Digital Literacy of Lawyers as a Condition of Legal Support for Business in the Digitization Era

Abstract

Goal. In the context of formation of information society, digital literacy is pivotal in the solution of problems facing the education. This paper has been prepared in order to provide a scientific substantiation of an integrated approach to solving the problems of improving digital literacy of students and teachers in preparing lawyers for the business sector, as well as increased use of tailored education with the formation of an individual educational path. Methods. In order to achieve the goal set, the authors of research use a number of methods: general scientific (analysis, synthesis, generalization, induction and deduction, classification, interpretation), special scientific (comparative, statistical, sociological). Results. The research has shown that the formation of individual educational paths, designed to be instrumental in training lawyers for the modern economy, implies the introduction of alternative forms of provision of educational services based on digital technologies. This area of development of legal education requires a fundamental change in the level of digital literacy of teachers, as well as acquisition of tutor competencies by them. A wide variety of doctrinal interpretations of the concept of digital literacy prevents from choosing an efficient toolkit for solving the national task of assisting citizens in eliminating digital illiteracy. The digital literacy of teachers should include knowledge and skills in the field of educational policy and ethics of the application of information and communication technologies, the ability to make the best use of them in the teaching process, professional growth and management of educational activities. Comparison of tools that are practically applied in domestic and foreign universities within the framework of the general and specific model of the formation of an individual educational path revealed their advantages and disadvantages, as well as a range of problems of the submodel for individuals with disabilities. Conclusions. The authors offer a suggestion to enshrine the legal definition of the concept of digital literacy in the Russian legislation, to more actively involve major companies in the IT retraining of teachers, particularly teachers of the humanities, within the scope of relevant professional development programs. The mechanism for the implementation of the submodel of the formation of an individual educational path for individuals with disabilities calls for improvement in terms of development of alternative certification procedure, as well as security of the right to extend the time needed for learning the master’s programs.