Водещ специалист от СУ представя актуални въпроси на модерното образование в XXI век

Only in "Alphabets" Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asya Assenova will address topics related to the latest trends in biology education and healthy living.

What does project-based learning mean and what does it involve? How do virtual worlds foster children's creativity? How can biology education be organized in a new way outside the classroom? How can 3D printing be applied in biology education? What does the teaching profession look like through the eyes of future biology teachers? How can educational television be used in education? What are the trends in e-learning and children's attitudes towards e-textbooks?

These and many other questions of teachers and parents related to the education and upbringing of children will be answered by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asya Assenova, a lecturer at Sofia University, in the new section of "Alphabets" - "School for School".

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asya Emilova Assenova is a lecturer at the Faculty of Biology at Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski ”, Department of Biology Teaching Methodology. Her research focuses on: health and environmental education, e-learning and mobile learning, 3D virtual reality, technologies supporting biology education, biological education management and STEAM training with an emphasis on the application of arts and design in the context of biological education.

Participates in a number of national and international projects in these areas of education. Author of monographs, textbooks and teaching aids in biology and health education and the training of future teachers of biology, supervisor of doctoral and master's theses, mentor within various educational programs. She is the author and pedagogical designer of a 3D virtual workshop for the training of future biology teachers.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Assenova has defended her post-doctoral studies at the Institute of Education, London in the field of modern technologies in teaching and innovative approaches in teaching biology. She is a guest lecturer at the Universidad Publica de Navarra - Pamplona, Spain; "University of Salento" - Lecce, Italy and at the Technical University - Sofia.

She is among the researchers who develop and integrate modern pedagogical methods and approaches in the field of "visual art education" in the training of future biology teachers. In her latest monograph "Application of modern educational technologies in the professional training of biology teachers", the author shares her practical experience, supported by illustrations of specific practices and guidelines for the implementation of innovative technologies in the field of biological education.

In the article "Pedagogical potential of educational comics in the formation of key competencies " An innovative approach to the application of comics in education is presented, based on the concept of "visual art education", which creates a lasting commitment and motivation of learners to the learning content and the learning process as a whole.

An author's concept for the application of educational comics in the professional training of future biology teachers is presented. Comparatively, various software applications for creating educational comics are considered. The article also shares and analyzes specific student artifacts and opinions in the field of educational comics in biology, created in the framework of higher education.

In the article "Application of educational drama in biology education " An innovative approach for our educational system is presented, namely the application of educational drama in the professional training of future biology teachers. It emphasizes special and purposefully organized situations and interactions in which learners acquire different knowledge, skills and professional competencies through experience and emotional reflection.

The pedagogical effectiveness of the drama method in a diverse educational context is analyzed. The article also illustrates a specific application of the elements of educational drama in the training of future biology teachers. The drama method as a multidimensional, oriented to social and aesthetic understanding phenomenon, is in itself an integrative model for effective learning and teaching, which is illustrated with specific student projects in the article.

In the article you will find out how the educational drama leads to a change in the pedagogical environment in which the professional training of future biology teachers is organized and to increase the quality of the learning process as a whole.

Health education is a priority in the process of change towards sustainable development. This is due to the global nature of health problems such as risky sexual behavior, eating disorders, an increase in the number of young people living with HIV, the widespread use of cigarettes, an increase in substance abuse, and so on. This was said to the pedagogues who participated in the recently completed WellBeCome project, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asya Assenova from the Faculty of Biology at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski ”.

The innovative educational project "WellBeCome", which ends at the end of this month, brought together educators from Bulgaria and Serbia. It is part of the Interreg-IPA Bulgaria-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Program 2014-2020. It is carried out by the non-governmental organization "Association of Alphabets" and was developed jointly with leading specialists from Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski ”.

