The Graduate School of Management of St. Petersburg University (GSOM SPbU) with support from the Federal Academic Methodological Association held the 25th annual Pashkus Readings. This year the discussion involved aspects of modern teaching methods in higher education — lessons to be learnt from online format and what teaching at Russian universities will be like in the future.

Hybrid learning format was the key topic. Today many education professionals believe that hybrid learning is likely to become a full-fledged format with its own technical and pedagogical design that will remain essential after the pandemic ends. The main difference between hybrid and other formats is the multidimensional space: students can attend classes on campus, join online or learn independently at a different time. Plus they choose the format on their own, taking the responsibility for the results.

GSOM SPbU together with Moscow City University (MCU) and VTB Bank has presented the results of an extensive research regarding the characteristics of hybrid learning at academic institutions in Russia and across the world. Experts have thoroughly studied more than 30 cases of Russian and foreign universities including Ural Federal University, Tomsk State University, Tyumen State University,  Skolkovo Moscow School of Management, Harvard Business School and IE University in Madrid. 

Olga Dergunova, Deputy President and Chairman of VTB Bank Management Board, GSOM SPbU Director told about the role of GSOM SPbU in hybrid format development and research:

"As part of the development strategy the Graduate School of Management aims to become a №1 business school in Russia, a business school with a unique learning environment  and continuously progressing faculty. A significant step along this way is making use of digital tools to improve the quality of the learning process and thus make alumni of the business school more competitive in the global labor market. Hybrid learning is one of the examples of GSOM SPbU team's successful work at the nexus of teaching methodology and up-to-date technology. Our developments are primarily targeted at the main academic programs, but they are also applied in additional professional education segment. Growing demand from corporate partners shows that the GSOM SPbU methodology is helpful and relevant. I am sure that our experience in this area will prove beneficial for both goverment and corporate universities".  

Research of hybrid learning in world universities: the results

The research conducted by GSOM SPbU, MCU and VTB Bank has shown that thanks to large-scale transfer to online learning a great many new formats emerged that were named hybrid learning. For instance, the difference between hybrid and mixed learning is the most critical and discussed issue. Researchers claim that students' role is the main difference. Mixed learning implies that the course content, technologies, schedule, communication channels and format are determined by professors. In hybrid models students make their own choice regarding their learning paths. This helps to build truly individual learning paths and promote student agency.

Kirill Barannikov, MCU Vice-Rector for Development describes hybrid learning implementation model:

"As part of the research we tried to define the didactic basis of hybrid learning as a category and we found that focus on students becomes the core of this approach. This is what determines both practical implementation of hybrid learning models and focus on student experience design. When analyzing cases and practices of Russian and world universities, we saw three types of pedagogical situations and learning experiences that a student is having. For each of them we tried to characterize and highlight the features of professor and student activity in three kinds of space — classroom, virtual and asynchronous classes. This prompted one of the main conclusions of our research: hybrid learning is not a complementary but independent model that exists along with traditional in-class learning and fully online learning. Hybrid model requires an update of the learning process as well as other basic university processes".

Multidimensionality of hybrid format, infinite possibilities for students when building their personal learning paths and the high level of technology requires new approaches to learning event design in hybrid format. This kind of practice is more often demanded by students, which is evident from the research results. 

In comparison to 25% in 2020, up to 50% of students prefer hybrid or mixed format in 2021

When analyzing the activities of more than 30 world universities and their approaches to technical implementation of hybrid format, the researchers have determined the essential components of digital learning environment:

• hybrid classroom — a special workspace suitable to teach both online- and offline-students simultaneously;
• digital environment for asynchronous learning;
• technical support and training.
• The researchers note that hybrid classrooms may be very different — from a laptop in front of a professor to a fully equipped multimedia space. Nevertheless, technically sophisticated designs are appropriate only if there's a pedagogical demand.

The researchers note that hybrid classrooms may be very different — from a laptop in front of a professor to a fully equipped multimedia space. Nevertheless, technically sophisticated designs are appropriate only if there's a pedagogical demand.

In June 2022 GSOM SPbU organizes an open training session for IT professionals from Russian universities dedicated to design of a cutting-edge hybrid classroom that meets the specific methodological features of hybrid learning format.

The future of teaching methodology in Russian higher education institutions

GSOM SPbU research of hybrid learning launched the revision of approaches applied in the Business school to development and implementation of digital solutions. It was noted that adoption of new software and services is impossible in isolation from the specific methodological features of their usage during the learning process.

GSOM SPbU experts have developed the methodology that allows educational tasks to meet the possibilities provided by digital tools. The aim is to obtain such a digital learning environment for higher educational institutions that would help to improve the students' learning experience and results. GSOM SPbU methodology is based on the best design thinking practices adapted to educational context and includes the whole product design cycle: problem statement, solution development and implementation, quality control. The key stage of the problem statement is the design of the educational scenario — a task-oriented, learner-centered, methodologically organized sequence of teaching methods and technologies.

Olga Alkanova, Senior Lecturer at the Marketing Department, teaching methodology supervisor, GSOM SPbU:

"Digital solutions are created and designed naturally to satisfy specific teaching tasks. We focus our attention mainly on teaching methods and problems that the digital environment should solve. For instance, if we design a hybrid classroom ignoring the specific features of the learning process, we may get a space that would limit the possibilities for achieving the learning results. Furthermore, our methodology allows us to reveal some details that seem insignificant at first sight but help a professor to skip unnecessary actions and concentrate on the lecture".

GSOM SPbU presents the methodology of digital education solutions design in June 2022. Russian universities will get access to the business school's best practices and will be able to design their own digital environment based on faculty's pedagogical demands. 

GSOM SPbU Pashkus Readings is a space for discussion of urgent teaching and methodological issues of education in the area of management and economics, experience exchange, getting familiar with the best practices of Russian economic and business education.

Yury Pashkus is Founder and Dean of School of Management (Graduate School of Management since 2007) SPbSU, eminent Russian scholar in finance management. Since 1996 the traditional Pashkus Readings have been held at GSOM SPbU. In such a way the faculty and researchers commemorate Yury Pashkus and his contribution to the creation of the Business school.