Latvia University of Agriculture - Latvijas Lauksaimniecības ...

S. Bremze Faculty of Social Sciences: Results – Achievements – ProspectsLanguages and The Process of Integration into Europe” in 1996, which was organised bythe Department of Languages.Development of professional competence, the equality of women and men were thekey issues of the conference “Woman Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” organized in1999, by the Department of Languages.Higher education institutions carry out the function of the professionalizationof the young specialists, therefore the lecturers of the Department of Languages intheir researches pay great attention to the acquisition of methods of teaching, whichassist the students of the study programme “External Relations” acquire professionaland scientifically methodological competences in the university study process. Thedevelopment of professional competences of the students of “External Relations”is the theme of assistant professor L. Turuševa’s PhD theses, which she is currentlyworking on.Former doctoral students of the Doctoral study programme in Pedagogy, lecturersof the Department of Languages O. Turuševa, I. Gode and O. Mali eva are carryingout their doctoral researches. O. Turuševa-Čivžele is carrying out her doctoralresearch on the development of study competence for the first year studentsof the LLU.In order to raise the quality of the teaching/learning process and to develop students’learning competence, I. Gode’s Doctoral Paper is on hypertexts as a means for thedevelopment of the students’ ability for independent studies and O. Mališeva’s is on thehistory of the development of professional foreign language competences.M. Parčinska, the lecturer of the Department of Languages, has participated in17 scientific projects as a researcher, in the following fields: agricultural and veterinaryhigher education food hygiene and quality control; parasitic and infectious diseases; animalphysiology, welfare, laboratory examinations; farm animal reproduction problems.N. Ogurcova has assisted in the maintenance of joint international scientificprojects of The Agricultural Technique Institute of the Technical Faculty with Germanyon the development of milk production technologies (2001-2004) and the provision ofup-to-date sustainable milk production (2005-2008).Initially the philosophy of conference organisation was to stimulate the researchwork of the departments, to motivate all scholars, including young lecturers, to beinvolved in scientific activities and to develop publications in order to promote scientificwork and increase the quality of the scientific papers of the faculty members. It wasdecided to organize scientific conferences by the departments in succession annually.Well organized conferences and the Jelgava palace as a conference venue became anattraction for scholars from abroad. The global idea or goal of the organisation of theinternational scientific conferences was to provide the possibility to meet, to discuss andto disseminate innovative knowledge.Since 2004, by the proposal of the Department of Languages, the name of annualInternational Scientific Conferences of the Faculty of Social Sciences has been “NewDimensions in the Development of Society”. Starting with 2007, the conferences areorganized by a work group formed of the members of all the three departments of thefaculty.International recognition was given to the LLU Faculty of Social Sciences 4th AnnualInternational Scientific Conference “New Dimensions in the Development of Society”,which was held on September 25-26, 2008. The participants were from such countries asLithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Ukraine, England, the Czech Republic and Finland, andthey presented reports, had scientific discussions and workshops: “Sociology”, “Rural andRegional Development”, “Pedagogy”, “Public Administration and Philosophy”. The themesfor discussions were: Administrative Territorial Reform and Small Towns; Social Capital;NGO Network’s Role in the Multicultural Environment and Tolerance; Dichotomies of Valuesin Public Administration, Innovative Administrative Processes; Cultural Diversity; Furtherand Life-long Education, Changing Thinking Patterns as a Resource; Development of thePersonality in the Changing Social Environment; Application of Innovative Knowledge inPractice Using Interdisciplinary Approaches.The results of scientific research of the faculty members of all the departmentswere reflected in the scientific papers presented in international conferences and werepublished in the Proceedings of all international scientific conferences organized by theFaculty of Social Sciences. International recognition of the conference Proceedings wouldbe an advantage also for opening of the Doctoral programme in sociology.86 Latvia University of Agriculture – 70, 2009