining solutions. Weka offers developers a graphical and command-line interface, and is provided by several utilities for importing and transforming data through simple wizards. Weka is a suitable tool to use in student laboratories, as the students can start their lab work and monitor their results quickly. For more profound professional research projects, using more specialized software is preferable, depending on the project type. For example, H2O could be a good choice for big-data solutions, as it has an efficient parallel processing engine (Cook, 2016).

Summary of Network Traffic Analysis This chapter may help interested people start practical network traffic classification, which can be very useful for preparing practical work for the student lab. The educator can create various scenarios for student lab work, such as performing a practical study on using social media on the local network, or identifying remote login services from/to the local network. The needed tools for each scenario depend on the aim of the study and the methods used. For example, when the statistical features are used in a learning method, it is better to use scikit-learn (Brownlee, 2014) or R-programming (Lantz, 2013) as machine learning software. For general or simple student lab work, using the tools (Wireshark, LibProtoIdent, NetState, and Weka) is recommended.

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Table 4. The most widely known open-source machine learning tools ML Tools

Developer

Supported language

Operating system

Support statistical analysis

Deep learning

Distributed computing

GUI

GPU acceleration

Scikit-Learn

multiple; support: INRIA, Google

C, C++, Python, Cython

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

+

-

-

+

-

R-Programming

John Chambers and colleagues AT&T

C, Fortran, R

Linux, Unix, MacOSX, Windows

+

-

+

+

+

H2O

H2O.ai

Java, Python, R, Scala, JSON

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

+

+

+

+

-

Weka

Univ. of Waikato, New Zealand

Java

Linux, Unix, MacOSX, Windows

-

-

+

+

-

Apache Spark MLlib

Apache SparkBerkeley’s AMPLab

Java, Scala, Python, R

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

+

-

+

-

+

TensorFlow

Google Brain team

Python, C/ C++, Java, Go

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

+

+

+

+

+

Theano

Montreal University

Python

Linux, Unix, MacOSX, Windows

+

+

-

-

+

Accord.NET

Contributors

C#

Windows, Linux

+

-

-

+

+

Apache Singa

Apache Incubator

Python, C++, Java

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

+

+

-

-

-

Shogun

Contributors

C, C++, Python, R, Matlab

Linux, MacOSX, Windows

-

-

-

-

+

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS OSS is an essential part of current and future research tools, as well using OSS is a global tendency in many educational systems around the world, specifically in engineering preparation. Therefore including the OSS in the educational process seems to be an inevitable step due to its increasing role in this domain. Adoption of OSS in higher education, especially in engineering preparation, requires collaboration between different entities like governments, educational institutions, and OSS developers. The government usually gives the financial support, the strategies of education and issues the related rules and regulations to organize the work of the educational institutions, which may include a plan or a policy to involve more OSS in the educational process, or at least gives recommendations to use and support OSS in higher education. The education institutions play the most effective role to adopt the OSS in engineering education, as they can allocate the necessary resources and efforts to achieve this purpose like:

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• • •

Dedicate OSS research and development lab(s) to support the engineering preparation laboratories in different specialties, as well this lab(s) can provide the required software for special research purposes. Organize conferences and workshops on OSS In education, usage, benefits, challenges etc. Include OSS in IT engineering curriculum as an essential part of engineering preparation.

OSS developers as well can play an important role in adoption OSS in educational process, as they allocate more efforts to respond to educational software needs, for example, they can provide software for a specific lab activity and take into consideration the specific nature of the education process, like graphical user interfaces, interactive exercises, educational manuals, resolved examples etc.

CONCLUSION Using OSS in engineering preparation enhances student skills and strengthens the sense of collaboration and sharing information. OSS is a very rich environment, which helps students to better understand the lab’s goals and enhance creativity. Already OSS has become an obvious option in research, and more familiar in engineering preparation. The availability and diversity of OSS, given the trend toward open education, will make OSS a primary option in preparing the next generation of engineers. However, despite the success and great features of OSS, there is no concrete decision to adopt it in the education process of many educational institutions; choosing such software is still a professor’s personal decision. This chapter aims to present a brief study of using OSS in academic education and proposes an open source tools’ set to perform practical steps of network traffic analysis. The chapter also provides a brief feature comparison of the open-source tools for each step, which may help the researcher/professor to choose the convenient ones for his/her research. The research example introduced, with the suggested tools, can be used as a platform for the networks lab for telecommunication and IT majors.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The work is being supported by the Russian Ministry of Education and Science (Project #2.7782.2017/ BC dated 10/3/2017).

REFERENCES Alcock, S., & Nelson, R. (2012). Libprotoident: Traffic classification using lightweight packet inspection. Technical report, University of Waikato. Retrieved from https://wand.net.nz/sites/default/files/lpi.pdf Brownlee, J. (2014). Gentle introduction to Scikit-Learn: A Python machine learning library. Retrieved April 21, 2017, from http://machinelearningmastery.com/a-gentle-introduction-to-scikit-learn-a-pythonmachine learning-library/

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Bujlow, T., Carela-Españolb, V., & Barlet-Ros, P. (2014). Extended independent comparison of popular deep packet inspection (DPI) tools for traffic classification. Retrieved from http://people.ac.upc.edu/ pbarlet/reports/extended_dpi_report.pdf Chappell, L. (2014). Troubleshooting with Wireshark: Locate the source of performance problems. Reno, NV: Protocol Analysis Institute (dba “Chappell University”). Cole, J., & Foster, H. (2008). Using Moodle (2nd ed.). Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, Inc. Cook, D. (2016). Practical machine learning with H2O: Powerful, scalable techniques for deep learning and AI. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, Inc. Dainotti, A., Pescape, A., & Claffy, K. (2012). Issues and future directions in traffic classification. IEEE Network, 26(1), 35–40. doi:10.1109/MNET.2012.6135854 Deri, L., Martinelli, M., Bujlow, T., & Cardigliano, A. (2014). nDPI: Open-source high-speed deep packet inspection. In Proceeding of Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing Conference (IWCMC) 2014 International. IEEE Xplore. 10.1109/IWCMC.2014.6906427 Internet Assigned Numbers Authority. (2017). Service name and transport protocol port number registry. Retrieved April 4, 2017, from http://www.iana.org/assignments/service-names-port-numbers/servicenames-port-numbers.xhtml Jovic, A., Brkic, K., & Bogunovic, N. (2014). An overview of free software tools for general data mining. In Proceedings of the 37th International Convention on Information and Communication Technology, Electronics and Microelectronics (MIPRO) 2014. IEEE Xplore. 10.1109/MIPRO.2014.6859735 Lantz, B. (2013). Machine learning with R. Retrieved from https://www.packtpub.com/big-data-andbusiness-intelligence/machine learning-r Li, B., Springer, J., Bebis, G., & Gunes, M. H. (2013). A survey of network flow applications. Journal of Network and Computer Applications, 36(2), 567–581. doi:10.1016/j.jnca.2012.12.020 Moore, A., Crogan, M., & Zuev, D. (2005). Discriminators for use in flow-based classification. London, UK: Intel Research Tech. Moore, A. W., & Zuev, D. (2005). Internet traffic classification using Bayesian analysis techniques. In Proceedings of the 2005 ACM SIGMETRICS international conference on Measurement and modeling of computer systems. Association for Computing Machinery. 10.1145/1064212.1064220 Office of Educational Technology. (2016). Openly Licensed Educational Resources. Retrieved from https://tech.ed.gov/open/

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Pentreath, N. (2015). Machine learning with Spark. Birmingham, UK: Packt Publishing Ltd. Roach, N. (2016). Open Source in Higher Education: Top 10 Universities [Blog post]. Retrieved March 26, 2017, from https://www.axelerant.com/blog/open-source-in-higher-education Sandvine. (2016). Global Internet phenomena, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East. Retrieved from https://www.sandvine.com/downloads/general/global-internet-phenomena/2016/global-internet-phenomena-apac-mea.pdf Santos, R. (2008). Intrusion prevention with L7-Filter. Retrieved from InfoSec Reading Room WebSite: https://www.sans.org/reading-room/whitepapers/intrusion/intrusion-prevention-l7-filter-32868 Sloan, J. D. (2001). Network troubleshooting tools. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly & Associates, Inc. Beal, V. (2008). What is open source software? Retrieved March 28, 2017, from http://www.webopedia. com/DidYouKnow/Computer_Science/open_source.asp Velan, P., Cermak, M., Celeda, P., & Drasar, M. (2015). A survey of methods for encrypted traffic classification and analysis. International Journal of Network Management, 25(5), 355–374. doi:10.1002/ nem.1901 Wang, C., Zhang, H., & Ye, Z. (2015). A peer to peer traffic identification method based on wavelet and particle swarm optimization algorithm. International Journal of Wavelets, Multresolution, and Information Processing, 13(6), 1550048. doi:10.1142/S0219691315500484 White, C. M., Daniel, E. J., & Teague, K. A. (2012). A real-time network analysis tool to aid in characterizing VoIP system performance. International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education, 42(2), 119–131. doi:10.7227/IJEEE.42.2.1 Wilson, S. (2013). Open source in higher education: How far have we come? [Blog post] Retrieved March 28, 2013, from https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/blog/2013/mar/28/opensource-universities-development-jisc Wilson, S. (2014). Tackling the challenges of open source adoption in education. Retrieved from https:// opensource.com/education/14/5/choosing-open-source-education Witten, I. H., Frank, E., & Hall, M. A. (2011). Data mining: Practical machine learning tools and techniques (3rd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Elsevier Inc. Zander, S., & Schmoll, C. (2009). Calculating flow statistics using Netmate. Retrieved April 12, 2017, from https://dan.arndt.ca/nims/calculating-flow-statistics-using-netmate/

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ADDITIONAL READING Abu Talib, M. (2016). Open Source Software in the Arab World: A Literature Survey. International Journal of Open Source Software and Processes, 7(1), 49–64. doi:10.4018/IJOSSP.2016010103 Barry, B. I. A. (2009). Using open source software in education in developing countries: The Sudan as an Example. In International Conference on Computational Intelligence and Software Engineering (CiSE 2009), 1–4. DOI: 10.1109/CISE.2009.5364872 Hai-Jew, S. (2012). Open-Source Technologies for Maximizing the Creation, Deployment, and Use of Digital Resources and Information. Hershey, PA: IGI-Global; doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-2205-0 Hanandeh, F., Al-Shannag, M. Y., & Alkhaffaf, M. M. (2016). Using Data Mining Techniques with Open Source Software to Evaluate the Various Factors Affecting Academic Performance: A Case Study of Students in the Faculty of Information Technology. International Journal of Open Source Software and Processes, 7(2), 72–92. doi:10.4018/IJOSSP.2016040104 Hancock, M. (2007). The Impact of Open Source Software on Education. Open Source Software and the User Experience in Higher Education. Retrieved from http://cnx.org/content/m14762/ latest/?collection=col10431/latest Kong, X. (2013). Improving OOS Usability of Software Technology in Higher Education in China. Journal of Theoretical & Applied Information Technology, 48(1), 655–660. Sooryanarayan, D. G., Gupta, D., & Smrithi Rekha, V. (2014). Trends in Open Source Software Adoption in Indian Educational Institutions. In 2014 IEEE Sixth International Conference on Technology for Education, DOI: 10.1109/T4E.2014.26 Williams van Rooij, S. (2011). Higher education sub-cultures and open source adoption. Computers & Education, 57(1), 1171–1183. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2011.01.006 Wyles, R. (2007). Innovation for Education: OSS and Infrastructure for NZs Education System. Retrieved from http://cnx.org/content/m14647/latest/

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Application Tunneling: A method of encapsulating the traffic of a prohibited application in the payload of a legal application. Commercial Software: Any developed software for commercial purposes and that has a price and a license. Data Mining: A computer process that discovers hidden information or relations in a large amount of data, using artificial intelligence and machine learning methods. Deep Learning: A recent method of machine learning based on neural networks with more than one hidden layer. Engineering Preparation: The process of teaching and qualifying the students with the basic knowledge and skills in specific engineering domain.

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Flow Features Extracting: The process of getting specific flow metrics from network traces, these metrics are used to identify the application (or application type) which generated the flow. Free Software: A kind of software that available for everyone without any constraints on usage, modification or redistribution. Laboratory’s Software: The used software in laboratory to teach students. Machine Learning Tools: A software which implements learning algorithms to resolve prediction problems. Network Traffic Analysis: A process of network logs manipulation in order to know the used applications, protocol addresses, or to get statistics of network usage. Network Traffic Identification: A kind of network traffic classification with interests in one or more specific applications. Network Traffic Labeling: A process which maps the network flows with the convenient application or application type. Open Source Software (OSS): A free computer program, available with its source code for everyone to use, modify, and redistribute to the others under some terms of usage. Sniffer: A kind of software is used to capture network traffic.

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The Concept of Teaching Course on Intelligent Information Systems Valeriy M. Chernenkiy Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy E. Gapanyuk Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Valery I. Terekhov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Georgiy I. Revunkov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Yuriy S. Fedorenko Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Juan Carlos Gonzalez Gusev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter proposes the concept of hybrid intelligent information system (HIIS) as a “glue” concept that helps to unite disparate sections of a course on intelligent information systems. The chapter discusses a generalized structure of HIIS based on modules of consciousness and subconsciousness. The authors show that a HIIS may be implemented using a multiagent approach based on holonic organization. They provide a formalized model of metagraph and a review of methods to describe holonic agents based on the metagraph approach. Thus, a HIIS allows one to combine different approaches which are taught in a course on intelligent information systems.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch029

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 The Concept of Teaching Course on Intelligent Information Systems

INTRODUCTION The classical course on intelligent information systems traditionally may include the following topics: • • • • • • •

Expert systems (e.g., CLIPS) and other rule-based programming systems, based on forward chaining approach (e.g., Drools). Logical programming languages (e.g., Prolog). Models of knowledge representation, ontologies, and ontologies reasoning. Neural networks, soft computing, fuzzy methods, and machine learning. Evolutionary methods (i.e., genetic algorithms, genetic programming). Multiagent systems. Decision support systems.

The problem is that these topics are heterogeneous and perceived by students as a mosaic of disparate pieces. In order to address this issue, a “glue” concept is necessary to unite the disparate pieces of the mosaic. Thus, the authors propose a hybrid intelligent information system (HIIS) based on the multiagent approach as such a concept. Currently, it is possible to note a clear trend towards the joint use of different intelligent methods to solve various classes of problems. It has led to the emergence of such scientific area as “hybrid intellectual systems” (HIS). As fundamental research in the field of HIS, it is possible to consider Professor Kolesnikov and his colleagues’ (Kirikov, Kolesnikov, Listopad, & Rumovskaya, 2015; 2016; Kirikov, Kolesnikov, Listopad, & Soldatov, 2015) works. Nowadays, as a rule, intelligent systems are not developed separately; rather, they are embedded as modules in a traditional information system to solve tasks related to the intelligent processing of data and knowledge. In this work, this combined system is referred to as a HIIS. A HIIS has the following features: • •

It combines various methods to build intelligent systems, and, in this sense, may be represented as a HIS. It combines intelligent techniques with conventional methods for processing data in information systems, and, in this sense, may be represented as a combination of HIS and a conventional information system.

The key issue is how to implement the principle of hybridity. In this regard, the authors started their research from Professor Yarushkina and her colleagues’ (Perfilieva, Yarushkina, Afanasieva, & Romanov, 2016; Yarushkina, 2004; Yarushkina, Moshkin, Andreev, Klein, & Beksaeva, 2016) outcomes. Yarushkina (2004) formulated the principle of hybridity as follows: The literature provides schemes of hybridization of neuroinformatics and AI, which are built on the following principle: The right hemisphere is the neurocomputer; the left hemisphere is a knowledge-based system and the only question in their interaction or balance of right and left hemispheres. In real human behavior, perception and logic processing cannot be separated. Therefore, the scheme of deep integration is more successful. (Yarushkina, 2004, pp. 17-18)

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Thus, a HIIS should combine the elements of the system based on soft computing, and conventional system based on data and knowledge processing. In the authors’ opinion, the metaphor of right and left hemispheres is not quite accurate. The concepts of “subconsciousness” and “consciousness” of the hybrid intelligent system should be used, rather. Subconsciousness is based on soft computing and consciousness on conventional data and knowledge processing.

THE STRUCTURE OF A HYBRID INTELLIGENT INFORMATION SYSTEM Figure 1 shows a generalized structure of a HIIS based on subconsciousness and consciousness of an information system. The system is based on the subconsciousness module (MS) and consciousness module (MC). The MS is related to the environment in which a HIIS operates. Because the environment can be represented as a set of continuous signals, the data processing techniques of the MS are mostly based on neural networks, fuzzy logic, and combined neuro-fuzzy methods. The MC is based on conventional data and knowledge processing, which may be based on traditional programming or workflow technology. However, nowadays, the rule-based programming approach is gaining popularity. For example, in Drools system it is possible to operate a combined processing using the workflow technology approach and a rule-based programming approach. Noticeably, depending on the specifics of the domain, rules can be fuzzy or probabilistic, which enters elements of the MS into the MC. This is one of the manifestations of the holonic organization principle, which will be discussed in the following. The advantages of a rules-based approach include flexibility, as in this case: The program is not hardcoded, but forward chained with rules based on the data. The disadvantages include the possibility of rules cycling and the complexity of processing a large set of rules. Nowadays, for the processing of a large set of rules the Rete algorithm and its modifications is used. Figure 1. Generalized structure of a hybrid intelligent information system

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As to the data model, the MC uses ontology-based models. They can be classical ontologies, which are developed within the Semantic Web technology (RDF, RDFA, OWL, and OWL2 standards), or nonstandard ontology models (Shpak, Smirnova, Karpenko, & Proletarsky, 2016). Also, the classical object-oriented approach, which in practice is used in most information systems, may be included. The MC performs the following functions: • • •

Data and knowledge processing on the ground of ontology-based models. Logical control and consistency check of the data which are received from the MS. Implementation of the functions of the input and output for the environment (through the MS), for the interaction module (MI), and for communication with the user.

Implementation of the functions of the decision support (in this case, the MC performs the function of decision support systems). From the point of view of interaction, the following options or their combinations are possible in a HIIS: •

• •

Interaction is implemented through the environment. The MS reads the data from the environment, converts them, and transmits them to the MC. The MC performs logic processing and returns the results to the MS. The MS writes the results into the environment, where they can be read by another HIIS. The MI is used for the interaction with another HIIS. Depending on the tasks to be solved, the MI can interact with the MC (which is typical for conventional information systems) or with the MS (which is typical for systems based on soft computing). User interaction can be carried out using the MC (which is typical for conventional information systems) or through the MS (which can be used, for example, in automated simulators).

Thus, the proposed structure addresses most of the topics which the authors listed in the introduction, except for the multiagent approach, which will be discussed in the following section.

A HOLONIC MULTIAGENT APPROACH FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF A HYBRID INTELLIGENT INFORMATION SYSTEM In order to implement the described structure, the authors propose to use a holonic multiagent approach. A holon may be described as a whole that is considered at the same time as part of the whole. This approach draws on Professor Tarassov and his colleagues’ (Dyundyukov & Tarassov, 2013; Svyatkina, Tarassov, & Dolgiy, 2016) works. From this point of view, components such as the MS and the MC may be considered as agents. At the same time, they are parts of the system which, in turn, is the agent. In this case, the MS is a complex structure that includes the lower-level agents, each of which can, in turn, include the MS, the MC, and the MI, which are designed to solve specific tasks of this agent. Therefore, from this point of view and unsurprisingly, the MC can use fuzzy production rules which correspond to classic data processing modules in the MS. All of the reviewed methods are static methods. However, such a static approach is incomplete for the following reasons:

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• •

Evolutionary techniques (e.g., genetic algorithms and genetic programming) cannot be used. Currently, HIS systems include self-organizing neural networks (e.g., SOINN, ESOINN, and hyperNEAT architectures). These architectures are designed to change the topology of the neural network dynamically during training and operation processes. Many other dynamical approaches that require the dynamical structure changing exist, such as dynamical workflow and algorithms for automated planning.



Thus, the authors have to consider the dynamical methods in the proposed approach. The authors can formulate the main requirements to the holonic multiagent system, which is designed to implement a HIIS: 1. The Agent Must Implement the Rules for the MS or the MC: The agent may be equivalent to a software procedure which computes, for example, the activation function of the neuron. It can be a reactive agent that implements the behavior based on predefined rules. It can be a proactive agent that implements intelligent algorithms for planning actions and interactions with other agents. 2. Agents Must Support the Principle of Holonic Organization: The agent can be built as a structure of lower-level agents, which the agent considers to be elementary, but lower-level agents, in turn, may consist of agents of the lower level. 3. There Should be the Possibility of Reorganizing the Structure of Connections Between Agents and the Internal Structure of the Agent: This requirement is very close to the homoiconicity principle in programming languages. Homoiconicity means that a programming language is a metalanguage to itself, that is the program may be considered as a programming language data structure that may be processed with another program which is written in this programming language. In order to meet these requirements, the authors propose to use a model based on metagraphs.

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE METAGRAPH MODEL A metagraph is a kind of complex network model, as Basu and Blanning (2007) proposed. Then, Samohvalov, Revunkov, and Gapanyuk (2015) adapted it for the description of information systems . According to their work:

MG = V , MV , E , ME

(1)

where MG is a metagraph; V is a set of metagraph vertices; MV is a set of metagraph metavertices; E is a set of metagraph edges; ME is a set of metagraph metaedges. The metagraph vertex is described by a set of attributes: vi = {atrk } , vi ∈ V (2)where vi is the metagraph vertex; atrk is the attribute. The metagraph edge is described by a set of attributes, the source and destination vertices, and edge direction flag:

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ei = vS , vE , eo, {atrk } , ei ∈ E , eo = true | false

(3)

where ei is the metagraph edge; vS is the source vertex (metavertex) of the edge; vE is the destination vertex (metavertex) of the edge; eo is the edge direction flag (eo=true is the directed edge, eo=false is the undirected edge); atrk is the attribute. The metagraph fragment is:

MGi = {ev j } , ev j ∈ (V ∪ E ∪ MV ∪ ME )

(4)

where MGi is the metagraph fragment; evj is an element that belongs to the union of vertices, edges, metavertices, and metaedges. The metagraph metavertex is:

mvi =

{atrk } ,{ev j }

, mvi ∈ MV , ev j ∈ (V ∪ E eo= false ∪ MV ∪ ME eo= false )

(5)

where mvi is the metagraph metavertex; atrk is the attribute; evj is an element that belongs to the union of vertices, undirected edges, metavertices, and undirected metaedges. The metagraph metaedge is:

mei = vS , vE , eo, {atrk } , {ev j } , ei ∈ E , eo = true | false, ev j ∈ (V ∪ E eo=true ∪ MV ∪ ME eo=true ) (6) where mei is the metagraph metaedge; vS is the source vertex (metavertex) of the metaedge; vE is the destination vertex (metavertex) of the metaedge; eo is the metaedge direction flag; atrk is an attribute; evj is an element that belongs to the union of vertices, directed edges, metavertices, and directed metaedges. Thus, metavertex and metaedge, in addition to the properties of the vertex and edge, include a fragment of the metagraph. In case of metavertex, this fragment is undirected, which allows to describe undirected connections between complex data and knowledge elements. In case of metaedge, this fragment is directed, which allows to describe directed processes. The presence of private attributes and connections for metavertex and metaedge is a distinguishing feature of a metagraph. It makes the definition of metagraph holonic–metavertex and metaedge may include lower level elements and in turn may be included in higher level elements. Figure 2 shows an example of metagraph. The example of data metagraph contains three metavertices: mv1, mv2, and mv3. Metavertex mv1 contains vertices v1, v2, and v3, and connects them to edges e1, e2, and e3. Metavertex mv2 contains vertices v4 and v5, and connects them to edge e6. Edges e4 and e5 are examples of edges connecting vertices v2-v4 and v3-v5, and are contained in different metavertices mv1 and mv2. Edge e7 is an example of the edge connecting metavertices mv1 and mv2. Edge e8 is an example of the edge connecting vertex v2 and metavertex mv2. Metavertex mv3 contains metavertex mv2, vertices v2 and v3, edge e2 from metavertex mv1, and also edges e4, e5, and e8 showing the holonic nature of the metagraph structure. The following section investigates how to describe holonic agents based on the metagraph approach.

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Figure 2. An example of metagraph representation

THE DESCRIPTION OF HOLONIC AGENTS BASED ON THE METAGRAPH APPROACH In order to meet requirement 1 (the agent must implement the rules for the MS or the MC), the authors propose to use two kinds of agents: the function agent and the metagraph agent. The function agent serves as function with input and output parameter in form of metagraph:

ag F = MGIN , MGOUT , AST

(7)

where agF is the function agent; MGIN is the input parameter metagraph; MGOUT is the output parameter metagraph; AST is the abstract syntax tree of the function agent in form of metagraph. The function agent is intended for one-shot function-like metagraph transformation. For complex rule-based metagraph transformation, the metagraph agent is used:

ag M = MGD , R, AG ST , R = {rj } , ri : MG j → OP MG

(8)

where agM is the metagraph agent; MGD is a metagraph of data and knowledge, on the basis of which the rules of the agent are performed; R is a set of rules rj; AGST is a start condition (metagraph fragment for start rule check or start rule); MGj is a metagraph fragment, on the basis of which the rule is performed; OPMG is a set of actions which are performed on the metagraph. The antecedent of the rule is a metagraph fragment, while the consequent of the rule is a set of actions which are performed on the metagraph. Rules can be divided into open and closed. The consequent of the open rule is not permitted to change the metagraph fragment occurring in the antecedent rule. In this case, the input and output metagraph fragments may be separated. The open rule is similar to the template that generates the output metagraph based on the input metagraph.

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The consequent of a closed rule is permitted to change the metagraph fragment occurring in the antecedent rule. The metagraph fragment changing in the consequent rule causes to trigger the antecedents of other rules which are bound to the same metagraph fragment. Nevertheless, an incorrectly designed system of closed rules can cause an infinite loop of the rule agent of the metagraph. Thus, the metagraph agent can generate the output metagraph based on the input metagraph (using open rules) or can modify the single metagraph (using closed rules). Figure 3 provides an example of a metagraph agent. The metagraph agent “metagraph agent 1” is represented as a metagraph metavertex. According to its definition, it is bound to the working metagraph MG1–a metagraph on the basis of which the rules of the agent are performed. This binding is shown with edge e4. The description of the metagraph agent contains inner metavertices which correspond to agent rules (rule 1 … rule N). Each rule metavertex contains antecedent and consequent inner vertices. In the example, the metavertex mv2 is bound to the antecedent which is shown with edge e2, and the metavertex mv3 is bound to the consequent which is shown with edge e3. Antecedent conditions and consequent actions are defined in form of attributes which are bound to antecedent and consequent corresponding vertices. The start condition is given in the form of the attribute “start=true”. If the start condition is defined as a start metagraph fragment, then the edge which is bound to the start metagraph fragment and to the agent metavertex (edge e1 in the example) is annotated with attribute “start=true”. If the start condition is defined as a start rule, then the rule metavertex is annotated with the attribute “start=true” (rule 1 in the example). Figure 3 shows both cases, corresponding to the start metagraph fragment and to the start rule. Figure 3. An example of representation of a metagraph agent

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The distinguishing feature of the metagraph agent is its homoiconicity, which means that it can be a data structure for itself. This is due to the fact that, according to its definition, a metagraph agent may be represented as a set of metagraph fragments and this set can be combined in a single metagraph. Thus, a metagraph agent can change the structure of other metagraph agents. In order to meet requirement 2 (agents must support the principle of holonic organization), the authors propose to use a container agent that is a metagraph, vertices, and metavertices which are in turn agents:

ag C = MG, vi ≡ agi , vi ∈ V , mvi ≡ agi , mvi ∈ MV

(9)

Thus, the holonic structure of a metagraph supports the holonic organization of agents. In order to meet requirement 3, (there should be the possibility of reorganizing the structure of connections between agents and the internal structure of the agent), the authors propose to use a dynamic metagraph agent. The rules of a dynamic metagraph agent which are performed on the metagraph of agents for a corresponding container agent are:

ag MD = ag C , R, AG ST , R = {rj }

(10)

where agMD is a dynamic metagraph agent; agC is the corresponding container agent; R is a set of rules rj; AGST is the start condition. Since a container agent may include a dynamic metagraph agent, the definition of dynamic metagraph agent is recursive. The dynamic metagraph agent of higher level may process dynamic metagraph agents of the lower level. The dynamic metagraph agent of higher level may create or change structure and connections of the lower-level multiagent system. This allows to implement evolutionary methods, such as genetic programming using metagraph agents. An active metagraph is a combination of data metagraph and metagraph agent:

MG ACTIVE = MGD , ag

(11)

where MGACTIVE is an active metagraph; MG is a metagraph of data and knowledge, on the basis of which the rules of the agent are performed; ag is a metagraph agent. The idea of an active metagraph reminds the idea of “class” in object-oriented programming. However, unlike class, the data of this structure are represented in metagraph form and the agent is an active module with its own rule-based behavior.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS This chapter proposes only a higher-level approach for teaching a course on intelligent information systems based on HIIS as a “glue” concept. The development of the ideas discussed in this chapter involves the further research and creation of specific methods and software. The main practical task is the development of efficient metagraph storage system. It is clear that storage system in some aspects should be close to

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graph and document-oriented databases, but it requires further detailed research. The main theoretical task is to unify intelligent information system elements using metagraph approach. Models of knowledge representation may be viewed as a specific form of metagraphs. Expert and rule-based systems may be represented using metagraph agents approach. Neural networks and evolutionary methods may be represented as a combination of metagraph data and metagraph agents. Despite the complexity of these tasks, the authors believe that the use of the unified approach based on HIIS is suitable and will allow students to perceive the course on intelligent information systems in the more holistic way.

CONCLUSION In this chapter, the authors proposed a HIIS as a “glue” concept that helps to unite disparate sections of a course on intelligent information systems. This HIIS is based on holonic multiagent approach. The model of the holonic agent may be described using metagraphs. For the subconsciousness module of the system, it is possible to use neural networks, soft computing, fuzzy methods, and machine learning. For the consciousness module of the system, it is possible to use ontologies, expert systems, and rule-based and logical programming. The adoption of a dynamic metagraph agent allows to implement evolutionary methods, such as genetic programming. Thus, the proposed approach covers the majority of the topics of the classical course on intelligent information systems. The proposed approach allows to develop students’ holistic view of an information system, which combines traditional and intelligent methods of data processing.

REFERENCES Basu, A., & Blanning, R. (2007). Metagraphs and Their Applications. New York: Springer. Dyundyukov, V., & Tarassov, V. (2013). Goal-Resource Networks and Their Application to Agents Communication and Coordination in Virtual Enterprises. Proceedings of the IFAC Conference on Manufacturing Modelling, Management and Control (MIM 2013). Kirikov, I., Kolesnikov, A., Listopad, S., & Soldatov, S. (2015). Geterogennie intellektualnie kompyuternie sistemy podderzhki prinyatia resheniy: Modeli coordinatsii i soglasovannosti [Heterogeneous Intelligent Computer Decision Support Systems: Models of Coordination and Consistency]. Sistemy i Sredstva Informatiki, 25(2), 96–110. Kirikov, I. A., Kolesnikov, A. V., Listopad, S. V., & Rumovskaya, S. B. (2015). Melkozernistie gibridnie intellektualnie sistemy. Chast 1: Lingvisticheskiy podhod [Fine-Grained Hybrid Intelligent Systems. Part 1: Linguistic Approach]. Informatika i ee Primeneniya, 9(4), 98–105. Kirikov, I. A., Kolesnikov, A. V., Listopad, S. V., & Rumovskaya, S. B. (2016). Melkozernistie gibridnie intellektualnie sistemy. Chast 2: Dvunapravlennaya gibridizatsia [Fine-Grained Hybrid Intelligent Systems. Part 2: Bidirectional Hybridization]. Informatika i ee Primeneniya, 10(1), 96–105.

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Perfilieva, I., Yarushkina, N., Afanasieva, T., & Romanov, A. (2016). Web-Based System for Enterprise Performance Analysis on the Basis of Time Series Data Mining. Proceedings of the First International Scientific Conference on Intelligent Information Technologies for Industry” (IITI’16), Rostov-on-Don, Russia. 10.1007/978-3-319-33609-1_7 Samohvalov, E., Revunkov, G., & Gapanyuk, Yu. (2015). Metagraphs for Describing Semantics and Pragmatics of Information Systems. Herald of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, 1(100), 83–99. Shpak, M., Smirnova, E., Karpenko, A., & Proletarsky, A. (2016). Mathematical Models of Learning Materials Estimation Based on Subject Ontology. Proceedings of the First International Scientific Conference on Intelligent Information Technologies for Industry (IITI’16). 10.1007/978-3-319-33609-1_24 Svyatkina, M., Tarassov, V., & Dolgiy, A. (2016). Logical-Algebraic Methods in Constructing Cognitive Sensors for Railway Infrastructure Intelligent Monitoring System. Proceedings of the First International Scientific Conference on Intelligent Information Technologies for Industry (IITI’16). 10.1007/978-3319-33609-1_17 Yarushkina, N. (2004). Prikladnie intellektualnie sistemy, osnovannie na myagkih vichisleniyah [Applied intelligent systems based on soft computing]. Ulianovsk: UlGTU. Yarushkina, N., Moshkin, V., Andreev, I., Klein, V., & Beksaeva, E. (2016). Hybridization of Fuzzy Inference and Self-learning Fuzzy Ontology-Based Semantic Data Analysis. Proceedings of the First International Scientific Conference on Intelligent Information Technologies for Industry (IITI’16). 10.1007/978-3-319-33609-1_25

ADDITIONAL READING Al-Jarrah, O. Y., Yoo, P. D., Muhaidat, S., Karagiannidis, G. K., & Taha, K. (2015). Efficient Machine Learning for Big Data: A Review. Big Data Research, 2(3), 87–93. doi:10.1016/j.bdr.2015.04.001 Ali, J. M., Hussain, M. A., Tade, M. O., & Zhang, J. (2015). Artificial Intelligence techniques applied as estimator in chemical process systems–A literature survey. Expert Systems with Applications, 42(14), 5915–5931. doi:10.1016/j.eswa.2015.03.023 Aloui, A., & Touzi, A. G. (2015). A Fuzzy Ontology-Based Platform for Flexible Querying. International Journal of Service Science, Management, Engineering, and Technology, 6(3), 12–26. doi:10.4018/ IJSSMET.2015070102 Bader, D. A., Cong, G., & Feo, J. (2005). On the architectural requirements for efficient execution of graph algorithms (pp. 547–546). ICPP. doi:10.1109/ICPP.2005.55 Bonabeau, E., Dorigo, M., & Theraulaz, G. (1999). Swarm Intelligence: From Natural to Artificial Systems. Oxford University Press.

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Chakrabarti, D., & Faloutsos, C. (2006). Graph mining: Laws, generators, and algorithms. ACM Computing Surveys, 38(1), 2, es. doi:10.1145/1132952.1132954 George, B., & Carmichael, G. (2015). Artificial Intelligence Simplified: Understanding Basic Concpets. CS Trends LLP. Hayashi, Y. (2013). Neural network rule extraction by a new ensemble concept and its theoretical and historical background: A review. International Journal of Computational Intelligence and Applications, 12(04), 1340006. doi:10.1142/S1469026813400063 Hezarkhani, T. (2012). A hybrid neural networks-fuzzy logic-genetic algorithm for grade estimation. Computers & Geosciences, 42, 18–27. doi:10.1016/j.cageo.2012.02.004 PMID:25540468 Perugini, S., Goncalves, M. A., & Fox, E. A. (2004). Recommender systems research: A connection-centric survey. Journal of Intelligent Information Systems, 23(2), 107–143. doi:10.1023/ B:JIIS.0000039532.05533.99 Qu, Z. (2011). Semantic processing on big data. Advances in Multimedia, Software. Engineering and Computing, 2, 43–48. Russel, S. J., & Norvig, P. (2010). Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Schmidhuber, J. (2015). Deep learning in neural networks: An overview. Neural Networks, 61, 85–117. doi:10.1016/j.neunet.2014.09.003 PMID:25462637 Thangaraj, R., Pant, M., Abraham, A., & Bouvry, P. (2011). Particle swarm optimization: Hybridization perspectives and experimental illustrations. Applied Mathematics and Computation, 217(12), 5208–5226. doi:10.1016/j.amc.2010.12.053 Warwick, K. (2012). Artificial Intelligence: the basics. New York: Routledge.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Consciousness and Subconsciousness of a HIIS: The two parts of a HIIS. Consciousness is based on conventional data and knowledge processing. Subconsciousness is based on soft computing. Edge: Metagraph edge, connecting two vertices or metavertices. Holonic Agent: A unit of the holonic multi-agent system. Holonic Multiagent System: The multi-agent system where agents are organized holonically. A holon may be described as a whole that is considered, at the same time, as part of the whole. Hybrid Intelligent Information System (HIIS): The hybridization of the intellectual system and traditional information system. Metagraph: A kind of complex network model, containing vertices, metavertices, edges, and metaedges. Metagraph Agent: A rule-based agent for metagraph processing. Metavertex: A complex graph vertex with the holonic organization. Vertex: A traditional graph vertex without holonic organization.

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Chapter 30

The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies Artem Borodkin National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Vladimir Eliseev National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Gennady Filaretov National Research University “MPEI”, Russia Alireza Aghvami Seyed Payame Noor University, Iran

ABSTRACT The chapter considers a task of teaching undergraduate students practical skills using artificial neural networks to solve problems of information processing and control systems. It represents and proves the methods of teaching, based on the gradual increase in the complexity of tasks to be solved by students. The developed complex of laboratory works includes classical problems and methods of their solutions, as well as original methods for solving problems of automatic control. The technology base of the laboratory works are both well-known programs and software package developed by the authors. In addition to the practical experience in the use of software packages, students obtain experience in conducting comparative studies of traditional and neural network methods for solving control problems.

INTRODUCTION The course on artificial neural networks (ANN) has long been a mandatory component of technical universities educational program (Siegwart, 1998). This is due to the high demand for this problem-solving paradigm in various fields from image recognition and clustering of images to prediction of time series, anomalies recognition and system control (Mnasser, 2016). Meanwhile non-parametric nature of neural DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch030

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 The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies

network models, the nonlinearity of the conducted transformation and lack of constructive theory of neural networks complicate the understanding of the students, who had received in the first courses the experience of studying classical subjects, based on the axiomatic construction, strict proof and analytically detectable properties. This dissonance requires the development of such training course on ANN, which will allow students to gain the necessary experience of their application despite the obvious incompleteness of the theory and a large array of diverse information about the architecture and the properties of ANN in different paradigms. One needs modern educational technologies to be implemented to solve mentioned problem (Van Ryneveld, 2016). A necessary component of an effective course on ANN is a set of laboratory works, which will not only provide students with evidence of the effectiveness of the knowledge gained them in lectures, but will also give the experience in conducting experiments with neural networks to overcome some specific and quite common problems. In particular, students should learn the proper selection of training and test data, the proper scaling of sample values, approaches to overcome local minima, the conscious choice of network type and architecture. A less trivial task for a traditional course of ANN is an introduction to neural network control algorithms. Such knowledge is very important for students with control theory and practice specialization, because it provides novel non-linear and machine learning based methods for the well-known control problems. Some innovative approaches in engineering education, such as CDIO (Clark, 2012), also require fast and efficient ways to activate student’s problem-solving skills. The approach presented in this paper is directed to lift student’s knowledge about ANN quickly from the complete ignorance to a discovery of ANN applications for real-world engineering tasks.

BACKGROUND As a result of the analysis of experience and the available sources we can distinguish three levels of presentation of the information about neural networks in depth and detail: 1. as a part of the course on intellectual technologies; 2. as a separate course involving the consideration of different neural network algorithms, but without specialization on the applications; 3. as a special course which culminates in a discussion of examples of neural networks application for solving various problems. It should be noted that the courses of the first type because of its breadth does not allow students a deep understanding of the neural networks. Considering different Intelligent technologies, including expert systems, fuzzy logic and genetic algorithms, duration of one semester course is usually enough only for exposition of the basic principles and the most common neural network paradigms (Makarenko, 2009). If such courses include laboratory work, that is only for acquaintance with any single neural network paradigm on a typical example (Benjaminsson, 2008). The second type of course suggests separate one-semester program and involves consistent and profound study of various neural network architectures and training algorithms (Terehov, 1998). As a rule, such a course is accompanied by laboratory classes, allowing consolidating the obtained knowledge on the experience. But often in specialized courses on neural networks much attention is paid to the theme

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of the diversity of architectures and approaches. However practical examples in laboratory work are limited to the standard tasks for approximation, classification (Duckett, 2005) and clustering (Onykij, 1996). In general, after such a course it would be logical to see examples of practical use of ANN in courses on other subjects, such as time series filtration and processing (Zotov, 2012). From the authors’ point of view the most valuable version of a course on ANN is one that both includes the compact information on the universal neural network approaches and describes a particular application of ANN for solution of applied tasks. In such a course laboratory work also implements the idea to give students an understanding about the use of ANN for solving reality problems, including the comparison with traditional approaches. It’s logically to consider as targets the profiling tasks for students of the appropriate department or specialization. Quite important is the role of artificial neural networks in solving tasks of automatic control, where they can act as an independent regulator, tuning regulator for the other type controller, direct and inverse model of control object, as well as a supporting element of an adaptation loop. Modeling and synthesis of neural networks for solving tasks of automatic control requires the implementation of special algorithms that combine traditional elements with a neural network (Aghvami, 2011; Mnasser, 2016). In particular, it is necessary to provide a whole complex of elements of a simulation system with feedback and also to provide the inclusion of a neural network controller (NNC) instead of traditional elements, such as a linear regulator. Let’s introduce our research for an optimal ratio between universal neural network knowledge and practical application of ANN for systems control.

AN IDEA OF LABORATORY WORKS STRUCTURE The task of teaching students in a short period of time to neural networks from basic to practical applications obviously requires taking into account the peculiarities of human psychology in the process of obtaining knowledge. As we know, the dependence of the amount of knowledge obtained on time is described by the learning curve (Ritter, 2001). It is well-known sigmoid function, also called as S-curve (Figure 1). Figure 1. Sigmoid function as a learning curve with the most important regions

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The character of the S-curve shows that at the beginning of the teaching the intensity of newly introduced knowledge should be relatively small otherwise most of energy of teacher will be inefficient. This part of the curve is marked by “A” letter on the figure. The positive side of the slow pace can be used to give the most important basic knowledge and to provide some historical examples of early ANN applications. Using such approach for laboratory course we should introduce the most simple neural network structures and the most trivial classic problems such as logical functions “AND”, “OR” and “XOR”. Additional advantage of slow pace is a time to get used with the software for ANN simulation. In the beginning of the lecture course usually no students understand properly what artificial neural networks are. There should be several lectures with introduction to historical and theoretical aspects of artificial neural networks to provide enough knowledge for practical application with neural network training. Nevertheless the laboratory works in university schedule sometimes starts simultaneously with beginning of the lectures and the first laboratory work may be conducted with students knowing nothing about neural network training. An assistant who leads the laboratory work should describe in short words some theoretical introduction into neural network structure and training and also give an impulse to students to apply this partial knowledge in practice. So, it is another reason to give simple themes of laboratory work in the beginning. The second region of the S-curve (marked by “B” letter) is characterized by almost linear dependence between growth of experience and learning progress. At this period of time a person starts to swallow new concepts, models and methods very efficiently. All successful students at this stage perform most of exercises quickly. Thus this period should be used for the most complex ideas of the course. This core part should contain all unique and specific knowledge of the whole course. In our laboratory works we solved to give complex tasks with multilayer perceptron, auto-associative memory, counter –propagation network and optimal neural network control problem. The third part of the S-curve (marked by “C” letter) demonstrates the slowing down of the learning progress. This is usually caused by fatigue and the emerging patterns of successful experience in solving typical problems. The best way to use this period is to conduct research on known structures, to think about advantages and disadvantages and to make links to other fields of knowledge. Regarding our course we suggested research for comparison between linear and neural network controllers, application of neural network for system modeling and detection of time-varying character of the system. Such topics should consolidate the knowledge gained.

DESCRIPTION OF THE LABORATORY WORKS COMPLEX The purpose of the complex of laboratory works is the consistent consolidation of the knowledge gained by students in the lectures. In laboratory works students begin with classical problems of approximation of bool functions and consistently learn more complex and nontrivial tasks, coming towards the end of the semester for nontrivial and practically important tasks of synthesis and study of neural network control systems. In the basis of the complex from technological point of view there are software packages with the implementation of the necessary neural network and the supporting algorithms and data formats. The structure of the complex in terms of the selected tasks and software products reflects the subjectivity of the authors, but in general demonstrates the stated approach.

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Table 1 lists the themes and short specification of every laboratory work. Each laboratory work is designed to be performed by a student in 3 hours. There are different software packages used in laboratory works: Statistica Neural Networks (the mixture of Statistica and well-known in the past Trajan ANN simulation package) and an original software package Neural Networks Applications for Control Systems (Eliseev, 2011). An example of graphics user interface of the software is displayed on Figure 3. The use of the proposed methodology for the gradual complication of laboratory tasks can be illustrated by the classification proposed in Table 2. Regarding this classification a verbal characterization of presented learning curve regions can be made also to highlight the main aim of every region in the engineering education process. Table 1. Laboratory works with short description #

362

Title

Objective

Work Purpose

1

Basic Neuron Training

An approximation of AND, OR, XOR logical functions based on table with their arguments and resulting values.

Learning to work with the software package Statistica Neural Networks and study of the basic concepts of ANN theory on an example of simple tasks (Figure 2).

2

Multilayer Perceptron Training

A classification of 40 samples of mineral water (5 classes) based on the subset of 23 indicators measured by the sensors.

An extended use of ANN for classification including subdivision data set on training, verification and test subsets, different ways to encode the class, missing class problem investigation and application of different learning algorithm.

3

Auto-Associative Multilayer Perceptron

Data compression and dimension reduction of high dimensional dataset with mineral water samples. Mapping features on low dimension 2D and 3D plot.

An advanced use of ANN to emphasize its capability to perform complicated tasks of data compression, dimension reduction and clustering simplification. An investigation of special structure of multilayer perceptron for auto-associative memory function implementation.

4

Counter Propagation Network

A classic example of data clustering for 150 iris flower instances with four features.

An introduction to unsupervised learning on example of Kohonen neural network application. A comparison with auto-associative network implementation for the same task is conducted.

5

Optimal Neural Network Controller Synthesis

Sequential synthesis of neural network controller using neural network model and basic linear controller in the control loop.

An introduction of NNACS software for control system and neural network modeling and training. Complex task of replacing existing controller by neural network one with the help of indirect adaptive control approach. Offline and online learning approaches are applied. Gaining experience with application of ANN for control tasks solution.

6

Comparative Study of ANN and PID Controllers

A set of experiments with different plants, reference and noise signals to evaluate the control quality of both controllers.

An extensive research for the comparison of traditional and neural network optimal controllers. The main features on non-linear control are highlighted. As a result a student should understand the difference of two approaches and their pros and contras.

7

Neural Network Model of the Plant

Several experiments with variation of reference signal form, its amplitude and structure of neural network used for the model of the object.

Displaying the influence of the model structure and its inherent quality to the speed and quality the resulted optimal neural network controller (see lab.work #6).

8

Neural Network Control System of Time-Varying Object

Plant parameters change detection using neural network plant model and CUSUM algorithm.

A combination of ANN with statistical method to solve the important problem of finding the moment when the control object changes its behavior due to internal or external factors which usually leads to control quality degradation.

 The Methodical Complex of Laboratory Works on the Study of Neural Network Technologies

Figure 2. Using Statistica Neural Networks software to solve logic OR approximation problem

Figure 3. Using NNACS software to model closed loop system and train neural network model

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Table 2. Classification of laboratory works by their belonging to the marked intervals of study Learning Curve Region

Common Characteristics

A

Gaining the basic knowledge

B

Sophisticated problems solution

C

Creativity and research

Lab. Work Index

Laboratory Work Title

1

Basic Neuron Training

2

Multilayer Perceptron Training

3

Auto-Associative Multilayer Perceptron

4

Counter Propagation Network

5

Optimal Neural Network Controller Synthesis

6

Comparative Study of ANN and PID Controllers

7

Neural Network Model of the Plant

8

Neural Network Control System of Time-Varying Object

USE EXPREIENCE The complex of laboratory works has been conducted for several years for the bachelor students specialty 27.03.04 “Control and Informatics in Engineering Systems” as a part of the course “Neurocomputers and their application” at “Department of Control and Informatics” of National Research University “MPEI”. The presented complex of laboratory works has been prepared in two steps. The first four laboratory works have been conducted since the early 2000s. They took the whole semester and do not suggest relation to the solution of system control problems. The level of neural network approach understanding among students of the department was limited to tasks of associative memory and patterns recognition, including some examples of unsupervised learning. Later, starting from 2012, the last four laboratory works were prepared and implemented using the original software package (NNACS, 2016). The topics of these works have provided the relation with control theory and applications, which are in the focus of attention and professional knowledge of the department. The presented laboratory complex has been successfully used for several years as a practical part in the course of ANN for teaching students. The first half of the laboratory works could be easily done by using one of the common packages for neural network training, for example, MATLAB Neural Net Toolbox (MATLAB). The second half can be implemented by using the original software package that is available in source codes to everyone (NNACS, 2016). In addition, it is compatible with Linux and Windows. So, the course in its technological base can be adopted in any university. The complex of knowledge, formed by students, was successfully applied by them in the framework of educational and research works. As a result, the number of undergraduate students in the department which do research work significantly based on ANN increases from 1-2 every year (the period from 2005 to 2012 year) to 4-5 every year (from 2013 to 2017). Also, the spectrum of ANN application has expanded from almost only classification tasks to recognition, anomaly detection, control and prediction. Another positive effect relates to researches which are based on other core approaches: fuzzy-logic, robust and adaptive control methods. Sometimes students started to compare their results with ones obtained using neural networks. Therefore, now there are works in which neural networks are not put into the title but are mentioned in the text as an effective applied tool.

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FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS We proposed an approach of smooth and efficient introduction into the practical aspects of neural networks application. The methodical findings and successful experience makes it possible to consider applications for another advanced method such as fuzzy-logic and machine learning algorithms. New look at laboratory works structure and growth of their complexity should provide firm knowledge and better education experience to the students of engineering departments.

CONCLUSION The introduced complex of laboratory works for the course of ANN proposes a general way from basic knowledge of neural networks to the practical and real-world applications. The distribution of complex and simple material takes into account the psychological characteristics of the perception of knowledge. Some empirical and practical considerations are adopted also. The exact topics of laboratory works are given and described in principle details to emphasize the specifics of the course of ANN and to highlight the gradual increase in complexity at the beginning and transition to research tasks at the end of the course. This complex has been tested in bachelor courses by the authors in the university for many years. The positive results are proved by increase in number of articles, bachelor, master and PhD thesis of students devoted to neural networks and their applications for intelligent systems, automated system control and computer security. The methodology for constructing a laboratory course can also be used for other engineering disciplines.

REFERENCES Aghvami, S. A., & Kolomeitseva, M. B. (2011). Sintez adaptivnogo neuro-regulatora dlya upravleniya nelineinogo MIMO ob’ekta [Adaptive neural network controller synthesis for non-linear MIMO object]. Vestnik MEI, 6, 209–215. Benjaminsson, S., & Djurfeldt, M. (2008). Artificial neural networks, advanced course, DD2433 Lab 1: Accelerated Back Propagation and Regularisation via Pruning. Retrieved June 18, 2016, from http:// www.csc.kth.se/utbildning/kth/kurser/DD2433/annfk08/lab1-mlp.pdf Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2012). Engineering the Future. In M. Rasul (Ed.), Developments in Engineering Education Standards: Advanced Curriculum Innovations (pp. 143–155). Hershey, PA: IGI Global; doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-0951-8.ch008 Duckett, T. (2005). Artificial Neural Networks, Course homepage. Retrieved June 18, 2016, from http:// aass.oru.se/~tdt/ann/index-english.html#Labbar Eliseev, V. L. (2016). NNACS software project. Retrieved June 18, 2016, from https://github.com/evlad/ nnacs

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Eliseev, V.L., & Filaretov, G.F. (2011) Programmniy paket dlya modelirovaniya i obucheniya metodam neirosetevogo upravleniya [Software for neural network training and modeling]. Otkritoye obrazovaniye, 86(2), 98-101. Makarenko, S. I. (2009). Intellektual’nye informacionnye sistemy: uchebnoe posobie [Intellectual informational systems. Tutorial]. Stavropol, Russia: SF MGGU im. M. A. Sholohova. MATLAB Neural Network Toolbox. (n.d.). Retrieved June 18, 2016, from http://www.mathworks.com/ products/neural-network Mnasser, A., Bouani, F., & Ksouri, M. (2016). Neural Networks Predictive Controller Using an Adaptive Control Rate. In I. Management Association (Ed.), Psychology and Mental Health: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Applications (pp. 614-633). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-15225-0159-6.ch026 Onykij, B. N., Mishulina, O. A., & Scherbakov, I. B. (1996) Laboratornyj praktikum po kursu ‘Teoriya nejronnyh setej’ [Laboratory works for course ‘Theory or neural networks’]. In Fizicheskoe obrazovanie v vuzah, 2(1), 77-90. Ritter, F. E., & Schooler, L. J. (2001). The learning curve. In International encyclopedia of the social and behavioral sciences. Amsterdam: Pergamon. doi:10.1016/B0-08-043076-7/01480-7 Siegwart, R., Büchi, R., & Buehler, Ph. (1998). Mechatronics Education at ETH Zurich based on ‘Hands on Experience. In J. Adolfsson & J. Karlsén (Eds.), Mechatronics 98 (pp. 667–672). Elsevier Science Ltd. doi:10.1016/B978-008043339-4/50108-5 Terehov, S. I. (1998). Lekcii po teorii i prilozhenijam iskusstvennyh nejronnyh setej [Lectures for theory and applications of artificial neural networks]. Retrieved June 19, 2016, from http://alife.narod.ru/lectures/neural/Neu_index.htm Van Ryneveld, L. (2016). Introducing Educational Technology into the Higher Education Environment: A Professional Development Framework. In K. Dikilitaş (Ed.), Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 126–136). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-9471-2.ch008 Zotov, L. V. (2012). Teorija fil’tracii i obrabotka vremennyh rjadov, kurs lekcij [Theory of filtering and time series processing]. Moscow, Russia: MSU Physical Faculty Publishing.

ADDITIONAL READING Agarwal, M. (1997). A systematic classification of neural-network-based control. IEEE Control Systems Magazine, 17(2), 75–93. doi:10.1109/37.581297 Bishop, C. M. (1995). Neural networks for pattern recognition. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

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Fedorenko, Yu. S., & Gapanyuk, Yu. E. (2016). Multilevel neural net adaptive models using the metagraph approach. Optical Memory and Neural Networks (Information Optics), 25(4), 228–235. doi:10.3103/ S1060992X16040020 Fedorenko, Yu. S., Gapanyuk, Yu. E., & Minakova, S. V. (2017). The Analysis of Regularization in Deep Neural Networks Using Metagraph Approach. In Proceedings of Advances in Neural Computation, Machine Learning, and Cognitive Research. Selected Papers from the XIX International Conference on Neuroinformatics 2017, Moscow, Russia, 3-9. Haykin, S. (2009). Neural Networks and Learning Machines. Pearson Education. Narendra, K. S., & Parthasarathy, K. (1990). Identification and Control of Dynamic Systems Using Neural Networks. IEEE Transactions on Neural Networks, 1(1), 4–27. doi:10.1109/72.80202 PMID:18282820 Omatu, S., Khalid, M., & Yusof, R. (1995). Neuro-Control and its applications. London: Springer-Verlag. Rumelhart, D., & McClelland, J. (1986). Parallel distributed processing: explorations in the microstructures of cognition. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Stuttgart Neural Network Simulator V4. 3 Institute for Parallel and Distributed High Performance Systems, University of Stuttgart, Germany, http://www.ra.cs.uni-tuebingen.de/SNNS Zhukov, A. A., Dotsenko, O. A., Kochetkova, T. D., Novikov, S. S., & Pavlova, A. A. (2015). The computer Laboratory Workshops “The Bases of Electronics” In Proceedings of International Siberian Conference on Control and Communications (SIBCON), Omsk, Russia, 1-4

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS ANN: Artificial neural network. A formal mathematical conception of biological cells and their interconnections which provides rich capabilities to solve many tasks such as classification, clustering, control, recognition, prediction, and learning. Automatic Control Systems: A class of technical systems with automated way of processing information to reach some goal defined over measured values in terms of some kind of quality. Backward Propagation of Errors: A gradient descent algorithm to train artificial neural network. CDIO: Conceive, design, implement, operate – an education framework that blends theory. Educational Software: A set of programs used to facilitate knowledge adoption by pupils. Methodical Complex: A set of principles and practical considerations to provide steep learning curve. NNC: Neural network controller – a control algorithm which is based on ANN principles and implementation.

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Development of Digital Game Environments Stimulating Creativity in Engineering Education Alexander Alimov Volgograd State Technical University, Russia Olga Shabalina Volgograd State Technical University, Russia David C. Moffat Glasgow Caledonian University, UK

ABSTRACT Teaching for creativity is one of the most challenging problems in engineering education. Two approaches are mostly applied in teaching creative skills: using creative problem-solving exercises and emerging people into a creative environment for stimulating their creativity. One of the most important requirements to creative digital environment is creativity of its non-player characters (NPC). The chapter discusses the advantages of applying a multi-agent (MA) approach to achieve creative behavior of the NPCs. The agent architecture is based on a behavior tree model, extended with three additional classes of nodes, implementing agent reactions and adaptive action planning according to agent priorities. The proposed agent architecture is implemented in a typical survival action game where all players, represented as agents, should explore the world to find resources. The assessment of the quality of agents’ behavior shows that all the agents successfully demonstrate rational and adaptive behavior in the complex dynamical environment.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch031

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Development of Digital Game Environments Stimulating Creativity in Engineering Education

INTRODUCTION Over the past two decades, creativity in learning has been recognized to be increasingly significant as a skill to be covered in formal education. Many researchers agree that the main purpose of education is to train not only professional skills, but also creative thinking. In engineering education, creativity is one of the most important skills (Sauthwik, 2013), (Hadzigeorgiou, Fokialis, & Kabouropoulou, 2012). Engineers have not only to recognize, validate, and solve problems on their own or through team work, but they should demonstrate original and critical thinking, and creativeness and innovativeness in their methodologies (Baillie, 2002). Engineers need a creative mind to meet the advancing goal of the engineering profession to design new products or systems and improve existing ones for the benefit of humankind (Shaw, 2001). Some people argue that creativity cannot be taught at all as it is a natural capacity of certain people. But many people believe that creativity is a skill that can be developed and a process that can be managed (Shabalina, Mozelius, Vorobkalov, Malliarakis, & Tomos, 2015), (Maher, Merrick, & Saunders, 2008). Two general approaches are mostly applied in teaching creative skills: using creative problem-solving exercises and placing people into a creative environment for stimulating their creativity. The first approach is based on sharing creative experience among the people. A lot of problem-solving activities and exercises have been developed by people possessing strong creative thinking that can be used for training creative skills. It is assumed that if one can solve those problems he expands his knowledge and thinking capabilities. The most obvious limitation to this approach is its strong dependence on the exercises being used for training. The second approach provides much more freedom for developing creative thinking as it is not limited to certain tasks and activities. Getting involved in a creative environment encourages people to correspond to this environment, i.e. to be creative himself, but without offering them any possible problem solutions. This approach is much more creative per se. Digital games can provide the most effective environments for training creative skills. It is possible that games (at least the good games) stimulate creativity and a game player must be creative in order to be successful. Educational games can also develop creative skills if the learning process is organized in the same way as a game process and the game provides a truly creative game environment. In the following, we describe the development of a particular component of potential educational environments of the future that would be intended to help develop student creativity. That is, we plan to develop more capable kinds of AI agent. Any rich environment will need other characters to interact with, and if they need to act in a controlled way in order to produce some desired effect in the users, then they should be artificial characters. In video games, these are called NPCs (non-player characters). Video games often do include NPCs but they are designed to act as enemies or simple allies in some larger story. They are often predictable, within limits: both to give the player a more predictable experience, but also because it is easier to program them that way, for some designed role. Game developers do often experiment with new ways to make NPCs more believable, to give a more authentic experience; but this will often mean that they behave more erratically, which can disrupt the player experience.

Background: Principles of Creative Digital Environment Design One of the most important features of creative environment is creativity of its habitats. With regard to digital games this means creativity of non-player characters (NPC).

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Creativity of the NPC can be achieved with the following behavior principles: • • •

Adaptation to the level of the player’s creativity; Self-learning during the game simulation process; Unpredictability of reactions and decisions.

The multi-agent (MA) approach provides a lot of possibilities to achieve these creative behavior principles. This approach allows us to pay attention to the individual characteristics of an NPC. Each NPC can be represented as an agent with its own tasks and objectives. In the next section, the development of an MA-based creative game environment is described.

MULTI-AGENT APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A CREATIVE GAME ENVIRONMENT Architecture Classical agent architectures assume that agents use sensors to observe the environment. The results of observations are stored in its memory. An agent modifies the environment state with its actuators. The key component defining the quality of agent behavior is the decision-making unit. The most commonly used behavior model in video-games is its behavior tree. Behavior trees appeared in (Wen, Tuffley, & Dromey, 2014) where they were used for modeling user behavior. Later the behavior tree concept was adapted for the game-development industry (Kelly, Botea, & Koenig, 2008). The behavior tree is a hierarchical state machine. Each tree node corresponds to one of the agent’s tasks. The execution of behavior tree starts from its root node, then traverses to children nodes according to node-specific rules. The standard behavior tree only can represent a static set of tasks. Unlike the set of tasks, the set of agent objectives is dynamical. New objectives can appear in runtime while others become non-actual. There are several expansions of behavior tree model that introduce dynamical node management including priority rearrangement (Marzinotto,C olledanchise, Smith, & Ogren, 2014), (Champandard, 2007), (Fĺorez-Puga, Ǵomez-Mart́in, D́iaz-Agudo, & Gonźalez-Calero, 2008). Our proposed architecture is based on an extended behavior tree model that takes into account the principles of creative behavior (Figure 1).

EXTENDED BEHAVIOR TREE MODEL Many common AI implementations assume that an agent has only one objective. On the whole, behavior models are also built upon this assumption, and this includes behavior trees. Game designers develop behavior trees to achieve one complicated goal – to win the game. Each agent tries to optimize the overall utility value it gains during simulation time. It is assumed that overall utility changes take place only after the agent performs some action. Each action consumes resources and changes the agent state, environment and states of other agents. A sequence of actions can lead the agent to one of his tactical objectives. The overall utility can be represented as a sum of utilities of all achieved agent objectives.

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Figure 1. The agent architecture

The extended behavior tree model expands the standard, initial behavior tree model with three additional classes of nodes (Figure 2). The Reaction node implements agent reactions – immediate actions that modify state of agent’s memory and the behavior tree structure. The Objective node represents a single objective of the agent, and encapsulates an algorithm to reach desired state. Objective nodes are independent from each other. The Controller node manages both Objective and Reaction nodes. The agent’s objectives are desired subsets of environment states. For example, the agent can wish all the “Reward items” to be picked and enemy characters to be eliminated. The standard behavior tree operates with tasks. Each tree node is a task that can be performed. The suggested approach is more declarative. In the extended behavior tree each top–level node represents a task that matches to the one of the agent’s objectives. The agent goal is to successfully perform tasks on the top level in the order that maximizes overall utility.

Implementation of Adaptation The design of the extended behavior tree assumes two levels of agent adaptation. The agent can change priorities of objectives according to environment changes and generate new objectives associated with encountered environment objects. Structural modification of the behavior tree is performed by Reaction nodes. The agent’s sensors observe the environment and generate events buffered in temporal memory. The event data is consumed by Reaction nodes during behavior tree execution.

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Figure 2. Behavior tree extension

A Reaction node can be represented as a tuple of condition predicate, action and execution probability. The execution of reaction node starts with probability check – if it fails the reaction fails too. Then the condition predicated is applied to the single event data. If the event data matches predicate the reaction action is performed. There are following allowed kinds of actions: • • • •

The agent can start a new action immediately. If there is any other existed action node it stops. The new action node is created and parented to The Controller node. The agent can set a variable value in its memory. The agent can create a new objective associated with event source. The new objective node is created and parented to The Controller node. The agent can terminate any of its active Objective nodes.

In terms of structured programming, the reaction rules have only “if-then” statements, but without an “else” branch; and top-level sequences of operators. No other actions are allowed in order to limit the growth of code complexity and coupling. Objective nodes are rearranged by descending order of their priority at each iteration of simulation. Objective nodes are not aware of each other, and their priorities are calculated independently. To achieve consistency of priority values, the calculation process must be based on unified rules. Behavior tree adaptation is based on the approach proposed in (Alimov & Moffat, 2015).

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Each objective priority can be represented as multiplication of finite numbers of factors. Each factor is a function of the agent state in the range [0;1]. The following factors can be used in regular games: • • • •

Distance factor; Probability factor; Resource cost factor; Utility factor.

The “distance factor” estimates the distance has agent has to go through to achieve the corresponding objective. For the calculation of this factor, the method of potential fields is used. The value of the “probability factor” estimates the probability of achieving the objective. The “resource factor” estimates relative cost of resources that would be consumed to achieve the objective. The “utility factor” calculation is based on marginal utility theory. The agent can have similar objectives. For example, it can be “Pick potion item X”. Each time the agent picks potion item the utility of leftover objectives decreases. The multiplicative convolution allows representing non-linear behavior of objective priority near the boundary values of utility factors. The final priority value in this case significantly changes.

Implementation of Self-Learning The above variables form a set of estimated factors in the event. For the agent, the variables represent the agent expectations. Once the objective is reached the agent is able to compare the actual value of the factor and the predicted one. This ability can be used to implement reinforcement learning. To make the reinforcement learning possible each agent action is rewarded with score points. The total amount of score points correlates with the total utility that agent tries to optimize. The main issue in self-learning is to determine consequences of actions. The agent can switch attention from one objective to another according to priority changes that expectedly leads to non-effective resource consumption for every single objective. In order to avoid this issue the agent takes into account only the period of time from the moment the objective becomes active until the moment it successfully completes or fails. During this period, the agent is not interrupted with another activity. Thereby for each objective the agent stores last measurements of the environment properties and estimated values of factors. After the objective has been achieved the result is corrected with actual values: success or fail for probability, the actual path for distance factor, actual amount of consumed resources and actual score for marginal utility.

Implementation of Unpredictability Unpredictability is achieved by introduction of stochastic elements. Each Reaction node has a probability of evaluation. Therefore, there are two kinds of reaction rules: deterministic and stochastic. Deterministic rules are applied in all circumstances. This kind of rule is intended to implement the most critical aspects of agent’s behavior such as survival.

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Stochastic rules are applied with probability that defines if the rule’s action should be executed. Stochastic rules are intended to simulate emotional decisions such as panic, aggression or charity. The emotional decision can be irrational but they are an important part of the creative behavior. Varying the probability value can simulate different agent personalities and characteristics.

Experiment The proposed architecture was implemented and tested. The testing environment is a typical survival action game where all players should explore the world to find resources. All NPCs are represented as agents based on the proposed architecture (Figure 3). The quality of the agents’ behavior was estimated with effectiveness and performance criteria. Effectiveness measurement is based on the agent score. Each successful action is rewarded with score points. The value of the score reward is also used to estimate utilities of the actions. The agents’ effectiveness chart (Fig. 4) shows that some of the agents demonstrate similar to human-player effectiveness in the concurrent environment. The agents that survived until the end of the test showed adaptive and flexible behavior. Performance is one of the key aspects in real-time systems. The average duration of the whole decision making process was 109.6 microseconds. This time includes pathfinding, and the simulation of actuators and sensors. This time is about 1.8 times less than action planning with the A* algorithm. That allows using about a hundred autonomous “smart” agents in simulation. Figure 3. Scheme of the testing environment

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Maintainability of the developed system and its code-base was measured with the built-in maintainability index in Microsoft Visual Studio. For the most classes the value of maintainability index was in the [70;80] range. That indicates fairly good capacities of the agent behavior to be extended or modified in future work. Summarizing, all the agents demonstrated the required rational behavior. Agents were also successful in similar cases proving their ability to adapt to environment changes. In more complex situations agents composed static fragments of their behavior trees showing creative emergent behavior.

CONCLUSION It is increasingly recognised that creative thinking skills are needed by industry, and therefore also for engineering graduates. Although there is interest in finding ways to teach creativity, there is as yet no consensus on how this can be done. At the same time, there is strong recognition that education at all levels, and of all kinds, shall be revolutionised by electronic media. Students these days are sometimes called “digital natives” as they are deeply familiar with many forms of digital technology, and many of them are keen players of video games. Games are also creative media, and may in their turn demand creative responses from the players. Therefore it is reasonable to suppose that video games should play a role in the education of creative thinking. Figure 4. Agents’ effectiveness chart

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Video games and some other forms of digital media often include artificially intelligent agents, known in games as NPCs (non-player characters), and these are the principal ways in which the game can most visibly adapt to the players, or learn to improve their performance in other ways. The NPCs may also challenge players with more or less unpredictable behavior. In order to improve the NPCs’ capacities for unpredictability, learning and adaptation, a standard behavior-tree architecture was extended in this work. New nodes for Objectives enable the agent to have high level objectives that guide its behavior and can assume priorities relevant to the agent’s current situation. Lower level Reaction nodes provide for more reactive behaviors to give the agent some appearance of emotions and potentially of personality as well. As the proposed architecture has a stochastic character in these reactions, the effect is to make the agent less predictable and potentially more believable to players. In order to evaluate the new proposed architecture, agents built on it were placed in a game environment where they could learn to improve their playing skill. These newer agents were compared with simplified versions of themselves based on the more traditional behavior-tree scheme. It was found from observing the scores that the newer agents were able to survive for longer in the game environment and achieve higher scores. The computation costs of the newer architectural features were estimated by calculating the average time taken to compute the decision-making cycle of the agents. This was shorter than for the corresponding decisions made by the more traditional agents, that conduct their action planning with a standard A* algorithm. In the desktop computer used for experiments, which is of an average sort that could be found in a typical student laboratory, this performance would enable up to a hundred such agents to run in the simulated game environment. While this work demonstrates the viability of the proposed agent architecture, it remains to be seen whether its aim in supporting and stimulating the player’s creative thinking will be achieved. In future work this question may be investigated, for example by administering some standard creativity tests after a playing session with the game. Two versions of the game could be tried, with the new agents or with the older, traditional agents. Another way might be to see if the players of the game play in ways that are more or less creative, when playing against the newer or older types of agents.

FURTHER RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The experiment described in the relevant section shows that the proposed approach appears effective for the development of most typical game environments with multiple agents. However, more research is needed on how to combine self-learning intuitive intelligence with classical reason-based approach. Both utility curves and neural networks described in this paper were developed as ad hoc solutions suitable only for this prototype: therefore in the further research patterns and technics to identify utility function and neural network structure automatically should be developed. A first step in solving this problem the usage of deep leaning algorithms will be considered as this approach shows particularly good results in situation when neural network used in a game “does not know” the game rules. As an extension of the proposed behavior tree model an attempt will be made to utilize more fuzzy characteristics of the creative agent such as curiosity and ability to generate non-standard behavior in standard situations.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT The reported study was supported by RFBR, research project 16-07-00611 A.

REFERENCES Alimov, A., & Moffat, D. C. (2015). Adaptive Model of Multiobjective Agent Behavior in Real-Time Systems. In A. Bikakis & X. Zheng (Eds.), Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Vol. 9426. Multi-disciplinary Trends in Artificial Intelligence (pp. 51–60). Cham: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-26181-2_5 Baillie, C. (2002). Enhancing creativity in engineering students. Engineering Science and Education Journal, 11(5), 185–192. doi:10.1049/esej:20020503 Champandard, A. (2007). Popular Approaches to Behavior Tree Design. Retrieved February 13, 2017, from http://aigamedev.com/open/article/popular-behavior-tree-design/ Fĺorez-Puga, G., Ǵomez-Mart́in, M., D́iaz-Agudo, B., & Gonźalez-Calero, P. A. (2008). Dynamic expansion of behaviour trees. In Proceedings of the 4th Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment Conference, AIIDE 2008 (pp. 36-41). Stanford, CA: AIIDE. Hadzigeorgiou, Y., Fokialis, P., & Kabouropoulou, M. (2012). Thinking about Creativity in Science Education. Creative Education, 5(05), 603–611. doi:10.4236/ce.2012.35089 Kelly, J.-P., Botea, A., & Koenig, S. (2008). Offline planning with hierarchical task networks in video games. In Proceedings of the 4th Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment Conference, AIIDE 2008 (pp. 60-65). Stanford, CA: AIIDE. Maher, M. L., Merrick, K., & Saunders, R. (2008). Achieving creative behavior using curious learning agents. In AAAI Spring Symposium 2008 - Creative Intelligent Systems. Stanford, CA: AAAI. Marzinotto, A., Colledanchise, M., Smith, C., & Ogren, P. (2014). Towards a unified behavior trees framework for robot control. Proceedings of 2014 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA 2014), 5420-5427. 10.1109/ICRA.2014.6907656 Sauthwik, F. (2013). Opinion: Academy suppresses creativity. Journal of Science and Practice Problems of Governance, 8, 62-65. Shabalina, O., Mozelius, P., Vorobkalov, P., Malliarakis, C., & Tomos, F. (2015). Creativity in digital pedagogy and game-based learning techniques; theoretical aspects, techniques and case studies. Proceedings of IISA 2015 - 6th International Conference on Information, Intelligence, Systems and Applications. 10.1109/IISA.2015.7387963 Shaw, M. C. (2001). Engineering Problem Solving: A Classical Perspective. Norwich, NY: William Andrew. Wen, L., Tuffley, D., & Dromey, R. G. (2014). Formalizing the transition from requirements’ change to design change using an evolutionary traceability model. Innovations in Systems and Software Engineering, 10(3), 181–202. doi:10.100711334-014-0230-6

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ADDITIONAL READING Cutumisu, M., Szafron, D., Schaeffer, J., McNaughton, M., Roy, T., Onuczko, C., & Carbonaro, M. (2005). Generating ambient behaviors in computer role-playing games10.1007/11590323_4 Garcés-Calvelo, A., Garcés-Matilla, A., & Pacheco-Morales, A. (2018). An agent-based model for game development10.1007/978-3-319-72727-1_10 Holmen, H. (2015). Complex character: Model for a non player AI character for interactive narrative discourse. Paper presented at the ICAART 2015 - 7th International Conference on Agents and Artificial Intelligence. Proceedings, 2, 563–568. Lau, K. W., & Lee, P. Y. (2015). The use of virtual reality for creating unusual environmental stimulation to motivate students to explore creative ideas. Interactive Learning Environments, 23(1), 3–18. do i:10.1080/10494820.2012.745426 Lugrin, B., Frommel, J., & André, E. (2018). Combining a data-driven and a theory-based approach to generate culture-dependent behaviours for virtual characters10.1007/978-3-319-67024-9_6 Mather, M. L., Merrick, K., & Saunders, R. (2008). Achieving creative behavior using curious learning agents. Paper presented at the AAAI Spring Symposium - Technical Report, SS-08-03 40-46. Mehta, M., Lacey, T., Radu, I. W., Jain, A., & Ram, A. (2009). Creating behavior authoring environment for everyday users. Paper presented at the CGAT 09 - Computer Games, Multimedia and Allied Technology 09 - International Conference and Industry Symposium on Computer Games Animation, Multimedia, IPTV, Edutainment and IT Security, 121-128. 10.5176/978-981-08-3190-5_391 Merrick, K., & Maher, M. L. (2009). Motivated reinforcement learning: Curious characters for multiuser games. Motivated reinforcement learning: Curious characters for multiuser games (pp. 1-206)10.1007/9783-540-89187-1 Richardson, C., & Mishra, P. (2018). Learning environments that support student creativity: Developing the SCALE. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 27, 45–54. doi:10.1016/j.tsc.2017.11.004

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Adaptivity: An ability to keep acting rationally in dynamically changing environment. Artificial Intelligence in Games: A subset of intelligent techniques and algorithms aimed to implement behavior of characters in games. Behavior Tree: A computational structure representing an agent’s behavior as a sequence of actions being the result of traversing the given tree. Multi-Agent System: A system composed of multiple active autonomous agents and the common environment where they act. NPC (Non-Player Character): A character controlled by the game AI. Self-Learning: An ability to act according to previous experience. Unpredictability: An ability to perform spontaneous actions that were not performed earlier.

