Design-Oriented Education Environment as a Means of Improving the Quality of Undergraduate Education in Terms of the Competency-Based Approach

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

J. Environ. Treat. Tech.

ISSN: 2309-1185

Journal web link: http://www.jett.dormaj.com

Design-Oriented Education Environment as a

Means of Improving the Quality of Undergraduate

Education in Terms of the Competency-Based

Approach

Evgenya I. Serkova , Aleksey M. Voronin , Svetlana Ye. Salankova , Natalya V. Bychkova ,

Vladimir V. Klyuikov , Aleksandr V. Savin

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G.

Petrovski University»

Received: 12/06/2019

Accepted: 27/08/2019

Published: 31/08/2019

Abstract

With the modernization of higher education, the pedagogical environment, both internal and external, assumes a major significance

in training programs including a creative component. The objective of the study is to provide a theoretical and methodological

substantiation of the design-oriented education environment as one of the means of improving the quality of undergraduate education.

As part of the theoretical analysis of the methodological framework of the issue reflected in 40 academic sources, different

interpretations of the notion “education environment” are given within the context of the environmental approach to education.

Organizational and conceptual, socio-psychological, discipline-based and spatial resources are shown among the most significant ones.

st nd

The questionnaire study conducted among seventy-six 1 , 2 and 3 -year students revealed a positive trend in all measures of student

satisfaction with their learning activities: satisfaction with educational content, the educational process, interactions with fellow

students and teachers as well as satisfaction in terms of daily life and health. Analysis of the results of students’ and teachers’ activities

showed a positive trend in the impact of the quality of the design-oriented education environment on indicators of success. This study

resulted in improved quality of training of prospective teachers and their adaptation in the educational context.

Keywords: environmental resources, environmental conditions, environmental personology, pedagogical design, pedagogical

environment, socio-cultural environment.

The main objective of new-generation federal educational

Introduction

standards is to create an educational environment that would

open up opportunities for every student to carry out creative

activities and to fulfil his potential to the most. One of the

requirements for quality training is to design the educational

environment taking into consideration professional standards.

With the ongoing shift to new educational standards in

which focus is placed on the competency-based approach and

the main thrust is moving towards professional competence

development while less attention is given to the personal

component of the prospective teacher, attention should be paid

to the environmental component of teacher training programs.

Corresponding author: Evgenya I. Serkova, PhD, Associate Professor, Federal State-Funded Educational Institution of Higher

Education «Bryansk State Academician I.G. Petrovski University». E-mail: serkova73@mail.ru.

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

Unfortunately, in view of innovative transformations

taking place in higher education, little research has been done

on the educational environment as a means of quality training

in the professional preparation of students. New national

projects, notably Science (41) and Education (40) have been

developed as part of the modernization of higher education.

The Education National Project specifies two primary

objectives: 1) provision of global competitiveness and

admission of Russian general education into the world’s top

ten education systems; 2) development of the harmonious

personality based on Russian traditions, notably cultural ones

various (natural, economic, social, political and spiritual)

conditions for the existence of the individual, under which

personal development takes place. D. Zh. Markovich is of the

same view (18). Psychology, too, regards the notion of

“environment” in its different aspects: 1) a characteristic of

“what opposes the human being in the world around him (in

contrast to the human being, this world is what is called the

“environment”)” (30) 3) “what is different from human

consciousness and psyche and lies beyond them” (30) 4)“a

combination of natural conditions” divided into the natural

environment and the social one, 4) “a combination of

conditions around the human being and interacting with him

as an organism and a personality. There are internal and

external environments” (30). Based on the above, L. V.

Maksimova defines “the environment as an intricate formation

that comprises a whole range of interconnected components of

natural and social character” (17).

What N. B. Krylova means by the environment is “a part

of the sociocultural space, a zone of interacting educational

systems, their elements, educational material and subjects of

educational processes” (15). This said, among the main

environment parameters are relationships, values, symbols,

effects and objects (10). To sum up, the educational

environment is a combination of material factors of the

educational process and interpersonal relationships established

by education stakeholders during their interactions.

