Peculiarities of Implementing a Practice-Oriented Approach to Engineering Education in the Digital Era

Abstract

The current trends in engineering education are analyzed. The distinctive features of the conventional “knowledge” paradigm and the practice-oriented approach are described. An urgent need to strengthen the latter at the higher education stage is revealed. The peculiarities of practical training were studied, as an outcome of which a number of advantages of this method have been identified, and community of domestic and foreign trends in widening the role of practical training has been disclosed. The long-term successful experience in training technical specialists at the National Research University Moscow Power Engineering Institute served as the empirical basis for the research. Special attention is paid to changes in engineering and technology areas that have been caused by global digitalization, which lead to transformation of engineering work and, hence, set forth new objectives for education. The article also substantiates advisability to strengthen practical components in education, which will enable the graduates to successfully apply fundamental knowledge in their professional activity.