DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES IN THE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM — PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS

The tasks facing the higher education system, as part of the transformation of the world community to the global digital economy, are tightly related to the opportunities and limits of modern digital technologies, as well as the very appropriateness of their use in the learning and socialization of students. The practical application of all the digital technologies used in educational activities has revealed both their clear advantages and serious limitations and threats. The introduction of digital technologies applied in the higher education field should always be accompanied by a serious analysis of the need for their application, taking into account the maximum use of the advantages and leveling of the existing limitations and disadvantages of the educational process digitalization. The experience of higher education institutions applying all forms of online learning, from the development of online MOOCs (Massive on-line open courses) to webinars in individual modules or disciplines, as well as the development of blended learning, should be taken into account and analyzed. to assess the success of the formation not only of general professional and professional competencies, but also from the point of view of socialization and education of students, the development of the necessary communication skills. Obviously, the existing information technology platforms serve, first of all, the goals of organizing the educational process, while education in its essence is a broader concept that includes the learning process itself, upbringing, socialization — that is, the transfer of a whole complex of knowledge, abilities, skills, experience and value attitudes. The use of digital technologies in educational activities should be aimed not only at the formal transfer of knowledge, but also become part of the system of education and socialization of students. At the same time, the use of modern digital technologies in education serves as a powerful incentive to increase the computer literacy of the population as a whole, as well as to involve in the educational activities of universities not only the audience of students receiving their first higher education, which is familiar to them, but also to expand the audience due to older participants who receive knowledge in additional education programs, where digital educational platforms can also be successfully used. In addition, the digitalization of education literally erases boundaries, expands the geography of participants in the educational process, which also imposes certain requirements on the formation of training programs, the selection of educational materials and technologies. The choice of a university for education will now be to a lesser extent related to its geographical location, and the brand of the university, its approach to the educational process, the content of curricula, the qualifications of teachers, as well as the possibility of forming an individual educational trajectory taking into account the interests of students are coming to the fore.

Keywords: digital economy, higher education, digitalization of education, digital technologies, digitalization