Experience of Students’ and Teachers’ Pilot Training in the Field of Environmental Engineering in a Post-Soviet Country

Abstract

Kazakhstan is one of the Post-Soviet countries with remains of the Soviet educational system. Yet, in 2010 Kazakhstan has joined the European Higher Education Area (the Bologna Process) that requires focusing on 10 Action Lines and taking into account the Process' fundamental principles. A consortium of universities representing Kazakhstan, Russia and European Union’s countries is developed within a Tempus programme’s project to enhance a transition and compliance with requirements of the Bologna Process in the field of environmental engineering. Within the project, the academic staff of Riga Technical University (Latvia) implemented a pilot training concept in two of the Kazakhstani higher education institutions. This paper presents the methodology applied and verified in two Kazakhstani higher education institutions and discusses the results achieved. It is concluded that collaboration of academic staff from countries with a common past has many benefits when an innovative training concept is implemented. It helps to acquire a better understanding of the situation and find more effective solutions in the academic, scientific and industrial spheres. The methodology applied proved to be efficient to encourage the students’ critical thinking skills and further develop the curriculum of environmental engineering in the Post-Soviet countries.