Introduction

In modern conditions, society have been facing with the need of an ongoing digitalization of the activity in all sectors activities of the economy, including the field of higher education as a central venue for the creation of new knowledge economies for the 21st century [1]. Under the influence of the rapid expansion of COVID-19 epidemic, the russian federation's military war of aggression against Ukraine higher education institutions of Ukraine are undergoing digital transformation. The information technologies and systems, learning technologies and digital platforms are actively implemented to meet the needs of students and faculty, since these needs are critical for teaching and learning. Trying to absorb the shock, students, academic staff, and administration embarked on a fast experimentation and learning process on how to teach, learn and administer digital education [2]. The study plan is the main foundation of the educational process in any academic institution that determines the content all training activities that each student must undertake during its university career. The study plan specifies a list of educational components and their logical sequence according to the state educational standard, implements the basic principles of subject selection, regulates the total academic load and the volume of academic disciplines, the student's workload by periods of study, forms of final control. Given the complex structure of the study plan, the generation of the schedule of the university's educational process is important component of the educational process, its quality and efficiency. Considering the lack of automated information systems in universities the process of building student's schedule is considered one of the chronic problems facing the educational process in many educational institutions [3]. The university course schedule is the main, final planning document that regulates the educational work of students and educational staff. The problem of drawing up a schedule at the university is to distribute a set of courses according to the curricula within the given number of classrooms and time periods (pairs).

Related Work

The informatization of universities has become one of the main issues of higher education management in the digital age.

Almaraz et al. [4] define the digitalization of HEIs. This research is focused on digital transformation challenges in higher education institutions. Jackson [5] presents the research into managerial strategy, pitfalls and pivots of digital transformation. The issues related to the theoretical model of digital transformation in the HEI is presented in research [6]. The authors of the paper [7] consider five general assumptions that hinder the digital transformation of HEIs. In [8], the authors consider the problems of the digital transformation of higher education after COVID-19. Paper [9] considers a key aspect of the digital transformation of higher education -the creation of a digital learning space.

The Bologna process, proposed in 1999, tends to harmonise HE systems throughout Europe in order to ensure compatible degree structures, equal academic qualifications and enhancing the attractiveness of foreign students to study across Europe [10]. Structural convergence of HE systems in Europe, generalized view of characteristics in HEIs, more complex and standardized HEI systems, became an important task of universities [11]. Globalisation of HE stimulates the use of more advanced information and communication technology [12]. Universities and colleges of many countries of the world are constantly searching for tools used to automate educational processes. Such tools are mainly focused on the selection of educational process management systems, electronic document flow management systems, educational activity support systems, virtual learning environment for providing distance education.

Information systems in higher education institutions are designed to manage and organize the vast amount of data that is generated in these institutions. These systems provide a platform for storing, processing, and retrieving data related to student records, financial aid, academic programs, faculty, staff, research, and administrative operations.

Usually, educational institutions use corporate information and analytical systems (IAS) [13], which are usually commercial products and require considerable costs for the purchase of licensed software (software products of automation of the process of creation and management and examinations of MedMe, BeAxi from KindGeek, (England) [14], software for the development of the system of accounting the student body Lotus Notes/Domino from IBM, (USA) [15]). The main disadvantages of using such information systems for Ukrainian universities are the Englishlanguage interface, high cost and the failure to take into account the specifics of domestic institutions of higher education. Some of the key information systems used in higher education institutions include:

• Student Information System (SIS): SIS is a comprehensive database that stores and manages student-related data, such as registration, enrollment, grades, and transcripts. It also includes features for course scheduling, degree audit, and student communication. • Learning Management System (LMS): LMS is an online platform used to deliver and manage course content, assessments, and communication between faculty and students. It also includes features for tracking student progress and performance. • Financial Information System (FIS): FIS is used to manage financial data related to tuition fees, financial aid, scholarships, and grants. It also includes features for budgeting, accounting, and reporting. • Human Resources Information System (HRIS): HRIS is used to manage employee data related to hiring, payroll, benefits, and performance evaluation. It also includes features for tracking employee attendance and leave. • Research Information System (RIS): RIS is used to manage research data related to grants, funding, publications, and collaborations. It also includes features for tracking research progress and outputs.

These systems help higher education institutions to streamline their operations, improve efficiency, and enhance the student experience. They also provide valuable insights into institutional performance and help in decision-making processes.

