News

News

Round Table Discussion of the Problems of Study in the Work of Sholokhov in Rostov

In Rostov-on-Don, on May 31, 2017, a round table was held to discuss the problems of study in the work of M.A.Sholokhov at the university and secondary school. It was dedicated to the 112th anniversary of the writer. The session held in Sholokhov-Centre of the Museum-Reserve was joined by nearly 60 people – university lecturers, museum workers, school teachers and students of the South Federal University.

The round table meeting was organized by the National M.A.Sholokhov Museum-Reserve and the Institute of Philology, Journalism and Intercultural Communication of the South Federal University. The moderators were: L.B.Savenkova, Doctor of Philological Sciences, professor of the Russian Language Department of the South Federal University, and T.O.Osipova, Candidate of Philological Sciences, docent of the South Federal University and senior researcher of the Museum-Reserve of M.A.Sholokhov.

The topic for discussion aroused a great interest of the audience. Professor N.I.Stopchenko, Member of the Rostov Region Department of the Russian Foundation named after M.A.Sholokhov, spoke about the 20-year old experience of organizing meetings of the section “The Life and Work of M.A.Sholokhov” within the frames of the annual conference of the Don Academy of Sciences of Young Researchers. Since 2011, this kind of children and youth involvement in the study of the writer’s work has acquired a new format: the scientific component has been supplemented with educational one. Besides the senior school students, the conference is joined by the schoolchildren of the 5–8-forms and university students, postgraduates and young teachers. Within the frames of the youth Sholokhov Readings the young researchers make their scientific talks, learn about the works of their peers, discuss the problems of giving school lessons on the work of M.A.Sholokhov and recite poems devoted to Sholokhov, the River Don, Cossacks, listen to or perform songs loved by our great countryman, show theatrical performances based on the fragments of the writer’s works and take part in the exhibition “Sholokhov Theme in Drawings”.

Y.S.Gorbunova, Candidate of Philological Sciences, a docent of the Department of the Language Theory and the Russian Language of the South Federal University, spoke about the features of the work on Sholokhov’s text with the student audience. She underlined the importance of study in the conceptosphere

of the writer, his attention to such basic concepts of his artistic world as family, mother, friendship, love, peace, war, and showed the results of the students’ research. Y.S.Gorbunova pointed out the importance of individual scientific work with the students and the responsibility of the role of the scientific leader in arousing and maintaining interest for the work of the writer.

The young teachers, innovators, N.A.Kutnyakhova, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences (secondary school No 100, Rostov-on-Don), and A.V.Dmitrova, Candidate of Philological Sciences (secondary school No 5, Rostov-on-Don), presented their vision of the problem of attracting attention to the work of M.A.Sholokhov, and they both expressed the idea of necessity of permanent and unremitting search for motivation of the students.

N.A.Kutnyakhova states that the modern student mustn’t be given a situation of success, he must gain it himself. One of the conditions for the student success formation is the authority of the mentor, who must also be successful in the eyes of the student. Herewith, the teacher should begin his work on formation of the student personality able of perceiving his ability for successful activity and step by step gaining the result as earlier as possible, better starting with the 5th year at school.

A.V.Dmitrova noted a pragmatic feature of the modern student, who is ready to work when he is sure of the practical utility of his efforts. To persuade the 11-form student to read the novel “And Quiet Flows the Don” he should be led to the thought that his reading will provide him a key to successful writing the final essay even when the name of Sholokhov does not appear in the topic of the essay. We should read the text in class. Gradually the pragmatic component is replaced by interest, and the student turns to thoughtful reading and tries to understand the author’s intention.

A.V.Dmitrova assessed the efficiency of the project method of teaching and expressed her positive attitude to limiting the number of works to be studied by school students: attentive and detailed reading of a small number of texts is better than reading a lot of them. During the summer before the final school year a student is to read 2500 pages. A large amount of reading frightens the student: seeing it is difficult to cover so much information he simply refuses to read.

N.S.Avdulova, Candidate of Historical Sciences, noted in her talk that everyone should have his own idol – the one whom you consult with, whom you want to be equal to. M.A.Sholokhov is just such a person – thinker, psychologist, teacher, who saw and experienced a lot, comprehended and let it through his mind

and heart. The study of his work the same as ordinary reading of his works is a school of life.

Each talk was followed by numerous questions with the students of “Philology” and “Pedagogical Education” actively discussing the study of the writer’s work at school. They noted that, unfortunately, the analysis of Sholokhov’s works at the 11-form is given practically quite a short time, as rather often the lessons are changed for the Unified State Examination training.

Concluding the meeting T.O.Osipova and L.B.Savenkova were unanimous saying that such events are undoubtedly useful for the effective discussion of the problem of reading and study of the writer’s work by the young people, when they can express their views of the problem, on the one hand, and on the other – think over their own future profession and their skills of finding their way to the hearts of the future schoolchildren.

The lecturers consider the cooperation of the University and the National M.A.Sholokhov Museum-Reserve to be one of the rational forms of training of philologists. Already in the coming academic year the Master’s students of the educational project “The Russian Language and Culture in Modern Civilization Paradigm” opening in the South Federal University will implement their practical work in Sholokhov-Centre of the Museum-Reserve of M.A.Sholokhov and develop innovation projects to increase the number of readers and admirers of Sholokhov among young people.