The experience of teaching public administration in Russia during the pandemic in 2020–2021

Abstract

The main aim of the study was to analyze the impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic both on the public services and on public administration (PA) education, to find out how the process of teaching of future public administrators had changed during the Pandemic and how these changes could possibly influence the process of teaching public administrators in future. The research methods included theoretical and analytical research methods, the methodology of empirical research, and comparative research methods. The latest works of PA scholars in the global context, the materials of the study provided by the teams of teachers of the leading Russian universities concerning teaching experience during 2020, and the latest data provided from the analysis carried out at the Institute for Social Sciences of Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Moscow, in the conditions of distant and mixed learning in 2020–2021, allowed the author to give some practical advice to teachers and education managers concerning the improvement of the educational programs for PA students regarding the new conditions of the study. The main conclusion made on the results of the analysis is that digitalization of teaching and learning process and organization of distant learning at the time of the Covid-19 Pandemic should be considered to be the most important issues in PA education which could be applied in PA education in future. The recommendations concerned such aspects as the development of digital competencies of students, distant regime implementation, new pedagogy and digital didactics, socialization of students, internationalization and academic mobility of students, improving the qualifications of teachers and university management teams, research work, and the development of meta-competencies of future public servants.

Public Administration Education During the Covid-19 Pandemic. Teaching Experiences and Policy Implications

“…However, there remains a hyper-focus on institutional needs and outcomes for their programs and students that tend to place the onerous burden of responsibility for implementation squarely on the shoulders of educators. Nurlybaeva (2023) analyzed PA education in Russia during the Covid-19 pandemic and concluded that 'digitalization of the teaching and learning process and organization of distant learning' were crucial processes in PA education and that they could also continue to be applied in the future. However, such an approach requires multiple changes on the behalf of both students and professors, as true digital competencies must be acquired by both sides, while program structures and mentalities have to adapt to the new reality.…”