The Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology
Rusu Elena
PhD, Associate Professor
Head
The Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology is one of the first departments created within the State University of Tiraspol (founded in 1930), expressing an example of promoting excellence and innovation in education and research, being designated as an independent university structure.
The establishment of the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology was derived from the need for competent teachers, with the primary purpose of ensuring optimal conditions for psychological and pedagogical training of teachers and meeting the needs of the education system in the Republic of Moldova.
With the accumulation of scientific-didactic potential, the expansion of the number of faculties and the increase of the number of students, this department was divided into two: the Department of General Pedagogy and the Department of General Psychology, departments that contributed in the most active way in training several generations of school teachers for pre-university education in the country. Starting with 1992, with the evacuation of the State University of Tiraspol to Chisinau, both departments were merged, returning to the original name of the department.
The Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology has always been a basic structural unit in the university, being in continuous development, complying with all instructive-methodical and educational needs, diligently carrying out the process of professional training and research in all three cycles: I – bachelor’s degree, II – master’s degree, III – doctor’s degree, thus contributing essentially to the training of high quality specialists and ensuring the scientific-didactic base of the university. The teaching staff of the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology constantly opts for the maximum harmonization of the educational offer with the labor market requirements, expressing the desideratum and perseverance in the active and effective implementation of modern educational technologies, but also of the informational ones, developing and promoting knowledge and general human and professional values, so that university graduates face all the challenges of the time, being competitive on the labor market. A guarantee of the fact that the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology can honorably fulfill its multiple attributions is the quality of the team, represented by 11 teachers, out of which 2 habilitated doctors, university professors (N. Silistraru, M. Borozan) 6 doctors, associate professors (E. Rusu, V. Bocancea, N. Ovcerenco, E. Bîrsan, L. Balțat, A. Glavan) 1 university lecturer (T.Scripa) and 2 university assistants (E. Macovei, D. Levițchi).
Consensing to the imperative and actuality of the reforms in the educational system, but also the need for managerial professionalization of the teachers in the conditions of increasing complexity of management at the level of educational institutions and changes in school management, since 2011, in addition to the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology, were started master’s degree in the specialties “Educational Management” and “Management and Institutional Communication”. The consideration and justification of the organization of studies in these two specialties is based on the decentralization of education and the increase of the importance of management, both as a science and as a management activity.
Since 2017, within the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology started the functioning of the Psychological Counseling Office, which aims to provide psychological support and assistance to students of the State University of Tiraspol.
In order to continuously modernize the curricular contents, experience exchange, efficient implementation of methodical and research activity, the department systematically organizes seminars, methodological workshops, round tables for students, masters, doctoral students, teachers and school managers.
An important role in the activity and development of the department has the cooperative relationships with a series of higher education institutions from the country and from abroad. Currently, the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology has cooperation and partnership agreements with departments of several universities in Romania, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Poland and Israel.
The Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology carries out a prolific scientific activity. A considerable contribution in this regard is made by researchers Nicolae Silistraru, habilitated doctor, university professor, Maia Borozan, habilitated doctor, university professor, Elena Rusu, doctor, associate professor, Viorel Bocancea, doctor, associate professor, Nadejda Ovcerenco, doctor, associate professor, Aurelia Glavan, doctor, associate professor, who are qualified to conduct doctoral studies in scientific specialties: 531.01. General theory of education, 531.02. Educational management, 533.01. University pedagogy, 511.02. Developmental psychology and educational psychology, 511.03. Social psychology for the researchers from the Republic of Moldova, Romania and Israel.
The workers of the department have elaborated and published in the last 5 years over 32 university textbooks, monographs, specialized guides, course materials and about 500 scientific-methodical studies.
In recent years, for special merits in the didactic-scientific activity, research and promotion of the values of national culture, the workers of the department were appreciated with high decorations of the Republic of Moldova (M. Borozan, order of Labour Glory), of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Moldova (N. Silistraru, medal of Nicolae Milescu Spătaru), of the Government of the Republic of Moldova and of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research (E. Rusu, V. Bocancea, N. Ovcerenco).
Primarily in the activity of the department in recent years has been ensuring the fundamental psychological-pedagogical training of future teachers and school managers, such as modernization and accreditation of professional training programs at the bachelor and master level in the disciplines: psychology, pedagogy, communication techniques, inclusive education, personality psychology, educational technologies, professional ethics, educational management, pedagogical research methodology, social pedagogy, educational psychology, higher education pedagogy, health psychology, psychopedagogical counseling, psychodiagnostics, social psychology, research, intercultural education, ethnopedagogy, management, etc. These are reflected in the formation of the skills necessary to exercise the didactic and managerial activity.
The Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology certifies its existence through its formative orientations, contributing consistently in the most active way to the training of teachers, corresponding to the national and international trends in the field of social evolution, able to meet the demands of time and ensure the development of the educational system, but also of our whole society.
In the period 1992 – 2020, as heads of the Department of General Pedagogy and Psychology were active:
- Ilie Șchiopu, hab. dr., assoc. prof., (1992-1995);
- Grigore Capcelea, dr., assoc. prof., (1995-1998);
- Maria Vasiliev, dr., assoc. prof., (1998-2006);
- Nadejda Ovcerenco, dr., assoc. prof., (2006-2008);
- Lora Moșanu-Șupac, dr., assoc. prof., (2008-2009);
- Nicolae Silistraru, hab. dr., univ. prof., (2009-2017);
- Elena Rusu, dr., assoc. prof., (2017- present).
Currently, the department’s activity mainly focuses on several desideratums: ensuring the fundamental psychological-pedagogical training of the future teachers and school managers, such as the modernization and accreditation of the professional training programs at the bachelor and master levels; implementation of a modern curriculum, focused on the formation of the student’s skills and personality; the unity of pedagogical science and pedagogical practice; the unity of research and self-training; the prospective nature of training and inter and transdisciplinary integration.