Indicators of the Formation of the Civic Identity of the Student Youth in the Republic of Belarus

Il'in Egor Artemovich Graduate Student, Department of Psychology, Vitebsk State University P.M. Masherova 210033, Belarus, Vitebsk, Chapaev str., 30 bogomaz@mail.ru Bogomaz Sergei Leonidovich PhD in Psychology Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Vitebsk State University. P.M. Masherova 210033, Belarus, Vitebsk, Chapaev str., 30 bogomaz@mail.ru Lukina Antonida Konstantinovna PhD in Philosophy Associate Professor, Department of General and Social Pedagogy, Siberian Federal University 79 Svobodny str., Krasnoyarsk, 660041, Russia mtb130581@yandex.ru Suvorova Nataliya Vladimirovna PhD in Pedagogy Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Siberian Institute of Business, Management and Psychology 660037, Russia, Krasnoyarsk, Moskovskaya str., 7a, of. Vilskogo 18-a nata.suvorova.7474@inbox.ru Other publications by this author

Nakonechnaya Ekaterina Vladimirovna PhD in Psychology Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Siberian Institute of Business, Management and Psychology 7a Moskovskaya str., Krasnoyarsk, 660037, Russia jurcity@yandex.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction. Modern Belarusian society is in the process of reforming many areas of public life, and the changes that are taking place bring to the fore qualitatively new tasks for the further development of an economically developed and socially oriented state. Their solution requires the formation of citizens, especially young people, who have the future of the country, an active life position, high moral and psychological qualities, among which civic responsibility to society and patriotism occupy an important place. It should also be noted that "moral and patriotic feelings and thinking are laid down in the process of life and being of a person who is in the framework of a constantly developing specific socio-cultural environment. From the moment of birth, a person, being a child, imperceptibly realizes and adopts the nature, culture and way of life of his people" ^{[1, p. 485]}.

According to V. Maksimovich, "a person's involvement in the generally accepted principles, norms, beliefs and ideas that form the basis of the social structure makes it possible to unite different parts of the social organism into a single whole, consolidate society, activate the process of national identification, and thereby achieve spiritual unity" ^{[2, p. 145]}. As President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko has repeatedly stressed, "patriotism is the core of the ideology of our state, the engine of social modernization, the guarantor of stable development. It is based on a holistic set of ideas, ideals and norms that integrate society, strengthen civic responsibility and personal attitude to the fate of the country" ^{[3, p. 6]}.

In the above conditions, it is civic-patriotic education that is the most important factor in the spiritual and moral formation and development of the individual, which forms the mentality of a modern young man and his citizenship, manifested in the system of fundamental life values. Thus, T.V. Yarovova notes the following: "the basic categories of civic-patriotic education (duty, responsibility, willingness to sacrifice personal interests for the common good of the Patronymic) form the core and moral basis of a young person's personality, thereby defining a segment of her emerging consciousness" ^{[4, p. 107]}. The ideology of Belarusian statehood has become a national idea for Belarusians.  According to Y.S. Yaskevich, "the competencies of the national idea include: language, nation, state; Homeland, labor, spirituality; Fatherland, faith, justice; freedom, prosperity, well–being" ^{[5, p. 21]}.

According to V.A. Skachkova, "today Belarus needs a person–a citizen who is able to work not only for his own good, but also for the benefit of society, a patriot citizen who is proud of his Homeland. The modern stage of the formation of public consciousness imposes increasingly high demands on the education of the country's population in the spirit of citizenship and patriotism" ^{[6, p. 33]}. That is why the need to solve the problems of civic and patriotic education among students is determined by the fact that today's students tomorrow will become the backbone of the state in the development of patriotism and citizenship, as the main driving ideological forces capable of consolidating Belarusian society into a single whole.

In these conditions, the most important and priority task is a systematic study of the attitude of modern student youth to the values of citizenship and patriotism, since "Belarusian youth are actively involved in the civic life of the university and society, young people have the opportunity to participate in volunteer events, republican and international youth forums" ^{[7, p. 85]}.

The purpose of this article is to determine the features of civil and patriotic education of students. The object of our research is the education of student youth, and the subject is the state and features of the development of civil and patriotic education of students.

Material and methods. The material was the works of well-known foreign and domestic scientists-psychologists, teachers, concerning the stated problem. The methods of scientific psychological research at the theoretical level were used in the work: systematization, philosophical and psychological analysis and synthesis, conceptualization of scientific ideas.

Results and their discussion. The student youth is a special social group, which is characterized by a high educational level and cognitive motivation, social activity and the desire for self-realization. Researcher S.A. Mikhailovskaya in this regard notes that "student youth is a specific, socio–professional group of people of the younger generation preparing to perform social functions in society characterized by a common way of life, value orientations and lifestyle" ^{[8, p. 71]}. S.S. Romankova defines student youth as "an integral and integral part of the social structure of society, in which its essential properties and spiritual values are manifested in a certain way" ^{[9, p. 52]}.

Currently, the civic and patriotic education of young people at the university is a priority area of educational work with students. It is aimed at instilling respect for the heroic and historical past of the country, the culture of its people, love for their native language and promotes the unity of all citizens of the republic, regardless of nationality, political or religious beliefs.

The above allows us to note that citizenship and patriotism are, in fact, integrative qualities that characterize a person as a conscious and active citizen, expressed in the fulfillment of civic duty, knowledge of civil rights and duties, willingness to work for the common good, ability to defend public interests, intransigence to anti–state manifestations, combination of personal interests with public ones.

Researcher K.I. Shik notes that "the main targets of civic-patriotic education are the meanings of human existence, which are found, first of all, in the world of values, which are a system-forming element in the structure of the goals of civic-patriotic education" ^{[10, p. 111]}.

In this regard, it seems possible to determine that the indicators of the formed civic-patriotic values can be attributed to the targets of the civic-patriotic education of the Belarusian students. In order to determine the above indicators in 2022, a study was conducted among students of the educational institution "Vitebsk State University named after P.M. Masherov". The study (using the questionnaire method) involved 343 students aged 17 to 27 years, among whom there were 238 (69.4%) girls and 105 (30.6%) boys.

On the question determining the availability of students' knowledge and ideas about the basics of civil-patriotic education (it was necessary to choose only one answer option), the following results were obtained: 82.5% of students at the Masherov State University have a clear idea of civil-patriotic education; 17.5% of respondents have never shown interest in the presented problem. Having analyzed this information, we consider it expedient to further organize events on civic and patriotic education in the educational process of the university and faculties in order to expand the interest of young people in the phenomenon presented (Figure 1).

Fig. 1. Students' knowledge and ideas about the basics of civic and patriotic education

Next, we studied how interested students are in studying civic and patriotic education: 35% of respondents pay special attention to civic and patriotic education, and also understand the specifics of its study, 26.8% would like to learn more, - for 38.2% this question is not relevant. The study actualizes our activities to study and identify the problems of civic and patriotic education among Belarusian students. Therefore, we believe that it is necessary to look for ways to develop civic and patriotic education in various forms on topical topics held with students: thematic events, conferences, sports, creative contests, etc. (Figure 2).

Fig. 2. Students' interest in the topic of civic and patriotic education

Next, we considered the students' choice of criteria for the civic formation of Belarusians, determined what content is included in the students' understanding of such a term as "civic formation". As a result of the survey (a choice of several answers), the following data were obtained: 62.1% (213) of respondents understand the civic formation of modern Belarusians as awareness of responsibility for the fate of the Fatherland, and 50.7% (174) – as a sense of belonging to what is happening at Home, and 64.4% (221) of students identify the formation of their own worldview as one of the criteria for the civil formation of an individual. Thus, civic formation for students manifests itself in the development of patriotic feelings, responsibility for the Motherland, as well as their own self-improvement as a person, personality and citizen (Figure 3).

Fig. 3. Criteria of civil identity of a modern Belarusian

Let's consider the guidelines of the Belarusian students in solving global social problems of society (a choice of several answers): 65.9% (226) of respondents note that modern society needs an independent, free and cultured person, and 56.3% (193) believe that it is important for society to form a person who consciously and actively fulfills his civic duty, 36.2% (124) of students believe that the ubiquitous integration of states at various levels stands out as the features of activity in solving global problems of society. The data obtained suggest that students represent the solution of social problems through the introduction of ideas and the concept of civic and patriotic education into everyday life, the educational process of educational institutions (Figure 4).

Fig. 4. Guidelines of the Belarusian students in solving global social problems of society

Regarding the role of such qualities as patriotism and citizenship in the social and spiritual development of the individual, the opinion of the students participating in the survey is as follows: 77% of respondents consider patriotism and citizenship to be integral elements of the worldview, representing the basis of social and spiritual development of a person; 23% of students believe that other values act as priorities in the social and spiritual development of a person. We believe that such qualities as patriotism and citizenship are a translator of the social and spiritual development of the individual. It is only on the basis of the uplifting feelings of patriotism and national shrines that love for the Motherland is strengthened, a sense of responsibility for its power and independence appears, the preservation of material and spiritual values, the nobility and dignity of the individual develops (Figure 5).

Fig. 5. The role of citizenship and patriotism in the social and spiritual development of the individual

Regarding the question of determining the purpose of civil-patriotic education of youth (choosing several answers), 68.5% (235) of the survey participants indicated that the purpose of civil-patriotic education of youth is inner freedom, love for the Motherland, as well as the desire for peace, 53.9% (185) of respondents noted self-esteem and discipline as important qualities for a developing personality, harmony in the manifestation of patriotic feelings is important for 46.1% (158) of respondents, 44.3% (152) identified the formation of citizenship as an integrative quality of personality, 40.2% (138) pointed to the importance of identification in social society. We observe that inner freedom, love for the Motherland and the desire for peace are priorities for students in their personal development (Figure 6).

Fig. 6. Goals of civic and patriotic education of youth

Conclusion. Thus, the final analysis of the results of the study made it possible to determine the following:

- citizenship and patriotism are, in fact, integrative qualities that characterize a person as a conscious and active citizen, expressed in the fulfillment of civic duty, knowledge of civil rights and duties, willingness to work for the common good, ability to defend public interests, intransigence to anti–state manifestations, combination of personal interests with public; at the same time, civil-patriotic education is a systematic and purposeful activity aimed at forming a high patriotic consciousness and respect for the laws, history and culture of the Republic of Belarus, increasing the country's authority through its own achievements in education and in various types of socially significant activities;

- we consider value orientation as a system of value attitudes, which presuppose the awareness of the personality of its internal position and are expressed in the readiness of the individual to work in accordance with certain values;

- civic-patriotic education is of steady interest to 61.8% of the study participants; 82.5% of the students of the Masherov State University have a stable idea of civic-patriotic education and about 62.1% of the target group identify criteria of civic culture of the individual, taking into account the social policy of the state, the civic formation of Belarusians;

- interested youth in the framework of civic and patriotic education (holding and organizing events, seminars, conferences, etc.) makes up 26.8% of students, which makes it possible to actively involve young people in popularizing the ideas of patriotic education, since they express the initiative to study this direction and be involved in the educational process;

- 77% of respondents single out a special role of patriotism and citizenship in the social and spiritual development of the individual, which indicates a high level of organization of educational work with young people in the educational institution "Vitebsk State University named after P.M. Masherov" in strengthening the traditional value orientations of young people;

- harmoniously formed Belarusian civic identity among students is an important condition for the functioning of patriotic education. All the structural features of the Belarusian civic identity are directly related to patriotism, which includes knowledge about the Motherland, the Fatherland, the main symbols of the state, history;

- educational work with young people at the university is aimed at organizing, conducting and actively participating students in various conferences, round tables, forums, contests, quizzes on patriotic education of youth;

- it is necessary to affirm in society, consciousness and feelings of young people social and individual-personal (life, health) values, respect, tolerance for religious, cultural, national and ethnic differences, to form an experience of reasonable resolution of group and interpersonal conflicts, interest in the cultural and historical past of Belarus.

- it is necessary to further study the aspects of civil-patriotic education of students to establish comparative characteristics of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus in the conditions of the Union State, which will allow to isolate the features of civil-patriotic education of Belarusian and Russian students, as well as to build a model of civil-patriotic education within the Union State.