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Chapter 32

Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines Alexey Pavlovich Kalistratov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Sergey Igorevich Zaikin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Viatcheslav Ivanovich Kuzovlev Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Pyotr Stepanovich Semkin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter reveals the issue of implementing snapshots for maintaining virtual machines used for students’ lab stands. Hence, implementing that backup/restore method means significant reduction of the amount of effort required for lab stands maintenance. The actuality of this chapter is in the increasing appliance of virtualization methods in the educational process, as it currently is not very developed due to the lack of a systematic approach to the development and application of new technologies. The object of study is the practical part of the course “Network Software” of the Department IU5 in BMSTU. The subject of research is the process of preparing a virtual stand for lab works. The purpose of research is to prove the significance of applying virtualization technologies such as using snapshots in the educational process.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch032

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND The Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) is a public technical university located in Moscow, Russia. The BMSTU is the oldest and largest Russian technical university offering B.S., M.S., and PhD degrees in various engineering fields and applied sciences. The BMSTU has 19 departments providing full-time education. Currently, strategy of the University is to provide human resources for cutting-edge areas of Russian science and technology, foremost economic development directions of the country, such as: Information and communication systems; nano systems and materials industry; power supply and conservation; biosystems; security and counterterrorism; transportation and aerospace systems; promising military equipment (“Bauman Moscow State Technical University,” n.d.). The department Information processing and control systems was founded in 1938. The main directions of training are programming, information support, computer networks and telecommunications, and modeling and system design of automated control systems. Students’ acquaintance with the basics of computer science and features of the future profession begins already in the first year of education. In the last decade, the department continued scientific and methodical research in the field of creating and developing modern methods of modeling and designing distributed automated control systems.

SETTING THE STAGE Considering the changes in the educational process, it is recognized that educational programs in the field of computer science in particular require continuous updating, because, unlike engineering or, especially, mathematical or physical sciences, technologies and principles of computer science may become obsolete in 5-7 years (Pokrovsky, 2010). Considering this, special attention should be paid to the updating of study plans. In the study of computer sciences, during practical activities, students need to work with software which is specifically needed for this discipline (e.g., programming, machine graphics, modeling, numerical calculations, and databases). According to Patricia Dickinson and Judith Montgomery (2016), when it comes to mathematics, professional development and teaching strategies are essential to promote multiple representations and ways of knowing, especially in a time where reform practices are valued. However, for strategies to transfer into teachers’ classroom practice, authentic activities must be embedded to provide an opportunity to experiment and explore new concepts, construct knowledge, engage in dialogue with peers, and develop the confidence to master new strategies. Obviously, mistakes are a norm in the learning process, and not an exception. Virtual machines (VM) are convenient not only because in case of incorrect actions the student can easily restart his machine or take a new one. After all, a virtual machine is just a collection of files. They can significantly reduce the cost of organizing the educational process and make it more effective. The process of using VM began at the end of the last century, in many educational institutions. Nowadays, the trend is not only to use VM, but also to transfer them to so-called clouds. This is possible when the user is provided with the necessary computing and information resources through modern network technologies, and he/she interacts with the programs that he/she needs and that he/she can operate remotely. The user is often

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interested in, first, the ability to perform the necessary calculations and, secondly, in the availability and safety of his/her data. It is about the organization and use of virtual cloud computing. Indeed, this resource can and should be applied, including in the educational process. When it comes to the case of using PCs in practice–as studying computer sciences is impossible without them–,it is important to remind that for university PCs user rights are limited in order to prevent issues. In most cases, user rights are enough, but as sometimes local admin rights are needed, lab computer malfunctions can occur. If the application requires local admin rights in order to work properly, it is possible to either change the registry settings or use a different app. However, in many disciplines the student can perform a certain action only with administrator rights (e.g., Operating Systems, Networks and telecommunications, Distributed computing networks, and Corporate networks). Moreover, some of these courses require that the student has the ability to customize (configure) several computers at once. Providing such resources to everyone in the group of students is impossible. Therefore, it would be good to use VM for such cases. Currently, a sufficient number of programs allow to create, edit, and run VM. The concept of virtualization is a concealment of the real implementation of a process or object from a true submission to the person who uses it (Kuhar, 2011). In other words, presentation is separated from the implementation of anything. The term “virtualization” in computer technologies appeared in the 1960’s, along with the term “virtual machine”. It means conductive product, virtualization software and hardware platform. Since their introduction, the terms “virtualization” and “virtual machine” have acquired many different meanings and have been used in different contexts. By “virtualization platforms”, the authors mean creation of software systems based on existing hardware and software systems (Romanova, 2011). The system that provides hardware resources and software is called the host, and the simulated system is called guest. Several types of virtualization platforms exist. Each platform has its own approach to the concept of virtualization. In full emulation, all the hardware is simulated to the guest operating system. This allows an emulation of different hardware architectures. The main disadvantage of this approach is that the emulated hardware slows down the performance of the guest system, making it very uncomfortable, so, except for the development of system software, the security, and educational purposes, this approach is rarely used. Another type of emulation is partial emulation. In this case, the host system virtualizes only the necessary amount of hardware, so the virtual machine could be run in isolation. This approach allows the user to run guest operating systems with the same architecture as the host has. Thus, multiple instances of guest systems can be run simultaneously. This kind of virtualization can significantly increase the performance of a guest system compared with full emulation, and is widely used currently. The disadvantage of this type of virtualization is the dependence of VM on the architecture of the hardware platform.

VIRTUALIZATION IN EDUCATION Technology Concerns The following points highlight the effects of implementing virtualization technologies in the educational process and the scope of its control:

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1. The savings on the hardware. Universities always face a shortage of funds for the development and maintenance of infrastructure. Significant savings on hardware acquisition occur when multiple virtual servers are placed on one physical server. 2. Maintaining old operating systems to ensure compatibility. It also allows to conduct classes in the study of PC architecture, run different operating systems, and execute software code in a low level. 3. The ability to isolate a potentially dangerous environment. In this case, the virtual machine acts as a “laboratory”, which is completely under the control of the student, without the danger of damaging vital components of the system. 4. The possibility of creating the required hardware configurations. In addition to operating parameters such as RAM and hard disk, the user can create views devices which are not available. For example, many virtualization systems allow to create virtual SCSI disks and virtual multicore processors. It may be useful to create different kinds of simulations. 5. VM provide a great opportunity for training to work with operating systems (Klementiev & Ustinov, 2011). The user can create a library of ready-to-use VM with different guest operating systems and run them as needed to teach. 6. On one host, multiple VM can be running and connected into a virtual network. This feature provides limitless possibilities to create models of the virtual network between multiple systems on a single physical computer. This is especially necessary when the user aims to simulate some distributed system consisting of several machines. 7. VM are more manageable and mobile. Using VM improves the handling of creation backup snapshots of VM and recovery after failures. VM can be moved or copied to another computer for future labs. 8. VM can be organized into the “application packages”. The user can create virtual environments for specific use cases (e.g., for classes on Web design, programming, and office suites), with all the required software installed, and deploy them when needed. Snapshots allow the user to save the state of running VM and return to a previous state if necessary. In the experiments on installing and configuring applications, snapshots represent a supportive tool that allows to restore settings to an initial or intermediate state. Hyper-V can handle multiple snapshots for one virtual machine. in this case they form a chain or a tree, if snapshots were taken from different states of VM (Hyper-V overview, 2012). Proper snapshot managing and handling allows the user to use one virtual machine as a platform and work with individual subversions of the platform via using snapshots, not littered with many virtual operating systems (OS) (Kelbley & Sterling, 2010). The adoption of snapshots can significantly save space on a hard disk and time to prepare the VM for a specific task, by saving on the virtual OS. The principle of the snapshot creation is illustrated in the following. When the snapshot is being made, the virtual disk is blocked to create a new virtual disk which will host all the differences between the source virtual disk and future states of it (Tulloch, 2010). From this moment, nothing will be written to a basic disk before removal of all snapshots from the target virtual machine. When more than one snapshot is created, for each snapshot a differencing drive will be created. All changes are written to the new differencing disk, blocking the write access to the parent differencing disks.

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When the rollback to the snapshot is activated, the corresponding differencing disk is being chosen and the recording of changes in the snapshot is mapped to this virtual disk. In case the snapshot is deleted from the VM, the VM can have two possible behaviors: either all changes are removed and the machine goes into the state which was captured at the time of the snapshot or all changes from the corresponding differencing drive are transferred to the parent disk. This creates a significant load on the file system of the hypervisor, which can affect the performance of all VM running in the hypervisor. The first drawback of the snapshot maintenance approach is that it relies on the mechanism of snapshots. So far, there are no available implementations that would ensure that the entire set of POSIX-provided tools can be used in applications. The second drawback is the consequence of the first: When a snapshot is made, the application server “freezes” for a while, that is, it stops processing incoming user requests. Obviously, requests are not lost, but their processing is postponed for a while. In Van Ryneveld’s (2016) view, the provision and support of the university’s top and middle management is essential when it comes to the implementation of a new technique. In the case of this study, the snapshot appliance was approved by Section Head of the Department.

Snapshots Appliance Experiment Description of the program of the experiment: The theme of the experiment is the use of snapshots. • • • • • •

Venue: The stand belonging to the authors. Participants: The authors. Theoretical Basis of the Experiment: The assumption that the use of snapshots reduces labor costs for VM maintenance. Hypothesis of the Experimentation: The use of snapshots will greatly reduce the effort required to maintain the virtual stands. Description Forming Part of the Experiment: The process of performing the laboratory work listed in methodical literature for the course. Material Base of the Experiment: The server, whose configuration is shown in Table 1.

Table 1. The configuration of the server used for the experiment Type of Equipment

Installed in the Server

Chassis

HP ProLiant DL360 G5

CPU

2x Intel Xeon E5430

RAM

DDR2 32 GB

HDD

2x2TB SAS 10k, RAID 1

RAID controller

Smart Array P400i

Network card

Dual NC373i Gigabit LAN

OS

Windows Server 2012 R2

Hypervisor version

Hyper-V 3.0

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During lab work, students perform the following activities: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Configuration of the Active Directory. Creation of the users and the groups. Configuration of the DNS. Configuration of the IIS.

The details of the abovementioned activities are provided in Table 2. After performing all these steps, the student may proceed to the written part of lab work and its review with the tutor. After the student performs all these actions, the virtual lab stand cannot be used by other students, and support personnel must either revert all the changes or replace the virtual machine. On the one hand, in the presence of a prepared VM image, deleting and reconfiguring looks better. However, the main drawback of deleting the VM is the inability to verify the practical part of the lab work. Accordingly, it is necessary to store the “old” virtual machine for some time. It increases the effort needed for maintenance of a lab stand, or, otherwise, force the tutor to conduct the review of the student’s lab work results only with a written report, without revising the practical part of lab work. This reduces the number of opportunities for the knowledge check, and, consequently, the discipline of students with the devotion to the subject. In order to configure new VM, a variety of images of virtual disks must be stored, which creates additional load on the disk subsystem for the data warehouse. In this case, the service process of the virtual stand can be used; as a result, all student changes are discarded and removed manually by the operating personnel of the stand. The process of manual recovery of the virtual lab stand is detailed in the Table 3. Table 2. The process of the practical part of lab work Phase Configuration of the Active Directory.

Creeation of the users and the groups.

Configuration of the DNS.

Configuration of the IIS.

Total

384

Process

Time Spent

AD role installation

0,2 hours

Server reboot

0,1 hours

2 groups creation

0,1 hours

5 users creation

0,1 hours

Users distribution

0,1 hours

DNS role installation

0,2 hours

Server reboot

0,1 hours

DNS configuration

0,2 hours

IIS role installation

0,2 hours

FTP role install

0,2 hours

Restart system

0,1 hours

FTP file transfer

0,3 hours

IIS configuration

0,3 hours

-

2,2 hours

 Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines

Table 3. The process of a manual state restoration of a virtual machine Phase

Process

Configuration of the Active Directory. Creation of the users and the groups. Configuration of the DNS. Configuration of the IIS. Total

Time Spent

AD role removal

0,3 hours

Restart system

0,1 hours

Users removal

0,1 hours

Group removal

0,1 hours

DNS role removal

0,1 hours

FTP role removal

0,1 hours

IIS role removal

0,2 hours

Restart system

0,1 hours

-

1,2 hours

Thus, the manual maintenance of the stand (“manual rollback”) will take about twice less time than performing a lab work on it. It should be remembered that, in the case of many VM, the effort required for their maintenance will increase in a proportion to their number. Thus, the manual rollback will generate a large amount of workload after each lab work with each group of students. Another approach to virtual stands maintenance is using snapshots. With this approach, the initial state of the VM is stored with the snapshot, and, after using this machine, the student can keep it in “used” condition to review it with his/her tutor. After verification, the user can quickly return the stand to its original state, using the state which was saved in the snapshot. This approach allows to take many snapshots in the process and to store intermediate stages of the lab work. As a result, a more work can be conducted with the students who commit errors in the process of lab work–if an error is in the middle of one phase, the execution of the next stage can be carried out by loading the necessary snapshot. Table 4 details the effort required to create a snapshot and restore machine VM from the snapshot. Noticeably, after the snapshots are created, they can be used repeatedly. Thus, when the number of lab work sessions are increased and, consequently, iterations of work and recovery aas well, only the number of restores from the snapshot will be increased, without any additional snapshot creation. Table 4. The process of restoring the virtual machine state from the snapshot Phase Snapshot creation. Total Snapshot restore. Total

Process

Time Spent

Find target VM.

0,05 hours

Snapshot creation.

0,15 hours

-

0,2 hours

Find target VM and needed snapshot.

0,05 hours

Restore VM from snapshot.

0,15 hours

-

0,2 hours

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SOLUTIONS AND RECOMENDATIONS A comparison of the effort required to service the virtual stands manually and with snapshots produces the following considerations. For manual rollback, the workload will be estimated to 1.2 hours on each VM. For snapshots, the workload will estimate to 0.4 hours. In addition, if repeat the procedure is repeated on the same VM, the work with snapshots will take only 0.2 hours. Thus, the gain of the use of snapshots is from 0.8 to 1 hour at each virtual lab stand. Given the fact that a lab work session requires 20 stands and 4 iterations of the work, the total gain from snapshot maintenance is 76 hours of work time. Even though the labor costs of setting up virtual lab stands directly depend on the configuration of the physical server host, per numerous experiments on different physical servers, the ratio between the labor costs of manual configuration and the use of the snapshots are kept as abovementioned. This allows to conclude that the experiment can be reproduced with other equipment and that the data obtained in the experiment are reliable. During the experiment, it was proven that, when working with VM, the use of images allows reducing the effort required for the maintenance in 3-6 times. This result can be considered significant, because time saving without losing quality allows to spend the freed resources to work on self-learning with new software and technologies or support the educational process of other courses. Further, it is proven that staff’s self-development positively effects on the quality of the work (Ilyasov, 2010). Despite the obvious strengths of virtualization technologies, their introduction in universities faces several challenges: 1. The lack of qualified personnel, which does not allow to implement server virtualization technology. 2. The RAM on a PC in the classroom is usually insufficient to allow the use of native sequencing. This requirement is mostly dictated by the requirements of the guest operating system (Stagner, 2009). If in 2004 the minimum requirements for virtualization was the availability of 512 MB of RAM, in 2007 it had to be 2GB, and in 2011 no less than 4 GB. 3. The lack of methodological developments in this area and work experience with virtualization technologies from teaching staff. Manesh and Schaefer (2010) noted that, while some universities may be able to expose their students to the latest manufacturing systems and technologies, others may not be that fortunate, due to the lack of financial resources. For the latter, alternative avenues for providing their students with equivalent education and training should be developed. VM are convenient because the teacher can prepare various versions of machines that contain certain tasks. For example, he/she could adopt VM with configuration errors that need to be found and fixed or machines that are preinstalled with the necessary (specific) software. Also, each student can do the necessary actions without fear of ruining the work of the computer or another student’s work. VM acquire special importance if they want to provide students with the crucial resources not locally, but remotely-through modern Internet technologies. Sometimes, it is desirable that the student be able to run VM without being directly in the computer class. At the same time, students can have a lot of machines to operate, and they should not interfere with each other; their work should be convenient, should not

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 Using Snapshots for Organizing Work Environment With Virtual Machines

require large amount of resources, and should be easily managed. In other words, it is about moving VM to the cloud. Even within the framework of one discipline related to information technologies, it is necessary to have the ability to virtualize a very wide range of tasks. In sum, today, virtualization is one of the most needed technologies in the field of teaching computer science disciplines, and teachers’ enthusiasm is constantly fueled by the release of certain free products, which is also very important in keeping the transition of educational institutions to free software.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS Traditionally, many researchers develop software that implement backup-restore methods in order to compare their developed algorithms with existing ones. Since in some cases the execution of the program code takes a long time, it is advisable to perform such tests in the cloud, renting the necessary amount of resources for a short time. So, authors plan to explore the problem of virtual machines’ transition to cloud environment as it becomes more and more obvious that keeping physical servers inside the educational facility bring more cons than pros. Another advantage of the cloud environment is that it can be made public by providing an API for accessing the infrastructure and applications, thus providing access to other members of the scientific community. In order to simplify the use of cloud services in scientific research, various platforms and tools for deploying applications are being developed. These tools are divided into two groups: Automating the deployment of applications designed for execution in computing clusters; Automating the deployment of applications designed for execution on a PC. And another research direction is development of a framework for automated VM orchestration. This will allow to decrease maintenance costs even further as it allow not only automated backup-restore, but also automated configuring via configuration files.

REFERENCES Bauman Moscow State Technical University. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from https:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bauman_Moscow_State_Technical_University Dickinson, P., & Montgomery, J. L. (2016). The Role of Teacher Leadership for Promoting Professional Development Practices. In K. Dikilitaş (Ed.), Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 91–114). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-9471-2.ch006 Hyper-V Overview. (2012). Retrieved April 20, 2017, from https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us//library/ hh831531(v=ws.11).aspx Ilyasov, D. F. (2010). Organizacija obuchenija pedagogov v uchrezhdenii povyshenija kvalifikacii kadrov [Organization of teachers training in the institution of skills development]. Tomsk State Pedagogical University Bulletin., 1(91), 64–69.

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Kelbley, J., & Sterling, M. (2010). Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V: Insider’s Guide to Microsoft’s Hypervisor. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing, Inc. doi:10.1002/9781118257357 Klementiev, I. E., & Ustinov, V. A. (2011). Akademija Microsoft: Vvedenie v oblachnye vychislenija [Microsoft Virtual Academy: Introduction to cloud computing]. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from http:// www.intuit.ru/studies/courses/673/529/lecture/11915 Kuhar, A. (2011). Paravirtualizatsiya [Para-virtualization]. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from www.vmgu. ru/articles/Paravirtualizatsiya Manesh, H. F., & Schaefer, D. (2010). Virtual Learning Environments for Manufacturing. In W. RitkeJones (Ed.), Virtual Environments for Corporate Education: Employee Learning and Solutions (pp. 89–109). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-61520-619-3.ch006 Pokrovsky, N. E. (Ed.). (2010). Virtualizacija mezhuniversitetskih i nauchnyh kommunikacij: metody, struktura, soobshhestva [Virtualization of inter-University and academic communication methods, structure, communities]. Moscow: SoPSo. Romanova, A. O. (2011). Virtualizacija v vysokoproizvoditel’nyh vychislitel’nyh sistemah [Virtualization in high-performance computing systems]. Science and Education: Scientific Publication of BMSTU, 3(93), 1–23. Stagner, H. (2009). Pro Hyper–V. New York, NY: Apress. doi:10.1007/978-1-4302-1909-5 Tulloch, M. (2010). Understanding Microsoft Virtualization Solutions, From the Desktop to the Datacenter (2nd ed.). Redmond, WA: Microsoft Press. Van Ryneveld, L. (2016). Introducing Educational Technology into the Higher Education Environment: A Professional Development Framework. In K. Dikilitaş (Ed.), Innovative Professional Development Methods and Strategies for STEM Education (pp. 126–136). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/9781-4666-9471-2.ch008

ADDITIONAL READING Ashok, R. K., Hogstrom, M. R., Ortiz, J., & Shook, A. K. (2013). U.S. Patent No. 8,458,688. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Grit, L., Irwin, D., Yumerefendi, A., & Chase, J. (2006, November). Virtual machine hosting for networked clusters: Building the foundations for autonomic orchestration. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Virtualization Technology in Distributed Computing (p. 7). IEEE Computer Society. 10.1109/VTDC.2006.17 Lowell, D. E., & Tic, C. M. (2008). U.S. Patent No. 7,451,443. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

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Nguyen Van, H., Dang Tran, F., & Menaud, J. M. (2009, May). Autonomic virtual resource management for service hosting platforms. In Proceedings of the 2009 ICSE Workshop on Software Engineering Challenges of Cloud Computing (pp. 1-8). IEEE Computer Society. 10.1109/CLOUD.2009.5071526 Rani, D. R., & Geethakumari, G. (2015, January). An efficient approach to forensic investigation in cloud using VM snapshots. In Pervasive Computing (ICPC), 2015 International Conference on (pp. 1-5). IEEE. 10.1109/PERVASIVE.2015.7087206 Srivastava, A., Raj, H., Giffin, J., & England, P. (2012, September). Trusted VM snapshots in untrusted cloud infrastructures. In International Workshop on Recent Advances in Intrusion Detection (pp. 1-21). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. 10.1007/978-3-642-33338-5_1 Voorsluys, W., Broberg, J., Venugopal, S., & Buyya, R. (2009, December). Cost of virtual machine live migration in clouds: A performance evaluation. In IEEE International Conference on Cloud Computing (pp. 254-265). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. 10.1007/978-3-642-10665-1_23 Zhang, W., Tang, H., Jiang, H., Yang, T., Li, X., & Zeng, Y. (2012, June). Multi-level selective deduplication for vm snapshots in cloud storage. In Cloud Computing (CLOUD), 2012 IEEE 5th International Conference on (pp. 550-557). IEEE. 10.1109/CLOUD.2012.78

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Hyper-V: An implementation of native virtualization, made by Microsoft. One of the most popular hypervisors, supports all popular x86-x64 operating systems as a guest system. Hypervisor: Server software which manages virtual machines. Lab Stand: Educational appliance, which includes a personal computer and different peripherals. Designed for use in the practice part of some courses (e.g., network software). Rollback: Process of restoring a previous or default state of a (physical or virtual) machine or software. It can be manual or automatic. Server: Device or program that provides some functionality to clients. In order to serve such functionality, it must be more powerful and reliable than regular computer. Snapshot: Technology that allows saving the state, disk data, and configuration of a virtual machine at a specific point in time. Virtual Machine: Special environment which imitates some particular configuration of a real computer. Virtualization: The creation of a virtual—rather than actual—version of something, such as an operating system, a server, a storage device or network resources.

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Chapter 33

Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering Training Konstantin Pavlovich Alekseev National Research Nuclear University, Russia Gerard L. Hanley California State University, USA Nurlan Muratovich Kiyasov National University of Science and Technology MISiS, Russia Valeriy Nikolaevich Platonov A. M. Prokhorov General Physics Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter considers the current state, types, and relevance of modern virtual laboratories, virtual practices, and training in higher engineering education. The four types of virtual laboratories are considering. This work also offers examples of virtual scientific and engineering processes simulation laboratories and virtual remote laboratories, virtual practices, and internship. It analyzes the experience of universities and companies in the virtual laboratories, virtual practices, and internship. Particularly interesting for online learning platforms are the virtual laboratories of edX and the National Platform for Open Education. Finally, the chapter provides recommendations on the development of shared knowledge centers for collective use of virtual installations and laboratories, on ways of remote participation in collaborative work with real unique installations, and on participation in the distributed research unique installations and data processing tools. The authors also indicate directions of the development of supportive virtual internship programs for students.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch033

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering Training

INTRODUCTION The application of new technologies in education, for some reasons, still causes an alerted concern by the proponents of traditional educational technologies. Among the novel educational technologies are: online learning, adaptive learning with use of Big Data learning analytics, collaborative learning, mobile technologies, and game based learning. The main argument of opponents against mass use of new educational technologies, especially in engineering, is the statement that practical components are omitted from the novel processes of offered training. Also, the lack of practical training seems to hinder the preparation of specialists. This apparent obstacle has been resolved by the creation of virtual laboratories. These virtual laboratories are able to simulate a complete equipment set and other devices’ process. They also allow the visualization of processes that lay beyond the capabilities of the human eye or/and are hidden inside devices. Students are able to observe the direct connection between device control actions and the processes happening in physical objects, which are often or normally unreachable. The development of visualization graphics, image quality, and o video editing tools allows for a high-quality virtual reality with augmented reality effects. Indeed, multimedia and augmented reality effects allow to model not only real, but also abstract objects and phenomena of any scale, which are often unavailable to direct observation. Examples are galaxies, nanostructures, and molecules. The field of virtual visualization has become a scientific analysis branch. It has been named scientific visualization, and is widely used in various theoretical and experimental studies. Up to date instruments of creation of computer games let to turn a game space into cognitive task objects (i.e., creative activities objects for students). Virtual laboratories are exactly the elements that introduce practical components in the training process. The first virtual laboratories appeared nearly two decades ago and implied interaction of students with resources and with other students exclusively through the Internet and information and communication technologies (ICT). However, these instruments have not become common in the online learning process. The reason could be high costs of creation of virtual elements, which constituted a considerable share in online learning design and production. The analysis of developments of virtual laboratories, practices, and internships in engineering education reveals three principle obstacles in their application. The first obstacle is the absence of a detailed methodological basis for manuals and self-guiding tools for a virtual learning application. The cases in which this problem has been solved obtained a robust educational resource. The second obstacle is the technical complexity of high-quality virtualization tools and their significant costs. This problem can be solved by outsourcing services for the development of commercial educational software. The third obstacle comprises the low level of knowledge of best practices of open information systems, faculty professionals who are insufficiently educated in the virtual laboratories application, poorly developed practices, and lack of internships in engineering education. The solution of these three problems will definitely expand the application of virtual laboratories and thus will bring the practice component into the learning process. The following new education technologies are providing the practice skill acquisition which is necessary in the practical works of engineering specialties: 1. - Virtual hands-on training and laboratories. 2. - Virtual internships and practices. 391

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Generally, the term virtual laboratory is understood either as an education virtual laboratory or as a research virtual laboratory (Balakrishnan, & Woods, 2009; Feisel, & Rosa, 2005; Gertz, Stewart, & Khosla, 1994; Gornev, 1998; Harms, 2000; Trukhin, 2002; Virtual laboratory, 2006). In any case, a virtual laboratory can be differently defined as in the following. •



• •

Virtual Laboratory: The interactive environment for the creation and implementation of simulated experiments and for the simulation of laboratory installations. In other words, it is intended as a playground for experiments. It is possible to include the various training simulators in this type of virtual laboratories. Laboratory of Virtual Reality or Virtual Reality Laboratory (VRL): A high-interactive environment, based on simulation and devices of sense perception, including many person sense organs in the control feedback. The user becomes a participant of the “practically real” world in the artificial three-dimensional optical environment. Virtual Laboratory: The diverse distributed environment for problem solving, which allows groups of students, faculty, and researchers who are located around the world to cooperate over a common set of projects. Virtual Laboratory: A hybrid laboratory with remote access, which consists of both a real laboratory and elements of laboratory control, communication, simulation, experimental data collection, and analysis.

THE VIRTUAL LABORATORIES THAT SIMULATE A REAL EXPERIMENT While preparing this chapter, the authors studied about 100 examples of implementation of virtual laboratories in the field of engineering training in Russia and abroad, by purpose, directions of studies and specializations, and organizational interaction experience between different participants to the creation and exploration of virtual laboratories. The directions of studies and specializations of reviewed virtual laboratories include, as general disciplines: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, microbiology, and special courses in computer sciences, mechanical engineering, chemical mechanical engineering, engine-building, space industry, electronic mechanical engineering, nanotechnologies, biotechnology, and mechanical and hydraulic systems. Table 1 shows the most indicative and well-known examples of virtual laboratories. Virtual laboratories are of special interest for open online learning platforms. Indeed, they are used by the edX platform, The National Platform of Open Education (NPOE), and Coursera. Table 2 summarizes some features of these platforms. Some innovations of the use of virtual laboratories were applied in the Course redesign project of California State University (n.d.). These innovations include virtual pre-labs course, hybrid labs, and e-portfolio of implementations of virtual laboratories. In this context, hybrid lab means the focus on theory in the virtual lab and practical skills in the “wet” lab. The Course redesign with technology program of California State University aims to reduce the number of bottleneck (high-enrollment/low-success) courses. Among other strategies, it includes simulator virtual labs, virtual prelabs, and inquiry-based hybrid labs.

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Table 1. Most common virtual laboratories aiming to simulate real experiment Name

MERLOT Simulation Collection

Company California State University, MERLOT (A Multimedia Education Resource for Learning and Online Teaching within the California State University) is an online storage and the International consortium of higher education organizations (and institutes), industrial partners, professional organizations, and individuals.

Purpose

The description of the virtual laboratories with open access and references to the large number of simulations with ranking, expertise, comments, and application info at different levels.

Reference

https://www.merlot.org/merlot/ index.htm

National Science Digital Library (NSDL)

The virtual laboratories are divided into seven categories: Stoichiometry, Thermochemistry, Equilibrium, Acid-Base Chemistry, Solubility, Oxidation/ Reduction and Electrochemistry, and Analytical Chemistry/Lab Techniques, The student’s tasks for the virtual laboratory problems are described in the loaded list of tasks attached to each virtual laboratory.

http://chemcollective.org/sims

National Instruments.

Virtual laboratories for online activity: • Automating Measurements and Processing Signal Data. • Instrument Control. • Automating Test and Validation Systems. • Designing Embedded Control and Monitoring Systems.

http://www.ni.com/labview/http:// www.ni.com/mydaq/

Wolfram Demonstrations Project

Wolfram Research.

Catalog of online interactive laboratories. The project catalog consists of 11 main sections relating to various branches of knowledge and human activity. There are large physical, chemical, and mathematical sections, and also devoted to equipment, engineering, and social sciences.

http://demonstrations.wolfram. com/index.html

Labster

Labster ApS Collaborate with top universities, including MIT, Harvard, Imperial College, and ETH Zürich.

Laboratories are developed according to the purposes of scientific discipline studies in the universities and colleges. Students can experiment and make mistakes. They are involved in the researches of cancer medicine and even solve detective stories with use of the General Biology, Genetics, Biotechnology, Chemistry, and Biochemistry.

https://www.labster.com/

Virtual Labs

An initiative of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) under the National Mission on Education through ICT.

The directory of the virtual laboratories of Indian universities on theory of electromagnetism, radio waves, microwave and antennas, wireless communication, simulation of networks with queues, signal processing, electrical circuits, electronic components, integrated microcircuits, computer hardware, and communication networks.

http://www.vlab.co.in/

Labicom

labicom.net

Platform of remote and virtual engineering laboratories. A learning management system, library online of the Remote and The Virtual Laser Laboratory, Remote Laboratory GLONASS, The Virtual Laboratory of the Oscillograph and Functional laboratories of the Generator, the Virtual Laboratory of the UNED Microprocessor, online designer of own virtual and remote laboratories, Labicom Connect.

https://labicom.net/ru/

Virtual Laboratories teachmen. ru

Chelyabinsk State University.

Virtual laboratories in Physics.

http://teachmen.ru/

ChemCollective: Simulations

LabVIEW, myDAQ

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Table 2. Examples of open online learning platforms Name

Purpose

Reference

ITMO University

Open course at National Platform of Open Education. When studying each of the ten course sections, the virtual laboratories are used corresponding to daily engineering practice problems.

https://openedu.ru/course/ITMOUniversity/ ELMACH/

edX Virtual laboratories

edX

National Instruments LabVIEW, Microsoft Visual Studio Express (available free), and Laboratory Courseware.

https://courses.edx.org/courses/ BerkeleyX/EECS149.1x/2T2014/ a4db2ee057ad4acaa6e663e650c02f81/

Quantum Chemistry Virtual Laboratory

Coursera, The University of Manchester

Introduction to Physical Chemistry MOOC.

https://www.coursera.org/learn/physicalchemistry/home/week/10

Electical machinery

Company

E-portfolio of virtual labs include: differential equations, earth science, general chemistry, introductory biology, general education biology, human biology, biometrics, environmental science, exercise physiology, introductory physics, chemistry and environment, and general science. The bottlenecks which were mentioned in the course prior to the redesign project are: • •

Difficulty in visualization of science concepts. Most students have not observed the studied phenomenon carefully or are unfamiliar with the vocabulary used in the course describing the phenomenon. Enrollment in the course has reached its capacity in recent years due to limited laboratory space, equipment, and funds for consumables/disposal. A lack of topical/conceptual alignment between the lecture and laboratory portions of the course. Wid labs compounding limitations: the number of students a lab room can hold; the number of graduate students available to serve as teaching assistants; there is no room for error in wet labs, and so most wet labs are “cook‐book” activities; the lack of engagement and opportunity for creativity may be one reason why some students perform poorly in the courses without virtual labs.

• • •

Advantages of using virtual labs in the course redesign project are: • • • • •

394

The labs will also become more reliable. The added benefit of increased functionality, reliability, and diversity. Using virtual labs and hands-on laboratory activities at home allows for more diversity in possible labs. The hybrid-laboratory format helps students focus on theory where needed (forming an important link between the lecture and laboratory components) and still allows students to obtain important manual wet lab skills. The laboratory course with virtual laboratories can be streamlined and aligned to incorporate activities as links to the theories which are discussed in the lecture, and to reduce space requirements and material costs.

 Virtual Practices, Virtual Laboratories, and Virtual Internship Experience in Engineering Training



• •

Virtual labs provide risk-free environment for students to explore scientific concepts in inquirybased fashion. By using virtual labs, students can formulate hypotheses and carry out experiments where mistakes are of no consequence, since modified experiments can be redesigned with little additional effort. While experiment error and exercise failure are an everyday part of science, pedagogically teachers have more tolerance for error in the courses. The use and development of virtual labs will also enhance student information, communication, and literacy skills, as they prepare to teach 21st century learners. Virtual labs can be more relevant for future classrooms where expensive lab materials and specimens may not be available. Eventually, by replacing half of the face-to-face lab meetings with virtual labs will also allow teachers to offer additional sections of the course and lab, in light of a graduate instructor shortage. Outcomes of using virtual labs in the course redesign project:

• • • • • • • •

Improved nursing students’ e-learning experience. Improved students’ professional decision making skills. Increased students’ performance and success in the course, as measured by their test scores, and student’s perceptions, measured by conducting a survey. Students taking the courses with hybrid flipped labs showed a significant increase in their mean grade point average. Increased enrollment for the course. Student material cost was reduced. Virtual prelabs allowed students to come to lab better prepared to conduct each experiment. Virtual labs are great to engage student thinking and get at their conceptual understanding, but it is not a substitute for hands-on lab activities.

VIRTUAL REALITY LABORATORIES This is a prominent still developing field for the application of VRL in engineering education. Table 3 provides some examples (Lewis, 2016).

VIRTUAL LABORATORIES WITH REMOTE ACCESS Distance and online learning techniques are widely taking roots in many higher education institutions around the world. The lack of experimental laboratory works in the field of online engineering education becomes the main obstacle for the adoption of online learning technologies, s technical disciplines are focused more on the real world problem solutions. Practical exercises are important for proficiencies, skills and competences acquisition, and theoretical knowledge application in real problems solution. The only simulation virtual laboratories cannot provide is the knowledge of real production processes. Students should use real devices and equipment and perform operations with real tools to acquire necessary practical skills. Distance and online learning institutions should find the solution for relevant students’ practical experience provision being online at the same time.