However, quite often the automation of higher educational institutions builds on disparate tools that are not combined into a single system for solving functional problems. Moreover, separate software tools have their own information bases for each functional problem, do not cover all objects and processes of the HEI activity, and do not take into consideration the peculiarities of a particular university (a comprehensive educational scheduling system UniTime [16]).

The use higher educational information system should ensure [17]:

1. In educational activities:

• creation of a modern distributed educational and methodological environment university; • utilization of Internet technologies in the educational process.

• implementation of e-learning.

• facilitation of the export and import of educational services in the international educational space. 2. In scientific activities:

• presentation of the scientific potential of the university in the global information space;

• access of scientific staff to the information resources of world scientific centers;

• implementation of joint research and projects as part of international consortia. 3. In the university management:

• management of the processes of collection, storage and processing of information about the university facilities, data search and analysis; • provision of automated control of the execution of decisions;

• improvement of educational institution management planning;

• improvement the efficiency of the use of financial and material and technical resources. But in their implementation, information systems have two groups of problem, namely technical and non-technical [18]. The technical aspects related to systems itself, namely the quality of technical information system. In contrast, the non-technical aspects are associated with the perceptions of users op an information system that cause them to accept or refuse to use an information system.

At present, universities of Ukraine have implemented and are using a number of automated educational process management systems, namely [17]:

• Academic Information System (AIS) «STEP • The electronic management system of the university «Socrat» [http://vsau.vin.ua/]

• Program complex "Automated educational institution management system" [https://mkr.org.ua/]. The information systems listed above automate the main structural divisions of the higher educational institution -the dean's office, the academic department, the admissions committee, the personnel department, the accounting and financial department, etc.

The main processes that can be automated in the presented automated systems include:

• management of the educational process;

• management of the introductory campaign;

• management of information resources;

• management of financial and economic activities;

• management of scientific work. The analysis of the information systems of the automation of the activities of the higher educational institution carried out in the article [17] allow to determine the following characteristics of higher educational information system:

• open architecture;

• modular designs;

• cross-platform architecture;

• minimization of client software requirements;

• differentiation of user access rights;

• simultaneous access by multiple users;

• network security controls.

Systems design

iZETA is an automated system of planning, organization, management and control of the educational process in higher educational institutions. The system is designed to create, support, process and save information about the components of the educational process; automation of document flow in planning, organization, management and control of the educational process; information and analytical support of all units of the educational institution. The system covers all stages from the formation of educational plans to the preparation of the timetable scheduling and the formation of accounting data for the completed teaching load by the teaching staff of the university. The purpose of creating the software package is to obtain reliable and complete information about the educational process in a timely manner, as well as to reduce the labor intensity of inputting and analyzing accounting information, increasing efficiency, consistency and reliability of data. A software package implemented on the basis of client/server technology. The database server uses the MySQL DBMS version 5.0 and higher, which ensures high reliability of data storage and integrity. The client interface language of the system is Ukrainian. Most of the printed forms automatically generated by the system are internal format reports that can be exported in MS Excel or MS Word format, saved as individual files with the option for additional individual editing and printing. The operating system required for installing the client system is Windows 2000/2003/XP/Vista/7/8/8.1/10. Work logs make it possible to monitor each user's access to certain system data. With the help of the "iZETA-Updater" tool, system modules are automatically updated. Primary data is formed through a system of directories that make it possible to accumulate the following information in the database:

• list of educational institutions (branches of the main educational institution);

• list of university classrooms;

• list of education programs;

• list of departments of the university;

• list of academic disciplines;

• information about academic staff and employees of the university;

• list of full-time and part-time positions;

• hourly wage tariff grid;

• categories of administrative documents;

• templates of printed forms etc. The access of authorized users to work with system modules is regulated through the administration module. With the help of a multi-level system of access regulation in one information field, users of different departments and departments of the educational institution can interact.

The system has a modular structure. Each submodule is called by the main module, and each submodule completes a relatively independent function. Each submodule can be developed, tested, and modified independently and finally forms the whole system, so the system has good scalability. The system is divided into twelve modules:

• Management of the study plan;

• Editor of the study plan;

• Consolidated educational process timetable;

• Management of the Consolidated streams;

• Teaching load calculations;

• Teaching load distribution;

• Timetable scheduling;

• Management of the teaching load;

• Business trip manager;

• Management of publishing of printed products;

• Administrative documents management;

• Printing documents on higher education;

The system structure is shown in Figure 1.

