OLEG
KARMADONOV
POLICY
PAPER
It is obvious that the thwarting of this policy in the field of higher education is fraught with serious social consequences. First, it is out of step with the prevalent tendency in today’s world to invest higher education with responsibility for conveying all life learning systems that are indispensable in contemporary circumstances.This means that Russia runs the risk of being left behind as a backward country, or an ‘excluded territory’ (Castells), in an increasingly networked global society.Second, such a state of things imbues one group of people with a feeling of their exclusiveness, and upon another group it impresses their uselessness and worthlessness. Obviously, such a social stratification might bring forth anything but social harmony and respect to each member of a society. This rift between advantaged and disadvantaged citizens is obviously a factor which threatens general civic education in Russia and thus decreases the chances of the strengthening democratic roots in this country.
The causes of that are simple and complicated simultaneously. First of all, the quality of elementary education in the countryside today is deplorable, so the competitive ability of country schools' alumni suffers.This situation is owing, first of all, to the constant shortage of young and qualified teachers in the countryside. It is already common to find that some subjects are not taught in rural schools, and others are taught in such a terrible way that it would be better if they were not taught at all.One problem commonly found is that one teacher will be assigned to two "overlapping" specializations, to the extent that an overlap is supposed to exist between military service and physics, foreign language and chemistry, physical culture and history. Thus, it is quite natural and logical that when it comes to entrance exams to the university, alumni of these schools fail completely. They fail because of lack of knowledge, but they are no more successful at commercial entrance – due to lack of money. Besides, those who enter on the basis of full tutorial fee must, nevertheless, pass a test according to specialization, so the chances of those few entrants whose parents can pay are still very small, as well as of those of entrants who are from working families. Although the latter can receive decent education in town, they cannot pay enough, and thus they have virtually no access to the most attractive and prestige fields (management, economics, law, etc.), where all 'budget' (free of charge) vacancies are distributed in fact already in the beginning of the calendar year.
Thus, on the one hand, these young people are not competitive (and it does not matter whether it is their fault or not), and on the other hand, there is an obvious inequality of accessibility of higher education, not only in the Irkutsk region but in Russia in the whole.
The Federal Law on Higher and Professional Education of the Russian Federation (1996) says that "The state is to ensure the priority of development of higher and post-graduate professional education through… 2) making higher education more accessible for Russian citizens, securing the proportion of students studying at the expense of the federal budget;… 5) creating the conditions for equal accessibility of higher and post-graduate professional education" (The Law on Higher Education of the Russian Federation, Chapter 1. General statements. Issue 2. State policy and state guarantees of Russian citizens' rights in the sphere of higher and post-graduate professional education).
The Law declares also that the "Competition's conditions must guarantee citizens' rights in the sphere of higher education and ensure an admission of most suitable citizens" (Chapter 2. System of the higher and post-graduate professional education. Issue 11. Admission to higher education institutions). However, the trouble is that in Russia today whole social strata may be considered as "unsuitable" and "unable" just due to "unhappy" circumstances of their birth, primary socialization and quality of secondary education. Whole social strata are deprived of the possibility of receiving higher education and, thus, the possibility to increase living chances and improve the quality of living standard. One of those questioned during my survey of experts expressed it quite clearly: "University loses the country, and the country loses its future."
1) improvement of federal social policy regarding principles of higher education accessibility, which presupposes a conscious and responsible policy of guarantees and preferences in regard to certain social strata and groups;
2) a regime of "favorable" practices, to be realized through organizing the system of preparatory courses, or pre-collegiate education, for entrants from the country and for entrants of low means, through the revival of so-called "working departments";
3) the need to eliminate root causes; i.e., qualitative changes in the content and practice of elementary and secondary education in the country. For example, one method would be to revive the practice of obligatory distribution of alumni.
It
is rather characteristic that the last item is considered a very attractive
measure by government officials in particular, although it appeared to
be very difficult for the experts to answer whether the state has a right
to do so under the new democratic circumstances in Russia.
2.The
state-socialist option. To keep on financing state institutions
of higher education, to reinstate the system of mandatory distribution
(assignment) of graduates, and to reinvent the practice of pre-collegiate
education in the form of ‘worker faculties’—one-year preparatory courses
for prospective applicants from low-income families, whether of worker
or farmer origin. Advantages: 1. certain improvement of elementary education
in the country and in small remote towns; 2. gradual equalization, restoring
a balance among representatives of different social strata among applicants
and students in universities; 3. consistency with the Russian national
mentality, which is possessed of a strong desire for social equality (even
when it has meant equal poverty and/or equal defenselessness in the face
of an almighty state) and for the appearance of a fair national
policy in the field of higher education. Disadvantages: 1. certain violation
of the rights and freedoms of some individuals in order to implement ‘preferences’
for this or that group of applicants so as to bring about the compulsory
‘distribution’ of graduates; 2. increase of fiscal impact on federal government;
3. complexity of implementation – requiring crucial and complicated arrangements
to be coordinated at all levels in regard to issues such as financing,
legislation, and administrative responsibilities of the federal and local
governmental bodies.