(

33).

Relevant resources and conditions are needed to achieve

the above objectives, and here reference should be made to

what academician A. G. Asmolov said in this regard: “If the

educational environment is the program’s target area, this

program shall focus on the general and professional education

of the individual in a specific educational institution (a

kindergarten, a school, a vocational institution, a university

and so on)” (1). The authors suggest the design-oriented

education environment as one of the resources. In this regard,

the subject of the present research study has been the education

environment as a means of training prospective professionals

in terms of the competency-based approach. The main aim of

the present article is to provide a theoretical substantiation of

the development of strategic areas of the formation of the

design-oriented education environment as one of the means of

quality training in higher education.

Materials and methods

Analysis of the examined categories has suggested the

The objectives of the study are as follows:

To analyze academic reference materials on the research

topic.

urgency of research on the topic under investigation. The

availability of environmental resources is of great importance

for the formation of the educational environment. Different

researchers have different perspectives on the environment as

a resource of education. As an example, S. G. Zheltova

highlights the importance of the educational environment for

personal development (9). According to Zheltova, “to

assimilate the environment in pedagogical terms meant to

integrate its educational and developmental potential into

educational relationships and activities of both teachers and

learners” (9). The same researchers considers that “the

educational environment is a universal resource for developing

and perfecting educational processes, which allows

educational institutions, regardless of their material resources

and infrastructure development, to cope with its challenges

and tasks during the ongoing shift to new educational

standards”. She identifies the following three components of

the educational environment: informational, social and

technological ones (9). Based on these ideas in relation to the

undergraduate education system using the example of a

specific higher education institution, the informational

component can be regarded as the entire information space and

a possibility of obtaining information from various sources

with a view of acquiring professional knowledge and skills.

The social component can be defined as a sociocultural

environment contributing to the development of the would-be

professional. The technological component includes teachers’

activities directed at shaping students’ professional skills.

Design-oriented creative activity can be identified as a part of

this component. V. A. Yasvin proposed (39) to specify the

spatial and architectural, social and psycho-didactic

components of the educational environment. The architectural

component defines learning setting, including the specifics of

To identify the research methods and methodology.

To detect and analyze conditions for setting up and

operating the design-oriented education environment.

To determine areas for developing the design-oriented

education environment.

To substantiate the components of and possibilities for

developing their professional competencies in the context

of the design-oriented education environment.

In this regard, it is necessary to adopt the environmental

approach to organizing education, which has been traditional

in teaching studies to describe human development. The

adoption of the environmental approach requires a clear

definition of categories such as “environment” and

“

educational environment”. The notion of “environment” is

fundamental in relation to that of “educational environment”

which has become widespread in contemporary teacher

studies. Researchers have not yet come to a consensus as to the

interpretation of this notion. A Russian dictionary defines

“

environment”

(sreda)

social

and

living

conditions/circumstances in which human beings exist as well

as a group of people sharing these conditions (32, 26). In other

words, taken in its general sense, the “environment” refers to

human beings, the surrounding nature and the situation as a

whole. In philosophy, the notion of “environment” is regarded,

in a narrow sense, as “a combination of natural conditions in

which the activities of human society and organisms take

place” (36) and, in a broad sense, as “social, material and

spiritual conditions for human existence” (36). From a

sociological perspective, the environment plays a major role in

the personal formation and development. Thus, philosophy

and sociology perceive the environment as a combination of

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

buildings, equipment and special attributes. The object

environment exerts a powerful impact on learning outcomes.

The social component is defined as a community form

peculiar to this type of culture. Importantly, the teacher and the

learner have to be the single poly-subject of development; they

have to establish a cooperative relationship; learning activities

have to have distributed among the community and daily life

has to be saturated with communication. The psycho-didactic

component refers to the content of the educational process.