Database Algotithms

Interface

Add-on m-Admin

Moodle

Web site Registration -menus; -forms; -tables; -reports

Figure 1: Top level components of iZETA

The server part of the iZETA is the intermediary between the database and users' applications. The main tasks of the server part are transparent access of clients to the database, ensuring the simultaneous operation of all users and synchronization and data exchange between users. The architecture of the software is designed in such a way that all users work in a single information space. So, the changes made by one user are instantly visible to all other users.

The interface handles the different menus, forms, data management, schedule management (Web site with schedule for students and academic staff), report management, and user management.

Schedule formation is computationally complex problem of distributing sets of resources to support the curricular needs: accessible workforce, courses, appropriated classrooms, labs, and working days of academic staff and student. "The allocation of given resources to specific objects being placed in space time, in such way as to satisfy as nearly as possible a set of desirable objectives, subjected to constraints." The presence of knowledge for creating timetabling software has led to new insights, like improved methodologies and more comprehensive models [19]. Timetable must meet a number of requirements and should satisfy the desires of all entities involved simultaneously as well as possible. The timing of events must be such that nobody has more than one event at the same time [20]. The architecture of the program module Timetable scheduling Module consists of such main components, represented in Figure 2. This structure allows to meet the specific requirement of the system, including scalability and maintainability. This Timetable scheduling Module is able to handle large amount of data and flexible to adapt to changes in the scheduling requirements. This module performs the main functions, such as:

• formation of a list of university classrooms with the selection of their types -lecture classrooms, laboratories and seminar classrooms, multimedia and computer classrooms (Figure 3); • formation of the schedule for the current academic year for the corresponding educational institution in a semi-automatic mode; • analysis of the formed schedule for the presence of critical inconsistencies for each academic staff member; • analysis of the workload of the classrooms for the specified period;

• blocking in the schedule for the academic staff member due to his business trip or vacation; • generating printed forms of relevant documents, exporting them to MS Excel file format.

The architecture of a Timetable scheduling Module includes several layers or components, such as:

• User interface layer: This layer provides the user interface for administrators or scheduling managers to input data, configure scheduling rules and constraints, view schedules, and generate reports (Figure 4). These reports help managers to make informed decision about resource allocation and course offering. • Integration layer. This layer allows for integration with other modules of iZETA (Figure 2). It enables the module to exchange data, ensuring consistency and accuracy across the entire system. • User presentation layer. This layer provides the user web interface for the module, allowing users to interact with the system and schedule. The layer distributes information through a browser. So, the user can send requests to the server, and display the results returned by the server. • Error handling layer. This layer is responsible for identifying, reporting, and handling errors that occur during the operation of the module. It provides mechanisms for detecting, reporting, and handling errors, ensuring that the system operates smoothly and efficiently. When an error is detected, the error handling layer generates an error message that describes the nature of the error. The error message is displayed on the user interface (Figure 5). During the schedule formation, the system monitors three crucial components of the module: the teacher's schedule, classroom availability, and group schedules. If the system identifies an error at least in any of these components, courses cannot be scheduled for a specific time or in a particular classroom. Each component's availability is represented by a specific color. For instance, in the figure, the purple color indicates group availability, while the pink color represents teacher schedules. To prevent conflicts in the schedule grid, such as when a teacher is simultaneously assigned to multiple groups, changes are automatically reflected for all users whenever adjustments are made to the schedule. Following this approach, dispatchers responsible for creating the schedule can track real-time changes and identify any overlay errors.

In Timetable Scheduling Module there are some constraints that are detected using the Error handling component [21]:

• Lectures should not have timeslot clashes.

• None of the room could be used for two different lectures at same time slot.

• None of the lecturer should have two classes at same time slot • Every classroom must be scheduled exactly once at same time slot.

• The working hours should be according to teaching load. The schedule adjustment capability enables Schedule Managers to manually fix schedules in order to apply constraints that are not implemented by the auto-scheduler function of the system.

The architecture of the software module is designed in such a way that all schedule makers work in a single information space. Changes made by one schedule maker are instantly visible to all other schedule makers. According to this approach, the dispatchers that make up the schedule can track changes in real time and see any kinds of overlays.