Concept of Interdisciplinary Training for Master and PhD students in Human Security

Concept
of Interdisciplinary Training for Master and PhD students in Human Security









Ural University press
2016

УДК 378.1(07)
ББК Ч448я7

      C 75



Compiled by
Yuri Dekhtyar (Latvia) and Elena Maestri (Italy)



C 75 Concept of Interdisciplinary Training for Master and PhD students in Human Security. — Ekaterinburg : Ural University Press, 2016. — 48 p.
           ISBN 978-5-7996-1798-1
           Abstract
           The book delivers the Concept of Interdisciplinary Training (CIT) for Master and PhD students in Human Security that has been developed in frame of the TEMPUS project “Human Security (environment, quality of food, public health and society) on Territories Contaminated by Radioactive Agents”.
           The material presented is aimed to university teachers and students that are active in the areas of environment, quality of food, public health and society to enhance the human safety. the ideas and approaches could be of the wide public interests, too.

           This project has been funded with support from the European Commission within the framework of the Tempus Project “Human Security (environment, quality of food, public health and society) on the Territories Contaminated by Radioactive Agents”. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.


                                                           УДК 378.1(07) ББК Ч448я7



ISBN 978-5-7996-1798-1

© Ural University press, 2016

            CONTENTS






ABOUT THE TEMPUS PROJECT ............................................ 4
CONTRIBUTORS ........................................................ 5
GENERALITY ............................................................. 6
   The aim ............................................................. 6
   The outcome ......................................................... 6
CONCEPT OF THE INTERDISCIPLINARY TRAINING .............................. 7
   CIT for MSc.......................................................... 7
       General approach ................................................ 7
       The topics for CP............................................... 11
       Skill improvement .............................................. 11
       Modularization ................................................. 12
       CIT specific approaches and modules ............................ 12
   CIT for PhD ........................................................ 18
RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPLEMENT CIT ...................................... 19
   The guidelines for the Belarus universities ........................ 19
       MSc students’ training.......................................... 19
       PhD students’ training in the field of the human security (HS) . 24
   The guidelines for the universities of Russia ...................... 25
       The background for CIT in Russia ............................... 25
       CIT for universities of Russia ................................. 26
       PhD training ................................................... 28
       The recommendations for the Ural Federal University as the typical example ......................................... 28
   The guidelines for the universities of Ukraine ..................... 29
       The background for CIT in Ukraine .............................. 29
       The recommendations for the Zhytomyr State
             Technological University and Sevastopol National University of Nuclear Energy and Industry ................ 31
       The recommendations for the Kyiv International University and Vinnitsya National Medical University . 32
IMPLEMENTATION OF CIT ................................................. 34

            ABOUT THE TEMPUS PROJECT





    The Tempus Project* is funded by the European Commission. The objectives of the Project are the following:
    —       to support the modernization of Higher Education in Partner Countries of the surrounding area of the EU and Central Asia;
    —       to establish an area of cooperation between the EU and the Partner Countries;
    —       to favour voluntary convergence with the EU developments in the field of Higher Education.
    “Human Security (environment, quality of food, public health and society) on the Territories Contaminated by Radioactive Agents” is a joint project of several organizations-consortium members which are University of Cordoba (Spain) being the coordinator of the Project, University of Parma (Italy), Swedish University of Agriculture Sciences (Sweden), University of Florence (Italy), Riga Technical University (Latvia), Voronezh State University (Russia), Chelyabinsk State University (Russia), Tyumen State Medical Academy (Russia), Ural Federal University named after the first President of Russia B. N. Yeltsin (Russia), Nuclear Cities Educational Information Center (Russia), Sevastopol National University of Nuclear Energy and Industry (Ukraine), Zhytomyr State Technological University (Ukraine), Vinnytsya National Pirogov Memorial Medical University (Ukraine),
    Kyiv International University (Ukraine), Polissya Branch of Ukrainian Research Institute of F&FM (Ukraine), International Sakharov Environmental University (Belarus), Grodno State Agrarian University (Belarus), Grodno State Medical University (Belarus), Belarusian State University (Belarus).



   * “Human Security (environment, quality of food, public health and society) on the Territories Contaminated by Radioactive Agents” The number of the Grant Agreement. 530644-TEMPUS-1-2012-1-ES-TEMPUS-JPCR.

            CONTRIBUTORS





     Major contribution to the text and conceptual development of this publication was made by the representatives of Riga Technical University (Latvia) and University of Parma (Italy) Yuri Dekhtyar and Elena Maestri respectively.
     Contribution to this publication made by the following individuals representing both the Partner Universities and the European ones is acknowledged: Sergey Balashenko (Belarus), Ekaterina Mikhay-lenko (Russia), Marina Banzarakcaeva (Russia), Valeriy Mikhaylenko (Russia), Pavel Baradzin (Belarus), Franco Milano (Italy), Anna Bel-tikova (Russia), Ihar Naumau (Belarus), Iryna Davidova (Ukraine), Yulya Omelchuk (Ukraine), Sergey Ovchinnikov (Russia), Maria Frolova (Ukraine), Dmitry Pobedash (Russia), Olga Galiulina (Russia), Natalya Prokopenko (Belarus), Sergej Golovatij (Belarus), Olex-andr Pylypenko (Ukraine),Vladimir Kamynin (Russia), Aleh Rodzkin (Belarus), Eduard Kashuba (Russia), Klas Rosen (Sweden), Ruslana Kharkovenko (Ukraine), Eugenie Ryaboshtan (Ukraine), Igor Kras-vin (Russia), Boris Samotokin (Ukraine), Semjon Kundas (Belarus), Zoya Shelest (Ukraine), Semen Kurolap (Russia), Ludmila Suplotova (Russia), Sergey Likhachev (Russia), MykhailoVinichuk (Sweden), Vladimir Yelishev (Russia), Yauhenii Maisiayonak (Belarus), Evgeniy Zhilyakov (Russia), Vasyl Mamray (Ukraine), Albert Zhloba (Belarus), Svetlana Mazurek (Belarus).

