PhD, Associate Professor A.V. Smyshlyaev^{1, 2}
Dr.Hab., Associate Professor L.G. Smyshlyaeva³
Postgraduate K.A. Smyshlyaev^{1, 2}
Associate Professor, PhD A.V. Belousov^1
1National research Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk
²Siberian State Medical University, Tomsk
³Tomsk State Pedagogical University, Tomsk

Keywords: Russian university system internationalisation process, foreign student, physical education teacher, mass sports management by universities, educational relationship.

Background. The national higher education system internationalisation process, in our definition of this term, implies a variety of different forms of international cooperation being developed in universities. One of the key aspects of the Russian university system internationalisation process is that the education services are being provided to foreign students coming in growing numbers year to year. Statistical reporting data shows a more than 10-times growth of the foreign student population in Russia for the period of 2004 to 2015 [5]. 

To ensure due quality of the education services provided to the foreign students by the Russian universities, the existing educational resources need to be fully mobilized. Tomsk State Pedagogical University (TSPU), for instance, approved (back in 2015) a TSPU Internationalisation Strategy followed by a TSPU Internationalisation Strategy Roadmap (approved in 2016), with the TSPU management giving a high priority to the initiative viewed as pivotal for success of the university education internationalisation process.

One of the most important other factors for the Russian university system internationalisation process success is the university physical education (PE) teacher's communicative competences required to train foreign students. PE teacher cannot be successful unless he is highly knowledgeable and skilful in establishing a productive educational communication with both local and foreign trainees. A few available theoretical analyses demonstrated that a successful and encouraging communication with foreign students is highly important for the progress of their social and cultural adaptation (SCA) [2, 3, 4 et al.] which is ranked among the top priority missions of the Russian university system internationalisation process. It should be noted that most foreign students are reported to face problems in their social and cultural adaptation process [4, 5 et al.]. These problems may be partially solved by their own efforts to learn the national traditions of the host country including, among other things, the initiatives to actively engage them in the academic sports and mass sporting movements which are quite traditional for many Russian universities.

However, as reported by the relevant research and educational process studies for the last few years, the available potential of the academic sports and mass sport movements for the foreign students’ SCA problem solving is still largely underemployed (T.N. Yazvinskaya, Tameem al-Krad, L. Tierry et al.), with more comprehensive studies still needed to support the relevant activities to:

• Encourage the foreign students’ integration processes by luring them to the municipal/ regional mass sports via academic sports – with possible support from the relevant expatriates’ communities, networks, partnerships etc;
• Help foreign students in their studies of the Russian sport traditions in the municipal/ regional sport development field;
• Advance the physical culture and sport dimension of the Russian language courses for foreign students – for instance, by a special Physical Education and Sport Module being included in the course in cooperation with the relevant academic personnel of the university physical culture and sport departments; and
• Develop the system of academic, research, mass sporting and cultural cooperation and support at the universities to facilitate the foreign students’ integration, with the integration progress being rated for every relevant practice; and with the efforts to expand the service ranges and mechanisms within the integration initiatives.

We believe that the above aspects of the Russian university system internationalisation process should be duly harmonized with the promising thrusts of the research and practical projects to advance the professional competences of the academic PE specialists to help them train and integrate foreign students. 

Objective of the study was to analyse the academic physical education teachers’ competences required to communicate with and train foreign students with a special emphasis on perceptions of the integration process missions, content and implementation forms and methods.

Methods and structure of the study. In our study of the TSPU internationalisation process in the physical culture and sports domain, we have performed rating surveys of the academic PE teachers to rate their competences in the educational communication with foreign students. The study was performed at the Institute of Social and Humanitarian Technologies under TSPU in the academic year of 2015-16 based on the questionnaire surveys and interviews. Subject to the surveys were 34 teachers of the academic Physical Education and Sport disciplines plus 11 staff members of the relevant Physical Education Departments of Siberian State Medical University and Tomsk State Pedagogical University. The questionnaire surveys included 10 questions to mine the input data for our analysis.

Study results and discussion. Given hereunder are the results of our survey. Only 41% of the respondents reported being involved in some activities with concern to the university internationalisation process; and 59% of the surveyed PE teachers were found uninvolved in the process. The question on whether or not the respondent understands the missions of the modern educational communication with foreign students was positively responded by 78% of the PE teachers polled, with 4% having no opinion and 18% giving a negative response. In responses to the four questions related to the perceptions of the national social and mental specifics of the students coming from different countries (Vietnam, India, China, Mongolia and African countries), 24% of the respondents demonstrated a fair understanding of this specificity, whilst the rest 76% of the PE specialists were rated as inadequately informed on the subject. Of high interest were the responses to the question “How would you rate on a 5-point scale your own competency and willingness to solve problems of the foreign students’ SCA?”, with 16% scoring their competency by 5 points; 18% by 4 points; 56% by 3 points; and 10% by as little as 2 points. Responding to the question if they feel the need for the own educational competency being improved in terms of the forms, methods and tools applicable for the dialogue of the national sport cultures in the academic education process, 84% recognized the need for improvement on the whole; and 86% of the PE teachers polled were more specific saying they felt the need to advance their professional competency to be able to monitor and profile the psycho-physiological aspects of the foreign students’ social adaptation in Russia. In addition, 81% of the specialists polled reported being prepared to assist, on an individual basis, the foreign students in their integration into the academic physical education traditions and practices.