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Table 3. Examples of VRL Name

Company

Short description

Reference

Immersive VR Education Ltd.

Virtual Reality Educational Experiences. The Apollo 11 Experience ER VR–Medical Training Simulation. Titans of Space™ by Drash VR. Mars is a Real Place ™ by Drash VR.

http://immersivevreducation.com/

Unimersiv

The Apollo 11 Virtual Reality Experience. Titans Of Space Anatomy VR Experience

https://unimersiv.com/

Discovery

Discovery VR

The Shallows. Stacking Pots. Sorting Crabs. Experience Life As A Crab.

http://www.discoveryvr.com/

EON Reality

EON Reality Inc.

LKDF Interact–Diesel Engine Operation. 3D immersive training platform.

http://www.eonreality.com/

Immersivevreducation

Unimersiv

An online learning course seeks for a system which uses computer and ICT for the student-to-material world interface development. An online learning course seeks the virtual laboratory which can provide access through a Web browser to the real equipment in a real laboratory. This virtual laboratory allows to send control commands which can be preprocessed in order to not damage the real expensive equipment, to execute experiments in a real laboratory on real equipment, and then to collect experimental results. The remote laboratory environment should solve the following specific problems: 1. Full video broadcast of all devices and tools used in experiment is necessary. Laboratory settings should be suitable for all students with different skills level. A system for the automatic detection and notification of mistakes is necessary to provide students with understanding of the origins of their fault. The measured result shall be delivered in the same form, as on real measuring tools. 2. Access to the remote laboratory should be flexible, no time and distance place access limit. Students can perform experiments in the laboratory at any time and from any place. It means that the remote laboratory should be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The devices, the measuring tools, and the server in the remote laboratory should be highly reliable—with minimum failures in the system. 3. Students should not bear any additional expenses on the software or other devices, or on the Internet communication. For reliability guarantee, the system should be served by competent technical personnel. 4. It is important that students get satisfaction and new knowledge from the access to remote laboratories. Demonstrations preceding the implementation of laboratory works are desirable. It is also important that students could discuss experiments in online media with peers and teachers. 5. The remote laboratory allows students to control and carry out the experiments through the Internet on the real equipment. Benefits of a remote laboratory are in a combination of real and simulation virtual laboratories. The training effect depends on the user interface and on the similarity to the real environment installations work. Therefore, the experience of augmented and virtual reality is preferable in virtual laboratories with remote access. 396

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Table 4 provides examples of virtual laboratories with remote access.

VIRTUAL PRACTICE AND INTERNSHIP In this chapter, the terms “virtual practice” and “virtual internship” are referred to the learning process in the form of work practice or internship which is long distant, performed remotely from the training place provider, and exclusively through the Internet and ICT. Virtual internships were considered relatively rare some time ago. In the last few years, they have grown both in number and in variety. The overview by Internships.com, which was performed somewhere in 2011-2012, reported about 20% annual increase in the number of virtual internships, with the number of virtual internship places on their Website only more than 8,000 (Wortham, 2013). However, for many students and young professionals, it is still not really clear what a virtual internship is and what it can offer. For these students it is also unclear why the virtual internship can be better than a traditional internship. Virtual training is very popular among small, medium, and online business and for some industries requiring engineering competences, such as radio-telecasting, and project and design work. Another type of virtual practice consists in virtual excursions at real working places, as part of the university courses; for example, the virtual clinical excursions (Abuatiq & Davis, 2014). The students will be assigned to a virtual patient’s case synchronized with the theory content. Using the Virtual Clinical Excursion, the students will be able to conduct virtual head to toe physical assessment, check patients’ electronic medical record, laboratory values, and administer prescribed medications virtually. A virtual internship does not differ from a traditional internship. Instead of walking to his/her office, the trainee carries out his/her duties remotely. Most of the trainees interact with mentors on Skype, through e-mails or at forums daily or weekly for the tracking of the project work flow. As a result of the development of new technologies (e.g., augmented reality and virtual reality), the training process also changes and can become more attractive to students. For example, the virtual internship of students in startups is offered by the Braathe Enterprise (http://www.braatheenterprises.com/internships/), and other online companies are of interest. The big source of virtual internship opportunities for students -USA citizens-is provided by the Foreign service for virtual students (VSFS) U.S. State Department. For 2015-2016, the e-Internship VSFS program has offered more than 325 projects from 15 U.S. Government agencies: • • • • • • • •

National Aeronautics and Space Administration. National Institute of Standards and Technology. National Institutes of Health. National Weather Service. Peace Corps. The Smithsonian Institution. U.S. Agency for International Development. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

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Table 4. Examples of remote laboratories Name

Company

Short description

Reference

The Labshare Institute (LBI)

National network of Australian remote laboratories. Catalog: Coupled tanks-Generation II, Hydroelectric Energy, Engineering Geology, FPGA 2, iRobot, PLC, Shake table 2DOF, Measurement of signals, and Wind tunnel.

http://www.labshare.edu.au/

Department of Experimental Physics, Palacky University in Olomouc

Remotely-controlled experiments: • Volt-ampere characteristics of six various bulbs. • Deterination of gravity acceleration g. • Study of water flow in the system of tubes. • Weather station in Olomouc. • Monitoring of radioactive background in Olomouc.

http://ictphysics.upol.cz/remotelab/index_en.html

UNILabs

The National Distance Education University (UNED)

The coupled drives, the coupled tanks, Electromechanical systems with a ball on the plane, a ball in a hoop, a ball in a beam, the rotating pendulum, flexible mechanical connections, Mobile robots, Autonomous robots, the servo-driver, Heat Flow systems, 3 DOF Quadrotor control.

http://unilabs.dia.uned.es/

Remote Farm

Technische Universität Berlin

16 experiments (Magnetism, Electrical oscillator, Raman spectroscopy...)

http://remote.physik.tu-berlin.de/ http://www.lila-project.org/content/tuberlin/ index.html

Cambridge Weblabs

University of Cambridge

Two installations: experiments with combustion flame and reactor engineering

http://como.cheng.cam.ac.uk/index.php?Page=R esearch&Section=Weblabs

Remote access instruments for nanotechnologies

The Nanotechnology Applications and Career Knowledge (NACK) Network-NSF National ATE Center for Nanotechnology Workforce Development.

FESEM-field emission scanning electron microscopes, and EDS-energy (X-ray) dispersive spectroscopy

http://nano4me.org/remoteaccess

Nanotechnology Remote Lab

Aristotle University Thessaloniki

Optical properties of thin films, nanomechanical properties of thin films, nanotopography. Supports: • Scanning Force Microscopy. • Scanning Tunneling. • Microscopy.

http://nrl.physics.auth.gr/

Nanoworld

Universität Basel

9 installations, such as Scanning Atom Force Microscopy, data collection from sensors, Harmonic oscillator.

http://labor.nano-world.org/

Virtual Instrument Systems in Reality

The International Association of Online Engineering

Openlabs is an umbrella project for the different remote laboratories at Blekinge Institute of Technology. Currently, there are four different laboratories, in varied areas, such as antenna theory, electronics, security, and vibration analysis.

http://online-engineering.org/SIG_visir.php

Control System Lab

University of Tennessee

Control systems, chemical engineering, dynamical process, and mechanical engineering

http://chem.engr.utc.edu/

Labshare

Remotely controlled experiments

VIPRATECH

University of Leipzig

Chemical engineering.

http://leipzig.vernetztes-studuim.de

TELEROBOT

University of Western Australia

Mechanical engineering.

http://telerobot.mech.uwa.edu.au/

iLab

MIT

Microelectronics, chemical engineering, polymer crystallization, structure engineering, and signal processing.

http://icampus.mit.edu/projects/ilabs/

ROCK

University of Houston

Optical engineering.

http://www.uh.edu/tech/rock/

Chemical Engineering Laboratory

Tambov State Technical University

Installation of high-temperature heating of organic heat carrier.

http://www.tstu.ru/science/seminar/ingobr/pdf/ malygin.pdf

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• • • • • • •

U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. Department of Commerce. U.S. Department of Education. U.S. Department of Homeland Security. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. U.S. Department of State. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

For the 2016-2017, more government agencies than ever (35) are participating in the VSFS (U.S. Department of State, 2016). Columbia University was one of the first institutions that started the virtual program of internship for university students from the campus in 2009; this program still works (Columbia University Center for Career Education, 2017). Table 5 presents examples of modern virtual internship. As technologies are developing and companies are searching the expansion of access methods to the broader range of young specialists, virtual training will probably be more and more popular. With this increased interest in the virtual internship for any student or the young professional, it is useful to study everything about new opportunities which companies can offer for professional internship and the acquisition of practical work experience.

Table 5. Examples of modern virtual internship provided by Columbia University Internship Position

Company

Reference as Valid on 30.05.2016

Web developer/engineering internship

Women’s iLab

http://www.internships.com/engineering/web-developerengineering-internship

Architecture internship/ Santiago, Chile

studentsgoabroad.com

http://www.internships.com/architecture/architecture-internshipsantiago-chile

Audio engineering intern

W.O.W Radio

http://www.internships.com/engineering/audio-engineeringintern-i3189368

Internet radio engineer

WROCK MEDIA & RADIO

http://www.internships.com/engineering/internet-radioengineer-non-pay-intern

Material engineering

ABT.NET

http://www.internships.com/chemistry/material-engineering

Mechanical engineering internship in China

Connections China

http://www.internships.com/mechanical-engineering/ mechanical-engineering-internship-in-china

3D modeling animation and rendering for VR/AR

Virtualapt

https://www.looksharp.com/organizations/virtualapt/listings/3dmodeling-animation-and-rendering-for-vrar--2

Studio broadcast sound engineering technician

Diasporium News-Radio, TV & Web

http://www.internships.com/journalism/studio-broadcast-soundengineering-technician

Aerospace engineering intern /design a next-generation supersonic-business jet

Spike Aerospace

http://www.internships.com/aerospace-engineering/aerospaceengineering-intern-design-a-next-generation-supersonicbusiness-jet

International internship on internal combustion engines in IIICE2016

IIICE-2016

http://www.internships.com/mechanical-engineering/ international-internship-on-internal-combustion-enginesiiice2016-i760818

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CONCLUSION Potential benefits of modern virtual laboratories usage are: • • • • • •

Students’ improvement of practical skills and development of critical skills. Access to the wider set of experimental and practical works in engineering education. Acquiring the experience skills and experimenting training, in addition to theoretical activities in massive open online courses. Costs reduction connected with real laboratories maintenance needs (e.g., materials, expendable reagents and spare parts, and clothes) and their services. The possibility of laboratory experiments which cannot be carried out in real laboratories because of safety problems. Increase in conveniences for students through access to virtual laboratories in the 24/7 mode

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS We see the following edge research in this area. 1. The metadata standard development describing virtual laboratories, virtual practices and virtual internships. 2. Design of continuously updated catalog - directory of products in the field of virtual laboratories, virtual practices and internships with the services and tools for search, discovering, personal recommendation for faculty and students with engineering major. 3. E-portfolio template development of the implemented experience in virtual laboratories introductions into the higher engineering education practices.

RECOMMENDATIONS • •

The creation of multiaccess and shared-use remote centers of virtual installations and laboratories for all universities’ and companies’, Support by the State of Programs of Development of virtual internship for students, similar to the VSFS programs and the virtual internships at Columbia University.

The work was performed as part of the project of the state order Ministry of Education of Russia: project number 622, Development of methodological basis and institutional mechanisms of interaction with the parent organizations by activity on the NNN task of staffing the nanotechnology industry.

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REFERENCES Abuatiq, A., & Davis, C. (2014). Integration of Virtual Clinical Excursions in Medical Surgical Nursing Course [Course]. San Bernardino, CA: California State University. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from https:// contentbuilder.merlot.org/toolkit/html/snapshot.php?id=26184150973506 Balakrishnan, B., & Woods, P. (2009). Virtual laboratories in engineering education: The simulation lab and remote lab. Computer Applications in Engineering Education, 17(1), 108–118. doi:10.1002/cae.20186 Columbia University Center for Career Education. (2017). Virtual Internship Program. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from https://www.careereducation.columbia.edu/programs/virtual-internship-program-vip Feisel, L., & Rosa, A. (2005). The role of the laboratory in undergraduate engineering education. Journal of Engineering Education, 94(1), 121–130. doi:10.1002/j.2168-9830.2005.tb00833.x Gertz, M. W., Stewart, D. B., & Khosla, P. K. (1994). A human-machine interface of distributed virtual laboratories. IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine, 1(4), 5–12. doi:10.1109/100.388265 Gornev, V. F. (1998). Kompyuterno-orientirovannye obuchayuschie tekhnologii v inzhenernoy podgotovke [The computer focused teaching technologies in engineering training]. Moscow: NIIVO. Harms, U. (2000). Virtual and remote labs in physics education. Proceedings of the Second European Conference on Physics Teaching in Engineering Education, 1-6. Lewis, D. (2016). The top 10 companies working on education in virtual reality and augmented reality. Touchstone Research, Inc. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from http://touchstoneresearch.com/the-top-10companies-working-on-education-in-virtual-reality-and-augmented-reality/ The California State University. (n.d.). Course Redesign with Technology. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from http://courseredesign.csuprojects.org/wp/ Trukhin A.V. (2002). Ob ispol’zovanii virtual’nykh laboratoriy v obrazovanii [About use of virtual laboratories in education.] Otkrytoe i distantsionnoe obrazovanie, (4), 67-69. U.S. Department of State. (2016). Virtual Student Foreign Service. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from http:// www.state.gov/vsfs/ Virtual laboratory. (2006). In EduTechWiki. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/ en/Virtual_laboratory Wortham, J. (2013, Jan 30). Virtually there: Working remotely. The New York Times. Retrieved June 2, 2017, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/03/education/edlife/virtual-internships.html

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ADDITIONAL READING American Chemical Society ChemClub. (2016). Virtual Chemistry and Simulations. Retrieved from https:// www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/chemistryclubs/activities/simulations.html Florida International University. (2018). Mobile Virtual Reality Lab. Retrieved from https://communication.fiu.edu/academics/vr-mobile-lab/ Idaho State University. (2016, December). Supplementing gross anatomy lab with virtual cadavers, Retrieved from https://www.bodyviz.com/aspx/newsdetail.aspx?id=15 Lewis, K. (2017, August). The University of Central Florida College of Engineering and Computer Science. New Virtual, Augmented Reality Lab to Prepare Students for Technology Jobs. Retrieved from http://www.cecs.ucf.edu/new-virtual-augmented-reality-lab-to-prepare-students-for-technology-jobs/ Mitchell Waldrop, M. (2013, July). Education online: The virtual lab. Nature (499, 268–270) doi: Retrieved from https://www.nature.com/news/education-online-the-virtual-lab-1.1338310.1038/499268a Patic, P., Duta, L., & Popa, I. (2013, September). Collaborative Platform for Virtual Practice Enterprise Learning. In 14th Working Conference on Virtual Enterprises, (PROVE-2013: Collaborative Systems for Reindustrialization.), IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology. (AICT-408, pp.287-294). Dresden, Germany: Springer. 10.1007/978-3-642-40543-3_31 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. Virtual Lab Training. Gibco Cell Culture Basics virtual training lab. Retrieved from https://jobs.thermofisher.com/page/show/Virtual-Lab-Training

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Center for Career Education of Columbia University (CCE): Department of Columbia University which helps students and alumni develop the key competencies and take the necessary steps to achieve their career goals, pursue their personal and professional objectives. CCE was one of the first-place institutions who that has begun started the virtual program of internship for universities university students from the campus in 2009. Engineering Training: The broad spectrum of disciplines taught regarding structures, machines, tools, systems, components, materials, processes, solutions, and organizations in applied science, technology and types of engineering application in human and social science. Hybrid Laboratory: Virtual laboratory which consists of both a real laboratory, and elements of laboratory control, communication, simulation, experimental data collection, and analysis. MERLOT: Multimedia Education Resource for Learning and Online Teaching at www.merlot.org is a program of the California State University System partnering with education institutions, professional societies, and industry in online learning resources.

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National Platform for Open Education (NPOE): The educational platform offering online courses in basic undergraduate subjects taught at Russian universities. The platform was created by the Association “National Platform for Open Education,” established by eight leading Russian universities. Remote Laboratory: Virtual laboratory which can provide access through the Web browser to the real equipment in a real laboratory. This virtual laboratory allows to send control commands which can be preprocessed in order to do not damage the real expensive equipment, to execute experiments in a real laboratory on the real equipment, and then to collect experimental results. Virtual Reality Laboratory: The training and research laboratory based on the simulation and devices of sense perception, including many person sense organs in the control feedback, where the learner becomes a participant of the “practically real” world in the artificial three-dimensional optical environment. VSFS: Virtual Student Foreign Service of U.S. State Department provides the virtual internship for U.S. citizen students, harnesses their expertise and digital excellence to move the work of U.S. government forward on multiple fronts.

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Chapter 34

Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems Valery Andreevich Pesoshin Kazan National Research Technical University, Russia Ruzil Rashitovich Saubanov Kazan Federal University, Russia Aleksey Nikolayevich Ilyukhin Kazan Federal University, Russia Valeriy Valeryevich Zvezdin Kazan Federal University, Russia Ruslan Rashitovich Saubanov Kazan Federal University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter reveals methodology of decision of actual task on development of the automated system of creation of tests and testing on the platform ASP.NET MVC framework for listeners of machine-building production, according to the program of the advanced training at the refresher courses for working specialties. The algorithms and architecture of the system conforming to the declared requirements are developed. The domain analysis is carried out, and also the main business processes proceeding during a full cycle of examination are considered.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch034

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems

INTRODUCTION According to researches (Jeffrey, 2011) tests are effective method of acquisition of new knowledge. Therefore their application in the field of training is very expedient. In most cases, in educational institutions, the most convenient method of an examination is testing. However checks by classical methods on paper take away a lot of time and forces, allow probability of loss both tests, and their results. Now generally are used the automated systems of testing, which are deprived of the above described problems of a classical method. It is especially urgent for higher educational institutions. Usually process of testing consists of several consecutive stages. Tests with questions are written, to the group of tested is given time of passing of the test, process of testing, check and, at last, return of result. Such process is not ideal, it is insufficiently flexible and each educational institution can have special requirements or wishes on each of stage. It is clear, that the most preferable results it is possible to achieve having created system on order, constantly checking with the customer’s requirements. Unfortunately, existing solutions have certain disadvantages. They may be too expensive, have insufficient or excessive functionality, they can be poorly adapted for use or to have a non-ergonomic interface. Computer technologies for the qualitative evaluation of acquired knowledge by students, is actively used in the modern world for a very long period. We can exhaust various process solutions to determine this knowledge, in the scientific works of many authors of higher schools (Peat, M., & Franklin, S. (2002)), (Thelwall, M. (2000), (Cantillon, P., Irish, B., & Sales, D. (2004)), and (Conole, G., & Warburton, B. (2005)), and what is more unlimited in various fields of science. Security wise, a web based system has primacy over other applications. If the introducer has not designed the test system as a client-server application, then the student will be able to reverse engineer and so that be able to change the test results or other data. In a web application, all logic is on the server and is concealed for external access. Desktop applications depend on the system, therefore, they are not x-plat, but also from external libraries, which makes them relatively bulky (the domain logic code is a miniscule proportion of the entire code). Web applications do not require installation, as opposed to tabletop, and do not depend on either the system or the libraries. And no preparatory work is required for the tests. After analyzing this process, we have identified some common problems: •

• • • • • • • •

There are process steps that can be reduced. For example, for passing the test a student must authorize in the system by entering a username and password, and then find the right test and finally set his hand to testing. These stages can be replaced by only one enter of a specially generated code that runs a test session for a specific student at a specific time. There may be so much of them that it may affect not only the process time but also on the convenience of reference; The system is not designed to provide maximum comfort. Usually this is due to lack of feedback; The aim of this academic research work is to improve the testing process. To achieve these goals requires the following tasks: To carry out the analysis of an objective part; To develop requirements for the design; To build a functional model; To develop the structure of the database; To develop algorithms of the system; 405

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To implement the system.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE IDEF0 MODEL OF THE PROCESS OF CREATING TESTS AND TESTING Actually, the process of formulating the test program issues for the listeners of refresher courses under the program of advanced training are used everywhere and they are recognized by many customers as the most effective way of academic performance rating. This technology is used in a wide range at the higher education institutions (HEI). For the consumer, this technology is not too difficult to find online testing system, but these systems have at least one of the drawbacks, such as: • • • • •

High cost expenses for constant testing system (fepo); Total absence of development programs for the formulation of questions and the more flexible reformatting test area charge putting in by the customer (for example for the industry on advanced training); It’s not x-plat; Require the client (individual application on a computer); Introduced in advanced training system is not always convenient.

In educational establishments, such as schools or Institutions of higher education a testing process has similar character and, as a rule, we follow one script. As, in most cases, the informative systems are used, but not a classic “paper” method, then at first organizer of test (teacher), is authorized (Jone Dunlosky, 2013). For the analysis of the testing process is chosen the methodology IDEF0. The result of the analysis is a functional model of the process of creating and passing tests. The purpose of the knowledge testing system is to provide the ability to create different types of questions, keep them in a pool, combine into the modules, to create different configurations of tests, assign the passage of test groups, receive the knowledge evaluation (Kalugyan, 1999). The process of creating and passing tests in the model IDEF0 decomposed into 5 processes: • • • • • •

Registration of new courses, modules, teachers, students, adding to the system of new points in case of their appearance; The creation of new questions - adding new issues to the database; The creation of test configurations - the creation of a test template for multiuse; Setting of the test - the appointment of the test group and the time of test; Testing - taking a test at the scheduled time of the event; Results announcement - announcement of the results of the test organizer (Brice, 2009).

Creating a contextual diagram and passing tests performed generally on the Figure 1. The control processes performed by the Administrator, the student and the Teacher. The administrator is involved only at the stage of registration of users and entities of the system, in all other processes, except for testing of the Student is involved a Teacher.

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Figure 1. The Context diagram of А- 0 models of IDEF0 of process of creation of tests and testing

The aim of the process of the testing execusion is to obtain objective results of the assessment of students’ knowledge (Bursztein, 2011). At the subsidiary diagram is shown a more detailed task management process on the Figure 2. The first process is the registration of new entities of the system. Under the entities are refers the users of the system as the Teacher and the Student, modules, subjects, disciplines. This process is performed by the Administrator, which by default exists in the system.

Figure 2. The contextual diagram A0 of model IDEF0 process of creating tests and testing

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The result of this process is the list of authorized users of the system. The Authorized teacher can do the process of creating new questions and adding them to a shared database. If the database has Modules, Subjects and Questions, the teacher performs the process of Creating a new configuration (or he may select a previously created). Under the configuration refers to test properties such as number of questions, duration, discipline, and included modules, etc. Created configuration stored in the database and can be used again in the future. The test configuration is input for a process to Create and assign a test event (Korzhov, 1997). The process is intended to specify a group of students who would pass the test of discipline and time range of the test. The test event, in turn, serves as input to the Testing process. This is the only process which is performed by the Student. At this stage, the Student gets acquainted with the properties of the test and begin answering questions. Upon completion of the testing data results are stored in the database. The last process is the final announcement of results by the Teacher. Each role has it’s own tasks, hence their regulations. Activity of the teacher is regulated by the rules of the creation and organization of test administrator activities the rules for adding entities to the database, and the student obeys the rules of passing the test. All processes are subdued to their own regulations. Desktop applications are system-dependent, hence they are not cross-platform, as well as from external libraries, which makes them relatively bulky (business logic code is an insignificant part of the total code). The web application does not require installation, unlike the table, and do not depend on the system or from libraries. That is, for tests are not required any preparatory work.

ANALYSIS OF PLATFORMS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE TESTING SYSTEM The testing process is not resourse intensive and requires high performance, which could provide a desktop application. The productivity of web-application straight depends on descriptions of server and carrying capacity of network. Modern local networks have a good carrying capacity it is possible to say that in this case web-application has a high productiveness (Galiullin, 2011). Desktop applications depend on the system and are not cross-platform, as well as from external libraries, that makes them relatively unmanageable. Web applications do not require installation, as distinct from the desktop, and they are not depend on the system, or from libraries that do not require preparatory work. Update handler function of desktop applications, in the case of errors or other reasons is a separate task for the design. Due to the complexity and uncriticality level, it’s just not realized, but is offered a full reinstall software. Description of the advantages and disadvantages of a comparison of desktop and web applications are listed in Table 1. Table 1. Comparison of desktop and web applications Criterion

Desktop Applications

Web-Application

Safe

law

high

Cross-platform

no

yes

Do not require installation

no

yes

Don’t depend on from external library

no

yes

high

high

Productiveness

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ANALYSIS OF EXISTING SOLUTIONS Using search engines, you can find a lot of sites related to software testing. Most of them offer passing tests, but not services. Those, however, who offers solutions for the automation of the testing process have not update their system for reasons of either stability or lack of support. Such proposals seem outdated. You can find fresh solutions, but each of them has certain disadvantages. For example, INDIGO system offers excellent opportunities, but the app is platform-dependent(Windows). Among the found solutions there are several basic, supporting of which lasted for a long time or their credibility was once assigned to users. The system can be assessed according to three criteria: the richness of the features, platform independence (thin client), convenience. Airen is a free program that allows you to create tests to check knowledge through testing in the local network, over the Internet or on a single computer. Tests may include tasks of different types: select one or more correct answers, with the input response from the keyboard, matching, ordering and sorting activities. The synthesis is a system designed to create and edit tests, testing and results analysis. It has a rather broad opportunity for test creation. In addition to the images, for example, you can add music or video. There is a system of the complexity of the issue, configuration mixing. Also has all the standard types, such as: • • • • •

The selection of one correct answer; Selecting multiple correct answer choices; Direct input from keyboard; Compliance; Location in the correct order.

It is convenient, cross-platform, has a fairly rich feature set, looks outdated. OpenTEST 2.0 is a computer testing system of knowledge created for an in-person final control of quality of mastering the theoretical material, the acquired knowledge and practical skills of trainees in large organizations scale enterprises with complex distributed structure. The main feature of the system OpenTEST 2.0 is its focus on providing testing of students with the most rigorous reporting and very low requirements on the hardware of the computer. It’s not comfortable, cross-platform, has a powerful set of functions. Comparison of the systems is shown in a Table 2. Table 2. The comparative table Cross-Platform

Doesn’t Require a Client

Uncritical to Resourses

Convenient

Unreload

Airen

-

-

+

-

-

synthesis

+

+

+

-

-

OpenTEST 2.0

-

-

+

-

-

Required system

+

+

+

+

+

Name

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System Requirements Based on the analysis of process of task management and existing systems were developed requirements to the designed system.

Functional The system should allow: • • • • • •

To register students and teachers, groups; To register the modules, disciplines; To enrich the database with new questions that are bound to the module; To edit the students and teachers, groups; Edit modules and disciplines; To edit questions; To create questions using the integrated designer:

• • • •

Specify the question’s text; Specify the question’s type; Cto specify the answers to the question; To link the image, if needed. To create test configurations using the integrated designer:

• • • •

Specify the number of questions; To specify modules, and discipline; To specify ranges of estimates; To specify the minimum percentage of modules. To create tests’ events using the integrated designer:

• • • • • • • • • •

410

To specify a group; To specify the test configuration; Specify the time range of the test; To edit and delete test configurations; To edit and delete tests’ events; To view the results of the tests; To view details of any entity (teachers, students, disciplines, modules, etc.); To pass the test; To switch between all issues in the course of the test; To prematurely end the test.

 Improvement of the Effectiveness of Testing Procedure by the Automated Systems

Non-Functional The system should: • • • •

Be able to work with DBMS PgAdminIII; Be designed on the base of the MVC; Be universal (to have all the standard question types, suitable for any type of testing); Be easy to use.

DATA STRUCTURE TEST SYSTEM On the basis of the analysis of the requirement specification of process of management of tasks and the existing systemic requirements functionality of the system was defined.

Functional, as the System Must Be Able: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

To register students and teachers, groups; to register the modules, disciplines; To fill up a base the new questions tied to the module; To edit students and teachers, groups; To edit the modules and disciplines; To edit questions; To create questions by means of the integrated designer (to specify text of question; To specify the type of question; To specify answers to the question; To attach an image, if needed); To create configurations of tests by means of the integrated designer (to specify the amount of questions; To specify the modules and discipline; To specify the ranges of estimations; To specify a minimum percent on the modules); To create the events of tests by means of the integrated designer (to show a group; To specify configuration of test; To specify the temporal range of passing of test); To edit and delete configurations of tests; To edit and delete the events of tests; To look over the results of passing of tests; To look over the details of any points (teachers, students, disciplines, modules etc.); To pass a test; to switch between any questions during a test; To prematurely to complete a test.

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Non-Functional, in Which the System Should: • • • •

Be able to work with the DBMS PgAdminIII; Be designed on the basis of the MVC; Be universal (to have all the standard types of questions, suitable for any type of testing); Be simple in the use (Biktimirow, 2014).

The following information about the domain was obtained during the development of ERD model: a list of entities and entity attributes list. As a database management system is used PgAdmin, and database diagram of the data structure in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Data structure diagram DB

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The software architecture of the system in Figure 4 (a) gives an indication of the interaction of the system components. The dashed line on the diagram means the ratio of “Uses”. Architecture of the program “layered” and each subsequent level, starting with “Direct work with the database” is an increasingly high level of abstraction. This architecture is perfect for architectural applications MVC pattern, it is considered appropriate standards and recommended at the development (Osovsky, 2002). Entity Framework (hereinafter EF) can be used instead of pure SQL queries and received data strings directly to classes. To do this, it uses the essence (the basic business modesl of the project) and mapping. Through EF can receive class objects using Linq-requeries, which makes the work with the database is extremely comfortable. At the next level, above EF, there are repositories. They contain methods that are logically grouped to work with a specific set of entities. For example, a repository for the work with users contains all the operations that should be carried out with users on the database, such as “Get all users with the role of “teacher”, or “Create a user with the role of” teacher “, the name of ” teacher ” and the password ” secret ” etc. It helps to avoid the “spaghetti” -code, its duplication; to receive a higher level of abstraction. Over the repositories there are the controllers, they communicate the user and the system and contain the proper logic to perform this role. For example, the test controller includes methods “Output the question,” “Get the image for the question,” “Receive an answer from the student.” The highest level is “Representing”, that the user sees and interacts with, what is actually “page”. The “Controller” engages in filling of representing, their conclusion and receipt. During analysis were educed the functions testing of the module. The functions of the other modules in most cases provide CRUD-operations, the validation operations help to output sophisticated components and software architectural solutions (Rykov, 2013). The function “to give access to the test on the key” is the mechanism of reduction of time and amount of operations for access of student to the test. Instead of input of login and password, independent search of necessary test, it is enough to enter only code of authentication, and the system will start implementation of test. On a picture 4 the diagram of activity is presented for the grant of access to the test on the key.

RESULTS The basic requirements are formed to functionality of the system, and also it’s limitations. Based on the set of requirements, the functional modules were distinguished, algorithms and architecture of the systems were worked out. The system of client-server architecture on the improvement of the productivity of the system, and also expansion of functional possibilities is worked out.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The design workflow of this application on the ASP.NET MVC Framework platform is tightly regimented by the customer, allowing subsequent implementation and maintaining the software at production site using its own resources.

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Figure 4. Algorithms of the testing module

a - The diagram of activity for the grant of access to the test on the key b - The Diagram of activity of the selection of questions for a test

CONCLUSION Analysis of subject domain has shown all the strengths and weaknesses of key business processes, taking place in the course of a full cycle of testing the knowledge on advanced training program by listeners of engineering production. Considered task of developing an automated test system creation and testing ASP.NET MVC Framework platform meets all the requirements imposed by the customer. An aim for the increase of efficiency of process of realization of tests satisfies fully. Tests are checked up automatically and instantly; by the exception of human factor at verification of answers; by creation of general bank of questions, and further to use configurations only. The aim of the study is to increase the efficiency of the process of testing. This is achieved by savings - tests are checked automatically and instantly and teachers do not need to spend their time; with the exception of the human factor in the validation of the answers – the machine is impartial and does not make mistakes; the creation of a common Bank of questions which can to fill up all teachers and should use only the configuration. At the preliminary stage, an analysis of the subject area was conducted; were considered the main business processes in the course of a complete cycle of the test knowledge.

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In the process, were formed the main requirements to the system functionality and its limitations. Based on the set of requirements were allocated the functional modules, and were developed algorithms and the system architecture. As a result of the implementation system has been developed client-server architecture. The goals and objectives of the work are performed, the developed system meets the specified requirements. Thereafter it is recommended to continue work on improving the system performance and expanding functionality.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The work is performed according to the Russian Government Program of Competitive Growth of Kazan Federal University.

REFERENCES Biktimirov, R.L., Valiev, R.A., Galiullin, L.A., & Zubkov, E.V. (2014). Automated test system of diesel engines based on fuzzy neural network. Research Journal of Applied Sciences., 9, 1059–1063. Brice, A. (2009). Is desktop software dead. Successful software. Retrieved March 31, 2017, from http:// successfulsoftware.net/2013/10/28/is-desktop-software-dead Bursztein, E. (2011). Analyzing web application performance, elie. Retrieved March 31, 2017, from http://www.elie.net/blog/web/analyzing-web-application-performance Cantillon, P., Irish, B., & Sales, D. (2004). Using computers for assessment in medicine. BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.), 329(7466), 606–609. doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7466.606 PMID:15361445 Conole, G., & Warburton, B. (2005). A review of computer-assisted assessment. ALT-J, 13(1), 17–31. doi:10.3402/rlt.v13i1.10970 Galiullin, L. A., & Zubkov, E. V. (2011). Hybrid Neural Network for the Adjustment of Fuzzy System when Simulating Tests of Internal Combustion Engines. Russian Engineering Research, 31(5), 439–443. doi:10.3103/S1068798X11050273 John, D., Katherine, A. R., Elizabeth, J. M., Mitchell, J. N., & Daniel, T. W. (Eds.). (2013). Improving Students’ Learning With Effective Learning Techniques Promising Directions From Cognitive and Educational Psychology. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14, 1. PMID:26173287 Kalugyan, K. H. (Ed.). (1999). Test systems in high school as a learning management tool. Rostov-on-Don. Karpicke, J., Blun, D., & Janell, R. (2011). Retrieval Practice Produces More Learning than Elaborative Studying with Concept Mapping. Science, 331(6018), 772-775. Korzhov, V. (1997). Multi-level client-server system. Retrieved March 31, 2017, from http://www.osp. ru/nets/1997/06/142618 Osovsky, C. (Ed.). (2002). Neural networks for information processing. Finance and Statistics, 235-238.

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Peat, M., & Franklin, S. (2002). Supporting student learning: The use of computer–based formative assessment modules. British Journal of Educational Technology, 33(5), 515–523. doi:10.1111/14678535.00288 Rykov V.P. (2013) Automated technology modular principle of learning and self-organizing artificial neural networks. Vestnik Tambov University. Series: Natural and Technical Sciences. Nº4-1. 1428-1430. Thelwall, M. (2000). Computer-based assessment: A versatile educational tool. Computers & Education, 34(1), 37–49. doi:10.1016/S0360-1315(99)00037-8

ADDITIONAL READING Al-Arimi, A. A. A. A., Masrom, M., & Mahmood, N. H. N. (2016). The moderating effect of Islamic work ethics on the relationship between knowledge management capabilities and organizational performance at the private higher education institutions in Oman. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology, 94 (2), pp. 396-407. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2s2.0-85008155981&partnerID=40&md5=9c0f5ac46af336cd4f728fe5e6c6a8d4 Azarov, V. N., Gudkov, Y. I., & Dobrov, G. A. (2016). Methodology of creation of electronic learning services and their integration into IT-infrastructure. IEEE Conference on Quality Management, Transport and Information Security, Information Technologies, IT and MQ and IS 2016. Nº 7751909, pp. 13-15. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85006959953&doi=10.1109%2fITMQIS .2016.7751909&partnerID=40&md5=bab4c455a2eed2b5bc4739ed1b6d68df Hasanah, U., Permanasari, A. E., Kusumawardani, S. S., & Pribadi, F. S. (2016). A review of an information extraction technique approach for automatic short answer grading. Proceedings - 2016 1st International Conference on Information Technology, Information Systems and Electrical Engineering, ICITISEE 2016, Nº 7803072, pp. 192-196. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2s2.0-85011260718&doi=10.1109%2fICITISEE.2016.7803072&partnerID=40&md5=fcdd8de12c5f7 7839c3a5259518a099f Karna, N., Supriana, I., & Maulidevi, N. (2016). Implementation of e-leaming based on knowledge management system for Indonesian academic institution. Proceedings - 2016 1st International Conference on Information Technology, Information Systems and Electrical Engineering, ICITISEE 2016, Nº 7803045, pp. 43-48. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85011269876&doi =10.1109%2fICITISEE.2016.7803045&partnerID=40&md5=31929ca8824aa8f532a5b5d8b2b0d41c Karpova, M., Shmelev, V., & Dukhanov, A. (2016). Information resource based on scientific software as a core of interdisciplinary learning resources. Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, Nº 7757456. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85006716674&doi=10.1109%2 fFIE.2016.7757456&partnerID=40&md5=c603b5b3aa65b6ce6179449e0113ebe9 Kryukov, V., & Gorin, A. (2016). Digital technologies as education innovation at universities. Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce, 21 (3), Nº 225. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2s2.0-85009067737&partnerID=40&md5=f2cd2c4e2456106890180d22c95e59b9

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Raisian, K., Yahaya, J., & Deraman, A. (2016). Current challenges and conceptual model of green and sustainable software engineering. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology, 94 (2), pp. 428-443. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85008190877&partnerID=4 0&md5=f7662f7e774301e5b0e5be5f5215f2bb Shmelev, V., Karpova, M., Kogtikov, N., & Dukhanov, A. Students’ development of information-seeking skills in a computer-aided quest. Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, Nº 7757402. from https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85006710850&doi=10.1109%2fFIE.2016.775 7402&partnerID=40&md5=7dbd63fa93dab8deb6eb2facd2e5499b

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Assessment: The evaluation of learning objectives and activities. Business Logic: Is the logic that relates to a business process. Create-Read-Update-Delete: A standard set of operations when dealing with entities. Create, view, edit, or delete. GET: An operation that will only be used to provide information to the client. For example, display a page. Mapping: The method of binding database fields and class fields. Performance-Based Assessment Cycle: A theoretical model that explains the process of evaluating. Repository: Separates business logic and interaction with the source database and combines all data access operations in one area, which greatly simplifies the creation and maintenance of data.