Yu. P. Shapran and O. I. Shapran divide the higher

education environment into the material and technical,

technological as well as subjective and social components,

which all conform to the structure of the professional

competence of prospective teachers (37). The material and

technical component of the higher education environment

implies the presence of a certain innovative infrastructure that

comprises modern IT educational resources. Computer

technology in education considerably modify the teaching and

educational process in that they influence the content of

education and the formation of professional competence in

terms of motivation and values (12,3).

Results

What follows is the study base in terms of the

specifications of the main groups of environmental resources

that are traditionally divided into discipline-based, spatial,

organizational and conceptual and socio-psychological ones.

Examples of discipline-based resources are auditoriums

and workshops equipped with specialized furniture, materials

and tools. The design of educational space must be thematic,

meet hygienic and ergonomic requirements and be arranged

according to a specific pattern. In that respect, auditoriums are

equipped with multimedia projectors, screens, teacher desks,

liquid crystal panels, with thematic boards installed on the

walls. In auditoriums there are cases and open stands

containing visual aids and instructional materials. The interior

design of educational institutions aims to create a business-like

yet positive atmosphere. Colors, items of furniture and room

layouts have to dispose students towards knowledge

acquisition and professional competence development. The

research outcomes of the organizational culture at the faculty

contributed to the formation of an innovative type of culture

focused on innovations and experimentation (29).

New possible uses of information resources are emerging

nowadays, including the setup of local and international

educational networks, the conceptual launch of open education

systems, implementation of efficient distance learning models

and the development and application of the latest learning

tools, e-libraries, multimedia, software systems and project

activities (37). The technological component of the higher

education environment ensures the formation of the

professional competence of the graduating student based on

scholarly achievements of modern teacher studies and the

integration of the best practices of other academic disciplines

into the higher education process with a view of improving

education. Traditional teaching methods (conversation,

explanation, experiments, discussions and so on) and

innovative ones (work on portfolios, projects, creative

assignments, case studies and challenges) are used to develop

this component. The subjective and social component of the

higher education environment implies interactive relationships

and modalities aimed to have the student reflect upon his own

learning activities and to develop his personal professionally

significant qualities. The experiment was carried out in the

In higher education institutions, the educational process is

implemented through a wide range of material and technical

equipment such as auditoriums equipped with traditional

boards, tables, lecturing desks, multimedia projectors and

televisions intended for lectures and tutorials. Also worth

mentioning are specialized study rooms and computer rooms

equipped with modern technology; specialized laboratories for

courses on drawing, painting, composition, plastic anatomy,

sculpture and applied arts; machine and mechanism design and

modelling and the artistic treatment of construction materials;

resource rooms with additional research literature; and a media

library of teaching e-materials accompanying the core

curriculum. Students working on their research projects use

the resource room; the library with a reading room supplied

with literary works, teaching and learning materials, scientific

and literary journals and e-textbooks; an educational website

providing information about educational resources,

examinations, materials for in-depth study of various

disciplines, assignments (with answer keys) for academic

competitions, statutes and regulations. Students are also given

the opportunity to submit their questions to teachers online

2016-2019 academic year at the I. G. Petrovsky Bryansk State

(

35).

Auditoriums equipped with weaving machines and other

University, a federal state budgetary higher educational

institution, with the participation of students from the

Department of Technology and Design. The experiment

involved the following stages: pilot/research, ascertaining,

development and assessment. The pilot/research stage defined

the research goal, objectives, object, subject and hypothesis as

well as the pedagogical framework for forming the design-

oriented educational environment. The ascertaining stage

identified the original level of the components of the design-

oriented educational environment contributing to the

formation of professional components. The educational

environment is regarded as a part of the sociocultural space in

which various educational systems, their elements and

educational stakeholders interact. The development stage of

the experiment was carried out, based on the above-mentioned

components.

specialized tools are used to provide students with practical

professional (technological) experience. Auditoriums

equipped with modern computers and licensed software are

used to provide students with practical professional (design)

experience.

