Psychological And Pedagogical Features of Non-Formal Social-Entrepreneurial Education In The North Caucasus

Abstract

The current situation in the North Caucasus is characterized by a high level of social tension and sever socio-economic problems. The solution of these problems lays on the basis of the social entrepreneurship potential. The lack of theoretical foundation for teaching social entrepreneurship is a constraining factor in development of social entrepreneurship in the republics of the North Caucasus. The analysis of the regional experience allowed the authors to define and present the characteristics of the psychological and pedagogical features of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus:

Keywords: Social entrepreneurshipsocial and entrepreneurial educationnon-formal educationeducational programNorth Caucasus

Introduction

Social and business education comes as an inherent part of interdisciplinary context of cultural, institutional, social, territorial, and historical nature (Pathak & Muralidharan, 2019).

The particular relevance of the development of social entrepreneurship and social and business education in the North Caucasus is due to the specific features of the region, such as high unemployment level in comparison with other regions of Russia, deskilling of labour, low occupational and social mobility, talented youth outflow, and undereducation, that increases social tension risks and growth of xenophobia and religious extremism (Adzhikova et al., 2019).

The region still remains an outsider in terms of enterprise development level (Abdulaeva, 2017; Dmitrieva et al., 2017)

Different countries with economies in transition are characterized by business development path (Chepurenko et al., 2019; Shirokova et al., 2019). According to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), in Russia such activity is weaker than in other countries with economies in transition. It can be illustrated with a 1.8-fold lag from the average Global Entrepreneurship Index (GEI) (Ács et al., 2018).

Participation in entrepreneurial training programs is positively correlated with overall business activity and the economic effect of newly established companies (Shirokova et al., 2017). Researchers estimate that increase of students’ business intentions depends on their personal characteristics and circumstances as well as external conditions, primarily associated with the entrepreneurial environment in university and society.

Using the principles of the ecosystem approach allows researchers to identify the significant role of universities in the formation of effective entrepreneurial ecosystems (Malecki, 2018), consider the ecosystem as a source of entrepreneurial opportunity (Trabskaja & Mets, 2019), and provide a description of the ecosystem of socio-entrepreneurial education (Igropulo et al., 2019; Schøtt et al., 2015). University’s entrepreneurial ecosystem development is hampered by the rigidity of the university’s institutional environment, a low level of interaction between partners, and excessive bureaucratization of regulatory procedures at university (Zobnina et al., 2019).

Since universities cannot offer students entrepreneurial learning pathways, institutions of non-formal education have been increasingly implementing this function. In general, the number of publications on non-formal education in the context of today’s new challenges and problems is growing rapidly (Babaeva, 2015; Efimova et al., 2019; Souto-Otero & Villalba-Garcia, 2015).

However, it should be noted that they are fragmented, reflect certain aspects of the implementation of non-formal education and do not fully reveal the possibilities of non-formal education in preparing young people for social and business activities.

Problem Statement

The lack of scientifically based methodological and theoretical foundation for teaching social entrepreneurship in the non-formal education system is a constraining factor in the rapid, holistic development of social entrepreneurship in the republics of the North Caucasus.

Research Questions

The meaningful questions are: Why social and entrepreneurial education is so important for the North Caucasus? What are the psychological and pedagogical features of social and entrepreneurial education? What are the advantages of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education? What are the prospects for the development of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus?

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is to analyze the content-structural and technological features of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education.

Research Methods

On the methodological basis of the study lay leading ideas of the ecosystem, axiological, andragogical and competency-based approaches that allow us to consider social and entrepreneurial education as a multidimensional pedagogical phenomenon. The solution of research problems required using methods of comparative analysis of scientific sources on social development problems, social innovation, development of education in the field of entrepreneurial activity, as well as comparison and generalization of scientific and theoretical results and empirical experience.

Findings

Research Results

In order to successfully develop social and entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus, studies have been carried out to identify the goals and values of such education, to clarify the principles of designing the content of social and entrepreneurial education, to test new technological tools. It allows to move from individual disparate educational activities to the ecosystem of social and entrepreneurial education, including forms and methods of non-formal education.

The ecosystem of social and entrepreneurial education is considered as an integral set of structural and functional components, linked with the goals of the formation and continuous upgrading of the competencies of social entrepreneurship subjects based on the values of their horizontal network interaction in open educational environment in the context of the advancing social and innovative development of the local and global community (Igropulo et al., 2019).

The empirical basis of the study was the experience of the authors of this article in government and non-government projects for training entrepreneurs in six districts of the North Caucasus - the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, the Chechen Republic, the Ingush Republic, the Republic of Dagestan, and the Stavropol Territory.

In these regions has been implemented the training program for potential entrepreneurs “Start your own business”. It has been led under the auspices of the International Labor Organization (ILO). The goal of the project is directly related to the ILO's global employment policy, which is a part of the ILO Decent Work Agenda and aims to support decent employment through entrepreneurship development.

An important role in the development of non-formal education is played by the international summer school “Social Entrepreneurship in the North Caucasus”, whose educational programme is designed and implemented on the basis of the following principles:

  • value-oriented nature of the programme, orientation to the values of social service and reform;

  • interdisciplinary approach to social entrepreneurship as a multidimensional and multiaspectual scientific and practical phenomenon;

  • inclusion of social entrepreneurship in the ethno-cultural regional context;

  • robust approach to mastering a new subject and social experience;

  • open and confidential nature of communication, interaction between all participants of the summer school, leading to personal developing.

