On the eve of Higher School Teachers’ Day, we spoke with Dariia Khabarova, Dean of the Faculty of Mechatronics and Robotics, Candidate of Sciences (Engineering), and Associate Professor.
– Do you remember your first class as a teacher, what did you feel?
– It was 2016, and I was a graduate student at the department. I remember being incredibly nervous about going to class. It was my very first class, and it had to be taught in English. I began preparing for it at least a week in advance. And I immediately knew my teaching style, the one I aspired to. My mentor was a professor, the then head of our department. As students, my classmates and I really enjoyed his lectures. The lively interaction, constant dialogue, fine sense of humour, and the way he knew the names of every student in the class. I was sure that my first class had to be exactly as good as our professor's. In fact, of course, I still strive for that level.
– How do contemporary students differ from their predecessors, and are there any traits that remain unchanged from generation to generation?
– It is much more common now than 5-10 years ago to meet students who have firmly decided to work in their field after graduation. In my opinion, this is partly thanks to the extensive work undertaken by our university and our partners on immersing students in their field and on building strong and stable connections between education and industry. Furthermore, the availability of information now allows for more informed career choices when enrolling in university. Some things remain consistent. Students have always been very diverse, and they remain so.
– What do you think the teaching profession will be like in the 21st century? Will we win the competition against AI?
– I believe artificial intelligence should be seen not as a competitor, but as an assistant. For my part, I can say that I have already shifted a huge amount of my paperwork as a teacher to GPT. In general, I believe that artificial intelligence will soon allow teachers to devote more time to teaching, taking over all the necessary bureaucracy.
Of course, it is important to remember that working with AI is now available not only to teachers but to students as well. But the mechanisms of working in such conditions are constantly being refined. Moreover, teaching is not simply a matter of transmitting information, but it is a pedagogical activity, working with people, with individuals. Perhaps I am being pessimistic about this, but I think that at the current stage of AI development, we are still a long way from achieving emotional intelligence.
– Could you share a secret on how to win students over?
– I can't say whether I have won my students’ approval or not. I am simply incessantly passionate about my profession, and I want to show it to them exactly as I see it.