Shaping civic values of modern youth: Evaluating the influence of the international plein air as a specially organized artistic practice

Introduction. The article investigates the problem of patriotic education of modern youth. The purpose of the research is to identify and clarify the peculiarities of the influence of an international plein air as a specially organized artistic practice on the formation of modern youth civic values. Materials and Methods. The research is based on axiological and personality-centered approaches. The main research method is theoretical (reviewing regulatory documents and scholarly literature, analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization and data interpretation). In addition, a practical method was used (students performing search and short-term training exercises, as well as long-term artistic compositions). The project of the International Art Competition called ‘Without Borders’ that is analyzed in the article is a new format of an online professional Internet competition for students majoring in Arts for partner pedagogical universities. Results. The article analyzes the results of the international project on patriotic education and formation of civic values in modern students, implemented within the framework of cooperation between pedagogical universities of Belarus and Russia. The study convincingly proves that it is the plein air that provides an effective environment for developing students’ artistic and creative skills, implementing patriotic education of students, as well as contributes to shaping their readiness to organize patriotic educational activities in the future. Conclusions. The article concludes about the specifics of the influence of the international plein air as a specially organized artistic practice on the formation of modern students’ civic values.