The working conditions of teachers involved in the

implementation of core professional educational programs and

training of students meet sanitary and hygienic standards. Each

classroom has to contain information boards listing health and

safety regulations, and computer laboratories have to be

provided with fire extinguishers and first aid kits.

According to T. K. Murmantseva, improvements made to

the artistic and esthetic education systems go hand in hand

with the process of making all spheres of life more esthetic.

Owing to such improvements, students acquire active artistic

and social experience, including related knowledge and skills,

experience in creativity and the development of personal views

on esthetic values: creativity, practical and artistic individual

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

initiative, acquisition of generalizing notions during specific

art classes; esthetic familiarization with the main spheres of

creativity, classic and contemporary artwork (19).

Organizational and conceptual resources are aimed at restoring

and improving health, enhancing capacity for work and

treatment compliance; class schedules; dosage of visual,

tactile, auditory, intellectual and physical activity; adherence

to internal regulations directed at regulating relations with

people around us. During the implementation of the core

professional educational program, learning conditions were

created for persons with disabilities, taking into consideration

their psychological and physical peculiarities, individual

features and health.

Promotion of a friendly and positive environment and the

possibility to interact and engage in common activities are of

great importance for the learning process at the Department

and in groups with students with disabilities. When working

on project assignments in a number of academic disciplines,

they learn how to adapt to their environment, to new time-

related realities and, thus, to feel their own significance in

society (27). A social and learning support system has been

developed to ensure a successful learning environment for

students with disabilities at the Department. This system

includes the following:

- maintenance, development and multiplication of university-

related traditions;

- creation and organization of the work of creative, sports and

research teams, assistance with students’ secondary

employment;

- launch of support programs targeting young families; and

- promotion of physical education and healthy lifestyles.

Design of the spatial and educational environment ensures

and facilitates a shift from theory to practice. The educational

process is different depending on the equipment of laboratories

and workshops. All of the above shows specific functional

peculiarities of the Department’s spatial and educational

environment, which, in its turn, defines learning objectives and

development, given the specific educational situation at the

Department. Within the educational environment, these

objectives are pursued in two manners: purposefully, as part of

events held at the Department, and spontaneously, when new

environmental resources emerge. Therefore, the proposed

description of environmental resources makes it possible to

separate them from a specific educational situation and to

examine them as phenomena having their own value, which

reveals their functional possibilities in terms of transmission

of social experiences and intensification of activities directed

at acquiring them. Environmental influences and conditions

constitute the educational environment.Among the

psychological and pedagogical conditions for shaping the

design-oriented educational environment are the following:

•

Case-by-case study of the learning potential of students

suffering from various diseases (interviews, different tests,

joint work assignments and so on);

Development of a joint-action program for all education

stakeholders (involvement of student volunteers, parents,

custodians and other interested parties);

Feedback between all the participants in the collaborative

process (monitoring the implementation of the curriculum

and adjusting the actions of teaching staff);

Individual coaching for students with disabilities with a

view of providing them necessary assistance (6).

Socio-psychological resources are, along with

- organization of the learning process based on the

environmental approach;

- organization of the learning process based on the common

system of values and, in particular, of esthetic values;

development of the professional competencies of

undergraduate students;

- perfection of the artistic and esthetic educational system.

The principle of pedagogical rationale should guide the choice

of evaluation criteria. The general criterion for evaluating the

pilot testing is to create the conditions uncovering each

student’s potential and corresponding to his individual

features, interests and possibilities while maintaining his

health and preparing him for a healthy lifestyle today.

The following are the pilot testing indicators for measuring

the established educational environment’s performance that

confirmed the correctness of the conditions highlighted:

-development indicators: proficiency, the degree of

development of emotions and will;

- social aspects revealing the extent to which the participants

in the educational process are satisfied with various aspects of

life at the Department and, more generally, at the university;

with the schedule, living environment, the creation of

conditions for independent academic, research and creative

work and the implementation of innovative technology;

- nature of interactions between participants in the learning

process; learners’ ease of interaction with teachers; socio-

psychological climate;

organizational and conceptual ones, of great importance.