            GENERALITY






            The aim


Concept of Interdisciplinary Training (CIT) is aimed to assist implementation of the EU modern methods of Master and PhD students’ training at the universities of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine in the fields of human security (HS) including environment, quality of food, public health and society for territories of Byelorussia, Russia and Ukraine contaminated by radioactive agents.


            The outcome


CIT provides:
    -   the general approach to develop and implement interdisciplinary education based on EU experience for Master and PhD students’ training in the field of human security including environment, quality of food, public health and society;
    -   specific approaches to develop and introduce EU modern methods of Master and PhD students’ training in the areas:
       -  HS and Society;
       -  HS and Environment;
       -  Quality of Food for HS;
       -  Public Health for HS.


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            CONCEPT
            OF THE INTERDISCIPLINARY TRAINING





The EU countries have mostly one scientific degree (PhD). However, the partner countries have two level system of the scientific degrees: - candidate; - doctor.
The candidate is generally recognized like the PhD, however the doctor corresponds to DSc. Nevertheless, CIT considers just PhD that fits the candidate degree.
The CIT is targeted to the MSc and PhD levels of education. the levels differs with:
     -  the MSc has to deliver the knowledge and skill to provide professional activities in the specific area;
     -  the PhD focuses knowledge and skill for the research activities in the specific fields.
Therefore the CIT looks separately for both for MSc and PhD.


            CIT for MSc


        General approach

The competences and skills targeted to HS, society, environment, quality of food and public health should be focused to the problems of the radiation contaminated territories. the specific fundamental competences in the single disciplines have also to be considered. For instance, after the fundamentals of the single discipline are delivered, particular attention and efforts will focus on practical applications to employ all competences related to contaminated territories and risk

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for the population. Therefore, the above-mentioned topics of education should preferably have a common platform (CP) of education contents that will provide scientific achievements based on general competences and skills targeted to the specific wide range applications in contaminated areas. the competences and skills in the specific topics will be delivered on the base of the platform (Fig. 1).
So, the education could consist of two levels:
    -   fundamental topics of the CP (Level I);
    -   specific topics (Level II).


Specific topics

HS Society Environment Quality of food Public health

Focus of CP —radiation contamination

Common platform (CP) to provide general competences and skills to be the fundament for the topics: HS, society, environment, quality of food, public health

Fig. 1. Relation between the Common platform, radiation contamination focus, and specific topics



The two level structure could be provided for the trainees, too. the trainees could acquire the fundamental basic knowledge first and apply it to practical cases, as the second.
The CP is aimed to provide general competences and skills that should be multifaceted to the radiation contamination.


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The CP will deliver general competences and skills in:
     -  HS,
     -  society,
     -  environment,
     -  quality of food,
     -  public health,
     -  radiation,
     -  statistics.
To reach this, an education approach that employs interacting topics should be provided alongside with training. Typically an interdisciplinary approach is in use, when education supplies competences because of teaching the areas that have joint boundaries (Fig. 2).


Fig. 2. Typical interdisciplinary education approach

Such the approach does not really bring to interdisciplinarity in the areas of knowledge. They are touching each other and interfere minimally. the areas do not penetrate into each other. in this case the education does not promote significant fusion of knowledge.


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The alternative advanced novel approach is based on the knowledge convergence of sciences education*. in this case the areas are overlapping and the knowledge easily penetrates among the fields in addition the novel nucleus of knowledge development is fused because of the merged areas (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3. Convergence education approach

The topics of the fused knowledge could be created on a base of the formula:
[XA] A [YA] + [XB] B [YB] = [XAB] AB [YAB],
A, B — roots of the words indentifying essences of topics to fuse the new one;
AB — root of the word indentifying the essence of the fused topic;
[XA], [XB], [XAB] — prefixes of the words identifying topics to fuse the new one and the fused topic, correspondingly;
[YA], [YB], [YAB] — suffixes of the words identifying topics to fuse the new one and the fused topic, correspondingly.

   * Identification of New and Emerging Trends Using Advanced Science Convergence Based Curriculum / A. Vaseashta, E. Braman at al. // Material Research Spring meeting. USA, 2011. SS1.4.

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For instance the topics to fuse the new one are “ecology” and “biology”:
[XA] = [YA] = [XB] = [YB] = 0;
A = eco;
B = bio;
AB = ecobio.
The fused topic is “ecobiology”.
The convergence of sciences education (CSE) approach has been selected to reach CIT.

        The topics for CP

The fused topics derived on the base of CSE and recommended for the CP are the following:
    -  Fundamentals of ionizing radiation;
    -  Fundamentals of radioactivity (general knowledge of nuclear and atoms; radioactivity, types of radiation; the radioactive decay law; half-life time; activity, valuation procedure for radioactive contamination);
    -  Detection and dosimetry of ionizing radiations;
    -  Fundamentals of statistics;
    -  Fundamentals of radiocontamination;
    -  Human and society in contaminated area;
    -  Environment and contaminated environment;
    -  Radiation and quality of food;
    -  Fundamentals of radiation and public health — evaluation and control of risks.

        Skill improvement

To develop the topics in the Table 1 the teaching staff and trainers are recommended to improve their skills to develop them in accordance with CSE. This can be performed in cooperation with the EU Universities within the TEMPUS project.

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