Formation of basic national values in junior schoolchildren in a multicultural region: risk factors

Abstract

Introduction. The problem of forming basic national values in junior schoolchildren in the conditions of a multicultural region is complicated by changes in the cultural paradigm and the development of technologies underlying the emergence of new cultural codes and related value dominants. The purpose of the paper is the identification of factors complicating the process of formation of basic national values in junior schoolchildren, and of the ways to reduce the risk of an event-based approach to the educational process. Materials and methods. The survey involved 2,755 educators from preschool educational organisations and 1,244 primary school teachers. The expert assessment method covered 14 general educational and public organisations of the Russian Federation as well as regional bodies in the education management sphere. SWOT analysis was one of the main methods of practical addressing the situation in educational organisations. Results. The study identified the strengths of educational systems aimed at forming the basic national values in junior schoolchildren: “patriotism as love for Russia, its people, for children's small homeland, service to the Fatherland” - 95.2%; the variety of forms of working with children. The weaknesses included the disorientation of teachers in the system of national and traditional Russian values; lack of clear understanding of process sequences - 35.5%; inconsistency of work over such values as “science” and “traditional Russian religions”; pedagogues' insufficient knowledge of legislative documents - 45.9%. The potential of educational systems lies in due creation of a socio-cultural environment in educational organisations, as confirmed by 84.1% of the teachers who stated its positive influence on the formation of basic national values in junior schoolchildren. The following threats/risks related to the shift of values were identified: overestimating the role of the event-based approach; lack of values in the teacher's personal terminal orientations system; pedagogue's insufficient mastery of value interiorisation methods and ways of facilitating this process in education, teacher training deformations; insufficient number of guidance papers and materials on the formation of basic national values. Conclusion. The implemented SWOT analysis resulted in the development of a methodological support system fostering the formation of basic national values in junior school children. The elaboration of professional development programmes for primary school teachers took into account all related factors, threats and risks.