Socio-psychological resources reveal how satisfied students

are with the educational process and how well protected they

feel in psychological terms. They develop students’ personal

qualities/competencies, which results in improvements in their

systematic thinking, law-abiding behavior, teamwork skills,

tolerance, aspiration towards self-knowledge and self-

development, high professional commitment, organization and

leadership skills, resistance to constantly changing social,

psychological and economic factors, flexibility and creative

thinking and the ability to present their professional and

personal qualities (21,5). The following are the priority areas

of social, extracurricular and awareness-raising work that are

necessary for the comprehensive personal development of

undergraduate students in the design-oriented educational

environment:

promotion of patriotic civic education of students (28);

development of the pedagogical worldview among students

and that of personal qualities contributing to their self-

education, creative activity, universal cultural growth, social

mobility as well as the development of universal cultural and

socio-personal competencies;

- space-subject conditions.

The following outcomes were obtained at the ascertaining

stage:

- the conducted research study on the socio-psychological

adaptation of first-year students at the Department revealed the

following:

holding cultural, sportive, scientific and awareness-raising

events aimed at universal general competence development;

promotion of student social associations, organizations and

clubs;

most first-year students show an average (51%) and

high (49%) adaptation level, which is indicative of their

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

relatively good adaptability to the university’s social

environment and of their satisfaction with their position and

their relations with their fellow students.

examine the students’ emotional and evaluative attitude

towards their university studies.

First-, second- and third-year students enrolled in the

Department of Technology and Design took part in the study.

The total number of the respondents was 76 (44 men and 32

women); 37 people live in student residences and 39

respondents live at home. Analysis of the students’ emotional

and evaluative attitude towards the content and organization of

the educational process at the Department of Technology and

Design revealed that learning activities of most surveyed

students are within normal parameters. Students show a

positive trend in all learning satisfaction indicators:

satisfaction with the learning content, the learning process,

relations with fellow students, interactions with teachers and

with daily life and health. Table 1 and Figure 1 show the results

of student satisfaction with the learning process (% of all

respondents).

in most cases, students have an intermediate level in terms of

self-acceptance and acceptance of others, emotional comfort

and propensity for self-control (internality), which is a positive

trend pointing to a relatively low level of conflict, anxiety and

emotional discomfort among first-year students.

5% of students (2 persons) reveal inner tension and low

emotional state. Another 3% (1 person) show propensity for

intra- and interpersonal conflicts.

A questionnaire on student satisfaction with their studies,

developed by L. V. Mishchenko, was used to investigate the

satisfaction of students attending the I. G. Petrovsky Bryansk

State University with the content, organization and quality of

the educational process. The aim of this methodology is to

Table 2: Results of student satisfaction with the content, organization and quality of their educational process

Levels

Low

(studies are not

going smoothly)

Average

(studies

going well)

High

Study Satisfaction Scales

are

(studies are going

very well and the student

is satisfied with the entire

educational process)

Satisfaction with learning content

Satisfaction with the educational process

Satisfaction with the selected career path

Satisfaction with peer interactions

89.5

92.1

88.2

94.8

10.5

7.9

11.8

5.2

Satisfaction with student/teacher interactions

Satisfaction with daily life, budget, leisure

activities and health

Research results of satisfaction with the content, organization and quality of the

educational process

General satisfaction with studies

Satisfaction with

student/teacher/administration interactions

Satisfaction with peer interactions

Satisfaction with the selected career path

Satisfaction with the educational process

Satisfaction with learning content

2.75

2.8

2.85

2.9

2.95

3.05

3.1

Figure 1: Research results of satisfaction with the content, organization and quality of the educational process of the students enrolled in the

Department of Technology and Design (average values on all scales)