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Integration of Moodle and Electronic University Systems at BMSTU Alexander Sergeevich Chernikov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Ravil Shamilievich Zagidullin Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Alexander Alexandrovich Chibisov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT The free platform Moodle was integrated with protected University Administrative Information System Electronic University (UAIS EU) of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, which serves to support the administrative work for control of educational process. The following main problems were solved: creation of unified data representation in the two systems; creation of students’ and training courses’ databases in Moodle based on data from UAIS EU. As result unique software was developed, new quality of service was obtained, namely different sides of University activity such as teaching, learning, and administrative control of educational process were automated and joined together; the time required for information processing and administrative decision-making was reduced; the number of errors in the systems due to the influence of a human factor was reduced. The results obtained can be used to simplify the work of teachers and enhance the performance and operational efficiency of the administrative system at any university.

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND In most universities the educational process is organized and managed with the help of special information control systems. Some universities use universal Learning Management System (LMS) software platforms adapted for their tasks by the suppliers of the LMS services (Intranet: Academic—Sistema, n.d.; Avtomaticheskaja Sistema, n.d.; University Management System, n.d.; Blackboard Learning SysDOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch035

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tem, n.d.; Edmodo, n.d.; Google Class, n.d.; Moodle Docs 2.8., n.d.; Schoology, n.d.). Other universities create their own systems and use them separately or in combination with supplier services (Deligirova, 2013; Kochetov, Krapuhina, & Pronichkin, 2009; Logvinov, & Romanov, 2014; Oliveira, Vasconcelos, Queiroz, Queiroz, & Hékis, 2011; Palahicky, 2014; University Information System, n.d.; F. Alam, Hadgraft, & Q. Alam, 2014). Frequently, especially in engineering education, standard tools do not allow the LMS to perform the necessary activities, such as laboratory work, experiments, etc., which require additional software. Additionally, LMS software does not take into account specific features or needs of educational organizations. So, modifications must be made to the existing university system to enable it to perform functions that are available in other LMS software, or the university may need to make a full transition to a new LMS, which can be very labor-intensive and time-consuming, as well as impractical. Therefore, the preferred method is to integrate the existing university systems software with the LMS software while making minimal modifications to these systems during the integration process. Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU) uses the LMS MOODLE system and its own University Administrative Information System called Electronic University (UAIS EU). UAIS EU was created independently and has been in operation for several years. This system is used not only as an information resource, but also as a support tool for adoption and implementation of management decisions at the different levels of the university administration (Ageeva, Baldin, Baryshnikov et al., 2009). The UAIS EU stores all necessary information about the curricula, students, modules they study, and the grades they get, and makes it possible to perform statistical processing of data on a number of parameters, providing the university administration with objective information for managing the educational process. This resource is accessible from the internal network of BMSTU (Electronic University of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, n.d.). The teaching staff of the university uses a very popular, free, and open-source LMS MOODLE in their daily work, which is primarily oriented towards organizing interactions between a professor and students in the process of full-time, as well as blended or distance, learning (Gardel, Bravo, Revenga, Lázaro, & García, 2012; Poncela, 2013; Swart, 2015). In MOODLE, it is easy to create and store different teaching and learning materials, carry out assessment activities, and store the results. MOODLE can be accessed from the specialized Electronic Educational System of BMSTU (Electronic Educational System of Bauman Moscow State Technical University, n.d.). Unfortunately, MOODLE and the UAIS EU operate separately due to the impossibility of direct interaction, which reduces the practical value and effectiveness of their use. A professor works with students in the MOODLE environment. For this purpose, he or she has to input all the data about the students, modules, grades, and so on, into the system. A considerable part of this data has to be inputted into the UAIS EU as well. The data are inputted into the two systems manually by a professor. Thus, at the stage of information exchange between MOODLE and the UAIS EU, a human factor occurs. This reduces the operating speed, leads to data transmission errors, and reduces the relevance of the transmitted data, as a professor is forced to input practically the same data into two different systems manually, which inevitably increases the probability of error occurrence. Working hours of a professor are used irrationally, and there is a problem of ambiguity and synchronization of data in MOODLE and the UAIS EU. A temporary delay in data input reduces not only the relevance of the data, but also the effectiveness of adopted administrative decisions. In order to reduce the influence of a human factor, to ensure unambiguous representation and synchronization of data, it is expedient to integrate the UAIS EU and the learning environment MOODLE.

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Both systems were carefully studied (Ageeva, Baldin, Baryshnikov et al., 2009; Moodle Docs 2.8., n.d.). As a result it was concluded that in order to integrate the UAIS EU and MOODLE, the following tasks had to be solved: • • •

Formation of a conception of unified data representation in both systems with the development of a list of necessary modifications of data structures. Determination of principles and rules of bilateral data exchange between the systems in the sequence reflecting the real teaching and learning process and the priority of the primary sources of information. Development, debugging. and testing of a software module that implements the previously specified conceptions and rules. and automates data exchange between the UAIS EU and MOODLE.

In the first place, when integrating two different systems, there is a problem of correspondence between the content and representation format of the data, which will be involved in the interaction of the integrating systems.

METHODOLOGY OF FORMING UNIFIED DATA REPRESENTATION IN MOODLE AND THE EU To determine the possibility of forming unified data representation, researchers analyzed the content of the stored information and the formats of data representation in both systems. As known, MOODLE is used for support of distance and blended learning, creating e-learning materials, and conducting instruction classes. MOODLE allows users to upload necessary materials for methodological support of classes and laboratory works, as well as to organize student-professor interactions, including sending files for checking (homework, papers, laboratory reports). In addition, the system allows users to maintain records of the current academic performance of the students. Therefore, MOODLE is practically at the center of creating learning materials and ensuring interactive communication amongst the participants of the educational process. Assessment activities can be carried out by internal means of the system as well as by those, that are being implemented in MOODLE, such as the Hot Potatoes freeware plugin for MOODLE (Büchner, 2016). Automation in conducting assessment activities enables a user to obtain the data directly as points of the corresponding module. The system can serve as the primary source of information about the academic performance of the students, for the UAIS EU as well. However, being more of a professor’s tool, MOODLE has some redundancy relating to the needs of the UAIS EU administrative system. For this reason, part of the information stored in MOODLE is not intended for transmission to the UAIS EU. The UAIS EU system developed at BMSTU is a protected system with its own original structure and functional capabilities. Therefore, it is impossible to make any modifications of structures or core data within this system from outside (Ageeva, Baldin, Baryshnikov et al., 2009). MOODLE is, on the contrary, an open environment and provides opportunities to add to and partially change its data structures in accordance with the requirements of users or external systems. Thus, to ensure correct interaction between the systems, it is necessary to bring the data storage format in MOODLE in line with the requirements of the UAIS EU.

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All objects in the UAIS EU system—students, modules, assessment activities, etc.—have unique identifiers (GUID—Globally Unique Identifier), which enable users to identify them correctly. Accordingly, any data that are supposed to be associated with these objects (for example, grades for the assessment activities stored in the UAIS EU) should use those identifiers as well. Using GUID definitely guarantees the accuracy of the data chain “student—module—assessment activity—result.” To ensure mutual unambiguous data compatibility of the two systems, it is necessary that MOODLE also use the same identifiers. However, the standard scheme of the MOODLE database does not provide for such a possibility. This problem can be solved either by adding additional fields for storing the received GUID from the UAIS EU to the corresponding tables of the MOODLE database, or by creating separate tables for storing additional parameters received from the UAIS EU. However, the latter method seems undesirable, as the creation of additional tables will lead to excessive duplication of data. There are several ways to create additional fields to store information in the tables of the MOODLE database—the direct execution of special SQL-scripts on the database, the use of database management systems (DBMS), or web-interfaces (DeLisle, 2016). In this paper, researchers have proposed and implemented a variant of the modification of tables in the MOODLE database in accordance with the data format of the UAIS EU, with the help of special PHP-scripts using MOODLE’s API. The use of API-functions instead of direct SQL-requests ensures data security and integrity, allows the developer to avoid errors, and provides the developer with the opportunity to use simpler and clearer structures when working with the database (Moodle Docs 2.8., n.d.). This way of working with the database has proved to be the most effective and convenient when solving the problem of modifying the database structure, as it provides a high level of abstraction and data security, and also does not depend on the DBMS used. As a result of the modification, it has become possible to properly download data from the UAIS EU. Thus, we have ensured the management of the same data at the level of the UAIS EU administrative system, as well as directly in the educational process within the MOODLE environment. It should be noted that the direct modification of tables of the MOODLE database has a number of disadvantages, the primary one being the impossibility to save these changes when MOODLE is reinstalled or upgraded to a newer version (Anisimov, 2009). However, this problem can be resolved by using backup copies of the database and relaunching scripts for modifying the tables before deploying a backup copy in the updated system.

IMPLEMENTATION OF DATA EXCHANGE BETWEEN MOODLE AND THE EU Data Import Into MOODLE The next step in the implementation of the integration of the UAIS EU and MOODLE is the data import about the students and modules. Due to the fact that only the UAIS EU is an official source of these data at BMSTU, all software environments that require these data should send a request to the corresponding subsystems of the UAIS EU to obtain them. The UAIS EU is a protected system, which means that the required data from this system can be obtained only by downloading them via special web-services provided by the corresponding subsystems of the UAIS EU, and while doing so, rights of access are required for the requested information. Having processed the obtained in case of such requests XML-files, it is possible to select the required data (Vaqqas, 2016).

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When solving the problem of integrating the two systems, it is necessary to ensure the accurate transmission of data about the lists of students, modules they study, and content of the assessment activities from the UAIS EU to MOODLE. The data are imported with the help of special PHP-scripts using MOODLE’s API for creating corresponding objects (users and courses) in this system. The data imported from the UAIS EU can be divided into two subtasks: the import of the lists of students, and the import of modules and assessment activities. When working with the lists of students, the necessary information is transferred to the MOODLE database, and users of MOODLE are created because of the obtained data as well (Figure 1). Meanwhile, logins and passwords for newly created accounts are automatically generated. As a result, there is a set of new users in MOODLE whose parameters fully correspond with the data from the UAIS EU. The task of the import of modules and assessment activities is a bit more complicated. Usually modules (called “Courses” in MOODLE) and their content in the MOODLE environment are created by professors who deliver these modules. The data about a particular module, including assessment activities, should strictly correspond to the curriculum stored in the UAIS EU. This means that when creating a new module in MOODLE, a professor should observe the main parameters of the modules both in MOODLE and in the UAIS EU. Creating the corresponding objects in MOODLE for all modules and assessment activities (“assignments” in MOODLE) manually can lead to errors and inaccuracies, which will make the transmission of the information about the academic performance of the students to the UAIS EU impossible. To eliminate the probability of error occurrence, the lists of modules and assessment activities in MOODLE have to be automatically generated based on the data obtained from the UAIS EU. At the same time, a template has to be created for each module, that is the initial version of a module in MOODLE, with the name corresponding to the curriculum, and a set of assessment activities (assignments) envisaged by the curriculum. After that, a professor can independently set the parameters of the course, place the assessment activities into the right sections, and add necessary methodological materials. The module and assessment activities retain their special identifiers obtained from the UAIS EU, even when the names of the corresponding objects are changed. This ensures unambiguous correspondence of modules and activities both in the curriculum of the UAIS EU and in the MOODLE environment. Figure 1. The “users” table in the MOODLE database with the data from UAIS EU

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Peculiarities of the Representation of the Module Structure in MOODLE When creating an automatic module structure in MOODLE, it is necessary to decide on the representation of assessment activities within a module. The completion of assessment activities shall be graded, so for the representation of these activities in MOODLE it is necessary to use a module that will allow a professor to enter a grade. This module is an “Assignment” (Anisimov, 2009). There are two main approaches that can be used to represent the assessment activities. The first and simplest one is unambiguous correspondence between the module “Assignment” in the MOODLE environment and an assessment activity, for example, laboratory work. In this case, all laboratory works shall be represented by assignments with a corresponding name. This structure is suitable when there is no need to distinguish separate stages of the completion of an assessment activity, or when grades for all the stages are entered by a professor manually. However, when there is a need to clearly distinguish the stages of the completion of an assignment (for example, “given,” “completed,” “defensed,” for laboratory works), or if a grade for the completion of part of the assignment will be entered automatically (for example, after the completion of a test embedded in MOODLE), in this case, it is necessary to make a module structure, in which the stages of assessment activities shall be distinguished. It should be noted that this approach has a disadvantage in that the number of assignments within a module increases significantly. For example, if a module envisages eight laboratory works, then eight assignments will be represented in MOODLE. In the case of using the standard approach, however, if we distinguish three stages in each work, there will be 24 assignments in MOODLE accordingly. Therefore, the use of this approach shall be methodically justified in each individual case. It is necessary to note that despite the automatic generation of modules and assessment activities, a professor shall observe the constancy of constituents obtained on the basis of data from the UAIS EU. This means that it is not allowed to delete either any assignments from the template or modules, as this will lead to incorrect transmission of information about the academic performance of the students to the UAIS EU. However, it will be possible to add teaching and learning materials, and even assessment activities, which are not envisaged in the curriculum, without transmitting them to the UAIS EU, and also it permits a change of their location within a module and a change of their names.

Export of Data From MOODLE It should be noted that as MOODLE is used directly in the educational process and has some redundancy in terms of needs of the UAIS EU, a number of grades, including grades for laboratory works and assessment activities, can be stored within the framework of this environment without transmitting to the UAIS EU. However, the results of the assessment activities included in the corresponding modules of the UAIS EU shall be uploaded in the UAIS EU. Thus, the MOODLE environment will be the primary source of information about the academic performance of the students for the UAIS EU system. MOODLE receives data from the UAIS EU about students and modules, which are necessary for the organization of the educational process, and sends back the information about the process of performing assessment activities by the students. The accuracy of the information transmitted to the UAIS EU is ensured by the fact that both systems use the same initial data (students, modules, assessment activities). Data exchange between both internal subsystems and external users of the UAIS EU is conducted on the basis of the web-services technology. The unified format used for data representation is XML.

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Thus, to be sure that the UAIS EU has received the data about the completion of the assessment activities, MOODLE shall provide this information in an XML-file. This problem is solved with the help of a PHP-script, which implements the work of a web-service and ensures the generation of an XML-file. Its structure (a tree of XML-elements) is determined by the requirements of the subsystem “Current academic performance” of the UAIS EU system. As the UAIS EU is a “closed” system, it is impossible to upload any files into its internal structures. Hence, the information about the results of the assessment activities is generated upon request from the UAIS EU, where the parameter of this request is the interval of time during which the grades in MOODLE have been changed. Only those grades that were changed over the given period of time are transmitted to the UAIS EU.

Data Exchange Automation Software Module In accordance with the procedure described above, the problems of ensuring unified data representation and information exchange between the systems have been resolved by creating special PHP-scripts, which use the web-services technologies and API-functions provided by MOODLE. After combining these scripts, the software module integrated into the local server of MOODLE has been generated, which ensures automatic data exchange between MOODLE and the UAIS EU. The functional diagram of the module is shown in Figure 2. Functionally, we can distinguish two types of submodules in this module: of data import and export, while during the process of import of data, the MOODLE database is also prepared to receive data from the UAIS EU. Figure 2. Functional diagram of the integration module of MOODLE and the UAIS EU

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Using the submodules “Formation of the list of students” and “Formation of the list of modules (courses)” is impossible without prior activation of the submodule “Modification of tables.” Moreover, the submodule “Sending information to the UAIS EU” will function only providing that the data in the MOODLE environment are represented in the EU format and attached to the identifiers of this system. Due to this, we have ensured a strictly regulated sequence of launching data import submodules. Testing on real study groups and modules (courses) has shown the efficiency of the created software module: the MOODLE database tables have been successfully modified, and then the lists of students, modules, and assessment activities have been imported from the UAIS EU. This has allowed the teaching staff to work with the official lists of study groups and updated curricula. Also, researchers have tested the mechanism of transferring grades from MOODLE to the UAIS EU, which allowed the upload of the information about the academic performance of the students to the EU quickly enough and without additional input of data.

DISCUSSION The developed software module can increase its functionality with further modernization of the UAIS EU system. One of the possible improvements of the software integration module is the implementation of the function of updating the lists of students and modules (courses). During the educational process, data changes in the UAIS EU system are possible, so it is necessary to ensure the relevance of the information uploaded to MOODLE earlier. For this purpose, it is necessary to develop a separate module that will compare the information about the students and modules in MOODLE and the UAIS EU and, if necessary, will make appropriate changes in MOODLE.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The problems of integrating LMS and UAIS were considered using specific systems – MOODLE and UAIS EU. Further research can be directed to the development of a universal solution for the use of various systems of both types. First of all, it is necessary to study and implement the possibilities for integrating other common LMS with the university system. The question of integrating MOODLE with different UAIS is much more complicated, since in most cases such systems are protected (like UAIS EU) and only employees of these universities can work with them (in terms of software development). Therefore, one of the possible ways to solve this problem is to create a simple and universal mechanism for data exchange with university systems, which would require a minimum of improvements to existing systems and services of universities.

CONCLUSION In the process of integrating MOODLE and the UAIS EU, researchers have managed to create a unique software product that solves the following tasks:

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• • •

Brings data in the systems to a unified view by modifying the data structure in MOODLE (to be more exact, by modifying database tables). Imports updated official data about the students, modules (courses), and assessment activities to MOODLE. Exports data about the academic performance of the students to the information control system of the university in real-time mode with the use of web-services technology.

The integration of MOODLE and the UAIS EU has allowed researchers to avoid spending resources on a radical change of the existing system, to minimize modifications in both systems and to get the following practically significant results: • • • • •

To eliminate incomplete correspondence of the core information (students and modules) in the learning and administrative systems of the university. To get rid of untimely data input about the completion of the assessment activities to the administrative system. To use the working hours of the teaching staff more rationally (by eliminating the necessity of duplication (double input) of data in two parallel systems). To reduce the number of errors in the systems due to the influence of a human factor. To improve the performance and operational efficiency of the administrative system of the university.

In addition, MOODLE can be used as an aggregator of data from a variety of laboratory systems and programs used in the learning process, and to prepare these data to assist with a student’s progress for transfer to UAIS EU. This will enable users to carry out laboratory works and scientific experiments both on the real hardware, including remote mode and in simulation mode, comparing the obtained results. Teachers will have online control over the progress and administration of the university and will be able to obtain relevant data on current students’ performance. Further maintenance and modernization of the developed software module is a relevant and promising direction for the development of distance learning technologies in Russia. Regardless the fact that the developed software module has been designed to work with the UAIS EU and cannot be directly used in other organizations or higher educational institutions, the conceptions and approaches developed in the framework of this project can be successfully adapted to resolving the problems of integrating similar systems.

REFERENCES Ageeva, T. I., Baldin, A. V., & Baryshnikov, V. A. (2009). Informacionnaja upravljajushhaja sistema MGTU im. N. Je. Baumana “Jelektronnyj universitet”: koncepcija i realizacija. In I. B. Fedorov (Ed.), Information management system of the Bauman MSTU “Electronic University”: the concept and the realization of (p. 376). Moscow: BMSTU.

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Alam, F., Hadgraft, R. G., & Alam, Q. (2014). eLearning: Challenges and opportunities. In F. Alam (Ed.), Using technology tools to innovate assessment, reporting, and teaching practices in engineering education (pp.217-226). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. Anisimov, A. M. (2009). Rabota v sisteme distancionnogo obuchenija Moodle. Kharkov: HNAGH. Avtomaticheskaja sistema upravlenija Universitet. (n.d.). [Automatic control system university]. Retrieved from http://www.akvadra.ru/ catalog/7.html Blackboard Learning System (Release 6). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://blackboardsupport.calpoly.edu/ content/about/Print/Bb6LearnWP.pdf Büchner, A. (2016). Moodle 3 Administration. Birmingham: Packt Publishing. Deligirova, O. A. (2013). Informacionnye tehnologii v upravlenii personalom vuza [Information technologies in personnel management]. Perspektivy razvitija informacionnyh tehnologij, 14, 67-73. DeLisle, M. (2016). Mastering phpMyAdmin 2.8 for effective MySQL management (3rd ed.). Birmingham: Packt Publishing. Edmodo. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.edmodo.com/ Electronic Educational System of Bauman Moscow State Technical University. (n.d.). Retrieved from: http://e-learning.bmstu.ru/new_face/ Electronic University of Bauman Moscow State Technical University. (n.d.). Retrieved from https:// webvpn.bmstu.ru/+CSCO+0075676763663A2F2F72682E6F7A6667682E6568++/ Gardel, A., Bravo, I., Revenga, P. A., Lázaro, J. L., & García, J. (2012). Implementation of industrial automation laboratories for e-learning. International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education, 49(X), 402–418. doi:10.7227/IJEEE.49.4.4 Google Class. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://edu.google.com/intl/ru/products/productivity-tools/classroom/ Intranet: Academic—Sistema avtomatizacii upravlenija uchebnym processom VUZa (n.d.). [The system of automation of management of educational process of the University]. Retrieved from http://softwareinc.ru/solutions/intranet-academic/ Kochetov, A. I., Krapuhina, N. V., & Pronichkin, S. V. (2009). Razrabotka sistem podderzhki prinjatija reshenij dlja upravlenija kachestvom dejatel’nosti vuza [Development of decision support systems for quality management of the university. Human Ecology]. Jekologiya Cheloveka, 9, 39–45. Logvinov, S. I., Romanov, V.A. (2014). Primenenie informacionno-analiticheskih sistem v obrazovatel’nom processe vuza: zveno “Fakul’tet kafedra” [Application of information and analytical systems in the educational process of the university: Faculty Department]. Sovremennye problemy nauki i obrazovanija, 1, 12-19. Moodle Docs 2.8. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://docs.moodle.org/28/en/Main_page

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Oliveira, L., Vasconcelos, N., Queiroz, F., Queiroz, J., & Hékis, H. (2011). Contribution of integrated management systems to university management: Case study of the federal university of Rio Grande Do Norte. Journal of Social Sciences, 7(3), 415–422. doi:10.3844/jssp.2011.415.422 Palahicky, S. (2014). Utilizing learning management system (LMS) tools to achieve differentiated instruction. In J. Keengwe & J. J. Agamba (Eds.), Models for improving and optimizing online and blended learning in higher education (pp. 12–33). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. Poncela, A. (2013). A blended learning approach for an electronic instrumentation course. International Journal of Electrical Engineering, 50, 1–18. Schoology. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.schoology.com/higher-ed Swart, A. J. (2015). Student usage of a learning management system at an open distance learning institute: A case study in electrical engineering. International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education, 52(X), 142–154. doi:10.1177/0020720915575925 University Information System of Mendel University in Brno. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://is.mendelu. cz/ University Management System UMS. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://ampletrails.com/university-management-system-ums Vaqqas, M. (2016). RESTful web services: A tutorial. Retrieved from http://www.drdobbs. com/webdevelopment/restful-web-services-a-tutorial/240169069

ADDITIONAL READING Aitov, V. G. (2015). Integracija informacionnoj sistemy vuza s sistemoj e-learning. [Real-time integration of campus management system and e-learning platform. Journal of applied informatics]. Prikladnaya informatika, 5, 40-46. Enabling Moodle integration with PeopleSoft Campus Solutions for the North Dakota University System (NDUS). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://k-int.com/news/ndus Higher education – Moodle. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://moodle.com/higher-education/ Jakshylykov, J. J., & Nurmatov, N. A. (2016). Integration challenges of university and information management system (UIMS) to Moodle. Integratsiya obrazovaniya, 2(20), 158-163. Lindsay, E., Liu, D., Murray, S., & Lowe, D. (2007). Remote laboratories in engineering education: trends in students’ perceptions. In Proceedings of the 2007 AaeE Conference,Melbourne, Australia. Moodle integrations: let me count the ways. (2017). Retrieved from http://ethinkeducation.com/moodleintegrations-ways/ Ozvoldova, M., & Ondrusek, P. (2015). Integration of online labs into educational systems. International Journal of Online Engineering, 11(6), 54–59. doi:10.3991/ijoe.v11i6.5145

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Zagidullin, R.S., & Chernikov, A.S. (2017). Creation of integrated environment at the university for distance and blended education of engineering profile. Nanotechnology: development and applications – XXI Century, 1, 27-39. Zagidullin, R.S., & Chernikov, A.S. (2017). Data updating in the MOODLE environment in the remote access mode for a distance laboratory workshop LabVIEW – Multisim. Nanotechnology: development and applications – XXI Century, 1, 40-49. Zmeev, D. O., Malakhov, K. S., Serbin, V. A., Stepanenko, A. A., & Feshchenko, A. V. (2015). Elektronnyj dekanat: integraciya LMS Moodle I sistemy “1C: Universitet Prof”. [Electronic dean’s office: LMS Moodle and “1C: University Prof” integration]. In Razvitie edinoj obrazovatel’noj informacionnoj sredy: materialy XIV Mezhdunarodnoj nauchno-prakticheskoj konferencii (pp. 114-117). Tomsk: TSU.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Academic Performance: A term used to describe things that relate to the work performed in universities. Data Exchange: The exchange of information between databases. Database: Tables used for storing information. Distance Learning: A way of learning remotely without being in physical, face-to-face contact with a teacher. Hot Potatoes: A quiz authoring plugin freeware program that creates questions that can be imported into Moodle in Quiz module, Lesson module, and Hotpot modules. Module Structure: The structure of discipline content. PHP-Scripts: Special software tools. Student: A learner who attends an educational institution. Teacher: A person who helps students to acquire knowledge. University Administrative Information System: The information system for support of university management.

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A Synthesis of Training Systems to Promote the Development of Engineering Competences Tamara Balabekovna Chistyakova Saint-Petersburg State Institute of Technology, Russia

ABSTRACT In the chapter, topical issues of development of the competence-based bilingual educational programs for training of specialists of an engineering profile, capable to solve at the international level complex scientific and technical challenges taking into account requirements of professional standards are considered. The special attention is paid to methodology of synthesis of training systems including virtual laboratories, computer simulators, and systems of imitating modeling for the practical-oriented training of specialists. The method of estimates of acquired professional competences on the basis of models of control of knowledge is offered, to implementation of scenarios and the analysis of protocols of training that allows to increase safety and efficiency of productions due to growth of qualification of personnel of industrial enterprises.

INTRODUCTION Intensive development of modern production technologies requires preparation of a new generation of highly qualified specialists, ready to implement professional engineering activity at the international level, and capable of reacting timely to new and innovative technical ideas, and methods of implementing them. Amant and Flammia (2016), Azoev et al. (2012), Crawley et al. (2014), Filippovich and Filippovich (2015), Garrido and Morales (2014), Gomes and Bogosyan (2009), Heywood (2016), Kamens and McNeely (2009), Monsalve et al. (2016),Muratova et al. (2013), Rachford (2017), Rani and Ismail (2012), Sangaran et al. (2017), and Wu et al. (2015) discuss in their research the significant lack of a systematic approach to developing tutorials that satisfy as closely as possible the requirements of the modern labor market and the staffing of industrial enterprises. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch036

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 A Synthesis of Training Systems to Promote the Development of Engineering Competences

The specifics of forming the professional competence of specialists with an engineering profile, taking into account features of their professional activity in the international environment, assume acquisition of a certain amount of knowledge, ability, and skill that form the basis for a bilingual system in a certain field of activity (Veshneva, Singatulin, Bolshakov, Chistyakova, & Melnikov, 2015). Thus, the question of developing competence-based educational programs that meet as closely as possible the requirements of industrial enterprises, and are also accountable to the requirements of professional standards, is increasingly real. The most promising direction for achieving competence-based results of training specialists with an engineering profile lies in creation of intelligent computer simulators that allow study of modern industrial equipment, training in management of engineering procedures based on virtual laboratories, and imitative mathematical models (Gomes, & Bogosyan, 2009). The solution achieves the objectives of implementation in the specified directions, through development of a single methodology, and technologies for automated synthesis of systems for the training of specialists. The purpose of this work is the creation of methods and technologies to synthesize competenceoriented training systems, including models that represent informal knowledge, information, and imitative mathematical models; models of the trainee; a strategy for resource-and energy-saving control of engineering procedures; models of control of knowledge; and models of quantitative and qualitative standards for acquired professional competences (Grossmann, 2012). At the same time, development of competence-based educational modules on a bilingual basis (Russian and foreign languages) for training engineering specialists in professional activity is important insofar as it determines successful accomplishment of professional tasks in the conditions of a multilingual professional environment. Use of the such training systems enables increasing the level of safety in industrial production, increasing product quality, and improving ecological characteristics of the production environment, due to the increased professional level of specialists.

METHODOLOGY OF DEVELOPING BILINGUAL, COMPETENCEBASED, FOCUSED TRAINING SYSTEMS The lifecycle of creating competence-based training systems includes the following stages (Chistyakova, Novozhilova, & Zelezinsky, 2016): • • • •

The analysis of qualification deficits (labor functions, abilities, knowledge) of specialists with an engineering profile, and their transformation into special professional competencies that allow specialists to carry out labor functions within new or significantly updated types of labor activity. Forming a trajectory and content of electronic training, based on modular technology of professional training and taking into account job descriptions and labor functions of managerial and factory personnel of industrial enterprises. Development of methods, algorithms, and technologies for synthesis of competence-based training systems (Gusev, Zatsepin, Nisman, & Kogan, 2014), including adaptable subsystems of imitative modeling for resource- and energy-saving management of engineering procedures. Approval of electronic training by synthesis of computer simulators via remote educational technologies (Titov, Smirnova, 2013).

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Handling of results (protocols) of specialist training on the basis of methods of qualitative and quantitative estimation of the special bilingual professional competencies necessary for accomplishment of the labor functions acquired by trainees.

A key step in forming competence-based educational programs and training systems is detecting qualification deficits of specialists, for the purpose of achieving necessary educational results. Qualification deficit represents the difference between requirements of the professional standards that qualify the worker to implement a certain type of professional activity, and the requirements of the educational standards according to which the specialist was trained. Methods for identifying qualification deficits correspond to the objectives of the study, the conditions of the enterprise, as well as the type and type of innovations that are introduced in production, and allow the establishment of qualification deficiencies of specialists sent for training. The methodology for determining qualification deficiencies of specialists by means of a comparative analysis of the requirements of state educational and professional standards includes three consecutive stages: 1. Completing the protocol for assessing the compliance of the planned educational results of the educational standard with the requirements of the relevant professional standard. 2. Analytical processing of information presented in the protocol of conformity assessment. 3. Interpretation of the results of the comparative analysis. Lacking professional standards, detection of qualification deficits can occur on the basis of job descriptions, labor functions, or qualification characteristics. Content of the competence-based specialist training is created using modular technology, with corresponding educational activities. Thus, there is a possibility of forming individual educational trajectories according to job descriptions, labor functions, and requirements of industrial enterprises for eliminating the qualification deficit, by choosing professional competence, professional modules, and disciplines (Chistyakova, 2016). The frame describing the sequence of forming individual bilingual educational trajectories appears in Figure 1. The structure of professional competence includes two main components: the professional knowledge acquired in a training process; and the labor skills and abilities acquired and developed in the course of practical activities (Kustov & Novozhilova, 2012). Thus, a complex of language, education, and methodical materials leads to developing knowledge of educational results. Distributed practice-oriented training complexes and virtual laboratories based on the bilingual thesaurus, and a complex of language, educational, and methodical materials, are used to develop competence-based results of training.

STRUCTURE OF THE COMPETENCE-BASED FOCUSED SYSTEMS OF TRAINING As a rule, objects of studying and modeling modern industrial productions are characterized by: •

Production of various type TP = {TP1, …, TPtp}, i = 1, tp , extensive nomenclature MP = {MP1, …, MPmp}, i = 1, mp ;

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Figure 1. Stages of formation of individual bilingual educational trajectories

• • • •

Variety of technological stages TS = {TS1, …, TSts}, i = 1, ts , equipment EQ = {EQ1, …, EQeq},

i = 1, eq ; A possibility of receipt of the same product from raw materials of different types FS = {FS1, …, FSfs}, i = 1, fs , on various compounding RР = {RР1, …, RРrp}, i = 1, rp ;

Strict quality requirements of semi-products IP = {IP1, …, IPip}, i = 1, ip , and finished products QP = {QP1, …, QPqp}, i = 1, qp ;

Origin on production stages of emergency situations ST = {ST1, …, STst}, i = 1, st , the product quality indicators connected with violation (origins of scrap of RS = {RS1, …, RSrs}, i = 1, rs ).

According to the developed methodology of open design of learning systems, the formalized description of an object of study is a basis for automated synthesis, with the use of the modern information technologies of a kernel of computer training and learning complexes (Figure 2). Forming the functional structure of a training system includes creating the modules executing functions of training and trial: instructor’s interface; trainee’s interface; execution unit of computing experiments; module of formation of results of simulation modeling; information; and software. Training in design and control of chemical and technological processes uses information models, imitative mathematical models, and models of representation of knowledge (Chistyakova & Novozhilova, 2016). Information models occur in the form of the databases (DB) of geometrical models and constructive characteristics of production aggregates, technological parameters of processes, characteristics of raw

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materials and target production. DB are set up for different structures of objects of study, the modes of functioning, productivity, composition of raw materials, and quality of production, by dynamic change in the ranges of the corresponding parameters. Imitative mathematical models provide possibilities of active training in various tasks: training in management in emergency situations; cases of change-over of production to new-task raw materials and performance; studying methods and tasks of optimum control, and cause-and-effect relationships of objects; training in structural and parametrical synthesis of objects of study; and implementation of testing calculations of the designed objects (Dvoretskii, Dvoretskii, Polyakov, & Ostrovskii, 2012). Recognition and handling of events is necessary for development of the system of imitative modeling of objects of study. Modeling an event (C) includes describing the place of emergence of an event, the moment of system time in the case that there is an event (t), the parameter of object (V) determining an event and its threshold restrictions (L). !

j

= {t } V ≤ V L , j

j

where V= {X, U, Y} – a vector of technological parameters of object, respectively: X – entrance, U – managing, Y – outgoing; j – an index of belonging to the place of emergence of an event (to hierarchical level – a stream, a device, a stage, a process). Events (situations) can be simulated in two ways:by means of a set of parameters of information model: MCI = {V , t } V ≤ V L ; j

j

by means of the solution of imitating models: MCM = F {V , K , t } V ≤ V L , j

j

where K – a vector of coefficients of imitating model. The number of events in objects of the set hierarchical level is defined by the number of combinations of threshold restrictions of technological parameters of object of control, and the number of parameters for which restrictions are set: K

∑ N Lj

NC = NVj =1

,

where NC – number of events, NV – number of parameters, NLj – number of threshold restrictions of the j-th object parameter. For simulation of the reasons of violations in the basic model, the model components in relation to rated values are changed. In case of simulation of an event, the basic model continues functioning;

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Figure 2. An example of functional structure of the training complex

however, priority of an abnormal event switches the trainee’s attention to the parameters defining the alert condition, accompanied, as a rule, by a sound and luminous signaling. For studying expert knowledge, methods of eliminating emergency situations, best practices in methods of accident-free and effective management, and forming intellectual recommendations on design-

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ing and managing high-technology productions, in training process models, representation of informal knowledge of the object of study is integrated into the structure of exercise machines (Reinig, Winter, Linge, & Nägler, 1998). Figure 3 shows the example of the interface of the training system for development of competencebased results of training for the educational program “The automated information processing and production management of the nanostructured ceramic materials and coverings with the use of elements of electronic training” (Kornienko, Chistyakova, & Novozhilova, 2014), developed SPSIT (TU) by request of Fund of infrastructure and educational programs of RUSNANO and LTD VIRIAL. The positive effect of implementing the system is reached due to ensuring required product quality, reduction of scrap, economy of expensive raw materials, and reduction of costs for carrying out natural experiments with new types of ceramic materials, owing to a possibility of computer research on dependence of indicators of quality on properties of material, and regime process parameters on imitating mathematical models.