The centers of innovations in the social area established in each of the republics of the region have begun to play an increasingly active role in the development of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education.

The socio-cultural context, the content-structural, target and technological characteristics of non-formal socio-entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus are presented in Table 1 .

Table 1 -
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Discussion

Entrepreneurship education, including social entrepreneurship, is considered in modern research as one of the key drivers of youth entrepreneurship, job creation, fall in unemployment and solving other tough social problems (Naumov & Konstantinova, 2019; Pluzhnik et al., 2018).

Researchers note that today universities are significantly separated from entrepreneurship as an activity built on creative and analytical principles and demanding these competencies most of all (Klyuev & Yashin, 2016).

The weak involvement of young people in entrepreneurial activity is explained by the lack of mindset to entrepreneurial competencies formation at all levels of education. Students do not see career opportunities in entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurial culture does not stigmatize failures, to the opposite it stimulates projects’ development. Absence of the culture undermines determination to act and leads to fear of failure. Teachers who experimented with various formats note that classic lecture courses are not relevant to entrepreneurship education (Chepurenko et al., 2019; Zobnina et al., 2019).

In the context of global changes in educational area, the practice of non-formal education is of great interest (Babaeva, 2015; Efimova et al., 2019; Souto-Otero & Villalba-Garcia, 2015). The factors of efficiency and productivity of non-formal education generally include high motivation, focus, meaningfulness of educational and cognitive activity of studentsб flexibility to meet a variety of individual educational needsб creating an open motivating environment, an opportunity to interact with various experts.

Being agree with consideration of entrepreneurship as a life skill in the 21st century, researchers pay special attention to the context of training in social entrepreneurship, which requires a new business creation as a result of training (Dukhon et al., 2018).

At the same time, the formation and development of entrepreneurial competencies and entrepreneurial thinking does not lose its significance. Obviously, these tasks can be successfully solved in the process of non-formal education due to its target orientation to achieve specific practical results, the variety of technologies used, which are as close as possible to real situations of social and entrepreneurial activity (Chepurenko et al., 2019).

Researchers note the particular importance of andragogical approaches in teaching entrepreneurship, which involves experimental training based on the use of experimental methods in real conditions to solve specific problems. Noteworthy are new studies in development of andragogy to heutagogy (Halupa, 2015). When andragogical educational approaches allow formation of basic competencies (a set of skills and views) that define entrepreneurship training, then heutagic approaches are focused on self-directed learning, encouraging students to “learn how to learn” (Hase & Kenyon, 2013).

Non-formal social and entrepreneurial education programs implemented in the form of interactive lectures, seminars, trainings, master classes led by foreign and local experts, trainers, mentors from among active social entrepreneurs. These programs are aimed at the formation and development of socio-emotional competencies, entrepreneurial awareness, and management skills, financial literacy, networking skills.

Mentoring and coaching by existing social entrepreneurs of the North Caucasus region are an obligatory component of educational programs, which allows to take into account regional socio cultural characteristics (such as mentality, gender attitudes, family education, etc.) to the greatest extent.

Conclusion

Studying and analyzing the implementation of practices of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus lead us to the following summary.

  • In the region it is important to identify and pay attention to ethnocultural characteristics of social entrepreneurship development as a tool for critical socio-economic problems solving. Non-formal social and entrepreneurial education is an important structurally substantive component of the emerging ecosystem of social and entrepreneurial education.

  • Informal social and entrepreneurial education contributes to the formation of sustainable interest in social entrepreneurship as a part of personal and professional self-realization young people in the North Caucasus. It also helps to enhance the status of social entrepreneur in the region and to create a community of social entrepreneurs as a resource for the accelerated development of social innovations in the region.

  • The psychological and pedagogical features of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education in the North Caucasus include:

  • strategic orientation of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education on advancing social transformations in the region; institutionalization of the system of social and cultural norms that promote the development and support of social entrepreneurship as a factor in involving young people in innovative socio-educational practices;

  • the axiological potential of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education, which is formation of sustained interest in socially oriented entrepreneurial activity among students,  systematic development of their entrepreneurial competencies;

  • openness of non-formal social and entrepreneurial education, which means strengthening the relationship of subjects of social and entrepreneurial education in the regions with the external socio-cultural environment, actively involving existing social entrepreneurs in the development of the local entrepreneurial community based on the values of public good, taking into account dynamic social changes in a wide regional and global context.

Acknowledgments

This study was made under financial support of Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project no. 19-013-00551 “Ethnocultural determinants of the formation and development of socially oriented entrepreneurial education ecosystem in the North Caucasus under global and regional challenges”).

References

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About this article

Publication Date

26 October 2020

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978-1-80296-090-7

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European Publisher

Volume

91

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Edition Number

1st Edition

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Subjects

Self-regulation, personal resources, educational goals, professional goals, mental health, digitalization

Cite this article as:

Shapovalov, V. K., Igropulo, I. F., Аrutyunyan, M. M., & Khokhoeva, E. V. (2020). Psychological And Pedagogical Features of Non-Formal Social-Entrepreneurial Education In The North Caucasus. In V. I. Morosanova, T. N. Banshchikova, & M. L. Sokolovskii (Eds.), Personal and Regulatory Resources in Achieving Educational and Professional Goals in the Digital Age, vol 91. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 181-188). European Publisher. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2020.10.04.23