Current issues in the training of foreign students: Issues and Development Prospects

Within the framework of the Olympiad for foreign students at preparatory departments of higher education institutions of Russia, Kazan Federal University on May 14, 2021, at the request of teachers, took place the roundtable “Topical Issues of Preparing Foreign Students for Studies at Russian Universities”. The roundtable began with a welcome speech by T.B. Alishev, the Pro-Rector for External Relations of Kazan Federal University. Timirkhan Bulatovich and practically all participants was speaking of the need for business communication, exchange of experience, especially in a difficult period of active use of information technologies and Russian language teaching online in their speeches. 

 The representatives of educational institutions of higher education in Russia spoke at the roundtable:

KFU Preparatory school for foreign students:

Daria Aleksandrovna Ivanova;

Azitova Gulsina Sharipovna;

Elena Gruzdeva;

Gataullina Alsu Gaisovna;

Elena Dominikovna Shimkovich;

Tomsk State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering:

Girfanova Ksenia Andreevna;

Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov:

Daria Aleksandrovna Pichugina;

Ulyanovsk State University:

Olga Nikolaevna Goryunova;

Kazan National Research Technical University named after A.N. Tupolev – KAI:

Olga Valentinovna Pavlova;

Moscow Pedagogical State University:

Andrey Vladimirovich Chubukov.

The moderator of the round table – Mukhametov Airat Rinatovich, the subdean dean of the educational activities of the preparatory school for foreign students at KFU – noted the multifaceted of problems online education and organized a discussion on the issues outlined in the presentations. Various issues were discussed:

– The formation of professionally-oriented communication skills of international students;

– peculiarities of preparing students of preparatory departments for the entrance exam in the Russian language at universities;

– Practices of creating online courses and a mobile application for learning Russian as a foreign language;

– organization of socio-educational work with students online;

– ensuring control of foreign students’ knowledge in distance learning;

– training of Arabic students in the Russian language online, and others.

Particularly the participants of the roundtable discussed of the following issues: the main aspects of teaching general disciplines in the pre-university training of foreign citizens and the possibility of effective teaching of general subjects remotely. At the end of the work all participants expressed their gratitude for the roundtable and the opportunity given to the students of preparatory departments of Russian universities to prove themselves in the Olympiad and expressed their desire for full-time participation in the events held at KFU.