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

Analysis of satisfaction with the content, organization and

quality of the educational process of the students enrolled in

the Department of Technology and Design revealed that the

academic studies of most students enrolled at the Department

are satisfactory (average student satisfaction with their

academic studies is 2.9 points). A more in-depth analysis

showed that students are most satisfied with the organization

of the educational process at the Department (average of 3,1

points) and with the quality of student/teacher interactions

Students are not altogether satisfied only in certain areas

of their academic and professional activities: 11% of the

respondents are not sure they will be in demand on the job

market in the future (the lowest point in terms of satisfaction

with the selected career path is 2.86), which may be related to

the lack of desire or the absence of opportunities to reach their

full potential (Table 2, Figure 1). Furthermore, Figures 2-4

show the students’ academic performance by year of study

from 2016 to 2019. Figure 5 shows the overall academic

performance of the students enrolled at the Department.

(

average of 3 points). Students are satisfied with interactions

with their fellow students as well as daily life, budget, leisure

activities and health.

Academic Performance

st year

2nd year

3rd year

4th year 5th year

quality of knowledge

absolute performance

Figure 2: Academic performance by year of study in the 2016-2017 Winter Term

Academic Performance

st year

2nd year

3rd year

4th year

5th year

absolute performance

quality of knowledge

Figure 3: Academic performance by year of study in the 2017-2018 Winter Term

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

Academic Performance

st year

2nd year

3rd year

4th year 5th year

quality of knowledge

absolute performance

Figure 4: Academic performance by year of study in the 2018-2018 Winter Term

Academic Performance of the Students at the Department

016-2017

2017-2018

2018-2019

quality of knowledge

absolute performance

Figure 5: Academic performance of students enrolled at the Department from 2016 to 2019.

The above results show that the students’ absolute

academic performance has increased since 2016, being 94.6%

during the 2018-2019 academic year whereas it was only 90%

in 2016. The quality of knowledge as of 2018-2019 equals

professional training of prospective teachers and their

adaptation to university life.

Discussion

87% as compared to 80% in 2016, which is indicative of the

Analysis of the definitions of the educational environment

positive impact of the design-oriented educational

environment as a means of improving the quality of

undergraduate education in terms of the competency-based

approach.

Figure 6 shows presents the outcomes of the 2018-2019

Winter Term reflecting the above conclusions.

found in psychological and pedagogical research literature

shows that it is regarded as a combination of influences and

conditions assuring the implementation of the educational

process (see N. B. Krylova, A. Kurakin, L. I. Novikova, V. I.

Panov and V. A. Levin).

The above results support the conclusion that the design-

oriented educational environment has improved the quality of

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

Academic performance and attendance

st year

2nd year

A students

3rd year

B students

4th year

5th year

exam attendance

Figure 6: Number of “A” and “B” undergraduate students based on the outcomes of the 2018-2019 Winter Term

Today, the notion of “educational environment” is used

from different perspectives, hence numerous research studies

on these of those components, factors and properties of the

educational environment.

relevant sobriety and effortless self-consciousness”; and an

environment of accomplishments and careerism (14).

Research by S. M. Golovleva, V. V. Yudina, V. I.

Slobodchikova, V. A. Yasvin and A. G. Asmolov provided the

methodological framework for the study.

Speaking about the modernization of education,

academician A. G. Asmolov brings to the fore ideas promoting

the educational environment and highlights that, in this case,

education “acts as a leading social activity, developing

people’s civic identity, mentality, values, behavioral social

patterns, big and small social groups” (1).

Research by V. A. Yasvin focuses on the

fundamental theoretical aspects of the topic under

investigation. Yasvin defined the notion of educational

environment analyzed its prospects and examined modeling

and design of the educational environment as prerequisites for

enhancing the quality of the educational process.

S. M. Golovneva examines the structure and components

of the educational environment.

V. I. Slobodchikov proposed the anthropological and

psychological model of the educational environment in which

“the joint activity of education stakeholders” (30) is a basic

component.

As emphasized by V. I. Slobodchikov, the educational

environment cannot be regarded as something unequivocal

and pre-defined. An environment emerges at the meeting point

of what forms and what is formed and where they jointly plan

and construct something. Such an environment can be

perceived both as the subject and the resource of personality

development (30).