ASSESSMENT OF EDUCATIONAL RESULTS In implementation of educational programs, the most complex challenge is the high-quality and quantitative assessment of acquired professional competencies, especially in the training of engineering specialists (Veshneva, Singatulin, Bolshakov, Chistyakova, & Melnikov, 2015). For a quantitative assessment of results in developing professional competencies, control and measuring materials and complex tasks (practical or project), as well as final certification works, are used (Gavrilina, Zakharov, Karpenko, Smirnova, & Sokolov, 2016). For high-quality determination of level of training of engineering specialists, the following models of control of knowledge are used: registration of gained knowledge, an assessment of contextual knowledge, the analysis of mistakes, a method of imposing and generating the model. Figure 3. An example of production of LTD VIRIAL and an example of the interface of system of electronic training for factory personnel

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The developed competence-oriented training systems give the following opportunities for an assessment of professional competencies of the trained specialists: control of model; control of actions of the trainee and modes of functioning of objects studied; the analysis; and an assessment of actions of the trainee on the chosen model of control of knowledge. For management and the organization of a training process as a part of training systems, a program manager performs setup of parameters of models of the study object; reading scenarios for training; recognition and handling of the events set in the scenario; entering of results of training in the file of the protocol. The program manager function enables the instructor to get acquainted with results of training in the file of the training protocol, research tables and schedules of a condition of object of studying on the kept background of object, to make corrections to the scenario of training according to the trainee’s level of knowledge. Results accomplished in training on practical tasks constitutes the detailed report about the performed work. For an assessment of educational results, the program manager, by means of a special designer, allows creation of a grid of criteria, for comparison of criteria of training and achieved educational training results. The assessment of execution of the practical job pi is carried out by comparing deviations of the normalized parameter values received by results of simulation of yj from threshold restrictions of parameters of technological process (expert, regulated) by yJREG, which values are stored in the database of the training system. Deviations from admissible indicators of technological process are an assessment n

of knowledge when framing skills of control pi (tOK ) = ∑ y j (tOK ) − y jPE Γ (tOK ) , where tОК – the job j =1

(competence development) time. The complex assessment of development of an educational program B is calculated by a formula: M

B = ∑ bi , i =1

where M – the number of modules of an educational program; bi – assessment of development of separate the ith module of the program, i = 1, M . The assessment of development of the separate module of the program is determined by a formula: bi = pi + Ti , where pi – the number of points for quality of performance of practical works; Ti – the number of the points gained at control testing. Thus, developed models of control of knowledge allow estimating quantitatively and qualitatively results of developing professional competencies, the main indicator of quality in implementation of the innovative bilingual competence-based educational programs.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The analysis implemented in the industry and training centers of various classes of training systems has shown their operability; reliability of the principles of development; adequacy of the structural classified

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description of the object of study; completeness of structures and parameters of the training systems; possibility of synthesis and adaptation of necessary systems, depending on distinctive signs of the object of study, the purposes of training and trial. The modern trends in competence-oriented training for engineers-specialists geared for industrial enterprises consist of the creation of training systems utilizing virtual and augmented reality, which includes databases of virtual 3D models and their respective equipment’s characteristics, design and control rules, as well as equipment mathematical model libraries. The development of training systems based on industrial big data mining for trend and knowledge discovery in order to aid high-quality production is a growing field. Such systems enable monitoring of consumer traits and systematic selection of control actions in accordance with a comprehensive assessment of product quality indicators, thereby ensuring energy and resource-saving support for high-tech industries.

CONCLUSION The training system is successfully approved in case of implementation of two educational programs of professional training (level – a magistracy) and five educational programs of advanced training of pilot groups of specialists in the industrial enterprises: LTD Klekner Pentaplast Rus (Chistyakova & Kohlert, 2015; C. Kohlert, M. Kohlert, Chistyakova, & Ivanov, 2010); LTD VIRIAL, Severstal, LTD ILIP (Petrov, Chistyakova, & Charyikov, 2014), LTD Rigel developed by request of Fund of infrastructure and educational programs of RUSNANO. Results of carrying out approvals of various educational programs for specialists with an engineering profile are that the most effective means of developing competence-based results of training is use of the distributed practice-oriented training systems and virtual laboratories. The training systems offered in this work allow accumulation of advanced knowledge in the field of modern production technologies, to increase the level of safety in industrial production, increase product quality, improve ecological characteristics of the production environment due to increased professional level of specialists (acquisition of experience and skills of behavior in emergencies, deep understanding of cause-and-effect relationships in objects, fast reaction to malfunctions, decrease in psychological overload, increase in confidence, and the independent solution of management tasks). The technique presented for assessing acquired professional competencies allows solving a complex problem of high-quality analysis of the educational results obtained. To determine the level of training of specialists, the following models of control of knowledge are offered: forming the training scenario dependent upon the level of knowledge of specialists for the generated modeling; control of mistakes and time of training; comparisons with reference (expert) knowledge (models); registration and ranging of the studied information, a decision tree, and deviations from threshold restrictions of parameters; forming of production-regime sheets for control of the indicators of process received in training. Thus, the bilingual competence-based training of specialists with use of modern educational technologies allows increasing the professional level of personnel in modern industrial enterprises, and bringing their qualifications closer to requirements of professional standards, in the conditions of the polylingual environment.

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Heywood, J. (2016). Categorizing the Work Done by Engineers: Implications for Assessment and Training. In The Assessment of Learning in Engineering Education: Practice and Policy. Wiley-IEEE Press; doi:10.1002/9781119175575 Kamens, D. H., & McNeely, C. L. (2009). Globalization and the growth of international educational testing and national assessment. Comparative Education Review, 54(1), 5–25. doi:10.1086/648471 Kohlert, C., Kohlert, M., Chistyakova, T., & Ivanov, A. (2010). Counterfeit-proofing based on the principle of randomness. Kunststoffe international, 7, 32-35. Kornienko, I. G., Chistyakova, T. B., & Novozhilova, I. V. (2014). E-learning study of hard alloy production process management. Izvestiya MGTU MAMI, 5(3), 157–163. Kustov, V. N., & Novozhilova, I. V. (2012). Electronic training of specialists for the systems of professional development. Programmnyie produktyi i sistemyi, 2, 125-127. Monsalve, J. C., Uribe, A., Cardona-Gil, J. A., Osorio, M., Hincapie, C. A., & Isaza, C. A. (2016). Development of an automatic control system employing CDIO standards and competence-based learning. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Information Technology Based Higher Education and Training (ITHET). Istanbul: IEEE. 10.1109/ITHET.2016.7760755 Muratova, E. I., Dvoretsky, S. I., & Voyakina, E. Y. (2013). Organization of postgraduate students training in the technical field of sciences. International Conference on Interactive Collaborative Learning, 46(5), 437-445. 10.1109/ICL.2013.6644622 Petrov, D. N., Chistyakova, T. B., & Charyikov, N. A. (2014). Mathematical model for management training in fullerene synthesis processes. Bulletin of the Saint Petersburg State Institute of Technology, 52(26), 72–79. Rachford, J. (2017). Qualified People – It is a Safety and Skill Set Thing. Transactions on Industry Applications, 53(1), 700–708. doi:10.1109/TIA.2016.2604223 Rani, R. M., & Ismail, W. R. (2012). Operator allocation in labor-intensive manufacturing system. In ICSSBE 2012 - Proceedings, 2012 International Conference on Statistics in Science, Business and Engineering: “Empowering Decision Making with Statistical Sciences” (pp. 433-436). Academic Press. 10.1109/ICSSBE.2012.6396602 Reinig, G., Winter, P., Linge, V., & Nägler, K. (1998). Training simulators: Engineering and use. Chemical Engineering & Technology, 21(9), 711–716. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1521-4125(199809)21:93.0.CO;2-H Sangaran, S., Raju, R., Haron, S., & Yassin, I. M. (2017). Simulation in development of skilled and competent operators. Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences (Asian Research Publishing Network), 12(10), 3299–3303. St. Amant, K., & Flammia, M. (2016). E-Learning and Technical Communication for International Audiences. In Teaching and Training for Global Engineering: Perspectives on Culture and Professional Communication Practices. Wiley-IEEE Press; doi:10.1002/9781119084297

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Titov, I., & Smirnova, E. (2013). Network architectures of remote laboratories proposal of a new solution and comparative analysis with existing ones. International Journal of Online Engineering, 9(6), 41–44. doi:10.3991/ijoe.v9i6.3142 Veshneva, I., Singatulin, R., Bolshakov, A., Chistyakova, T., & Melnikov, L. (2015). Model of formation of the feedback channel within ergatic systems for monitoring of quality of processes of formation of personnel competences. International Journal of Qualitative Research, 9(3), 495–512. Wu, D., Lu, J., & Zhang, G. (2015). A Fuzzy Tree Matching-Based Personalized E-Learning Recommender System. Transactions on Fuzzy Systems, 23(6), 2412–2426. doi:10.1109/TFUZZ.2015.2426201

ADDITIONAL READING Baryshev, G. K., Berestov, A. V., Rodko, I. I., Tokarev, A. N., & Konashenkova, N. A. (2017). Smart engineering training for BRICS countries: problems and first steps. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Electronic Governance and Open Society: Challenges in Eurasia (eGose ’17). New York, NY: ACM. doi: 10.1145/3129757.3129760 Bolshakov, A. A., Veshneva, I. V., & Chistyakova, T. B. (2016).The architecture of intellectual system for monitoring of university students competences formation process. In Proceedings of International Conference on Actual Problems of Electron Devices Engineering (APEDE). Saratov, Russia: IEEE. 10.1109/APEDE.2016.7878971 Chistyakova, T., Teterin, M., Razygraev, A., & Kohlert, C. (2016). Intellectual Analysis System of Big Industrial Data for Quality Management of Polymer Films. In L. Cheng, Q. Liu, & A. Ronzhin (Eds.), Lecture Notes in Computer Science: Vol. 9719. Advances in Neural Networks – ISNN 2016. ISNN 2016 (pp. 565–572). Cham: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-40663-3_65 Chistyakova, T. B., Kornienko, I. G., & Novozhilova, I. V. (2017). Computer system for nanostructured ceramic materials quality control. In Proceedings of the IEEE 2nd International Conference on Control in Technical Systems (CTS 2017). St. Petersburg, Russia: IEEE. 10.1109/CTSYS.2017.8109474 Chistyakova, T. B., Novozhilova, I. V., & Kozlov, V. V. (2017). Program complex for resource-saving control of the basic oxygen steelmaking process. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Industrial Engineering, Applications and Manufacturing (ICIEAM 2017). St. Petersburg, Russia: IEEE. 10.1109/ICIEAM.2017.8076482 Chistyakova, T. B., & Polosin, A. N. (2017). Computer modeling system of industrial extruders with adjustable configuration for polymeric film quality control. In Proceedings of the IEEE 2nd International Conference on Control in Technical Systems (CTS 2017). St. Petersburg, Russia: IEEE. 10.1109/ CTSYS.2017.8109485 Dozortsev, V. M. (2013). Methods for computer-based operator training as a key element of training systems (Present-day trends). Automation and Remote Control, 74(7), 1191–1200. doi:10.1134/ S0005117913070102

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Kohlert, M., & König, A. (2016). Advanced multi-sensory process data analysis and on-line evaluation by innovative human-machine-based process monitoring and control for yield optimization in polymer film industry. XXIX. Messtechnisches Symposium des AHMT in Ilmenau (Teil 2) / Thomas Fröhlich, Eberhard Manske. tm - Technisches Messen, 83(9), pp. 474-483. Retrieved 29 Jan. 2018, from doi:10.1515/ teme-2015-0120 Smirnova, E. V., Dobrjkov, A. A., Karpenko, A. P., & Syuzev, V. V. (2017). Mentally Structured Educational Technology and Engineers Preparation Quality Management. In A. Kravets, M. Shcherbakov, M. Kultsova, & P. Groumpos (Eds.), Creativity in Intelligent Technologies and Data Science. CIT&DS 2017. Communications in Computer and Information Science (Vol. 754, pp. 119–132). Cham: Springer; doi:10.1007/978-3-319-65551-2_9 Vlasov, S. A., Deviatkov, V. V., Isaev, F. V., & Fedotov, M. V. (2014). Imitational studies with GPSS WORLD: New capabilities. Automation and Remote Control, 75(2), 389–398. doi:10.1134/S0005117914020179

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Assessment of Competences: A way to evaluate the level of mastering the educational results of the learner, necessary for performing labor functions in accordance with the criteria for training. E-Learning: A distance learning method where the teacher and the trainee are split by distance and all or most of the training procedures are carried out using modern information and telecommunication technologies. Educational Results: The mastered knowledge, skills, professional and general competence, and acquired experience of practical activity. Engineering Education: The process of mastering educational results (knowledge and skills), which includes a number of specialized disciplines aimed at the practical application knowledge in the field of professional activity. Knowledge: The information about the properties of objects, the laws of processes and phenomena, and the rules for using this information for decision-making, mastered by the learner at one of the levels allowing performing mental operations on it. Professional Competence: The educational result reflected in readiness to perform a certain practice in the professional sphere, on the basis of a system of knowledge, skills, and experience of the learners. Professional Module: An autonomous didactic unit designed to develop a type of professional activity or to form several professional competences, usually related to one type of professional activity. Skill: An operation (the simplest action) performed in a certain way and with a certain quality. Training System: The software designed for training and testing of certain skills and abilities. Trajectory of Instruction: The recommended sequence of mastering learning elements, which ensures the listener of achieving the set of educational goals.

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Employability and Entrepreneurship

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The Elite Engineering Education System:

Developing Professional Capabilities Evgeniya Serebraykova Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Yury Daneykin Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Irina Abrashkina Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia Mikhail Soloviev Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia

ABSTRACT The chapter describes the experience of complex educational environment that is based on the concept of Elite Engineering Education Programme adopted by Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU). The chapter focuses on the methods and tools that are used to improve personal, professional, and interpersonal capabilities which are considered to be necessary for modern engineers to adapt to the current volatile global technological environment. Also, it gives the statistics on the results of the students’ training. The curriculum is presented in detail.

INTRODUCTION The traditional system of higher education offers few opportunities to train the technical elite. The essence of the problem is an inadequate amount of attention placed on the development of personal and interpersonal competencies of future engineers. There is an isolation of theoretical knowledge from practical application, especially in the development and management of interdisciplinary projects. A flexible education system must be created to respond to the call of unprecedented technological development. DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch037

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 The Elite Engineering Education System

In 2004, an innovative system of elite technical education was created based on TPU. This system experimentally tested educational technologies designed to solve problems. EEEP was developed to train technical specialists (i.e., design engineers, product engineers, and process engineers) to generate new ideas, improve existing technological processes, and provide effective enterprise and business management (Soloviev & Zamyatina, 2013). Currently, EEEP students acquire both technical and project management skills. “Taking this into account … education model of the future should resemble a Michelin restaurant, i.e., to be unique and produce the number of elite technical specialists that is small but capable of high impact engineering and entrepreneurial activities” (Chuchalin, Soloviev, Zamyatina, & Mozgaleva, p. 1004, 2013). The existing list of necessary capabilities is based on experience and an adaptation of the conceive – design – implement – operate (CDIO) approach to an educational model (http://www.cdio.org/benefitscdio/cdio-syllabus/cdio-syllabus-topical-form). CDIO standards can be applied to more than engineering education. They lead to the development of management capabilities, including team building knowledge, leadership skills, and communication strategies (Kondrat’ev & Chemezov, 2015). Engineering students should also be educated in project management. Regulations from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Engineering Leadership Program were considered (Ancona, Malone, Orlikowski, & Senge, 2007; Gordon, 2011). Thus, the authors studied the global educational environment for additional collaboration between world universities. Uniting students of different specialties through the EEEP TPU system allows for the performance of interdisciplinary projects. This study explains the structure of the current educational model, evaluates its effectiveness with a view to forming professional and personal competencies. Proposals for adjusting the curriculum are made based on the obtained data.

REQUIREMENTS OF EEEP GRADUATES Many definitions of competency consider an individual’s characteristics impacting effective and superior job performance (Whiddett & Hollyforde, 2003). It is possible to evaluate the development of student competency by studying the student’s efficiency and end results during the creation and implementation of a client’s project. EEEP TPU engineering leaders must have the following competencies (Chubik & Zamyatina, 2013): 1. Fundamentality based on profound knowledge of science, mathematics, economics, and foreign language 2. High level of professionalism, including active research work, student initiative, and inventive project activity 3. Innovation in the development of critical and creative thinking when analyzing modern problems 4. Entrepreneurship when the student organizes a simulated or actual process of manufacturing new engineering products 5. Leadership in designing innovative technological solutions EEEP combines gifted students of different engineering departments. Therefore, an interdisciplinary program should promote leadership competencies for operating interindustry projects. The MIT

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Engineering Leadership Program defines engineering leadership as “the technical leadership of change: the innovative conception, design, and implementation of new products/processes/projects/materials/ molecules/software/systems, supported by the invention of enabling technologies, to meet the needs of customers and society” (Gordon, p. 1, 2011). To analyze the levels of development of main capabilities, research compared fourth-year EEEP students and “ordinary” general educational programmes (GEP) students in their fifth and sixth years of study. Students were tested on ambition, readiness to take risks, ability to make decisions, capacity to attract people, stress resistance, perseverance, a focus on customers, etc. EEEP students surpassed GEP students in 12 of the 15 categories (Chuchalin et al., 2013). According to the annual statistical information on student achievements, this approach provided core engineering fundamental knowledge, methods, and tools for investigation and knowledge discovery. It also provided skills in the identification of problems and creation of inventive solutions. During the final academic year, 10% of the EEEP students were awarded scholarships and grants, including: • • • • • • • • • • • •

9 scholarships from the Russian government 2 graduate scholarships from the Russian government 16 scholarships from the president of the Russian Federation 2 graduate scholarships from the president of the Russian Federation 2 scholarships from the Embassy of France 5 scholarships from the Vladimir Potanin Foundation 2 scholarships from the Mikhail Prokhorov Foundation 2 scholarships from the JSC Academician M.F. Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems 3 scholarships from the governor of Tomsk Oblast 2 scholarships from the state duma of Tomsk Oblast 8 scholarships from the TPU academic council 2 scholarships from the rector of TPU

In addition, student projects won regional and all-Russian competitions. Despite the results, EEEP has disadvantages. First, theoretical knowledge is isolated from practice, which resulted in a limited number of projects in production. Second, the personality-centered approach is not applied in full.

PLANNING THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS REORGANIZATION EEEP required important changes to improve the situation. A clear conception of professional and personal development was to be put into practice in academic year 2016-2017. The subjects were divided into large groups according to competency improvement. 1. Technical skills a. Circuit design b. Programming microcontrollers c. 3D modelling** d. Industrial design**

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Figure 1. Statistics data on EEEP graduate students

2. 3.

4.

5.

e. Computer-aided design** f. Application software** g. Device design** Fundamental knowledge a. Applied physics b. Mathematical methods in engineering and science Leadership capabilities a. Practical psychology b. Games technologies c. Modern methods of research d. Methods of managerial decision making e. Human resource management* f. Conflictology* g. Fundamentals of industrial law** h. Internet entrepreneurship** Project-based activity a. Introduction to project activity b. Project activity c. Project management d. Introduction to engineering invention Basic knowledge of economics a. Economics of innovation process b. Fundraising* c. Fundamentals of patent science**

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6. Presentation skills a. Paper writing* b. Presentation* c. Oratorical* 7. Management skills a. Project management b. Information technology in management* c. Time management* 8. International interpersonal skills a. Business English language* b. Foreign language of engineering/technology** 9. System thinking a. Theory of innovative problem solving b. Applied logic * Required subject included in elective Technologies/Competencies course ** Subsidiary subject included in elective Technologies/Competencies course The process of education is planned according to the scheme in Figure 2.

Figure 2. EEEP educational process

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As shown in Figure 2, the project work becomes the most important part of the educational process. These changes are based on the following project-based learning experience. It should enhance the students’ capabilities to put knowledge into practice. Profound knowledge of applied physics and mathematics is a basic requirement for technical specialists. To motivate students, the algorithm of decomposition is applied. This includes the ability to understand the purpose of technical model usage, the ability to divide the model into parts realized at the existing level of theoretical knowledge, and the recombination of these parts according to the practical purpose of the student project. Students do not study physics and mathematics as a subject that is “remote from life.” They understand the process framework as a foundation for the project work. Students study “Introduction to Project Work” and “Theory of Innovative Problem Solving” as supporting tools for the project work. The main principles of project-based learning (i.e., the cognitive learning approach and content approach) are used to implement project work in the educational process. According to Edström and Kolmos (p. 4, 2012): The cognitive learning approach means that learning is organized around problems and will be carried out in projects. It is a main principle for the development of motivation. The content approach especially concerns interdisciplinary learning, supports the relation between theory and practice by the fact that the learning process involves an analytical approach using theory in the analysis of problems and problem solving methods. In many cases, modern students’ engineering projects need organized team-based learning. As the students learn from each other, they learn to share knowledge and organize the process of collaborative learning (Edström & Kolmos, 2012). From the beginning, gamification technology is used to form communication strategies and team leadership. It creates necessary conditions for the development of leadership capabilities through off-campus activities and feedback from team members, experts, and psychologists. Some students volunteered to conduct training seminars with first-year students. Through this, firstyear students adapted to the peculiar features of the educational model. In addition, the volunteers cooperated with teachers to implement the project-based learning technology in regional secondary schools. By forming effective teams—some complex projects required 16 members—students gained feedback from partners, experts, and psychologists. Leading authorities were invited to develop the students’ professional competences. A learning environment was created to develop skills in self-awareness and self-improvement. The students gained meaningful information through the feedback. The organization of effective teamwork required individuals with an “ability to deliver on the vision” (Gordon, 2011). These abilities included team building, leadership, project planning, project management, implementation, and operation. Effective leaders needed to take responsibility for outcomes and realize the impact of engineering solutions on society. Student projects demonstrated deep insight of societal needs, including a guidance device for people with poor vision and ink for 3D-printed bone implants. Other projects dealt with ecological problems, including the Second Life project for recycling, a poacher-detecting system, and a self-contained resourcesaving greenhouse for year-round harvesting (eto.tpu.ru/ru-RU/Projects/Details/19). Project-based learning as a main educational technology showed improvements in the capability of building self-directed learning strategies.

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Students recognized some subjects for studying through their personal experiences. For example, if a project was practically-oriented and needed additional sources of funding, members of the student teams would study fundraising. Another example was a group of students who studied presentation skills prior to presenting their work focused on attracting local enterprises for collaboration. Through the application of project-based learning technology, as well as the development of leadership and team-building skills, students had working prototypes and successfully cooperated with enterprises. In fact, some of the student projects have been implemented, including: • • •

An interactive sandbox was launched by Limited Liability Company Universal Terminal System. A wind-powered generator is used for lighting children’s playgrounds in Tomsk Oblast. An electronic lock is used in lecture halls at TPU.

Some projects were chosen for support and completion through joint effort or future implementation. These include glasses with a sonar sensor for people with vision problems people, a power-efficient greenhouse, a vegetal wall, and a drip irrigation system.

PERSONALITY-CENTERED APPROACH TO THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS Although we expect a lot of our leaders, we must continue to ask: Can one person stay on top of everything? Ancona et al. (2007) introduced the “incomplete leader” (or the idea that no leader is perfect). The best leaders concentrate on honing their strengths and finding others to make up for their limitations (Ancona et al., 2007). Individuals have unique types of motivation and expectations. Therefore, using the same types of educational programs can be unreliable. The authors plan to divide the students into three groups according to the following three personality types: (1) innovator; (2) engineer; and (3) researcher. Approximately 10% of the students can generate ideas and lead a team through the implementation process. For this group of students, the innovation educational module should develop skills in creative thinking and teamwork. It should offer the students a foundation for entrepreneurial activity. Participation (or design) should be included in the engineering projects, as well as working in cooperation with representatives of the innovation business. Approximately 20% of the students excelled in the research activity. They chose subjects related to system analysis, mathematical modeling, and advanced engineering fundamental knowledge. For this group of students, the research educational module should develop research skills. The group should develop cooperation skills with TPU research teams and international universities. Most of the students (approximately 70%) solved the assigned task at a high level. Further perspective provides solving specified production tasks and meets the required specification of local factories. For this group of students, the industry educational module should provide the skills to build effective teams for successful collaboration with enterprises. These changes allow the students to develop the skills needed for their future careers in tomorrow’s business environment. In addition, they can build trusting relationships through teamwork.

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Figure 3. New educational process

CONCLUSION The elite engineering educational model has seen improvements for more than a decade. In this chapter, the authors listed and analyzed requirements and obstacles related to the integration of EEEP in the existing educational model. New approaches to the planning of the educational process will lead to the creation of interstructural logical connections between TPU departments and the educational trajectory of EEEP. In addition, students will achieve concrete results. Students of the innovation module will experience a production start-up in the self-develop products. The authors propose that the students do this through the creation of a small innovative enterprise (SEN) in the EEEP system. Hence, the students become employees of SEN. Students of the industry module will implement projects of the enterprise-customer. Based on the results, it is expected that the team of developers will be employed, or an experienced implementation of the development based on SEN, invested by the enterprise-customer. The expected result of the research module is that the students will receive admission to the magistracy and continue to work on the scientific team. It is also possible that scientific work will be the basis of the project for students using the innovation and industry modules. A simplified system of expected results has been adopted. The implementation stage will monitor the development of events through other scenarios. The authors will encourage the results to attain these results.

REFERENCES Ancona, D., Malone, T. W., Orlikowski, W. J., & Senge, P. M. (2007, February). In praise of the incomplete leader. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from hbr.org/2007/02/in-praise-of-the-incompleteleader PMID:17345683 Chubik, P. S., & Zamyatina, O. M. (2013). Training elite specialists in engineering and technologies. In Proceedings of the 9th International CDIO Conference. Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Retrieved from www.cdio.org/files/ document/file/T3C2_Chubik_061.pdf

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Chuchalin, A. I., Soloviev, M. A., Zamyatina, O. M., & Mozgaleva, P. I. (2013). Elite Engineering Programme in Tomsk Polytechnic University - The way to attract talented students into engineering. Paper presented at the IEEE Global Engineering Education Conference (EDUCON-2013), Berlin, Germany. Edström, K., & Kolmos, A. (2012). Comparing two approaches for engineering education development: PBL and CDIO. In Proceedings of the 8th International CDIO Conference. Brisbane: Queensland University of Technology. Retrieved from www.cdio.org/files/document/file/comparing_two_approaches_ for_engineering_education_development_pbl_and_cdio.pdf Gordon, B. M. (2011, June). Capabilities of effective engineering leaders. Version 3.6. MIT Engineering Leadership Program. Retrieved from gelp.mit.edu/sites/default/files/documents/leadershipcapabilities.pdf Kondrat’ev, J. V., & Chemezov, I. S. (2015). The change of Russian higher education to CDIO standards: Content, prospect, problem. In Proceedings of Voronezh State University (vol. 2, pp. 41-50). Academic Press. Soloviev, M. A., & Zamyatina, O. M. (2013). Elite technical education system in Tomsk polytechnic university. Tomskij politehnik, 18, 96-103. Whiddett, S., & Hollyforde, S. (2003). A practical guide to competencies: How to enhance individual and organisational performance (2nd ed.). Edinburgh, UK: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS CDIO: Education framework blending theory and practice. Elective Course: Subjects selected by students. Group Engineers: Students who are inclined to perform the research activity. Group Innovators: Students who generate ideas and lead the team through the implementation process. Group Researchers: Students who solve the assigned task at a high level. Project-Based Learning: Learning through project-based activities (often accomplished in groups).

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Identifying Students’ MetaCompetences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment Andrey Anatiljevich Malakhov Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Elena Smirnova Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Russia Nikolay Vishnyakov Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Tatiana Kholomina Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, Russia Peter Willmot Loughborough University, UK

ABSTRACT The chapter is devoted to the development of an analytical methodology of forming future engineers’ meta-competences (interdisciplinary, meta-creative, and meta-cognitive) when he/she works on unique scientific equipment. The authors research a hypothesis about the possibility of estimating quality of education and identifying competences in engineering courses by measurement of students’ activities as well as outcomes. An example is described of the criterion revealing during laboratory work with a scanning probe microscope “Nanoeducator.” The experiment is a part of a multifunctional scientific complex for the development and research of thin films. Results of the parameter evaluation are shown in graphs using MATLAB software. This chapter is a new direction towards discovering methods and algorithms to define and evaluate future engineers’ meta-competence.

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch038

Copyright © 2019, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.

 Identifying Students’ Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment

INTRODUCTION This chapter is devoted to the development of an analytical methodology of forming future engineers’ meta-competences (interdisciplinary, meta-creative and meta-cognitive) when student works on unique scientific equipment. The authors investigate a hypothesis about the possibility of education quality estimation and competences’ identification during the engineering courses by measurement of student’s activities. An example is described of the criterion revealing during laboratory work with a scanning probe microscope “Nanoeducator”. The experiment is a part of a Multifunctional scientific complex for the development and research of thin films. Results of the parameters’ evaluation are shown in graphs using MATLAB software. The first part of the chapter describes the Unique Scientific Equipment (hereinafter referred to as USE), the second part of the chapter is about the methodology of student’s metacompetence’s criterion mining at the different stages of the laboratory work, the third part describes the relationships between six mined criterion and student’s meta-creative, meta-cognitive and meta-subject competences. The last fourth part shows the results of the experimental research and analyse made by authors over the group of students’ laboratory work.

BACKGROUND The problems on how to form students’ meta-subject, meta-creative and meta-cognitive competences are under consideration nowadays (Cruz B., 2013; Greshilova A., 2014; Scharnhorst, 2016). Automation of assessment of the student’s competencies is an actual problem also. The solution is dedicated to the work (Galiamova E. 2009; Avdeeva Z., 2007). This chapter discusses the possibility of criterion’s revealing which determines the meta-competences in the process of students’ laboratory work on USE. The results of joint studies performed by the Bauman Moscow State Technical University and the Ryazan State Radio Engineering University, prove this hypotheses.

UNIQUE SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT’S DESCRIPTION The Educational-scientific complex based on scanning probe microscope “Nanoeducator” is a part of a Multifunctional complex for the development and research of the thin film’s parameters. It was named as the USE and placed at the Ryazan state radio engineering University for other Universities scientific research as well. The complex of scientific equipment has no analogues in the Russian Federation, it is functioning as a single entity and established the scientific and educational organization in order to obtain scientific results, the achievement of which is not possible when using other equipment (Russian Federation Law No. 270-FZ dated 13.07.2015). The USE includes equipment adapted to research the grown nanoscale films and layers in the educational environment, Nano laboratory probe microscopy with the same name “Nanoeducator”. During the experiment’s preparation students use the theoretical materials and methodological instructions which are posted at the website of equipment’s developer, the NT-MDT company (www.ntmdt.ru), they use also the methodical materials created by the Regional Centre of Probe Microscopy for the collective usage by

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other Universities (hereinafter - RCU). The common scheme of the scanning probe microscope includes two subsystems: atomic force microscope and a computer with software that implements the management interface experiment. It is presented at the author’s paper published in Russian (Malakhov A., 2016).

THE EDUCATIONAL METHODOLOGY AND PROPOSED CRITERION FOR META-COMPETENCES’ EVALUATION Figure 1 shows the execution scheme of laboratory work carried on at the USE. The arrows indicate the sequence of operations and possible returns to change the setting and to retry the operations with the aim better results’ obtaining. The need for such action is been determined by the operator (student) or by the teacher who conducts the laboratory work. The main focus of the chapter is devoted to the Stage 2 of the laboratory work. As it could be seen at the Figure 1 the Stage 2 is been divided into two sub-stages named “Preparation of the experiment” and “Experiment”. The sub-stage “Preparation the experiment» includes two operations: “The probe preparation” and the installation of the test sample; 1) “Preparation of probe” when student works with probe – pulls out from its packaging, opens the upper cover of device and installs probe in probe holder; 2) “Positioning Figure 1. The execution scheme of laboratory work on the UNA

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of the Sample”, where the student works with a sample, given by the teacher: student puts the sample on a working table, positioned it manually under the probe, then sends the camera on the sample and closes the cover. The sub-stage “Experiment” includes the software’s execution. By observation of the laboratory’s process, authors have identified some opportunities to assess the student’s competency automatically using the mined criterion. Such a division into the sub-stages was done because the student performs substantially different operations at these sub-stages. At the sub-stage “Preparation of the experiment” the student performs the work which is associated to mechanical effects on the sample. At the sub-stage “Experiment” the student does his work using the program’s interface and adjusting the microscope’s settings to view and to record the results. The above-mentioned features of these two sub-stages are typical for the experiment, but they could vary depending on devices and systems included into the USE, could lead to the acquisition of student’s competencies. As it will be shown below, the result of every operation which student performs during his laboratory work at the USE, depends on the student’s competencies and skills, his ability to evaluate the result of each operation while he is installing and configuring the device. Next section of the chapter considers these sub-stages in details and shows the identified criterion for the evaluation of the student’s metacompetences.

META-COMPETENCE CRITERION MINING DURING THE SUBSTAGE “PREPARATION OF THE EXPERIMENT” Finding the Resonant Frequency of the Probe The student switches on the oscillator of the probe via the control computer. Changing the frequency he is finding maximum amplitude of the resonance, taking into account the right green column at the computer interface as it is shown at the Figure 2 (above-left). If the student is unable to determine the resonant frequency of the probe, he needs to replace the probe, and it means he needs to repeat the previous few steps. Hence, the fact of return to the previous steps and the number of such returns can serve as a criteria of competencies of the student, Figure 2 (above-right).

“Preparation of Probe” Operation One more criteria could be found when the student selects the desired amplitude of the oscillations of the probe (up to maximum). The operation “Preparation of probe” requires student’s special skills. The student performs the following operations with help of program: turning the camera on its pivot, does adjustment screw in the probe position on the surface with the visual control over the camera, then he focus the camera. The measurement of the distance between the probe and surface is used to diagnose the orientation of the shadow, as it shown at the Figure 2 (above-left, the visible shadow of the probe on the left hand and the green color indicators on the right hand).

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Figure 2. Working screen for the operation «Probe supply»(above) and results of the experiment (down)

After the shadow is found and the distance is displayed, the result needs to be shown to the teacher. The time of the “Preparation of probe” operation depends on the distance, exhibited by the student manually, and the speed of probe supply, which student has defined. At this point, there is another option for automated assessment: the time which student works with the automatic movement of the probe. This is the time shown on the screen as well as the velocity inlet. The distance can be calculated, and the obtained parameter is informative.

Setting the Z-Scanner Operation Using the cyclic process approach - retraction of probe, the student achieves the desired degree of extension of the z-scanner which is indicated by the green position indicator, as it is shown in Figure 2. If the position indicator of the z-scanner has red or yellow color, it means that the position indicator is undesirable, although if it is yellow the experiment can be continued but it is impossible to achieve green. Analyzing this operation the authors have found another opportunity to evaluate automatically the quality of the laboratory work performance: an informative parameter is the resulting color of the position indicator: green – great, yellow – good, red – bad.

The Image Quality of Sample Surface as Indicator of the Student’s Competence The operation is performed visually, the quality assessment is a result of image clarity of the scanned surface which are shown at the Figure 2 (two down screens). 457

 Identifying Students’ Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment

Two type of students with different level of knowledge took part in the laboratory work: postgraduate student, who has an experience with the device USE, and undergraduate student, who was performing the laboratory work first time. The time intervals are shown at the figure 4, they were obtained the sub-stage “Experiment”. The software program was developed to calculate experimental data using the MATLAB, the list of 18th operations’ working time was transposed, so data has a matrix view as it shown in the Table 1. As it can be seen on two down screens at the Figure 2 (two down screens), the images of the sample surface obtained by an experienced postgraduate student (left screen) and the unexperienced undergraduate student (right screen) are differ. For the teacher, who conducts a laboratory work, these differences are indicative due to the quality of the installation settings. So the quality of the image is an influence factor of the sub-stage “Preparation of the experiment” and the sub-stage “Experiment” intake probe set the scan settings. To verify this conclusion and to identify the possibility of “learning from mistakes” the students were asked to repeat the experiment paying attention to the observed errors. After repetition the students obtained higher quality results. It should be noted that, despite the compulsory pre-deployment training of students in accordance with the rules of laboratory work, the implementation process of students of all operations which were observed by a teacher, who gave recommendations on necessary actions, such as an installation, configuration, etc.

Indicators on Students’ Meta-Competences The developing by authors’ methodology gave six criterion for meta-competences estimation. They are following: • • • • • •

Existence or absence of probe change; Time, spent for the automatic movement of the probe; Distance between the probe and the surface; Speed feed; Working color of z-scanner (red, yellow or red); Number of operations repetitions to achieve the required quality of the settings.

Table 1. The list of time’s intervals concerned to 18th operations’ working time

458

Operation Operator (student)

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

SUM

0_0a

1

2

1

1

1

1

1

2

2

2

1

5

2

1

10

1

1

1

36

0_1s

1

2

1

1

1

2

2

2

2

2

6

5

5

2

10

2

1

1

48

1_1

2

3

3

2

1

2

2

1

1

3

3

10

1

3

11

2

2

1

53

1_2

1

2

2

2

1

1

2

1

1

1

1

5

1

1

10

4

1

1

38

2_1

1

4

1

2

1

1

2

2

2

1

2

16

1

1

11

2

1

1

52

2_2

1

2

1

2

1

1

1

2

1

1

1

16

1

1

10

2

2

1

47

Min-min

1

2

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

5

1

1

10

1

1

1

32

 Identifying Students’ Meta-Competences During Laboratory Work on a Unique Scientific Equipment

In following sections the chapter describes on how these criterion can help to esteem the student’s competences.

