Elena E. Rudenko

Relevance of the study is determined by the need to train physicians for professional activity in the context of digital transformation of healthcare, which requires new pedagogical technologies integrating the development of soft skills into foreign language training. The discipline “Foreign Language” has significant didactic potential for developing meta-subject competences, but traditional methods do not fully realize this potential and fail to account for the current trends in digitalization of education. The aim of the article is to theoretically substantiate and experimentally verify the effectiveness of Kolb’s experiential learning cycle (ELT) in foreign language training of medical students for the targeted development of soft skills. The study is based on D. Kolb’s empirical cycle. An original pedagogical technology has been developed, combining the four-phase ELT model with digital tools, artificial intelligence elements, and gamification. The experiment was conducted at Pacific State Medical University in the period from September 2025 to February 2026 with the participation of 35 second-year students (experimental group – 17 students, control group – 18 students). The level of soft skills development was assessed by three independent experts using a standardized assessment battery. In the experimental group, a statistically significant increase in soft skills was recorded: average gain of 28.2% versus 7.3% in the control group (p < 0.01), with the highest dynamics in “self-management” (+31.7%) and “effective thinking” (+28.9%). Foreign language communicative competence in the experimental group improved by 38.7% on the lexico-grammatical test, by 43.1% in oral speech, and by 47.3% in written speech (in the control group – no more than 20%). The level of subjective satisfaction of students in the experimental group with the applied technology was 94.1%. Scientific novelty lies in the substantiation and testing of a model that combines the phase structure of Kolb’s cycle with digital tools, AI, and gamification, which makes it possible to purposefully form meta-subject competences of preservice physicians in a digital foreign language environment. Theoretical significance consists in expanding scientific understanding of the integration of digital didactic tools into the Experiential Learning Theory model in the context of medical education; the combination of personalization, micro learning, artificial intelligence and gamification with the phase structure of Kolb’s cycle has been substantiated. Practical significance is expressed in the creation of a reproducible didactic construct that can be adapted for foreign language training of medical students, as well as used in other disciplines and fields of study for the systematic development of soft skills.

The relevance of the study of health-preserving educational technologies and their integration into higher education institutions is increasing in the context of new socio-economic challenges and the necessity of training healthy personnel for the Russian economy. The main emphasis is placed on the implementation of an English-language inter-university project and pedagogical strategies that integrate health-related topics into the educational process. The purpose of this article is to describe the experience of teaching a foreign language to students majoring in medical and humanities fields within the framework of interdisciplinary project-based activities aimed at creating an English-language thematic website using mentoring and peer consulting technologies to develop communicative competence and health-preserving competence. The study involved students from the humanities programs at Petrozavodsk State University and students from the Pacific State Medical University. The methods employed included observation, experimentation, comparative analysis, a formalized survey with open and closed questions, and statistical methods. It was found that participation in the inter-university project significantly improved both the students' awareness of health-preserving issues and their level of foreign language competence. Notably, the students from the Pacific State Medical University demonstrated a higher level of development in health-preserving competence (80.9%), while the students from Petrozavodsk State University showed a more pronounced dynamic in their awareness of the importance of health and health-related issues (from 48.3% to 65.5%). A particularly noticeable increase in the average score for both universities was observed in the area of lexical and grammatical accuracy in oral (Δ ̅x = 1.06 at PSMU and 1.42 at Petrozavodsk State University) and written speech (Δ ̅x = 1.1 and 1.42, respectively), as well as in phonetic presentation and structuring of written works, especially among students at Petrozavodsk State University (Δ ̅x = 1.69 and 1.17, respectively). The scientific novelty of the research lies in the theoretical and methodological justification and practical testing of specially designed educational conditions that facilitate the development of health-preserving competence among students in humanities and medical specialties within the context of an inter-university interdisciplinary digital project. An important aspect of the experimental learning is the testing of mentoring technology by medical students and their consulting of students in the humanities during interactions conducted in English. The theoretical significance of the research is reflected in the development of a scenario for the interdisciplinary project, as well as in the description of algorithms and tools that facilitate the integration of this project into the educational process. The practical significance of the work is manifested in the presentation of the results of experimental learning aimed at developing both health-preserving and communicative competences, which is crucial for training qualified specialists.

The relevance of the article is determined by the key challenges facing Russian higher education, related to the necessity of developing digital competences among students in the context of digital acceleration. In a situation of acute shortage of highly qualified specialists with the required digital skills, educational organizations are forced to revise established training methods. The main emphasis is placed on the importance of implementing a multi-level digital learning environment and specialized approaches that promote the development of both professional and general competences, including cross-industry and existential skills such as communication and digital literacy. The purpose of the research work is to describe the experience of inter-university activities to develop digital competence in students of different training areas in a specially modeled digital foreign language learning environment. The study, conducted as part of a joint project between Petrozavodsk State University and the Pacific State Medical University, involved 105 students. The research methods included observation, analysis, a formalized survey in a remote format and statistical processing of the obtained data as well. The experimental training showed that the average score of PSMU students after the training was higher (4.56 versus 4.48 among PetrSU students); however, PetrSU students demonstrated better improvement dynamics (+1.3 versus to +1.22) in the digital competence components, such as clarity of presentation and quality of visualization. The same results were recorded in the evaluation of emotional response and audience engagement. The dynamics of the overall average score was +1,3 points at PetrSU and +1.22 points at PSMU. Participants' subjective assessments also indicated an improvement in digital content creation skills. The scientific novelty lies in the theoretical substantiation and practical testing of conditions for the formation of digital competence in students of the humanities and medical profiles within a unified digital environment in a foreign language, as well as in the identification of didactic and methodological principles of pedagogical technology for modeling educational spaces. The theoretical significance of the study is in the creation of a multi-level foreign language digital learning environment and describing step-by-step algorithms and tools for integrating digital competences into the educational process. The practical significance consists in presenting the results of experimental education aimed at forming digital competence. The authors emphasize the importance of creating such an environment based on project-oriented learning to enhance students' competitiveness in the digital economy.