In his research study, V. V. Yudin investigates the essence

and stages of the technological planning of the educational

environment aimed at improving the quality of FES (Federal

Educational Standard) implementation.

Contemporary research studies on the educational

environment carried out by A. V. Erofeyeva, M. I. Korneva, L.

M. Luzina, I. M. Remorenko, V. M. Stepanov and G. A.

Ferapontov, among others, reveal the variety and an

exceptional potential of this phenomenon. As an example, the

educational environment is investigated as a factor in

personality development as a basis for the humanization of the

educational environment; as a system for promoting values

among students; as testing of the environment and the

implementation of unconventional learning tools, etc. This

kind of research is related, in the first place to activities taking

place in innovative educational institutions (8, 16).

Russian pedagogics has always attached great importance

to the milieu/environment in the upbringing of children (K. D.

Ushinsky, L. N. Tolstoy, A. F. Lazursky, N. I. Pirogov, P. F.

Lesgaft and others). P. F. Lesgaft authored a new concept on

the environmental typology of children and a doctrine about

influences of the environment.

Soviet pedagogics highlighted the dependence of learning

and upbringing on the nature of social relationships, as echoed

in the principle based on the teaching-life link (N. K.

Krupskaya, A. V. Lunacharsky and A. S. Makarenko) (38).

Ya. Korchak conducted research on the development of

the educational environment. He mentions several types of

“

raising environment”: a dogmatic environment based on

customs, traditions, authority and rituals; an ideological

environment in which “strength is not in the firm spirit but in

an impetus, an upsurge or a movement. One does not work but

joyfully creates”; a placid consumption environment (“inner

peace, carelessness, sensitivity, friendliness, kindness,

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

Present-day psychological and pedagogical research deals

with many types of educational environment such as

traditional, social, academic, informational, humanitarian,

specific period; education as a universal cultural and historical

form, the emergence and development of the human being’s

main forces and, in history and in the cultural environment,

that of the person who is able to self-teach and, thus, to self-

develop (2,31).

natural,

creative,

ludic,

technological,

integrated,

communicative and so on (37).

Numerous research studies have focused on setting up an

information and educational environment (see M. I.

Bashmakov, S. G. Grigoryev, A. A. Kuznetsov, S. V.

Panyukova, S. N. Pozdnyakov, E. S. Polat, I. V. Robert and A.

P. Tryapitsya, among others).

Researchers give special attention to the study of the

innovative (see G. Belyaev, M. Didenko, Yu. Karpova, N.

Razina, etc.) and health-saving (M. Sentizova, N. Rylova, G.

Tushina) environments.

Despite the existence of various approaches to

understanding the essence and structure of the environment, all

research studies divide the components of the learning

environment into two categories: subjects and objects (11).

According to a number of researchers, activities of

subjects are of special significance in the educational process,

and the teacher is assigned a special role in his quality of the

focal point, organizer, inspirer and coordinator of the

educational process. In assessing the present-day activities of

the teacher, the authors concluded that, in teacher training

programs, it is of utmost importance to develop students’

professional competencies by focusing on and developing core

values while taking into consideration both inner, emotionally

invested values and external, influencing ones.

In a research study, T. K. Murmantseva defines as

environmental personology one of the research areas of the

issue under investigation. The aim of personology is to identify

a common field and to analyze the relationship between

personality, its inner world and the space or environment

where the subject is (19).

S. Tarasov defines the types of educational environments

by the following features: interacting style within the

environment

(competitive/cooperative,

humanistic/technocratic and so on); attitude towards social

experiences and their transmission (traditional/innovative,

national/universal and so on); level of creative activity

(creative/regulated); interaction with the external environment

(open/closed) (37,41).

International research often replaces the notion of

“educational environment” with several others such as “design

of learning”, “pedagogical design”, “classroom climate” or

“school culture”.

Pedagogical design is a systematic use of knowledge

(principles) about effective education (learning and teaching)

in planning, developing, assessing and applying learning

materials to a specific year of study (22).