Indicators on Meta-Subject Student Competences At the stage of theoretical preparation, the method of semantic evaluation of the meta-subject student competence was used. In accordance with this method the student’s cognitive map which was created during tests at the stage of theoretical material study compares to the semantic net fragment of the subject ontology. The research on the subject ontology creation on the basis of learning materials is an actual research trend nowadays (Galiamova E., 2009; Avdeeva Z., 20107; Karpenko A., 2010; Belous V., 2012, Malakhov A., 2016). The authors of this chapter plan to implement the assessment as a development and extension of this study.

Indicators on Meta-Creative Student Competences While the practical work the student became familiar with unique laboratory equipment, he/she acquires the skills, training to use unique scientific equipment on the emulator that allows him to get acquainted with the interfaces and capabilities of the device NanoEducator. Regular students ask teacher questions, when they do not understand something, but creative students offer options to improve the operation of the device. There are cases when the communication with students led to the invention of new device.

Indicators on Student’s Meta-Cognitive Competences The complexity of the unique scientific equipment (USE) entails the need for the learner to be attentive to the execution of a sequence of operations. Inaccurate execution of one operation, for example, in our case, improper or incorrect installation of the probe can cause inaccurate measurements at all, and return to the several steps (operations) ago. Thus when the position of the z-scanner is out of working range (red or yellow position indicator) it can distort the measured topography of the surface and produces unreliable results. Therefore as it was mentioned in section 2, for setting the operating mode of the zscanner has a loop to hold the previous operation that takes some time. So the meta-cognitive indicator is an absence of operation’s return or more detailed – the number of repetitions. One more resource for the student’s meta-cognitive criterion are their questions. The discussion between teacher and student (in our case, about the quality of testing surface image obtained in the experiment, why and how there are causes the image has artifacts, the validity of the arguments from the students give a possibility to teacher to assess his/her meta-cognitive competence.

Experimental Research With Group of Students / Case Study As a preliminary preparation to the measurements during the experiment’s study (timing the periods of the operations) which should produce data suitable for subsequent statistical processing, there was a “reference” array (a vector) of time intervals of the operations included into the sub-stage “Experiment”. To do this, all the sub-steps carried out preliminary measurement of time periods of execution, for which laboratory work was done in parallel by two different levels of theoretical and practical training.

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The authors describe the details about the raw data, a list of operations and time intervals as well as the results of preliminary experiments executed (graphs were created with use of MATLAB) which were obtained during the research in Russian language in a paper (Malakhov A., 2016). The experimental research was carried on with a group of 6 students at Ryazan State Radio Engineering University. There were three groups working with equipment in parallel.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS This Chapter is a continuation of the publication (A. Malakhov, 2016) in a new direction, which can be called “methods and algorithms of identification and evaluation of Meta-competence of future engineers.” The authors plan to conduct a series of research experiments on other kinds of complex scientific equipment used by students for laboratory works. The results of the experiments will allow authors to find general regularities in identifying the characteristic features of meta competences of future engineers.

CONCLUSION The research of the laboratory work at the unique scientific equipment (USE) allow to make some conclusions that can be common points for the development of new methodological recommendations on identification and assessment criteria of the student’s meta-competences. The results can be expanded over any other unique scientific equipment (USE). It should be noted, that each specialized device or unique scientific equipment uses an original methods to identify specific stages (operations) and parameters for the evaluation of meta-competences, but the approach can be shared. To create a support tool for the meta-competences’ evaluation, that means to create subject ontology an electronic collection of educational materials is been formed, which includes lecture notes on topics of science related to unique scientific equipment, the methodical instructions to performance of laboratory works and other materials. The domain ontology is formed on the basis of the digital collection of educational materials which then will adjust by experts.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The work was supported by Russian Ministry of education (Project #2014-14-579-0144 dated 24/11/2014, ID RFMEF157714X0135).

REFERENCES Avachev, A. P., Vishnyakov, N. V., Gololobov, G. P., & Mitrofanov, K. V. (2012). Methodical manuals to laboratory work in the field of “Nanomaterials”. Ryazan: Ryazan State Radio Engineering University. Avdeeva, Z. K., Kovriga, S. V., Makarenko, D. I., & Maksimov, V. I. (2007). Cognitive approach in control. Control, 2007(3), 2-8.

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Belous, V. V., Bobrovsky, A. V., Dobrjkov, A. A., Karpenko, A. P., & Smirnova, E. V. (2012). Multicriterion integral alternatives’ estimation: mentally-structured approach to education. 2nd International Conference on Education and Education Management, 3, 215-224. Cruz, B. A., & Eremeeva, E. V. (2013). Definition of meta-subject competences of younger school student. Modern Problems of Science and Education, 2013(6). Available at: http://www.science-education. ru/113-11014 Galiamova, E. V., Karpenko, A. P., & Sokolov, N. K. (2009). The evaluation of conceptual knowledge of a subject taught in educational system. Science and Education. Electron. Phys., 2009(2). Available at: http://technomag.edu.ru/doc/115086.html Greshilova, A. V. (2014). The Content of meta-subject competencies of students in secondary vocational education. Magister Dixit: Scientific and Pedagogical Magazine of Eastern Siberia, 1(13). Available at: http://md.islu.ru/sites/md.islu.ru/files /rar/greshilova_statya_md_0.pdf Karpenko, A. P. (2010). Measures the importance of concepts in semantic networks of ontology knowledge base. Electron. Phys., 2010(7). Available at: http://technomag.edu.ru/doc/151142.html Karpenko, A. P., & Sokolov, N. (2008a). To Complexity estimation of semantic network into a tutoring system. Science and Education, 2008(11). Available at: http://technomag.bmstu.ru/doc/106658.html Karpenko, A. P., & Sokolov, N. (2008b). Expanded semantic network of a tutoring system and its complexity. Science and Education, 2008(12). Available at: http://technomag.bmstu.ru/doc/111716.html Malakhov, A. A., Smirnova, E. V., Vishnyakov, N. V., Kholomina, T. A., & Lunyakov, A. E. (2016). Criterion identification for student’s meta-competences evaluation during laboratory work execution on an unique scientific equipment. Science and Education, (7): 51–72. Available at http://technomag. neicon.ru/doc/843958.html Scharnhorst, A., & Ebeling, W. (2016). Evolutionary Search Agents in Complex Landscapes – a New Model for the Role of Competence and Meta-competence (EVOLINO and other simulation tools). The Virtual Knowledge Studio. Available at: http://virtualknowledgestudio.nl/documents /_andreascharnhorst/ arxiv_final.pdf

ADDITIONAL READING Clark, R., & Andrews, J. (2014) Relationships, variety & synergy: the vital ingredients for scholarship in engineering education? A case study (2014) European Journal of Engineering Education, 39 (6), pp. 585-600. http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/tf/03043797.html DOI: (date accessed 02.12.2017).10.1080 /03043797.2014.895707 Kirillov, N. P. (2015) Creativity in Engineering Education [Electronic resource] N. P. Kirillov, E.G. Leontyeva, A. V. Moiseenko // Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences. — 2015. — Vol. 166: Proceedings of the International Conference on Research Paradigms Transformation in Social Sciences 2014 (RPTSS-2014), 16–18 October 2014, Tomsk, Russia. — [P. 360-363]. (date accessed 02.12.2017).10.1016/j. sbspro.2014.12.537

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Suyatinov, S. I., Kolentev, S. V., & Bouldakova, T. I. Criteria of identification of the medical images // Proceedings of SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering. 2002, vol. 5067, pp. 148-153. DOI: https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/5067/1/Criteria-of-identification-of-medical-images/10.1117/12.518498.full (date accessed 02.12.2017).

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Automatic Competence Evaluation: Competence evaluation with the support of special computer algorithms. Competence Evaluation: Quantitative or qualitative indicators of quality of knowledge, abilities, skills of students. Educational-Scientific Complex: Complex includes hardware, software equipment and a set of theoretical and methodical materials. Indicator on Meta-Creative Student Competence: Creative students offer options to improve the operation of the device. Indicator on Meta-Subject (Interdisciplinary) Student Competences: A fragment of cognitive map, created during tests at the stage of theoretical preparation. Indicator on Student’s Meta-Cognitive Competence: An absence of operation’s return or more detailed the number of repetitions, done by student. Student’s Meta-Competence: Interdisciplinary, meta-cognitive and meta-creative components of the competences that student could obtain during the practical work with the unique scientific equipment.

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Chapter 39

Conceptual Principles of Engineering Education Based on Evolutional-Activity Approach Vladimir M. Nesterenko Samara State Technical University, Russia

ABSTRACT The concept of education using an evolutional-activity approach is presented. This approach resolves the problem of continuous self-development of specialists in their professional activity. The conformity of their evolution to individual and social changing needs is supported by development of skills for reliable generation of a new valuable knowledge in the right time and in the right place of the professional space. This new knowledge becomes a basis for generation of time- and energy-effective engineering solutions, including unique ones. The novelty of the proposed approach comes from the establishment of an axiomatic basis. The core categories of the basis are activity classes. The whole conceptual framework and fundamental laws are represented as consequences of initial axioms and postulates of the basis. This approach allows the higher education pedagogy to overcome the conceptual crisis, which resulted from the variety of existing conceptual frameworks.

INTRODUCTION The education level of an engineering community is the most important factor for sustainable economic growth and improvement of global competitiveness. As productivity growth largely depends on technological innovations, one of the priority tasks of education development is to support creation and distribution of structural and technological innovations. The innovations in higher education, as in any other area of activity, are founded on a fundamental theoretical base. The education system is looking for an answer on how to make a subject of the world transformation closer to a certain productive activity. How to place the subject into events, and how to involve the subject in the events? DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch039

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 Conceptual Principles of Engineering Education Based on Evolutional-Activity Approach

Since the number and complexity of situations in the outer environment constantly grow, the system of managing the organization of processes for the generation of adequate solutions of the productive tasks must be able to acquire new qualities, to increase its capacity for development and implementation of solutions, i.e. be able to continuously evolve. This work presents the methodological foundations of axiomatically constructed evolutional-activity (EA) education. The methodology provides a transition from the traditional representation of information through knowledge and skills (Hauke, 2015), modules (Unesco, 1989), competences (Hodge & Harris, 2012) to a qualitatively new information representation based on the primary axioms of the subject’s activity. It also creates conditions for the development of emergent engineering solutions with new functions and properties. A remarkable feature of the proposed approach is the wider adoption of decision-making algorithms that are prevalent in nature: methods of selection, evolution, and adaptation. In general, these methods belong to the class of heuristic self-organization.

BACKGROUND Explicit modeling, as a method of scientific cognition, has the following notable feature. In phenomena under study, only essential things are modeled. A model should incorporate main characteristics, parameters, and their interrelations, so it can facilitate deeper understanding of a phenomenon. This is the outline of the conventional approach of explicit modeling. The main drawback of the conventional deterministic decomposition method is unacceptability of losses, even of insignificant elements in the coefficient matrix of the equation system. In the selection processes, the processes of choosing the important things and eliminating the insignificant ones, according to defined criteria, are necessary. The implementation of this approach by a learning system in the real world is not effective due to difficulties to adaptation and flexibility. Human intelligence, as a complex self-learning system, is exhibited in the following abilities. 1. The ability to learn, including information acquisition from direct interaction with the outer world, integration of the information into the internal model, and achievement of understanding (i.e. perform connection of the acquired knowledge with facts and phenomena of reality). The learning aptitude is related to the desire for a system to permanently improve the internal model of the external world. 2. The ability to manage the mental activity, that is, the ability to abandon conventional patterns and find new, actual, specific relationships. 3. The ability to possess a mental memory, to transmit messages to other intelligent people, and to create a signal system for this purpose. Implicit modeling is more adequate in the learning process of complex systems. Implicit modeling requires tools that allow reproduction of a desired behavior of the complex system under study. The tools by themselves may form another complex system, which can be understood more easily than the original system. An implicit model allows experimentation, but it lacks one of the features of explicit modeling, which is comprehensibility of the functioning or solubility of the result obtained. The result of the implicit modeling is not an identification of a “black box,” but creation of its model in the form of

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another “black box” that allows it to carry out many of the experiments necessary for research. Modeling of an intellectual activity is one of the scopes of implicit modeling. On the other side, the arising conceptual crisis of higher school pedagogy is related to the currently used conceptual frameworks in education. These frameworks are characterized by varieties of possible schemes of their interpretation. Furthermore, in spite of their frequent changes, they still cannot acquire the necessary rigidity. Long-term multiple-aspect investigations have led the author to the understanding that productivity and effectiveness of technological innovations in higher education can be improved qualitatively, if this conceptual crisis is to be overcome. Therefore, a new system for information presentation is demanded for modern technologies, environment, and communications. The system should be based on the different approaches for organization of information coding providing barrier-free, waste-free, and limitless processes of cognition in solving productive tasks by the subject.

AXIOMATIC REPRESENTATION OF EA ENGINEERING EDUCATION In this author’s opinion, overcoming the educational crisis is possible only within the framework of a new paradigm of education, which should be based on the principles of self-organization. By using this framework, a specialist has the possibility of choice, freedom of action, and the ability to develop knowledge at different levels according to the needs and conditions of the environment. A direct relationship between the internal model of the environment and the environment itself can be revealed by the specialist. The scientific research for methodological innovations in the concept of information as a result of conscious reflection has shown the possibility of an informational approach to development processes, in particular, to personal development. The variability of the links between the elements of knowledge should be provided for new knowledge acquisition by changing points and angles of view. For the generation of new and valuable information (creativity), it is necessary to create a universal marker (an order parameter) in a particular area of knowledge that will be a nucleating agent in any component of a particular professional field of knowledge. This backbone agent becomes the constituent part of the knowledge structure and implies variability of the structure (secondary variability). The new, changing element of knowledge, in turn, also becomes a secondary marker and can become a source of birth of new knowledge, etc. The use of order parameters greatly facilitates the solution of non-standard professional tasks and regulates professional knowledge, allows creation of new training technologies, new technologies for monitoring and diagnostics of the training quality, and understanding the process of evolution and adaptation of specialist’s knowledge in specific activity conditions. In the process of information transfer, an image is the source of new knowledge, in one case; it is the result of knowledge perception, in the other case. From the point of view of a recipient, information is a necessary prerequisite for reflection, and, from the point of view of a sender, reflection is a necessary prerequisite for information emergence. Thus, it is possible to represent information as a reflection of the diversity that reflects an object. A continuous relationship of information with reflection helps to identify the association of information with development. The information obtained by solution of professional problems can be categorized into two types. These types include information obtained from the subconscious, from the internal model, and information derived from the environment. The more information that comes from the internal model, the less

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energy it requires to get it from outside, and hence the individual is more capable of self-development and self-evolution, i.e. for self-organization. Self-organization activity as one of the factors of progressive development (self-development) is based on the optimal combination of stabilizing forms of selforganization (with the predominance of negative feedback) with the goal-seeking transformation of systems (on the basis of positive feedback). The capability of a system (in this particular case, the knowledge system of a specialist) for selforganization, self-education, and self-reproduction can be acquired at a certain critical level of the system complexity. This should be taken into account in the planning and designing of the educational process. Thus, the principle of self-organization concretizes the principle of self-movement and self-development. The key conditions for process of knowledge evolution are emphasis placement not on the quantity of information, but on its value, and instability of the system that supports the process of evolution and self-organization of knowledge. In this case, the principle of order is defined as ‘the order through the fluctuation.’ Therefore, self-reproduction of knowledge is possible only at a certain level of abilities, and the specialist must be ‘programmed’ for self-development, i.e. it must have redundant information, knowledge, and perfect internal models of the professional environment. The primary approach for solving productive tasks by a subject in traditional education is the choice of valuable knowledge through selection from the knowledge base, which is formed in the course of training, according to the direction of the training, and to the adaptation to volatile external factors. The subject in these conditions becomes a hostage to the conventional approaches, focused on the selection and adaptation of ready-to-use knowledge, and is not motivated for the development and evolutional transformation of itself and the environment through its activities. This problem is sustained by the traditional system of the structural approach of information decomposition (division into subsystems and elements), which defines the content of professional education. The structural approach is based on the scales of names, order, and intervals, which do not provide adequate correlation and quantification of particular properties and qualities of various objects and their parts. Overcoming the conceptual crisis in any science, including higher school pedagogy, can be achieved by axiomatic construction of the corresponding science. Within the axiomatic construction, the whole conceptual framework and all the fundamental laws are formed as consequences from the adopted axioms and postulates. Here, the axioms and postulates are the most simple and obvious statements accepting without proofs and ambiguity. In other words, all fundamental laws adopted in higher school pedagogy should, firstly, have a full consistent basis (a small number of the statements, a priori taken as starting and true) and, secondly, be the initial ones for any pedagogical aspects. In author’s opinion, the axiomatization procedure of higher school pedagogy includes the following points. 1. Initially, a system of axioms and postulates is established. 2. The adopted system of axioms and postulates covers the entire scope of the theory. 3. The two fundamental factors include consistency of the system of axioms and non-existence of consequences and conclusions, which are inconsistent to one another and can be obtained in different ways within the theory. 4. New concepts are introduced into the language and structure of the theory based on the initial concepts obtained from the axioms. 466

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5. New concepts are introduced by a certain consequence: by a transition from abstract concepts to more concrete ones, from ideas (axioms, principles) of the theory to the deployment of a complete theoretical system. A particularly important point is the choice of a backbone factor, “genetic” basis of axiomatization. The author considers the activity as this backbone factor. According to the definition of G.P. Shchedrovitsky, activity is the initial universal integrity, “activity is the only generic being” (Schedrovitsky, 2005). Activity is a type of relationship (interaction) of entities. In this relationship type, one entity becomes a subject of an activity (an organism). Other entities acquire the status of objects of the activity, in respect to the first one, and, as a whole, become a medium for the organism. As a real form of existence of “things,” activity is a property of highly organized entities only, which is linked to the processes of reflection and management of information. From this perspective, the axiomatic higher school pedagogy, in fact, can be considered as pedagogy of activity. In accordance with the rules of axiomatic construction, the author has determined the following nine postulates of the pedagogy of activity. 1. Reality exists as an interaction of open systems. An organized activity of a subject creates an impact on the systems. This impact originates the information on the change in states of the systems. Therefore, activity is the core backbone conceptual category as the most fundamental and broadest class of being. All concepts in higher school pedagogy are represented through activities. 2. An activity can be entirely represented by two full systems of order parameters: the space of representation of professional activity of the subject (SRAS) and the space of representation of the subject of activity (SRSA). The structural phenomenon of SRAS comes through both the harmonic scale of relationship of activity classes and parametric resonance as a basis for self-organization and other more complex phenomena (Melnik & Nesterenko, 2017). 3. SRAS is structured by eight fractal order parameters. The basis directions of the activity concept, which are invariant to human society in the certain place and time (era), are postulated to be productive, environmental, scientific, artistic, pedagogical, managerial, medical, and physical. 4. SRSA is structured by nine fractal order parameters. The basis directions of the subject concept are the needs for activities, evaluation of activities, purposes, regulations, criteria, content, methods, technologies of activities, and abilities for activities. 5. Management of the varying interaction between a subject and an object is carried out by scaling the SRAS and SRSA, depending on the object localization. 6. Any actual task can be represented by the order parameters in a given set of variants, depending on the events selected by the subject (decomposition, correlation, and consolidation) to actualize a successive order parameter, which reflects another portion of requested information. 7. An event in activity is a change in the state of an activity object through the activity state (content) variation. As a consequence, events are the reasons for the emergence of new properties, objects, and activities. 8. A systematic technology of solution for professional tasks is an ordered system of events that provides a required quality of the result of activity, where the quality is represented by a parametric model. 9. The relevant solution of a professional problem is formed as a result of transformation of the solution parametric model through the context substitution of the order parameters. 467

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In its essence, development of a solution using an axiomatic basis is made by a transition from extremely abstract concepts to more and more specific ones. The axiomatic approach ensures the consistency of the initial assumptions, development of a single holistic view of the world, and logical integrity of the pedagogical systematic theory, which becomes more perfect and understandable due to elimination of unnecessary links from the chain of reasoning. Basic, fundamental concepts and relations of pedagogy previously postulated from experience are defined here by the unified methodology, thus acquiring a more profound common sense, causal structure and universal notation.

EFFICIENCY CRITERIA OF EA APPROACH IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION Quality of knowledge is determined by its fundamentality, depth, and relevance to the professional activity after graduation. Estimation of education efficiency requires assessment of subject’s abilities and resources. It is necessary to assess the following abilities of the subject. 1. The ability to be aware of potential resources. 2. The ability to use resources to achieve the goals of productive activity. 3. The ability to transfer and replicate the results of activity in an environment. Initial information on the subject’s resources is determined by the following statements. •

The fundamentality and depth of education can be considered to be a multidimensional concept. It is reasonable to construct this concept from the duality of the possible presentation based on process and parametric approaches. The process approach implicates continuity of management, the sequence and interconnection of individual educational processes within their system, as well as their combination and interaction. The parametric approach implicates discreteness of management, and the parallelism and unity of the interconnection of individual parametric events in the solution of productive tasks. The relevance of education is determined by the demand for the acquired knowledge in specific conditions for their application to achieve a specific goal and improve the quality of life. The quality assessment system should be integrated, and oriented to modern information technologies. The system relevance can be assessed using qualitative and quantitative indicators.

• •

The following key abilities need to be assessed. 1. The ability to select and obtain resources for productive activities. Resources of the EA approach are quantitatively measurable capabilities of carrying out the appraisal activity by a person or persons, as well as capabilities to obtain desired results by use of certain transformations. 2. The ability to use human resources potential, formed in the learning process, to achieve the goals of productive activities. The ability for complex and economically rational use of resources is assessed in accordance with the needs of a human and a society that characterizes the personal ability to implement theoretical possibilities in practice.

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3. The ability to transfer the results of activities to an environment for scaling and replication. The environment is the source that provides the human being with the resources that are necessary for maintenance of its internal potential at the proper level. There is a possibility that a person will not be able to obtain the necessary resources from the environment. This possibility can degrade its potential and can lead to many negative consequences for the person. The task of forming the ability to assess and predict the efficiency of strategic management is maintenance of a person’s interaction with the environment. This would allow the person to maintain his or her potential at the level necessary to achieve their goals, and thereby provide the opportunity to behave proactively in the long term. Like the internal factors, the factors of the environment are interrelated. Therefore, it is necessary to learn how to assess the effect of change in the state of the actual factors on each other and on the final result. In addition to interrelationship, the environment is characterized by the complexity (the number of factors, which should be taken into account), mobility (the speed of changes in the environment), and uncertainty (a function of the amount of information on the particular factor and a function of confidence in this information). The ability to take into account the diversity of factors must also be included in the development of a system technology of the training effectiveness assessment. Based on the parametric analysis of the results of system assessment, a conclusion on the appropriateness of further implementation of the existing system is made, and the main directions for its improvement are determined. In the parametric approach to the organization and evaluation of a subject’s performance, the effectiveness threshold is determined as an ability to realize the potentialities of SRAS as a structure for representation of informational dynamic chaos. The method of efficiency estimation of productive activity assumes a description of the client’s state in “input” and in “output” (on the completion of a productive activity). The difference between these two parameters is the effect or result, indicating the efficiency of the subject. The main problem of parametric techniques development is determination and description of parameters at the “input” and “output.” An evaluation analysis of an object is performed by an analyst regardless of the subject of activity. Subjectivity in the assessments of the object state made by the analyst and by the subject of activity causes unconformity in the estimates of both intermediate and final parameters. The parametric estimation method is based on a comparison of two states of the object before and after the interaction with the selected resource. The difference in these parameters characterizes the achieved effect. This method can be aimed at determination of the intermediate or current efficiency for introducing appropriate corrections to the process of solution of the object transformation problem. For implementation of the technology of parametric evaluation of a subject’s abilities to perform productive activity, it is necessary to create an appropriate database that reflects the potential result of an impact of the considered activity. The database should be prepared according to the structure presented in Table 1.

ADVANTAGES OF EA APPROACH IMPLEMENTATION A focus of the proposed approach is spotted on the formation of a convergent content. The convergent content is supported by the consistent model of representation of the comprehensive world in the process

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Table 1. Structure of the technology of parametric evaluation of subjects abilities to perform productive activity Criteria for assessment of subject’s abilities to perform productive activity

Abilities for productive activity resource awareness

Abilities for conscious implementation of productive activity resources

Novelty of the solution of the actual productive task.

Awareness of the possibility of novelty level control in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Realization of the potential for novelty level management in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Evaluation of the possibility of realization of the actual novelty in the schema for solving the actual productive task in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Importance of the productive task

Awareness of the possibility of importance level control in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Realization of the potential for importance level management in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Evaluation of the possibility of realization of the importance in the schema for solving the actual productive task in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Completeness of the solution of the actual productive problem

Awareness of the possibility of completeness level control in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Realization of the potential for completeness level management in the scheme for solving the actual productive task using the state matrix as a single detector of new or non-new

Evaluation of the possibility of realization of the completeness in the schema for solving the actual productive task in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Awareness of overcoming the dichotomy in the representation of productive activity under the parametric approach (barrier-free, waste-free and limitless: knowledge-information, theory-practice, etc.)

Awareness of the possibility of overcoming dichotomies in the scheme for representing productive activity. Types of the overcome dichotomies: 1. Information barriers. 2. Information redundancy. 3. Application limitation.

Realization of conscious overcoming of dichotomies in the scheme of representation of productive activity. Types of the overcome dichotomies: 1. Information barriers. 2. Information redundancy. 3. Application limitation.

Assessment of the possibility of realization of conscious overcoming of dichotomies in the schema of representing productive activity in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Generation of relevant knowledge in the right place and at the right time

Awareness of possibilities of cognitive technology based on structural representation of the directed evolution of processes of problem solving. The process complexity grows much slower than the functional complexity

Realization of functioning of knowledge generation systems in EA, based on the fractal nature of parameters. Initially, the system is not specified in the final form, but it is formed by the cyclic application of the initial form as a result of the implementation of the variability/redundancy/selection algorithm

Evaluation of the possibility of implementation of the parametric system of knowledge generation in a wide range of conditions of professional activity that allow flexibility of adaptation and evolution to unpredictable changes

Awareness of the possibility of subject’s self-control in the process of formation and application of evaluation tools

Implementation of EA resources for self-control in the process of generation of actual knowledge. The source of information with a consistent system-forming element is characterized by quantitative indicators of the object of planning and prognosis, determined by the scale of relations

Evaluation of the possibility of realization of conscious self-control in the scheme of representation of productive activity in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Control the processes and productivity of generation of actual knowledge by the subject

Abilities for conscious realization, scaling, and replication of productive activity resources in the real economics

continued on following page

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Table 1. Continued Criteria for assessment of subject’s abilities to perform productive activity

Abilities for productive activity resource awareness

Compensation of missing links in the schema of activity within productive problems solving.

Awareness of the possibility of reimbursement or replacement of broken or lost links by the realization of the immense resources of EA, which are determined by its plasticity, almost unlimited possibility of use mutually complementary identified potential links, and the absence of a narrow specialization of parameters

Realization of reimbursement or replacement of broken or lost links by the realization of the immense resources of EA, which are determined by its plasticity, almost unlimited possibility of use mutually complementary identified potential links, and the absence of a narrow specialization of parameters

Evaluation of the possibility of reimbursement or replacement of broken or lost links due to the implementation of the immense resources of EA in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Redundancy of the invariants of information and structural functioning of the system of productive activity

Awareness of the possibility of representation of the excess invariants of the solution of productive tasks using prognosis of the results of different solution levels, as well as providing the conditions for coordinated group decision making

Realization of the possibility of representation of the excess invariants of the solution of productive tasks using prognosis of the results of different solution levels, as well as providing the conditions for coordinated group decision making

Evaluation of the possibility of representation of the excess invariants of the solution of productive tasks using prognosis of the results of different solution levels, as well as providing the conditions for coordinated group decision making in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Activity is a type of action aimed at providing the generation of invariants of productive activity and conscious choice of the most effective one

Awareness of the possibility of support for the activity of a subject

Realization of the possibility of support for the activity of a subject

Evaluation of the possibility of representation and realization of the support for the subject’s activity in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Systematic use of ideal images in the construction of theoretical models of productive activity

Awareness of the possibility of support for a systematic use of ideal images in the construction of theoretical models of productive activity. The completeness of the conscious representation is estimated. Understanding the knowledge is not only “cognition by abstract ideas”, but also “construction of abstract ideas”

Realization of EA resources in the application of such schemata with the use of idealizations of real objects of reality, in which their properties can be consciously eliminated or created

Evaluation of the possibility of implementation of the method of constructing the objects, which correspond to the abstract ideas. The method essentially changes the representation schema of cognitive activity in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics.

Design of schemata of productive activity and abstract ideas using ideal images

Awareness of the possibility of a support for the systematic use of theoretical design of productive activity schemata. Ideal objects perform the function of controlling the direction of development in such a design

Realization of a support for the systematic use of theoretical design of productive activity schemata. Ideal objects perform the function of controlling the direction of development in such a design

Assessment of the realization possibility of support for the systematic use of theoretical design of productive activity schemata in other types of activity and sectors of the real economics

Abilities for conscious implementation of productive activity resources

Abilities for conscious realization, scaling, and replication of productive activity resources in the real economics

of learning and by event interaction between elements of the model in the process of actualization of information (Nesterenko, 2015). Particularly, the proposed EA approach is based on the consistent model of cognitive activity of a subject, which is potentially ready to be implemented. In the EA approach, a divergent generation of an actual solution based on convergent representation of the comprehensive activity is performed. 471

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To choose the organization of engineering training, two strategies of the subject for the development of productive activity in the process of training were analyzed. The first strategy is based on selection of necessary variants from a random set of activities. The second strategy implements the generation and selection of the invariants of the organization of a productive solving the problems at all stages of productive activities. The first strategy is a slow way of evolutional cognition, the way of random variations and evolutional selection, and a gradual transition from simple structures to the more complex ones using predefined templates. The second strategy is a quick transition to the complex structures in the absence of templates. This is the way of many old reductions of time costs and material efforts, and the way of initiating the desired and realizable structures. The most important difference between template-less and template thinking is the possibility and necessity of rejection of information perception in a pre-packaged form. The choice of the parts to which the whole is divided depends on the degree of awareness, and on the convenience and availability of simple relations, with which the parts will be associated. Words and concepts often lose the direct connection with the designated object of the external world. They represent the results of classification and categorization of an object without preserving the information on its individual characteristics. Template thinking should balance directly on a word, taking into account its absolute stability. Unconventional thinking can fully rely on a consistent model, which is conceptually formed in the learning process. This model represents the consistent world in the systematic cognitive activity of the engineer-creator. It provides event interaction for elements of the model in the process of information updating in the process of generation of problem solution creating resonant conditions for the emergence of new ideas. Therefore, the focus in the preparation of the engineering personnel is shifted from the reproduction of the algorithms of activity to the generation of new ideas. The main distinctive features of the EA approach are the following: 1. Orientation on the generation of solutions for real-world problems at the required time, based on the core factor, a human activity. 2. Focus on evolution as the possibility of obtaining the new knowledge elements at any step. The new elements are different from those previously obtained. The novelty is determined by means of technology itself. 3. Support of personal awareness in the context of professional activities. This approach eliminates the information barriers between subjects of the innovative activity, creates the possibility for coherent actions through the elaboration of transaction directions, which are straightforward for all participants, and provides an effective interaction of specialists of various professional orientations. The universal formula that describes the solution of productive problems can be written as z(x) = Z ∀ [context], where Z is a functional solution of the problem within the framework of a consistent model,∀ is a generality quantifier, which denotes an assignment of the context to all elements of Z. The proposed EA approach can be implemented by the following stages. 1. Statement of the problem. The formulation of the content of the problem with a description of the expected final result of the problem solution. 2. Decomposition of the task. Determination of SRAS according to the actual objectives of the problem.

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3. Correlation of potentially possible functional directions of influence on the object in accordance with the actual objectives of the problem. 4. Consolidation of functions of the directed activities in the actual image. Obtaining a step-by-step functional solution and an aggregated solution. 5. Contextual content of the functional reflection of the process and activities. 6. Evaluation of the achievement degree of the demanded state by comparison with reference or other similar solution using the efficiency criteria. In this example of step-by-step solution of productive tasks, the EA approach establishes conditions for the transition from the existing systems of information representation to the unified system of measures (or scale of relations) of object’s changes. In the considered case, the representation systems based on knowledge, skills, modules, and competences are projected to the representation system based on activities directed to the object. EA provides qualitatively new opportunities for a specialist to produce effective engineering solutions including unique ones. The authors has developed and tested the following package: • • •

Conceptually new technology to solve engineering problems, based on EA technology (Ionesov & Nesterenko, 2013; Melnik, 2013a, 2013b; Nesterenko, 2011). A methodological support of the educational process aimed on the transfer of the EA technology concepts to subjects of education. Software for design of representations of invariants for a solution of an engineering problem.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS A further direction of research is the development of an educational platform for providing high-tech education “to everyone in the right place and at the right time.” The concept of the EA approach: “People learn fruitfully only when they do something by themselves using their own mind.” All students should be familiar with a consistent “holistic system of activities”, which they will adopt and consciously implement the methodology of managing the direction of their actions through all their productive professional activity. In the future, EA technology will provide a significant elimination of all “indirect costs”, which create many problems and barriers to the preparation of effective leaders at all levels of professional education. The concept of EA is intented to equip students with cognitive tools, which will ensure their success in the real world after graduating from the university. Therefore, instead of abstract manipulation of structured knowledge in the process of traditional learning and choosing the right solution, the activity subject creates a solution, which is pertinent for him, with contextual correspondence to the real time and place of implementation. This concept will become the basis for training the highly qualified personnel for all branches of the modern economy, ensuring the realization of the advantages of digital technologies, i.e. high-tech activity. Further research will be also focused on the preparation and evolutionary transition of education from traditional concepts and information technologies to the new high-tech areas of development of the organization of educational activities, the main aspect of which is not the new technologies, but

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changes in the way of thinking and in the strategy of education. Representation of the process of solving productive tasks based on the activity directions will provide the creation of a universal language for communication between specialists. The vector of development of EA education is directed in a greater extent to the educational process, and not only to the administrative innovations.

CONCLUSION Improvement of the competitiveness of human resources, which is the most important factor for economic growth acceleration, can be achieved as a result of realization of the fundamentally new approaches of axiomatic EA. The proposed system of information representation based on the primary axioms of the subject activities provides the decomposition of the problem-solving process without losses of information. Based on this decomposition, the conceptual information model of subject activity aimed at the solution of engineering problems was developed. The remarkable feature of the created model is an elimination of redundancy and duplication of information by normalization of relations in the information model. The developed EA technology of organization of the solution of actual engineering problems is in the first supra-sectorial priority. It appears to be a consistent (on the activity level) basis for the development of all sectors of the new knowledge-based economy of post-industrial society. It provides a transition to the synthesis-based generation of efficient solutions for the crucial problems based on convergence, an interdisciplinary approach rather than narrow specializations, which is based on coupling and mutual penetration of sciences and technologies, and worlds of inanimate and animate nature. The implementation of the axiomatic approach and relationship scale for information representation eliminates the information barriers between subjects of the innovative activity, creates the abilities for coherent actions through the elaboration of transaction directions, which are understandable for all subjects, and provides an effective interaction of specialists of various professional orientations.

REFERENCES Hauke, K. (2015). Process approach to management knowledge objects managerial expertise for distance learning. Paper presented at the Federated Conference on Computer Science and Information Systems, Łódź, Poland. 10.15439/2015F328 Hodge, S., & Harris, R. (2012). Discipline, governmentality and 25 years of competency-based training. Studies in the Education of Adults, 44(2), 155–170. doi:10.1080/02660830.2012.11661630 Ionesov, V. I., & Nesterenko, V. M. (2013). Human being in the system of spatiotemporal relations: Projections and challenges of sociocultural communications. Herald of Samara State Technical University, 2(20), 142–148. Melnik, N. M. (2013a). Conception and technology of qualification upgrading for engineers in the innovative development of economics. Herald of Samara State Technical University. PsychologicalPedagogical Sciences, 1(19), 86–93. Melnik, N. M. (2013b). Innovative technology for global competition leader training. Herald of Samara State Technical University. Psychological-Pedagogical Sciences, 2(20), 129–141.

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Melnik, N. M., & Nesterenko, V. M. (2007). Conception of the evolutional-activity professional education. Moscow: VLADOS. Nesterenko, V. M. (2011). Parametric knowledge management in the professional problem solving process. Herald of Samara State Technical University. Psychological-Pedagogical Sciences, 1(15), 89–99. Nesterenko, V. M. (2015). Conceptual aspects of the solution system generation of actual professional problems. Herald of Samara State Technical University, 3(27), 161–170. Schedrovitsky, G. P. (2005). The structure of sign: senses, meanings, knowledge (Vol. 1). Moscow: Vost. Lit. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (1989). The modular approach in technical education. Paris, France: UNESCO.

ADDITIONAL READING Kosslyn, S. M., Nelson, B., & Kerrey, R. (2017). Building the intentional university: Minerva and the future of higher education. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Nesterenko, V. M. (2011). Informational support of intelligent behavior of a reliable specialist in the globalization era. Herald of Samara State Technical University, 2(16), 96–101. Nesterenko, V. M. (2014). Parametric knowledge management as a backbone factor of the evolutional behavior of a specialist. In A. V. Porotnikova (Ed.), New educational technologies for universities (pp. 1094–1099). Ekaterinburg: URFU. Nesterenko, V. M. (2017). Engineering of an intelligent information model of self-developing actor for graduates of technical universities. In Strategies of the modern higher education (pp. 217–232). Syzran: Vash Vzglyad.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Activity: An axiomatic form of representation of the relationship (interaction) of entities, when one entity becomes a subject of activity (an organism), and the other one in relation to the first one acquires the status of an object of activity. Activity is related to the processes of reflection (information obtaining) and management. It is the initial and universal integrity. Axiomatic Representation: The simplest and most obvious for the majority of people statements of unambiguous perception taken without any proof. Convergent Representation of the Content: The formation of a consistent model of representation of the consistent world in the systematic cognitive activity of a subject during the learning process. The convergent representation of the content provides event interaction of elements of the model in the process of divergent generation of the actual solution.

