The ideologists of the so-called educational system of Russia do not
hide their goals. Former Education Minister Fursov stated that "we want
to grow the consumer, not the creator," and the present one, Livanov, is
convinced that the country "does not need as many people with
post-secondary education." But even secondary education in Russia has
long been below average.
Mornings of Russian schoolchildren are sad and disgusting as weather in the fall. They rise early in the morning, grab a quick breakfast and set off on their daily path to school with backpacks filled with paper. They will spend 6-7 hours a day in school, struggling with sleep and hunger, doing something that can be learned in an hour or two in a normal situation without supervision of screaming old ladies. Russian schools impede the progress.
Mornings of Russian schoolchildren are sad and disgusting as weather in the fall. They rise early in the morning, grab a quick breakfast and set off on their daily path to school with backpacks filled with paper. They will spend 6-7 hours a day in school, struggling with sleep and hunger, doing something that can be learned in an hour or two in a normal situation without supervision of screaming old ladies. Russian schools impede the progress.
There are teachers relegated from the
level of respected, at least in words, civil servants, to employees of
pitiful status, overwhelmed with unnecessary writing and ready to make
students suffer for their pitiful wages. There are students, who
understood the utter nonsense and absurdity of the modern school that
takes years of their lives in exchange for the information available in
the public domain within a few clicks. This is the modern Russian
school, which, for all awkwardness and backwardness of its curriculum,
does not develop any skills applicable in the adult life.
It is interesting to turn to the West in this regard. Sweden started the project of the so called open-space school. In the 1990s the country introduced an educational reform that caused a great deal of controversy in the community. First of all, due to certain moral principles inserted in the heads of students. If we look at the didactic principles of the Swedish approach to education, we will see that they can be quite fitting for modern Russian schools.
It is interesting to turn to the West in this regard. Sweden started the project of the so called open-space school. In the 1990s the country introduced an educational reform that caused a great deal of controversy in the community. First of all, due to certain moral principles inserted in the heads of students. If we look at the didactic principles of the Swedish approach to education, we will see that they can be quite fitting for modern Russian schools.
Under the new Swedish school system,
instead of individual classrooms and traditional class-lesson system,
there is a public space where students are free to move. Portions of
this area are reserved for laboratories and libraries; there are some
natural and recreational areas. Children work in small groups of 5-7
people, each group has a certain specialization. There is no need to
rewrite textbooks (which is typical even for Russian universities). Each
student has a laptop with access to all necessary information.
The criticism of the Scandinavian education system is based around laptops and perversely understood humanization of education. Some experts point to the unacceptably low threshold of minimal knowledge in Scandinavian schools, which is set at the weakest by world standards. Many noticed lack of systemic picture of the world in most graduates of these schools.
The criticism of the Scandinavian education system is based around laptops and perversely understood humanization of education. Some experts point to the unacceptably low threshold of minimal knowledge in Scandinavian schools, which is set at the weakest by world standards. Many noticed lack of systemic picture of the world in most graduates of these schools.
The children's brains are affected with
powerful indoctrination that includes incentives for snitching,
acceptance of various types of mental and physical abnormalities as the
norm, and gender games. All these well-known disadvantages of the
Scandinavian system are based on the requirements of the state system.
When thinking of classifications, the main claim to the Scandinavian
system is that by formally repeating the ideas of libertarian (free)
education, in fact, it uses these inputs to grow complaisant
ignoramuses. This has to be always kept in mind to avoid the transfer of
the worst to the Russian soil.
The most sensible way of restructuring
the system of education can be a variety of methods and approaches
allowed by the Ministry of Education and approved for use in Russia's
secondary and post-secondary educational institutions. A minimum level
of knowledge (standards) must be established, confirmed by students of
different types of schools. It is important that this minimum does not
prioritize certain school systems, and currently generally accepted
Unified State Exam should be used only in combination with other methods
of knowledge tests.
As for the rest, the reins should be weakened and free competition between schools for students should be allowed to encourage a variety of learning formats. This inevitable issue of the flow of students to more successful projects can be reduced by distance learning systems, cross-training in several educational institutions, use of the Guild of Professional coaches, recreation of apprenticeship systems, and promoting students' participation in production processes that would allow them to obtain skills.
Dissemination of the best educational
schemes is inevitable, and therefore, the problem of overcrowding in the
most successful schools will take care of itself. Linking students to
particular schools may be of a purely formal nature, like to a
particular examination and consultation center.As for the rest, the reins should be weakened and free competition between schools for students should be allowed to encourage a variety of learning formats. This inevitable issue of the flow of students to more successful projects can be reduced by distance learning systems, cross-training in several educational institutions, use of the Guild of Professional coaches, recreation of apprenticeship systems, and promoting students' participation in production processes that would allow them to obtain skills.
Students already can listen to lectures of the best teachers in Moscow online, take exams for selected specialties in local production facilities, study astronomy in a group at a university, learn foreign languages with tutors or by communicating with native speakers via Skype, etc.
Instead, we continue to maintain the system of backpacks, classes and collectively aging school teachers. Only now this system is seasoned with church robes and unified exams.
