DEVELOPMENT OF THE CULTURE OF HISTORICAL RESEARCH IN THE UNIVERSITY ENVIRONMENT: THE EXPERIENCE OF PROFESSOR K. M. YACHMENIKHIN’S RESEARCH SEMINAR

Abstract

The article analyzes the process of forming the culture of historical research in the university environment through the example of Professor K. M. Yachmenikhin’s research seminar. The significance of sustained academic practices in researcher training is substantiated, in particular the role of the research seminar as an intellectual space that ensures the development of methodological culture, skills of working with sources and historiography, as well as the formation of academic writing and the culture of scholarly discussion. It is demonstrated that the seminar functions not only as a form of organizing research activity, but also as a mechanism for the reproduction of a scholarly school, ensuring the continuity of research traditions and the training of highly qualified researchers.

The aim of the article is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the research seminar as an academic practice for the formation of the culture of historical research in the university environment, as well as to interpret it as a mechanism for the institutionalization of research culture, the transmission of scholarly traditions, and the professional socialization of the historian.

The research methodology is based on a combination of historical-descriptive, institutional, and intellectual-historical approaches, supplemented by elements of microhistorical analysis, which makes it possible to consider the research seminar as both an academic practice and a model of the functioning of a scholarly school. The empirical basis of the study consists of the materials of the research seminar (1996–2020), which reflect the dynamics of its activity, thematic structure, and participants.

The scientific novelty lies in the comprehensive interpretation of the research seminar as a tool for the formation of research culture that integrates educational, scholarly, and communicative functions. It is demonstrated that the regularity of academic dialogue, critical discussion of texts, and the role of the academic mentor are key factors in the formation of a researcher and ensure the reproduction of a scholarly school.

Conclusions. It has been established that the effectiveness of forming the culture of historical research is determined not only by the content of educational programs, but also by the presence of sustained academic practices that ensure the continuity of researcher training. The research seminar functions as an intellectual laboratory in which the professional identity of a historian is formed, and skills of argumentation, critical thinking, and responsibility for scholarly conclusions are developed. The experience of Professor K. M. Yachmenikhin’s seminar confirms the importance of long-term academic traditions and the role of the mentor’s personality in the formation of a scholarly school and the reproduction of research culture in the university environment.