Abstract:

COVID-19 has caused the need for government measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic in Russia, including the transfer of education in the higher education system to distance learning. The purpose of the article is to consider the features of the emergency transition of higher education institutions to distance educational technologies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Research methodology and methods:
The methodological basis of the research is the modern concept of distance education, the theory of the information society, the theory of open education, the concept of digital communication. The empirical research methods were the analysis of documents, a sample online survey of teachers and students of universities in the Sverdlovsk region.

Research results:
The abrupt forced transition to distance education technologies showed a variety of methods chosen by universities, even within the same region. The main reasons are different status of higher education institutions in the higher education system, different levels of development of information infrastructure, provision of disciplines with electronic educational resources, and readiness of teachers to use digital platforms and services in the educational process. That is why each university has its own set of tools and scenarios for organizing learning in an online environment. As a result of the study, conclusions were drawn about the features of the transition of universities in the region to the educational process in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Discussion \ Usefulness.
The results of the study can be useful in analyzing the activities of higher education institutions and the formation of a high level of readiness for extreme conditions of activity. Also, the experience of universities in the Sverdlovsk region may be in demand in preparing universities for the transition to distance and mixed learning technologies.

Keywords:

Distance education, distance learning technologies, higher education institutions, teaching, training, coronavirus, pandemic, COVID-19.