Partners in the WellBeCome program were the Ivan Vazov School in the village of Aldomirovtsi, Slivnitsa Municipality, Bulgaria and the Hristo Botev School in Dimitrovgrad, Serbia. The aim of the training was to train 20 people (10 from Bulgaria and Serbia), selected through an organized campaign, how to teach the concept of "WellBeCome" to students and other trainers.

The focus of the training was to create the appropriate knowledge, skills and critical thinking tools needed to teach children and young people how to live a life of well-being that combines a healthy body and mind, creating the necessary eating culture and harmonious perception of the world.

According to the definition of the World Health Organization, health, understood as the complete physical, mental and social well-being of man, and not merely the absence of disease or disability, is the task of both the family and society. The World Health Organization focuses on five key areas, among which the development of personal skills, knowledge and opportunities for health promotion occupies a central place.

Assoc. Prof. Assenova emphasized that health is a result not only of physical conditions, family environment, norms and traditions, but also of the specific behavior that is built under the influence of accumulated knowledge, skills and attitudes of important people.

Today, teachers from all over the world are convinced that there is a need to focus on contemporary issues related to health education at all stages of education. The challenge is how to achieve maximum efficiency in this process. This requires the formation of competencies for assessment and decision-making, the formation of relationships and responsible behavior of young people, which can be effectively achieved by combining traditional with interactive teaching methods.

Solving cases and dilemmas, role-playing games, working in small groups, associative games, etc. are basic interactive methods that not only point out the problems, but require an active position and activity on the problems of health education. In this learning environment, all participants (students, teachers and parents) are learners, valuing important things, making choices, making responsible and difficult decisions, getting to know themselves, others and the world in a model analogous to reality.

The methodology is an author's development, based on the integrated game approach, project-based learning, drama learning and the introduction of new for our educational system teaching methods based on educational comics.

What topics can you expect in the "School for School" section:

1. Project-based learning (PBE) - opportunities for the formation of key competencies in school.

Highlights in the article: Nature, stages and requirements in the organization of PBO, evaluation of students' results, illustration of good practices in the field of biological education. Types of PBO and connection with modern educational technologies.

2. The pedagogical potential of the virtual worlds, incl. and serious games in promoting the creative potential of students.

Highlights in the article: Overcoming barriers in the real world of the classroom, expanding the possibility of interactivity, personalized feedback, multisensory perception of information, which are essential factors to facilitate learning in general. Illustration of the author's design of a virtual biology classroom for future teachers.

3. Model for organizing environmental education through extracurricular activities - analysis of good practices, trends and prospects.

Highlights in the article: National Strategy for Development of Extracurricular Activities (ICD) in Bulgarian Schools. Model for realization of ICD in biology through the aids of REC for CEE - Bulgaria with the trademark "Regions for children". Analysis of the teaching practice regarding the organization of ICD in ecology through the manuals "Pirin for children", "From Osogovo to Belasitsa" and "Western Stara Planina".

4. Application of 3D printing technology in biology education and training.

Highlights in the article: When did the idea for 3D printing come about? Areas of application of 3D printers. Aspects of 3D printing in education. What do educators and educators share about integrating 3D printing technology into the classroom? Model for creating a 3D prototype of a biological object through the technology of 3D printing.

5. The teaching profession through the eyes of future biology teachers.

Highlights in the article: Analysis and comments on a study in the field of professional training of future teachers.

6. Pedagogical aspects of educational television for organizing training (including in conditions of isolation).

Highlights in the article: Modern research in the field of the application of educational television for the organization of formal and non-formal education. Normative documents for organizing media training. Pedagogical models for integration of media education (including educational TV). What does the world practice show on the issue of the pedagogical effect of educational TV?

7. Trends in e-learning - technological and pedagogical solutions.

Highlights in the article: Blended learning e-course design technology for future biology teachers. Electronic environments for the training of future biology teachers. European policy in the field of integration of technologies in higher education.

8. Survey of attitudes towards electronic textbooks among students in the system of school education in Bulgaria.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Assenova is also open to other issues of teachers and parents related to education and upbringing.