Pedagogical design contributes to the emergence of a

special educational environment within the same educational

system, the same educational institution or the same

educational material.

The aim of pedagogical design is to plan and create

situations that provide more learning opportunities to

individual learners. This means that education should be

planned in such a way as to be effective and systematic.

The study and implementation of the design-oriented

educational environment as a means for providing quality

undergraduate training is a scientific and practice-oriented

basis for devising an integral system in the pedagogical

planning of objects of the educational process. This being said,

there are many problems related to psychological and

pedagogical pre-conditions for the creation an educational

environment, the interaction of its objects, its functioning and

development. Both objective and subjective factors influence

the quality of the design-oriented educational environment.

Therefore, of special importance are an in-depth sociocultural

analysis of the available opportunities, the qualitative

composition of interacting subjects and the presence of a

strategic goal in training highly qualified specialists while

considering this educational environment’s qualitatively

changing components.

The material component is one of the main objects of the

environment.

Among researchers who investigated the influence of the

environment on the human being are Sigmund Freud and Carl

Jung. Freud highlighted the significance of the milieu’s

influence on the human being, especially, at a young age. Jung

emphasized the special role of culture in the formation of the

individual’s character.

The educational environment can differ in terms of

structure, content and system of relations between education

stakeholders, and it can be regarded as a context of the

educational process and an educational tool.

In the present-day sociocultural development of the

Russian society, many researchers focus on prospects in

Russian education. In particular, V. I. Slobodchikov and V.

Gromyko deal with the new type of education and propose its

three major interpretations:

An investigation of different types of the educational

environment leads to the conclusion that each of them is

autonomous and independent, but, at the same time, it is

possible to examine the distinct yet interacting components of

the same integral system, including the social, learning, ludic,

creative, integrated, technological and communicative ones.

The evolution of views on and attitudes towards the

1)education as a totally independent kind of social

practice;

identification of priorities and values in creating

) education as an ideal meeting point of the individual and

comprehensive design-oriented system is related to the views

and attitudes of a number of researchers (M. I. Bashmakov, S.

G. Grigoryev, A. A. Kuznetsov, S. V. Pankova and others).

Many of them, however, highlight the interaction of these

components as subjects and objects.

society, which, on one hand, ensures the integrity of the social

organism and, on the other hand, is a powerful resource of its

historical development;

3) education as a universal means of transferring cultural

and historical experiences, as one generation’s gift to another;

a social succession mechanism, a mechanism for joining the

human community to their lifestyle, for transferring and

maintaining the norms and values of their common life for a

The creation and formation of the design-oriented

educational environment as a means for improving the quality

of undergraduate education in terms of the competency-based

approach has been investigated in terms of its definition, key

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2019, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pages: 601-612

notions, analysis of the meanings of present-day views,

theories about the essence and structure of the environment

and the role of the teacher as the process organizer and

coordinator within the educational environment.

cannot be established without an in-depth sociocultural

analysis, a study of material and human resources, the learners’

possibilities and the interaction of various educational

structures and subjects.

The investigation has paid great attention to the viewpoint

expressed by academician S. K. Bondareva on the setup of the

interactive environment and its resources: “the characteristics

of the ongoing interpersonal and intercultural dialogue, - the

ability to engage into an effective, well thought-out and

pedagogically pertinent, psychological interaction, i.e. taking

into consideration the situation” (22,4), in which the focus

shifts to the use of discipline-based and spatial resources,

organizational and conceptual and socio-psychological

resources.

The articles presents the areas of functioning and

development of the educational process within the same

department, which does not provide a comprehensive idea

about the integrity of undergraduate education in the

vocational education system of the university as a whole.

The article can be interesting and useful to vocational

education organizers. It proposes the main notions and

mechanisms for ensuring cooperation and sets the

methodological requirements for improved pedagogical

activity.

Further research, however, is required on the

creation of the design-oriented educational environment as a

means for improving the quality of undergraduate education.

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