Post-Docs Research at HSE
Tatjana Kanonire received her PhD in Psychology from University of Latvia in Psychology. She joined HSE two years ago. First, she spent a year at the International Research and Teaching Laboratory for Socio-Cultural Research. Since October 2015 she has been working at the Centre for Education Quality Monitoring of the Institute of Education. Tatjana has talked to The HSE Look about her research interests and teaching activities at HSE.
Research
Two major research topics of the Laboratory were acculturation and values. I worked on both, and I keep doing research on acculturation — it’s particularly interesting for me because the data was collected in Latvia, where I am from. I stay in contact with the laboratory, but switched my major research focus to the Quality of Education and am very excited about my transfer to the Institute of Education. I particularly like that all projects have a wide scale and are very complex.
One of the current projects is aimed at monitoring the quality of higher education in cross-country comparison (multiple universities in USA, China and Russia): we examine the results of students in STEM. We put a lot of attention on research design and methodology and analyzing the data not only from Russia but also from China.
Another research project is focused on primary school. We adapted and standardized the International Performance Indicators in Primary Schools (iPIPS) — the test to evaluate skills of children at the start of the school and their progress during the first year in reading, language, and math. This test also helps to predict their results at the end of the year and to evaluate the progress. Two large regions of Russia are participating in this project in 2015 — that’s over 12,000 first graders. The benefits are two-fold: teachers and parents get feedback about their students, and researchers collect a vast database for further study. The region as a whole can assess and review its educational policy.
The project I am working on is about renewing the work on the original Russian test of students’ achievements; the theoretical framework of the toolkit relies upon the concept of teaching/learning process based on Lev Vygotsky’s ideas. A couple of years ago the test were developed for the 4th grade, in mathematics and Russian language. We hope to expand the test, and to cover more grades and subjects. I’m participating in development of theoretical frame of the research on predictors of achievement in primary school; and based on it prepare the questionnaires which give us insight into the context which influences the performance at schools.
Such studies are interesting for the educational institutions, of course, but also for the researchers: they provide a chance to develop the instruments of measuring education quality and fine-tune them, as well as rich data for analysis of the assessment results.
Teaching
I am also involved into the Master’s Programme 'Educational and Psychological Measurement': our students are very motivated, they participate a lot in the research carried out within the Institute of Education – one of the groups recently returned from a 'field trip' during which they were collecting data and supervised the procedure. I think that this programme has a lot of potential for attracting students: it offers very up-to-date methodology, courses of a very good quality, and interaction with the leading specialists who are often invited for lectures and research events. There are no similar educational products in Russian regions which can rival it. It can be very interesting for students from abroad as well.
For further information please visit ifaculty.hse.ru
See also:
HSE University Represents Russia at Leading International Educational Exhibition APAIE
HSE University was the only participant from Russia to hold its own expert sessions at the annual conference and exhibition of the Asia-Pacific Association for International Education (APAIE). The delegation was headed by Anna Tyshetskaya, Director of HSE University–St Petersburg.
'I Want Science to Help Me Explore New Horizons'
Eliana Monahhova worked as a journalist for various media outlets, but after realizing she frequently wrote long-form pieces on the psychology of the human brain, she decided to change her career focus. In this interview with the HSE Young Scientists project, she discusses the perception of fake content, shares her dream of meeting Robert Sapolsky, and talks about her upcoming YouTube channel.
Psychologists from HSE University Discovered How Love for Animals Affects Relationships with People
Researchers from HSE University have identified a connection between attachment to pets and attitudes toward nature and other people. The study found that the more joy people derive from interacting with their pets, the more they want to help others. However, love for animals is not always associated with concern for nature. The findings were published in the Social Psychology and Society journal.
'You Find Yourself Thinking about Your Research 24/7'
Daria Gracheva, expert at the Institute of Education, turned to science in pursuit of methods to discern between a poorly constructed test and a well-designed one. In this interview with the HSE Young Scientists project, she discusses the '4K test,' which is intended to measure critical thinking and communication skills, shares insights on the model named after Georg Rasch, and explains how setting up an aquarium for a crab can help assess soft skills.
Psychologists Study Daydreaming in Russian Cultural Context
Researchers at HSE University, having examined the role of daydreaming in the Russian cultural context, conclude that constructive daydreaming can help people with gaining insight into their life's trajectory, fostering personal growth, discovering existential meaning, enhancing psychological wellbeing, and cultivating a balanced temporal perspective. The study findings have been published in Cultural-Historical Psychology.
HSE University-St Petersburg Represents Russia at International Conference in Australia
The delegation of HSE University-St Petersburg participated in the largest educational forum-exhibition of the Asia-Pacific Association for International Education 'APAIE 2024'. The 20th anniversary conference was held in the Australian city of Perth.
Workaholism Helps Young Narcissists Boost New Venture Performance
An international team of researchers including Professor Galina Shirokova, Director of the Strategic Entrepreneurship Centre at HSE University in St Petersburg, and her students Nailya Galieva and Diana Doktorova, examined the impact of narcissism on young entrepreneurs' success. The authors have demonstrated that a company founder's workaholism can amplify the influence of narcissism on a new venture's performance.
Inverse Relationship Found between Propensity to Innovate and Academic Success
Mariia Evdokimova and Anastasia Stepanova, employees of HSE University’s Faculty of Economic Sciences, studied the connection between students’ personal characteristics and their desire to create something new. The researchers have found that students’ propensity to innovate lowers their GPA. The results of the work were published in the preprint ‘Students’ Propensity to Innovate: Correlates, Determinants, and Impact on GPA.’
Social Connections Help Women Achieve Academic Success
Social integration has different effects on the academic achievement of women and men. Researchers from HSE University’s Institute of Education studied the connections between academic performance and social integration among 4,500 young Russians. It turned out that this connection is much stronger than it might seem at first glance, and that it is more important for women. The results of the work were published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships.
Plurilingualism Compensates for Low Extraversion in Nurturing Creative Skills
Researchers at the HSE Laboratory for Linguistic, Intercultural, and Creative Competencies have examined the role of the Big Five personality traits in moderating the development of creativity among individuals who use multiple languages and have intercultural experiences. It has been found that acquiring multiple languages and engaging with diverse cultures can enhance an individual's creativity and compensate for some deficiencies in communicative abilities. That said, language practices are likely to foster creativity only in mentally stable individuals. The paper has been published in the International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism.