EdTech in sociological education: Challenges and opportunities, risks and solutions

The contemporary system of sociological education undergoes all processes of digital transformation; therefore, the key challenges to the teaching community and risks associated with new functions and a decrease in the quality of education require serious rethinking in the context of digital transformation. Moreover, the tasks of identifying the capabilities of EdTech and constructive ways of using them in sociological education are also updated. The article considers the trends in the development of EdTech in education and conditions, technologies and directions for its use in sociological education. The empirical basis of the article is the results of sociological research conducted by international and Russian organizations on the use and development prospects of EdTech. The introduction and use of technologies in the education system determine the task of developing a new digital infrastructure and of the corresponding training/retraining of teaching staff. On the other hand, the education system should respond to students’ requests for emotional inclusion, support, psychological well-being and pedagogy of care in the digitally mediated environment. The author argues that the key tasks to be solved under the introduction of EdTech into sociological education are as follows: formation of a meaningful approach to the use of technology by all participants of the educational process; training in new methods for the analysis of transforming social reality; identification of legitimate ways to use artificial intelligence in education and research. The article emphasizes the dynamism of digital transformation in education, which determines the need for monitoring research and for a comprehensive (infrastructural, personnel, content) digital transformation strategy taking into account the features of educational programs.