Innovations in the System of Higher Education in Russia
INTRODUCTIONPedagogic innovation is a young science and in Russia it has been told about since the end of 1980s of the last century. Nowadays both pedagogic innovation and its methodology are in the stage of scientific working out and formation.Improving of education quality in Russia is becoming an issue of great importance especially in the sphere of higher education. Modernization projects in the system of higher professional education in Russia and tendencies of its gradual transformation occurring under the influence of all round liberal, economic, social and political reforms need an analysis of perspectives and targets which can be achieved.There are a lot of definitions of the term "pedagogic innovation," however, there is no any settled statement and definition of innovations in education because of some gap between systems of scientific knowledge about innovation and educational practice. All authors, however, come to the same opinion that innovation is about creation something new.Innovation is always about activities since it is directed on the change of existing system. Any activity is targeted to a new product creation. So the definition of pedagogic innovation ought to reflect not only practical direction but a material product as a result of innovative activity.Besides, innovations in the educational sphere are involved in the formation of strong personality, their abilities for implementing scientific and innovative activity and renovation of educational process content.As applied to pedagogic process innovation means involving novelty into aims, content, methods and forms of teaching and upbringing. What is more it supposes organization of collaboration between lecturers and students. Innovations always have active aspects since they are directed to inserting changes in a particular social item leading to appearing of stable elements.Consequently in the definition of pedagogic innovation there should be reflected not only practical tendency but also a material product as a final result of innovative activity. Following this point of view innovation is not a real one until it is introduced successfully and starts to bring benefits.METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKPedagogic innovation introduction into teaching process is a determinative feature of modern education. Innovations are typical for any human professional activity so they naturally become a subject of research, analysis and introduction. Innovations do not occur on their own they are the result of scientific investigation, advanced pedagogic experience. Novelties in education represent creative sorting out of new ideas, principles, technologies with bringing to standard projects containing adaptation and use conditions.This process cannot be spontaneous; it needs management, classification and systematization. Moreover, ideology and practice of pedagogic innovations are reflected in their classification based on the following items: The scale of making use; The source of origin; The character of introduced changes; The types of activities.As for the scale of making use there are single innovations which are within the framework of the same subject and diffusional ones that are within the profile uniting several subjects.As far as the source of origin is concerned, pedagogical innovations can be external, with an innovative idea occurring outside the educational system and internal when innovations are worked out inside the educational system.The character of introduced changes brings us to local, modular and system innovations. Local innovations are about alteration of independent parts or components in the educational system. Modular innovations are turned to be interconnected groups of several local pedagogic innovations. System innovations are ones that suppose complete reconstruction of educational system as a whole.Types of activities are found to be divided into ones that are rich in content providing content aspect of pedagogic process, i.