Keyword: «competence-based approach»

This article discusses professionally oriented foreign language training of foreign military personnel, the formation of their communication skills and abilities in the social and everyday, educational and scientific spheres, as well as within the framework of the studied specialty. The author pays attention to the concept of «professional communication», notes the inextricable connection with the speech training of students, and also focuses on the features of teaching dialogic and monologue speech.

The article examines the methodology for designing engineering educational programs, which is based on an invariant component – the «core» of engineering training. Two basic approaches that determine the structure and content of the core are considered – competence-based, focused on the learning outcome, and disciplinary, focused on the educational process. A comparative analysis of the «core» of engineering programs implemented at the Physics and Mathematics Department of Smolensk State University and the «core» project developed within the framework of a pilot project to update the higher education system are given.

The article considers «language portfolio» as a modern and effective tool of assessing and self-assessing foreign language proficiency. The essence of the concept is revealed, the main types and functions of the language portfolio are described, and its potential for personalizing learning and forming learner autonomy is demonstrated. It is emphasized that, unlike traditional forms of assessment, the language portfolio involves the student in the assessment process, developing reflection, responsibility and motivation. The language portfolio allows comprehensive monitoring of a student's language development dynamics, combining quantitative and qualitative criteria, and captures not only academic achievements, but also personal growth of the student. In conclusion, the article outlines the perspectives for developing differentiated portfolio models for various age groups and integrating them into the national education system.

The relevance of the study is driven by the necessity to fill the gap between the theoretical training of biomedical engineers and the practical demands of modern digital medicine. The rapid development of such fields as computed tomography, 3D visualization and additive manufacturing, along with a specific demand from the medical industry for specialists capable of executing the full cycle of creating personalized biomedical models, make it critical for students to develop comprehensive skills in medical data processing, algorithmization, and three-dimensional modeling. The implementation of interdisciplinary projects that simulate end-to-end technological processes is considered an effective pedagogical tool for developing these practice-oriented competences within engineering education. The aim of this work is to substantiate and empirically test the pedagogical effectiveness of the project-based learning method for the development of interdisciplinary professional competences in technical fields among graduate students, using the development of a digital 3D model of a biomedical object as a case study. Through the example of an end-to-end project involving the creation of a 3D model of a dental cast based on computed tomography data, the authors analyze how such practice allows for the integration of knowledge from medical imaging, algorithm development, mathematical modeling, and digital manufacturing. This approach develops in students the complex skills required to solve real problems at the intersection of engineering and medicine. The pedagogical effectiveness of the proposed methodology has been recognized and empirically confirmed. The course implementation demonstrated that the project-based approach not only facilitated the acquisition of subject-specific knowledge but also promoted the targeted development of key interdisciplinary competences among graduate students: algorithmic thinking, skills in working with medical data, spatial modeling, and an understanding of integrated engineering processes. The theoretical significance of the work lies in the concretization of Project-Based Learning (PBL) principles in the field of biotechnical systems, thereby contributing to the pedagogy of engineering education, particularly in integrating mathematical modeling, medical data processing and digital manufacturing into a unified educational framework. Practical significance is confirmed by the successful implementation of the project, during which students mastered the full development cycle: processing DICOM images, synthesizing a 3D reconstruction algorithm, and exporting to STL format for 3D printing. The developed methodology can be replicated for training specialists at the intersection of engineering and medicine.

The digital transformation of the education system has led to the need for students to acquire 21st-century skills through innovative pedagogical approaches, among which STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education occupies a special place. However, the comparative effectiveness of traditional and extracurricular STEM projects in developing key skills among schoolchildren is still not well justified. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of these two approaches in fostering core competences among secondary school students. This article aims to compare the impact of regular and extra-curricular STEM project-based learning on the development of essential skills among eighth-grade students. The experiment was conducted on a group of 65 students, divided into three groups: two experimental groups and one control group. The first experimental group learned STEM technologies in regular geography lessons, while the second group participated in extracurricular design and research activities. The control group was taught using traditional methods. The competence development was assessed using the method worked out by A.V. Pashkevich and based on the classification of key competences proposed by A.V. Khutorskoy. Statistical data processing was done using the Mann-Whitney U-test with a significance level of p < 0.05. The results showed that the STEM approach was significantly better than traditional teaching methods. In the first experimental group, the integrated competence index increased from 0.42 to 0.51. In the second group, it went from 0.44 to 0.67. This indicates a transition to an advanced level. The control group showed the lowest results. In the extracurricular experimental group, innovative practice-oriented STEM projects were implemented («PharmaHops», «Radiance», a multimodal transport hub design, and others), several of which received recognition at regional and federal competitions. It has been shown that the extracurricular implementation of STEM projects leads to a more pronounced development of key skills compared to regular classes due to the greater freedom in selecting content and methods, as well as the absence of strict time limits and opportunities for interdisciplinary interaction. The theoretical importance of this study lies in the development of a competence-based approach and the clarification of scientific ideas regarding the effectiveness of different forms of STEM education. The practical significance of the study lies in the development of evidence-based recommendations for optimizing the educational process. These recommendations focus on the prioritization of extracurricular STEM activities, the establishment of a suitable material and technical framework, and the professional development of teachers in the field of interdisciplinary instruction.