Moral education at the university from the students’ perspective: Content, formats, and their fit to the evolution of life tasks from freshman to graduation years

Introduction. The article provides an overview of contemporary theoretical approaches and practices of moral education in Russian universities, as well as an analysis of key directions in the transformation of students’ life tasks during their period of pursuing a degree. An insufficient exploration of the question becomes apparent: namely, to what extent the existing forms and content of moral education work manage to adapt to the changing needs of students from enrollment to graduation, which creates a risk of diminishing its relevance and effectiveness. The problem of the article consists in the contradiction between the declared, in education theory, student-centered nature of the moral educational process and the actual detachment of this activity from the students’ perspectives, whose needs and demands have significantly changed. This contradiction complicates the construction of a scientifically grounded model of moral education within a university that could flexibly transform in accordance with the key life tasks of students at different stages of their education. The aim of the research is to identify the degree of correspondence between the content and formats of moral educational activities within the university and changing demands and needs of students from enrollment to graduation. Materials and Methods. The study is based on a research-constructive approach and the concept of the life path. At the first stage, qualitative research was conducted using the focus group method (n=19) and in-depth interviews. At the second stage, a questionnaire survey was carried out (n=173 students in years 3-5 of bachelor’s and master’s programs at Kostroma State University), which included a retrospective assessment of attitudes towards extracurricular activities in the junior years and a current assessment for the senior years. Content analysis and statistical methods (Mann-Whitney U test, Fisher’s angular transformation) were used for data processing. Results. The authors established that interest in moral educational activities significantly decreases from junior to senior years (42,8% of respondents noted a loss of interest). Students’ life tasks transform: in the first year, adaptation to the university and academic performance dominate, while in the final years, the focus shifts to striving for financial independence, starting a professional career, and getting married. At the same time, content preferences for areas of extracurricular activities (cultural, educational, sports) do not change significantly in a statistical sense; however, reliable differences were identified in the attractive characteristics and formats of activities. For junior students, expanding their social circle and mass events are important, while senior students value opportunities for professional growth and prefer joint socially significant activities in interdisciplinary teams. Conclusions. The authors conclude that there is a significant dynamics in students’ life tasks, which is not accompanied by an adequate transformation of the content and formats of moral educational activities at the university. This leads to a decrease in interest among senior students, who perceive the offered forms as irrelevant to their current needs. The obtained results indicate the necessity of improving moral educational work, taking into account the stages of students’ life paths, to increase its effectiveness and personalization.