Horlivka Institute of Foreign Languages of the State Higher Educational Institution "Donbas State Pedagogical University" participates in the project of international technical assistance of the European Union "Improving the quality and relevance of vocational education for the New Ukrainian School in Donetsk region." One of the main tasks of the Project is the implementation of the distance learning system Moodle. Deputy Director for Scientific and Pedagogical and Educational and Methodological Work Professor Tatiana Mikhailovna Marchenko commented on the preliminary results of the institute in terms of blended learning using MOODLE: “In our institute, the introduction of the MOODLE system coincided with the beginning of the first wave of Covid-19 and the introduction of quarantine throughout Ukraine. Therefore, educational and methodical materials of all academic disciplines in all, without exception, educational programs of the first (bachelor's) and second (master's) levels of higher education needed to be translated into electronic format. The availability of a powerful server and related software has greatly facilitated and accelerated this work. Trainings "Creating online content on the Moodle platform" were conducted for research and teaching staff and initial practical skills began to be practiced in the real process of implementing distance learning, based on fundamentally new forms of communication between teachers and graduates. Quantitative and qualitative indicators of the summer test-examination session, also organized online, indicate the success of the work. 98% applicants used information resources hosted on the institute platform.

The first stage of Moodle implementation highlighted the main vectors of further work in this direction. The Department of Higher Education Quality Monitoring conducted an anonymous survey of students on the organization of distance learning in a pandemic. According to the results of the survey, the vast majority of respondents believe that the Moodle system is a guarantee of successful distance learning at the institute, although they believe that it needs to be improved in terms of structuring the material and balancing the requirements for applicants. 30 % students, in particular those living along the line of contact in the conflict zone, had difficulty accessing electronic resources through poor-quality Internet, or lack of access to PCs, gadgets, etc. It is taking into account the problems that have arisen, research and teaching staff continue to develop the potential of the Moodle platform in the first semester of the new 2020-2021 school year.

The experience of application of the MOODLE system is shared by the candidate of pedagogical sciences Dmitry Vladimirovich Efimov: “As a computer technology expert, I can say with confidence that the Moodle distance learning system is a cost-effective and efficient solution for corporate learning, as well as a great opportunity for our educational institution to offer quality distance learning. This remote platform easily fits into the specifics of our institute due to its functionality and integration capabilities. Convenient software interface allows you to connect new modules and plug-ins, such as video conferencing, which, in a global pandemic, significantly expands the functionality, taking into account the vital needs of the teaching staff. Both teachers and students acknowledge that Moodle is second to none to commercial distance learning systems. ”

Opinion of higher education seekers on the system MOODLE expresses the master Viola Lykhanska: When quarantine "burst" into our until recently measured life, my first thought was: "How will I study ?!". The moment I learned that I was going to study remotely, I was stunned. How can you learn foreign languages (and not only!) Remotely, it's so hard! (

We urgently had to master the MOODLE platform, the work on the equipment of which, as it turned out, was already underway at our institute. For me personally, the algorithm for working with the platform at first seemed unclear and not very convenient. It took a long time to understand the principle of its operation, there were technical problems - not always downloaded materials for classes, could not go to his office, did not display messages from teachers, during classes showed signs of communication problems, the material was located in different order. As it turned out, distance learning is not as easy a process as it might seem at first glance, I often caught myself thinking that I still lack timely comment from the teacher on how I perform certain tasks on my own, to which I am accustomed during work in the classroom…

However, the main thing is that over time I realized how well everything is arranged. That's why I have to admit that MOODLE works. "

Master Elizabeth Matveeva adds own considerations: “I can't imagine my distance learning today without MOODLE. Learning in this system has many ADVANTAGES for me, including constant feedback from teachers. I also have the opportunity to combine study and work, complete tasks on time, take the opportunity to return to the finalization of the previous topic, when I feel that I have not mastered it enough. And yet - is the realization that I study the latest techniques, which is entirely in the spirit of the requirements of our time.

So, I can't imagine my training without the MOODLE quarantine platform. "

Summarizing the above, we can conclude that, despite some problems, the experience of implementing a distance learning system MOODLE at the Horlivka Institute of Foreign Languages is quite successful and - most importantly - timely. Thanks to the European Union's International Technical Assistance Project, we have confidently entered distance education and are actively developing in this direction.