Based on the above and other survey data, we designed  (using the relevant education process design method) the PE Specialist Advanced Training Program Modules taking 108 hours in total and designed to develop their communication competency to train foreign students; followed by the Program Modules being rated by experts (4 top managers of the above PE Departments). It should be also noted that the questionnaire survey was designed with contributions from 6 relevant leading TSPU specialists (mostly linguists) having good knowledge of and experience in the foreign students SCA practices.

The above Program was entitled “Physical Education Specialist’s Pedagogical Communication with Foreign Students of Russian University” and designed to include 5 Modules taking 108 hours. Given hereunder is the brief description of each Module (their designs and contents were developed, as mentioned above, using the relevant education process design method).

1. Foreign Student of Russian University Module (24 hours) designed to: identify the core national social and mental specifics of foreign students and the most appropriate educational practices customized for them.
2. Foreign Students’ Social and Cultural Adaptation Missions and Tools Module (20 hours) designed to: consider the best foreign experiences for the foreign students’ social adaptation using the PE toolkit; identify specific practical approaches to facilitate their SCA with consideration for the integrated effects of a variety of the existing academic practices (mass cultural initiatives, volunteer activity etc.).
3. Psycho-physiological Aspects of Foreign Students’ Social and Cultural Adaptation in Russia: Monitoring Studies Module (20 hours) to design a practical toolkit for the monitoring initiative (i.e. the relevant psychological and psycho-physiological practices).
4. Dialogue of the National Sport Cultures: Forms, Methods and Management Options Module (24 hours) designed to: spell out the management and practical tools for the PE specialist to help the students understand the national sport cultures, international values; and develop tolerant interethnic communication models in the foreign and native students to facilitate their social communications based on the relevant behavioural models.
5. Individual Help to Foreign Students to Facilitate Their Integration into the Academic PE Practices Module (20 hours) designed to give knowledge of the ways to individualize the educational communication of the PE specialist with the foreign students.

It should be noted that a key prerequisite for the Russian university system internationalisation process being successful is the knowledge of foreign language(s) – at least English and at least at a basic level. Our survey has found, however, that the share of the PE specialists willing and prepared to master a foreign language is too little today: it made up only 1% (40 people) in the study sample. It means that the universities need to offer due motivations for the PE specialists being willing to master at least English language basics for communication.

Conclusion. The Russian university system internationalisation process should involve the academic education staff including the PE specialists as contributors to the process. The education internationalisation responsibility requires a new educator’s competency being developed, including the PE specialist’s communicative competency needed to effectively train foreign students. The process success directly depends on the progress of the academic PE specialists’ advanced training system in the subject domain.

References

1. Arefyev A.L. Rossiyskie vuzy na mezhdunarodnom rynke obrazovatelnykh uslug [Russian universities in the international market of educational services]. Obrazovatelnyie tekhnologii, 2008, no. 4, p. 13.
2. Ivanova M.A., Titkova N.A. Sotsialno-psikhologicheskaya adaptatsiya inostrannykh studentov pervogo goda obucheniya v vuze [Socio-psychological adaptation of foreign first year students in university]. St. Petersburg, 1993, 61 p.
3. Ilyinich V.I. Fizicheskaya kultura studenta. Uchebnik [University physical education. Textbook]. Moscow: Gardariki publ., 2000, 448 p.
4. Krivtsova I.O. Sotsiokulturnaya adaptatsiya inostrannykh studentov k obrazovatelnoy srede rossiyskogo vuza (na primere Voronezhskoy gosudarstvennoy meditsinskoy akademii im. N.N. Burdenko) [Socio-cultural adaptation of foreign students to Russian university educational environment (case study of Burdenko Voronezh State Medical Academy)]. Fundamentalnye issledovaniya, 2011, no. 8, pp. 17-25.
5. Sheveleva S.I. Formirovanie mezhkulturnoy kompetentsii obuchayushchikhsya iz stran aziatsko-tikhookeanskogo regiona na etape predvuzovskoy podgotovki. Avtoref. dis. kand. ped. nauk [Formation of intercultural competence of students from countries of Asia-Pacific region within pre-university training. PhD diss. abstract]. Tomsk: TSPU publ.,  2015, 23 p.

Corresponding author: sav@tpu.ru

Abstract

The study was designed to substantiate the need for special professional competences being developed in the academic physical education specialists in response to the modern national university system internationalisation process. The study presents the empirical research data to rate the Russian academic physical education specialists’ competences for the foreign students’ training and interpersonal relationship in the context of the system internationalisation process missions and goals needed to be achieved by the relevant competency building methods and forms. The authors offer their vision and version of the frame modular advanced education program designed to provide necessary competences to the academic physical education specialists to effectively train foreign students.