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Event in Activity: A change in the state of an object of activity by actualization of the order parameters (directions of the subject’s activity), which is, as a consequence, the reason for the appearance of new properties and new objects. Evolutional-Activity (EA) Approach: The approach of creation of conditions for transition from one system of presenting information into the system of representation of activity, which is consistent system of measure (scale of relations) of changes in an object of directed activity. This approach eliminates information barriers, provides evolution of the subject’s activity and conscious generation of relevant solutions. Generation of Actual Knowledge: The generation and evolution of solutions focused on real highly demanded problems at the right time and based on the activity of subject as a backbone factor. Parametric Evaluation: Comparison of the two parameters, the states of an object before and after the selected impact. The difference in these parameters characterizes the achieved effect. System Technology of Solution: The algorithm of ordering of events represented by the parametric model. This algorithm provides the required quality of the result of the creative activity.

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Chapter 40

Flexible Educational Program for Managerial Engineering Personnel in Innovation Anna Maltseva Tver State University, Russia

ABSTRACT This chapter raises the issues of development of continuous education of managerial engineering personnel in industrial companies. The case of designing implementation of the additional education program for the course “Innovation Management” with flexible learning paths was considered. This case was created on the basis of the Foresight study’s results of current and future development challenges facing LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika.” The results of the survey of the audience—heads of structural enterprise’s subdivisions—were shown. They demonstrated the need for organizational learning, as well as the most appropriate forms and instruments of its implementation.

INTRODUCTION Currently further training and retraining are very topical forms of human capital development which is the growth driver of companies’ competitiveness (Avraamova, 2015, 2016; Florman, 1997; Collins, Berivudes, Youngblood &. Pazos, 2004). The introduction of new technologies and equipment makes it necessary for the new staff to obtain competencies. At the same time ensuring a stable position on the market, achieving the highest possible financial results are currently accomplishable on condition of introduction of new management methods and organization of work. The dynamics of the external environment, the exponential growth of knowledge and technologies are the key motivations for the company’s management team to organize conditions for continuous education of the staff, exchange of relevant information, professional and personal growth. In the theory of modern management the term “learning organization” is actively used. This term was introduced into scientific circulation by Senge (2003) and it characterizes a company that creates, acquires, transmits and stores the knowledge. A learning organization is a structure in which every emDOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch040

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ployee is involved in the process of identifying and solving problems which allows the entire organization to develop, to experiment, to find the most productive ways of working (Skvortsova, 2014). In modern conditions the organization of the internal environment of the company as a learning organization is a driver of its growth and development, and the system of additional education of engineering personnel who are in leadership positions should be sufficiently flexible to allow the creation of competency in accordance with the trajectory of the company’s development (Chan, Cooper & Tzortzopoulos, 2005; King, 2009; Sun, 2003; Kumpikaite, 2008) The paper describes the case of educational module in the field of innovation management which was developed and implemented within the framework of additional education program for the managerial personnel of LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika” in 2015. The company is currently a dynamically developing industrial enterprise and it is the part of the largest Russian Lighting holding BL GROUP. This leads to the structural features of the company by virtue of which LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika” realizes full cycle of production of lighting products, and the distribution is carried out by the parent company («Svetotekhnika», 2014; Kol’tsova, 2012). The management team of LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika” actively introduces into practice of their own activities the principles of a learning organization and therefore educational activities, training programs for different groups of employees, re-training are regularly held. The company’s management team are interested in innovation management firstly due to the fact that the team carrying out a flexible policy to meet the customer’s interests faces with the problems of improvement of various types of products, as well as introduction of new technologies into production. Wherein senior positions are mostly occupied by specialists with higher technical education, and in order to implement new management principles different knowledge and competences are required.

MAIN FOCUS OF THE CHAPTER The mentioned above structural features of LLC Lihoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika” as well as special management team’s requirements have not allowed to realize the classical scheme of the program “Innovation Management”, herewith its flexible trajectory was created, the specific thematic areas, necessary for this organization were marked. Foresight study, which was carried out previously and in which current and strategic issues both for individual groups of employees and for the company as a whole were identified, became a toolkit of creation of the thematic program plan. The first introductory tutorial was organized in the training format, during which on the basis of collective discussion, working in small groups and voting the company’s key problems that require additional knowledge to solve them have been identified: 1. Lack of clear planning of innovation implementation, of improvement of individual products, which ultimately reduces the efficiency of these activities; 2. Lack of coherence of structural subdivisions in solving enterprise’s common problems, including the execution of orders for new or improved products; 3. Lack of competence in the field of teamwork organization while introduction of new products and equipment as separate projects; 4. Low inventive competence of most engineers and technical workers, lack of creative approach to executing tasks and initiatives to improve certain content aspects of their own professional activity;

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5. Tendencies of organization staff’s resistance to changes in a number of cases; 6. Lack of theoretical knowledge and practical competences in the field of strategic innovation management, necessary for the preparation and implementation of integrated and thematic strategies of the organization; 7. In some cases the higher manufactured product cost in comparison with competitors due to high expenses; 8. Lack of well-organized inventory control system, including unclaimed surpluses in warehouses and in some cases supply disruptions; 9. Low level of labor discipline in individual structural units, which leads to a decrease in overall productivity; 10. Lack of qualified personnel, particularly graduates of secondary specialized colleges and higher educational institutions, which requires creation of additional education system and adaptation them to the enterprise. In accordance with the key problems 1-6 the educational program of additional education for managerial employees of the organization has been created. Problems 7-8 require implementation of special programs which in the first place are suitable for managers of planning and financial and accounting departments, and that were recommended to the top management of the company. Problems 9-10 lie in the plane of personnel management, and for that purpose a separate thematic unit was developed and implemented. At the same time during the study of the basic course created to meet the challenges 1-6, the special cases for solving problems 7-10 as examples of usage of tools and innovative management practices were analyzed. In accordance with the key issues identified during Foresight studies, the next thematic program plan has been created: Topic 1: Creative thinking and creative development (problems 3,4). Topic 2: The theory of inventive problem solving (problem 3). Topic 3: Change management (problem 5). Topic 4: Strategic management of innovation at the enterprise (problems 1, 2, 6). Topic 5: Management of innovative projects (problems 1, 2). Each topic is a separate module containing the theoretical and practical aspects, and has been implemented in the form of a one-day training. Specific situations of enterprise practices were analyzed as illustrative examples. Topic 1 “Creative thinking and creative development” was entered into the program to solve the problems of lack of inventive activity of company personnel. It was planned that the graduated top managers of the enterprise will be able to replicate the acquired knowledge in environment of engineering and technical personnel of middle level. The development of creative thinking as a competence of an engineer is necessary because it is a way of thinking, a process that leads to creating a new one. The standard undergraduate and graduate programs in the field of engineering in most cases does not contain such a block, therefore it require additional education and training system in the workplace.

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In the framework of the theme the theoretical materials and the practical examples was outlined from the following theories of creativity: 1. The theory of Graham Wallace’s claims that creativity is inextricably linked to human labor, hard work, but it often requires a move away from problems, relaxation, switching of attention. The author identified four stages of creative thinking: preparation, incubation, illumination, verification. 2. Concept of mental maps is a theory founded by Tony Buzan and based on the fact that the creative process is closely linked with human memory and associative thinking. Mental maps are a way of recording which is alternative to text, lists, and diagrams. The key feature is the activation of human memory in the process of their creation. 3. The Edward de Bono’s theory is new lateral thinking as the thinking shifted (redirected) relative to conventional thinking. The creative process of development innovation implies a rejection of conventional thinking in the generation of the lateral gap. 4. The Bob Eberle’s method “SCAMPER” is creativity technique that offers a list of changes that can be implemented to work on a particular object, such as substitute, combine, adapt, modify, put, eliminate, reverse. 5. The Charles Whiting’s method of focal objects is aimed to search for new ideas by joining the initial object properties or characteristics of other objects. It is used in inventions while searching for new versions of existing items. 6. Fritz Zwicky’s morphological analysis based on the selection of possible solutions for the individual parts of the task and the subsequent systematic obtaining their combinations. The studied object is divided into elements from which you choose the elements with the desired characteristics, and assemble a new item only with selected characteristics. Topic 2 “The theory of inventive problem solving” (TIPS) is real tools and algorithms of innovation and performance improvement of products, technologies, etc. for practicing engineers. TIPS is a set of algorithms created by Soviet inventor G. Altshuller to improve the creative process of scientists in solving inventive problems. Inventive problem is a complex task for which it is necessary to identify and resolve contradictions, lying in the depths of the problem, and find ways to eliminate them. Meaningful aspects of the TIPS theory which is reflected in this course are the laws and stages of development of technical systems, the algorithm of inventive problem solving and its stages, su-field analysis, techniques of the contradictions, method of the “little people”, the operator of STC (size, time, cost), etc. Topic 3 “Change management” is primarily focused on developing theoretical and practical views of listeners about the need for change and development organizations, as well as forms of resistance to change by staff and key methods of their overcoming. The basis of strategy changes substantiation is the theories of organization life cycle and the organizational pathologies identified by the special examination. The implementation of organizational change, factors of their strategies choice, as well as the causes and types of negative attitudes towards changes of the organization personnel and methods of overcoming them were set out in the course. The basic models of change described to the listeners included: •

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K. Levin’s model explains the stages of successful organizational change in the team: unfreezing, change, freezing;

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• • • •

R. Lipit’s model comprises the steps of the staff attitude to change: denial, evasion, execution, maintenance; The “transition” model: the transition to change is by “breakthrough” method; The “gradual increase” model is used in a situation when the ultimate goal and position of the organization is vague and not clear, the best approach to change is based on gradual minor changes; Model “EASIER” whose name is an abbreviation of the key elements of the change process: Envisioning, Activating, Supporting, Implementing, Ensuring, Recognizing.

Topic 4 “Strategic management of innovation at the enterprise” provides the basics of strategic thinking and vision for the future of the organization using the key tools of strategic management for the trainees. Components of the course topics were the issues of the elements of the strategy and stages of its formation, formulation of vision and mission of the organization. Theoretical knowledge includes basic classification strategies, the basic principles and tools of strategic analysis, strategic planning. As a methodological basis for modern strategic management was used the M. Porter’s theory, stakeholder approach, 7-S company McKinsey model, balanced scorecard, blue ocean strategy, benchmarking etc. Topic 5 “Management of innovative projects” is the theme of the course contributing to the development of competencies for the leaders of industrial enterprises to establish innovation process and its supporting communications in the enterprise. The design method is the basic technology because it allows to coordinate the actions of personnel aimed at optimizing basic characteristics: time, cost and scope and quality of work. The presentation of the material was based on the most common international standard for project management - A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). The control system is based on the process approach. As the base there are following groups of processes: The project management processes that ensure effective implementation of the project during its life cycle. Processes based on the product that define and create the product of the project. Categories of project management processes include the processes of initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, closure. Special attention in the management of innovative projects is given to the formation of the project team and selection of its head. Presented educational content implemented in the framework of the educational program was primarily to issues of governance and applied tasks that were solved during the course and were interdisciplinary and belonged largely to the profile of engineering. For example, business game “Tower of paper” in terms of which need to “build” the tallest tower out of paper “without a single nail” contained a subtask in the design and implementation of the project which required including engineering and technical skills and team formation and interaction in the process of task decision. Discussing the outcomes of the game the students noted that the presence of engineering competencies allow us to execute the task as efficiently as possible. For the purposes of further development of additional education system of engineering personnel and providing feedback the survey based on the results of the program implementation was conducted. The results of this survey are shown below.

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The first question block was devoted to the most effective forms and methods of additional education of management engineering personnel as a whole. According to the survey results the largest number of respondents (62.5%) noted the appropriateness of training programs on an occasional basis, as fundamentally new management tasks arise (Figure 1). It is noted that none of the respondents indicated the inadvisability of organizational learning. The overwhelming majority of respondents were in favor of full-time format of implementation of educational programs, the duration of which can be from one day or more (Figure 1). Webinars were recognized appropriate by 25% of respondents, while remote predominantly self-study was not indicated as a preferred form in any questionnaire. Half of the respondents were in favor of advisability of determining the content of learning directly based on the needs and wishes of the trainees themselves (Figure 1). 30% of respondents indicated that the choice of educational programs should be carried out directly by the head of the organization. According to 20% of respondents concerted actions of top management and the course participants are necessary for determination of the course schedule and specific issues which will be covered during organizational learning. It is noted that the classical scheme of creation of educational programs by the teacher or by the head of an additional education system of the university (the company) is not supported by any respondent. The most effective form of realization of additional education programs, according to the respondents, is a business game (33.3%), 26.7% of respondents were in favor of traditional lectures (Figure 2). 20% of respondents marked the analysis of specific practical situations. Combinations of forms proposed in the questionnaire were referred to the other forms. According to respondents (50%) testing is the most effective form to control the results of the course’s assimilation (Figure 2). Individual creative task was allocated by 37.5% of the respondents. Additional not specified in the questionnaire effective forms of control can become group creative tasks which not only demonstrate the competence acquired by the students but also allow to simulate specific production situations in which the ability to interpersonal interaction, team work skills are appeared. The most important competences that should be developed among the audience of additional education programs are creative approach to solving problems (41.2%), strategic thinking (29.4%). Teamwork skills and leadership qualities have received the least assessment, since in the most cases they are produced during joint activities and cannot always be formed in the process of learning. The second question block in the questionnaire was devoted to a particular educational program. The survey results showed that among the course’s topics the priority was given to the “Management of innovation projects” module (33.3%). Topics “Creative thinking and development of creativity” and “Change Management” were allocated by 25% of respondents. The importance of “Strategic management of innovation in the enterprise” module for solving professional tasks of was noted by 16.7% of respondents. The topic “Theory of Inventive Problem Solving” was not marked by any respondent, despite the obvious practical focus and possibility to use it in the practice of engineering. The majority of respondents indicate that they have already used the course’s materials in their practice. In the first place modules “Management of innovation projects”, “Change Management”, “Strategic management of innovation at the enterprise” were highlighted. The majority of respondents expressed the desire to further improve their competences and expand their theoretical knowledge on the same topics.

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Figure 1. Viability evaluation of advanced training in the field of Economics and Management for the management engineering and technical personnel of industrial enterprises

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Figure 2. Evaluation of the most effective form of tuition and control of programs of additional education of management engineering personnel and most important competences for them

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As the recommendations for further improvement of additional education programs for the management engineering personnel the course participants, first of all, were in favor of their more practical orientation and focusing on the specific problems of their organization.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS The study of the issues of flexible educational programs in the management education of engineering personnel is a significant practical direction. It is obvious that the case presented in the work can be replicated and scaled up on other industrial enterprises and can become the basis for studying the comparative characteristics of such programs, as well as feedback from listeners. Business education programs for engineering personnel should be developed taking into account the specifics of their activities. All this requires further elaboration and substantial changes in methodological and content approaches to training management of engineering company’s management team. Particularly important for the development of additional education system as a whole is the elaboration of issues of client-oriented flexible education aimed at solving the problems of a specific company. At present, the integration of research and educational practices is increasingly required, which is achieved in the process of management consulting and the implementation of educational programs directly on issues related to the changes that are introduced in the company. It seems advisable to implement and more deeply explore this type of scientific and educational interaction between universities and industrial enterprises.

CONCLUSION Thus, the mentioned above case of a flexible modular program of additional education for the management engineering personnel has revealed the need of further improvement of the approaches to the system of training and retraining. The obvious fact is that modern realities require new approaches to provision of educational services of this kind, especially aimed to meet the needs of the client - the organization and its employees - and clear agreement with him about the content and forms of training. Substitution of the standard forms and methods by interactive, game ones is one of the main drivers of efficiency of training programs for management personnel. It is the practical orientation, involvement of the course participants in solving both test and real practical problems which has allowed to achieve maximum results during approbation of the proposed method on the base of LLC Lihoslavl factory “Svetotechnika”.

REFERENCES Avraamova, E. M., Karavay, A. V., Klyachko, T. L., & Loginov, D. M. (2016). Monitoring dopolnitel’nogo professional’nogo obrazovaniya v Rossii [Monitoring of additional professional education in Russia. Moscow: Publishing]. Moscow: Delo, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.

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Avraamova, E. M., Klyachko, T. L., & Loginov, D. M. (2015). Monitoring nepreryvnogo profes-sionalnogo obrazovaniya: pozitsii rabotodateley i rabotnikov [Monitoring of Professional Education: Positions of Employers and Employees]. Moscow: Delo, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. Chan, P., Cooper, R., & Tzortzopoulos, P. (2005). Organizational learning: Conceptual challenges from a project perspective. Construction Management and Economics, 23(7), 747–756. doi:10.1080/01446190500127021 Collins, T. R., Berivudes, M. G., Youngblood, A. D., & Pazos, P. (2004). Professional Development Training for Engineering Managers. Engineering Management Journal, 16(3), 3–9. doi:10.1080/1042 9247.2004.11415251 Florman, S. C. (1997). Non-technical Studies for Engineers: The Challenge of Relevance. European Journal of Engineering Education, 22(3), 249–258. doi:10.1080/03043799708923457 King, W. R. (Ed.). (2009). Knowledge Management and Organizational Learning. Annals of Information Systems, 3-12. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-0011-1 Kol’tsova, R. V. (2012, September 28). 65 let Likhoslavl’skomu zavodu «Svetotekhnika» [Likhoslavl Factory “Svetotechnika” celebrates 65 years]. Svetskaya zhizn’ - Social life. Retrieved from http://www. bl-g.ru/upload/iblock/231/svetskaya_zhizn_20_prevew.pdf Kumpikaite, V. (2008). Human resource development in learning organization. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 9(1), 25–31. doi:10.3846/1611-1699.2008.9.25-31 Senge, P. (2003). The Fifth Discipline. The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. Moscow: Olimp-Biznes. Skvortsova, V. S. (2014). Kontseptsiya obuchayushcheysya organizatsii i yeye primeneniye v praktike menedzhmenta [The concept of the learning organization and its application in the management practice]. Ekonomika i menedzhment innovatsionnykh tekhnologiy - Economy and management of innovative technologies, 3, 1. Retrieved from http://ekonomika.snauka.ru/2014/03/3844 Sun, H.-C. (2003). Conceptual clarifications for ‘organizational learning’, ‘learning organization’ and ‘a learning organization’. Human Resource Development International, 6(2), 153–166. doi:10.1080/13678860110086465 «Svetotekhnika» vnedryayet printsipy berezhlivogo proizvodstva. (2014, July 7). [“Svetotechnika” is implementing the principles of careful manufacturing]. Retrieved from http://www.up-pro.ru/library/ production_management/lean/svetotehnika-lean.html

ADDITIONAL READING Khoroshavina, G. D. (2012). Puti sovershenstvovaniya professional’nogo obrazovaniya v Rossii. [Ways to improve professional education in Russia]. Aktual’nye voprosy professional’nogo obrazovaniya: mezhvuzovskij sbornik nauchnyh trudov – Actual issues of professional education: interuniversity collection of scientific papers, 12. pp. 8-10. 486

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Khoroshavina, G. D., & Stimkovsky, V. I. (2016). Osnovnye principy inzhenernoj podgotovki slushatelej v usloviyah realizacii strategicheskoj resursnosti dopolnitel’nogo professional’nogo obrazovaniya tekhnicheskogo vuza [The basic principles of engineering training of students in the context of the strategic resource of additional professional education of a technical university]. Vestnik tambovskogo universiteta. Seriya: Gumanitarnye nauki – Bulletin of Tambov University. Series. Humanities (Washington), 21(5-6), 54–61. Sheina, A. V., & Chesnokova, Z. A. (2013). Podgotovka vypusknikov tekhnicheskogo vuza k predprinimatel’skoj deyatel’nosti kak neobhodimaya sostavlyayushchaya inzhenernogo obrazovaniya [Training of technical university’s graduates for entrepreneurial activity as an indispensable component of engineering education]. Problemy ehkonomiki –. Problems of Economics, 2, 10–13. Voloshina, I. A., Kotlyarova, I. O., & Krysanova, V. N. (2015). Orientaciya na rossijskie i mezhdunarodnye trebovaniya v dopolnitel’nom professional’nom obrazovanii inzhenerov [Focusing on Russian and international requirements for engineers’ additional professional education]. Vestnik yuzhno-ural’skogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: obrazovanie. Pedagogicheskie nauki – Bulletin of the South Ural State University. Series: Education. Education in Science, 7(4), 92–100.

KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS Additional Professional Education: Type of education received in addition to the average professional or higher education. Change Management: A structured approach to the translation of individuals, teams, and organizations from current state to desired future state. Creativity: Ability characterized by the willingness to create a fundamentally new idea that deviate from traditional or accepted patterns of thought. Human Capital: The totality of knowledge and skills used to meet the diverse needs of a person, company, and society as a whole. Innovation: A complex process of the creation dissemination and use of new practical tools to meet human needs. Invention: Creative-sky process aimed at resolving contradiction to achieve significant goals and the lack of sufficient funds. The result of this process is the invention as the method of resolving the mentioned contradictions. Learning Organization: An organization that creates, acquires, transfers and retains knowledge. It is able to successfully modify its behavior to reflect new knowledge or projects.

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Chapter 41

Monitoring of Staffing Nanoindustry Maxim M. Grekhov National Research Nuclear University, Russia Victor A. Byrkin National Research Nuclear University, Russia Oleg S. Vasiliev National Research Nuclear University, Russia Polina A. Likhomanova National Research Nuclear University, Russia Alexey M. Grekhov A. V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russia

ABSTRACT Leading organizations of the national nanotechnology network (NNN) monitor staffing and develop mechanisms for coordination of educational processes of enterprises of the nanotechnology industry. To estimate the current state of training for nanotechnology industry in the leading universities of the Russian Federation, a study of their publications indexed in the Scopus database in 2012, 2014, and 2015 years in the subject area of “nano” was made. As a result of analysis, the universities, which form the background for the production of highly qualified specialists in the field of nanotechnology, were determined.

INTRODUCTION Quality higher education of employees is one of the main indicators of the development potential of the companies involved in high tech projects in nanotechnologies. Heads of engineering companies and research groups point out the significant shortage of qualified personnel in this industry for more than one year experts. (Troshin A., 2015). On the one hand, among the traditional qualified engineers and DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-3395-5.ch041

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 Monitoring of Staffing Nanoindustry

workers training issues, of particular concern is the low level of training of scientific employees who are engaged in scientific-research and design activity in enterprises. On the other hand, constant improvement of qualification of almost all employee groups is needed due to dynamic development of nanotechnology and nanotechnology market products. Such constantly modernized educational process is possible only with the involvement of scientists actively conducting researches in the field of nanotechnology. Therefore, despite the large number of educational programs in the field of nanotechnology, the real training of professionals in this area had to be carried out by educational organizations that have certain conditions for scientific activity in the subject area of “nano-”. The definition of such organizations and to coordination of its educational activities with the enterprises of nanotechnology industry will allow increasing employability of graduates and solving the problem with employees skill level. There are specialized institutions to develop and coordinate the activities of nanotechnology companies, universities and enterprises: the national nanotechnology network (NNN, Ministry of education and science of the Russian Federation), Fund for infrastructure and educational programs, national inter-branch Association of nanoindustry (SC “Rosnano”), Nanotechnological society of Russia, etc. Coordination of educational activities in the NNN is carried out by the heads of the organization, that are NRNU MEPhI and St. Petersburg State Electrotechnical University “LETI”. In particular, currently, there is a project aimed at the development and introduction of mechanisms of interaction between parent organizations on the activities of NNN with companies focusing on creation of nanotechnological products, in terms of training. The first task of monitoring of staffing supply in the nanotechnology industry, in addition to identifying the total need for specialists, was to estimate the research and educational potential of leading Russian universities in the subject area of “nano-” based on publication activity. Analysis of universities publication activity is one of the main ways to determine the qualifications of teaching staff and the quality of the educational process. The number and quality of publications are of the most important and objective indicators in determining the position of an educational organization in the main and subject lists of global university rankings. For instance, the contribution of the publication activity to the ranking is up to 20% for the QS World University Rankings (QS) (QS World University Rankings® 2015/16, 2015) and up to 30% for the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE) (World University Rankings 2015-2016, 2015). While charting the ratings publications indexed in the Web of Science database (WoS) and Scopus are considered. Scopus database is the largest multidisciplinary bibliographic and abstract database that covers more than 18 thousand scientific journals and about 13 million US Europe and Japan patents, as well as the materials of scientific conferences (Scopus, 2015). Therefore, the analysis of the Scopus database may provide a complete assessment of publication activity in organizations. The aim of this study was to assess the development potential of scientific research universities in the subject area of “nano-” on the results of the analysis of the quantity and quality of publications indexed.

THE OBJECTS OF STUDY It is generally accepted that the position in the major international rankings of universities quite accurately reflects the level of education of the university compared to the global level in the subject. Getting into the top 100 rankings, such as the aforementioned Times Higher Education World University Rankings and QS World University Rankings or the Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities is possible

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only maintaining a very high level of education that ensures the graduation of highly qualified specialists. Therefore, to study the level of the educational environment in Russian nanotechnology industry universities that participate in the “5-100-2020” program, launched by Russian Ministry of Education in 2013 were selected (Government Decree About measures of state support of leading universities of the Russian Federation, 2013). At least 5 Russian high schools to be in the top of 100 world’s leading university rankings in 2020 is the main objective of this program. Currently, the program involves 21 universities. They are funded, and set clear objectives and development indicators (Table 1). Participation in this program, in our opinion, is a confirmation of the potential and induce to significantly improve the quality of education in these universities in the next few years. That is why the analysis of universities from “5-100-2020” program is indicative for assessing the status and potential of education development of in the subject area of nanotechnology in Russia. 13 Universities from the “first wave” of the “5-1002020” program were considered, that specializes on engineering and natural sciences. Currently, the universities analyzed do not occupy the highest positions in the world rankings (Table 1), that is associated with both the inertia of ratings data, and the specificity of the assessment (Doneckaya S., 2014). In 2012 Moscow Engineering Physics Institute had the best position (226-250 places) in THE rankings. Position in Russian ratings, such as “Expert RA” (the “Expert RA” rating agency, rating of universities: Site URL: http://raexpert.ru/rankings/vuz), assesses more accurately the importance of universities for the Russian industry. This ranking from 2012 assesses the quality of training of graduates on the results of the survey of key reference groups: employers, representatives of the academic and scientific communities as well as students and graduates. In 2014 the survey was attended by 125 leading universities of Russia and more than 7.5 thousand respondents. As can be seen from Table 1, the universities selected for the analysis occupy high positions in the ranking, and almost all have improved their position since 2012, i.e., after beginning of the “5-100-2020” program. According to the rating, the top ten universities are: MIPT, Moscow Engineering Physics Institute, Tomsk Polytechnic University, University of Nizhni Novgorod, Ural Federal University, and the other universities also rank high (the lowest place is 45 for UNN).

ANALYSIS OF PUBLICATION ACTIVITY In this paper we evaluated the current status and potential for further development of research activities in selected universities in scientific subject area of “nano-”. These assessments were carried out on the basis of an analysis of changes in scientific publication activity in subject area of “nano-” in 2012, 2014 and 2015 (before and after the beginning of the “5-100-2020” program). Data analysis of articles indexed in the Scopus database for selected universities was carried out. Criteria for selection of journals in the Scopus database minimizes the probability of accounting publications that have no scientific significance. Built-in search and analysis package allows searching for a variety of publications over a large number of criteria and carry out a detailed analysis of the publication activity. The search of publications was carried out for all variants of the names of organizations represented in the database Scopus data and on the official websites. The criterion for belonging publications to the subject area was the presence of words with the prefix “nano” in the titles, abstracts or keywords of articles. Table 2 shows the basic bibliometric data of all kinds of publications of universities analyzed in all scientific fields and in the subject area of “nano-” in 2012, 2014 and 2015 years.

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Table 1. Analyzed universities rankings Ranking University

Abbreviation

«Expert RA»

QS

THE

2012

2015

2012

2015

2012

2015

Far Eastern Federal University

FEFU

40

39

601+

651-700

-

-

Kazan Federal University

KFU

18

18

601+

551-600

-

301-350

Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (State University)

MIPT

4

2

-

431-440

-

601-800

National University of Science and Technology MISIS

NUST MISIS

17

17

-

701-800

-

601-800

National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI”

NRNU MEPhI

7

3

-

501-550

226 - 250

301-350

University of Nizhni Novgorod

UNN

34

32

601+

701-800

-

-

Novosibirsk State University

NSU

10

9

371

317

-

401-500

Samara State Aerospace University (National Research University)

SSAU

35

27

-

-

-

-

SPbSTU

9

11

-

471-480

-

201-250

Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University ITMO University

ITMO

-

22

-

-

-

Тomsk State University

TSU

15

13

551-600

481-490

-

601-800

Tomsk Polytechnic University

TPU

8

7

601+

481-490

-

251-300

Ural Federal University

UrFU

19

10

451-500

601-650

-

601-800

It is not proper to compare the absolute values of the number of articles, as the universities have different specializations and number of studies in the subject area “nano-”, that leads, in our view, to the wrong conclusions about the scientific potential of this area (Zhulego V., 2012) and (Zhulego V., Kunina. G., 2012). Therefore, the number of articles was used to analyze the dynamics of publication activity of each university separately. Table 2 and Figure 1 show significant increase in the total number of papers and articles in subject area of “nano” in 2014 compared to 2012 for all universities. The rate of increase in the number of articles devoted to “nano” expressed as a percentage of the ratio of the number of such articles in 2014 to 2012, is higher than the rate of increase of all publications in the FEFU, NRNU MEPhI, TSU (Figure 1). In MISiS, UNN, NSU, SPbSTU and ITMO the rate of increase of number of articles was about the same. In the other universities, the rate of increase of the total number of articles is more than the articles devoted to “nano”. In 2015 year almost all universities except FEFU exceeded the rate of increase of all articles but the rate of increase of articles devoted to “nano” decreased. It may be connected with developing and actively supporting in other subject areas in universities. Only TPU remained its activity devoted to “nano” in 2015 (see Figure 1). The proportion of articles devoted to “nano”, i.e. part of articles devoted to “nano” to the total number of articles in a given year indicates active development of other subject areas. In 2012, all universities except MISIS, Samara State Aerospace University and TSU, this value was more than 40%. In 2014 more than 40% of articles devoted to “nano” were only in MEPhI, Samara State Aerospace University and TPU. In other universities, this value decreased significantly. In 2015, all universities, except for MISIS and ITMO, the part of articles devoted to “nano” were no more than 20%. That means the reduction of publication activity in this field of science. 491

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Table 2. Analyzed universities publication activity data in 2012, 2014 and 2015 years. 2015 “nano” articles

Citations to “nano” articles

43

391

671

36

76

462

418

38

54

37

220

1644

3255

67

233

2054

1373

105

79

MIPT

412

2539

49

370

1012

5444

99

463

1215

2013

148

220

NUST MISIS

236

771

59

306

481

1262

114

424

643

709

157

242

NRNU MEPhI

435

14367

34

237

760

3647

77

247

1321

2355

149

206

UNN

246

679

24

98

531

1227

53

131

793

589

77

55

NSU

939

16412

72

465

1618

6570

137

456

2034

3102

159

243

SSAU

128

481

7

16

335

634

16

58

460

168

66

11

SPbSTU

191

712

26

151

669

2167

93

224

829

793

120

55

ITMO

137

796

44

446

735

1368

109

353

1355

960

280

305

TSU

435

1895

37

52

846

740

85

101

1393

2091

138

224

TPU

215

915

38

232

488

1540

57

191

683

744

100

154

UrFU

460

2484

52

255

893

1713

92

417

1053

757

142

169

Overall articles

“nano” articles

11

1740

Citations to “nano” articles

Citations overall

556

492

Overall articles

171

KFU

Citations to “nano” articles

FEFU

University

Overall articles

“nano” articles

Citations overall

2014

Citations overall

2012

The number of citations and journal metrics characterize the scientific significance of articles. The number of citations, as opposed to the number of articles cannot be used to compare indicators of different years, as the number of citations to articles in 2012 is usually more than the one to the articles of 2014, and this number may change over time. However, the average number of citations reflects scientific community interest in publication and may be a criterion for evaluating the significance of scientific research within one year. Overall level of publications is reflected by a comparison of number of citations of articles in all subject areas and citations of articles devoted to “nano”. Figure 3 shows the difference in the average number of citations to an article devoted to “nano” and the average number of citations to all the articles of the University (as a percentage). 0% means the same citing, and positive and negative values indicate greater and lower citing of articles devoted to “nano” in comparison with the citation of all types of articles. One can see that in 2012 articles devoted only to “nano” were cited by more than 30% better than all types articles in the SPU, KSU, MISIS, Novosibirsk State University, St. Petersburg State University and ITMO. The MEPhI, Nizhny Novgorod State University, Samara State Aerospace University and TSU the situation is another: articles devoted to “nano” were cited worse for more than 45%. In 2014, the best citing rate of articles devoted to “nano” was in KFU, ITMO, SSAU, ITMO and UrFU. However, in 2015, the citation rate of articles devoted to “nano” did not differ from the average citation rate of all publications. These changes may be associated with an increase in the number of citations to articles in other scientific areas, as well as with a decrease in the average number of citations to articles devoted to “nano”.

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Figure 1. The change in the overall number of articles and in the articles devoted to “nano” in 2014 and 2015 year compared to 2012 year

Figure 2. Number of articles devoted to “nano” as a part of all articles of the university

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Figure 3. The difference in average citations of articles in the direction of “nano” and in all directions

Perhaps these changes are related to the degradation of quality of published results, which may indicate a decrease in the number of publications in high-ranking journals and an increase in the number of papers in journals with low impact factor (IPP - Impact per Publication). The number of the most cited papers and its average journals IPP reflect the intensity level of the obtained results. In contrast to the number of citations, IPP allows you to compare the quality of publications over the years as this takes into account the mean number of citations to articles during the last three years. Additional assessment of the potential of research in the subject area of “nano” was made using bibliometric data most cited articles. The most cited articles were considered for the analysis. They were articles of 2012 that were cited 4 or more times, articles of 2014 cited 2 or more times and article of 2015 cited 1 or more times. Table 3 shows that by 2015 the number of such articles and authors increased in all the universities, except UNN, NSU and St. Petersburg State University (Figure 4). The average number of articles per author in 2015 increased in comparison with 2012 and 2014 (Figure 5). One can choose universities that are experiencing the most changes in publication activity, i.e., simultaneous increase in the number of articles and IPP value in a subject area of “nano”. In 2014 MIPT, MISIS, UNN, NSU, ITMO and Ural Federal University were the leaders that had the average IPP value of 3.5 while increasing the number of cited publications. However, in 2015, at the same time increasing the number of cited articles and the IPP remained in Ural Federal University, Samara State Aerospace University and TSU. In addition, KFU, MIPT, NSU and ITMO can be considered as leaders in which the average value of IPP exceeds 3 while the number of cited articles also increases. In other universities, the number of cited articles increased, but the average IPP value in 2015 is less than in 2014. This may be due to the procedure for the selection of the most cited publications.

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Table 3. Data of the most cited articles devoted to “nano”

Num. of citations

Middle IPP

Num. of articles

Num. of authors

Num. of citations

Middle IPP

Num. of articles

Num. of authors

Num. of citations

Middle IPP

2015 year

Num. of authors

2014 year

Num. of articles

2012 year

FEFU

7

20

39

1,36

3

12

13

2,75

17

32

27

2,77

KFU

20

57

241

4,74

17

58

75

3,47

28

59

77

3,23

MIPT

22

43

199

2,06

27

53

107

4,85

64

90

212

3,19

NUST MISIS

18

49

187

2,2

27

71

110

4,48

75

116

236

2,9

NRNU MEPhI

20

52

320

3,19

38

79

191

2,36

63

123

149

1,82

UNN

10

38

85

2,19

20

62

118

3,67

23

42

55

2,68

NSU

37

83

421

2,39

62

147

406

3,77

78

128

240

3,44

SSAU

1

4

7

0,87

8

14

55

1,01

11

17

11

1,13

SPbSTU

11

18

130

1,90

45

75

204

2,28

31

47

55

1,79

ITMO

23

37

424

3,04

43

81

338

4,3

106

127

303

3,51

TSU

8

20

62

0,75

41

56

305

2,35

64

56

223

2,43

TPU

17

37

203

3,15

30

44

312

2,72

42

49

182

2,98

UrFU

25

42

233

1,55

34

66

194

1,83

66

96

165

2,75

University

Figure 4. The number of authors of the most cited articles

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Figure 5. The mean number of the most cited articles per one author

The potential for development in the “nano” research can be characterized by bibliometric data of the authors of articles. Hirsch indexes of authors were identified (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia h-index: URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-index), listed in the Table 4. By analyzing this data, universities can be divided into two groups. In the first group in 2012, Hirsch index of authors does not exceed 15, and in 2014 there are many authors with h> 15 and h