3.The
state-capitalist
option. Gradually reduce the number of state-financed
higher learning institutions by means of: elimination of duplicated departments
in neighboring universities (in one and the same city and/or region), merging
of such institutions, based on a strict and uncompromising approach to
educational quality assessment, and in this way making universities highly
competitive so as to free up funding andprovide
the most reputable institutions of higher learning with additional financial
aid. To adopt the optional assignment of graduates of, first of all, the
teacher-training institutions, and to introduce the system of ‘academic
equalization’ for students from low-income, worker and farmer families,
admitted to university on the base of preferential quota. Advantages: 1.
decrease of fiscal impact on the federal government; 2. increase of quality
of teaching, learning, and research in universities and in elementary schools,
leading to a rise in the prestige of higher education and of the teaching
profession; 3. real opportunities for youth from low-income families to
obtain a prestigious university education and, thus, to increase their
general life chances. Disadvantages: 1. necessity to fire a significant
number of teachers, administrators and staff as institutions are merged;
2. decrease of the general number of students in higher education; 3. potentially
negative public perception.
There
are two dimensions to be considered with the proposed course of action:
long-term objectives, and those at hand. To the former we assign the gradual
diminishing of the number of state-funded institutions of higher learning,
which will take no less than 15 years, and, consequently, in the meantime
the quality of university education must improve. To the latter we assign
those tasks which are accomplishable already now: adoption of the optional
assignment of graduates of, first of all, the teacher-training institutions,
adoption of the ‘preferential quota’ system in universities, and introduction
of the system of ‘academic equalization’ for students from low-income,
worker and farmer families, admitted to university on the base of this
preferential quota.
Optional
assignment of the teacher-training institutions graduates.
As was pointed out in the research report, the quality of elementary education
and so the competitive ability of country schools' alumni is deplorable
today. This is owing, first of all, to a constant shortage of young and
qualified teachers in the countryside. Graduates do not show a desire to
go into the countryside or to small towns, because of, first of all, the
low level of pay and rather vague prospects for their professional careers.
As mentioned in the research report, the Russian State Duma is considering
now the Law on Obligatory Assignments of university graduates. Obviously,
this measure coincides with what we call here the state-socialist
option.
There certainly will be a violation of personal rights should this law
be adopted by the Russian parliament, and in any case its prospective effectiveness
remains highly questionable. We, in turn, suggest a more focused, flexible
and effective approach. Optional assignment, according to this view, should
be offered only to graduates of teacher-training institutions of higher
learning. To attract young specialists, this assignment should be connected
with visible and tangible stimuli and perquisites, such as: a guaranteed
term of service; a personal apartment or house; an interest-free credit
system for the family of a young teacher, which would enable them to acquire
the durable household articles they need; a corrected system of social
security (with child benefits, resettlement allowance, etc.) in part oriented
toward the needs of young families of graduates. The optional assignment
of young teachers realized in this way would undoubtedly attract many of
them to regions where the schools are suffering a deficit of qualified
specialists, thus, it would increase the quality of teaching in these regions,
that is, provide graduates of their schools with the chance to acquire
more qualified skills and knowledge and to compete on a higher level when
applying to university.
‘Preferential
quota’ system. This
is a means to ensure the admission of a certain number of applicants from
low-income and worker/farmer families, even if they have not earned the
minimum specified score on the entrance exam. Keeping in mind the data
on the number of applicants and those finally admitted, received during
our research (see p.24 of Research Paper), we consider most reasonable
a quota of 15-20 per cent of the total number of admitted.
System
of ‘academic equalization’ for students admitted to university on the basis
of preferential quota. We propose introducing
this system instead of that suggested by many experts in pre-collegiate
education, the one-year preparatory course at the so called ‘worker faculties’.
As Soviet practice proved, this policy was very often rather rigid and
insufficient in terms of further professional development of the persons
admitted to higher learning. These people had preference over other applicants
only because of their origin, recent army service, and graduation from
this preparatory course. We, in turn, suggest the system of a real improvement
of educational defects and further academic equalization. That is, the
person admitted to university on such a basis, should then have an obligation
to attend additional, probably evening courses during, at least, the first
two years in university, while they should acquire the volume of knowledge
that they were supposed to obtain during their pre-university years. These
courses should be focused and oriented toward the specialty which is being
obtained by student, but, at the same time, provide him/her with general
academic vision and comprehension. That is, if the student’s major is physics,
the equalization (or remedial) course should be directed toward the exact
sciences, and to provide a general vision on humanities and social science.
And vice versa. This course should be obligatory and connected with the
university general credits system. The failure to earn a certain quantity
of credits on the equalization (or remedial) courses should entail an automatic
expulsion from the institution. Certainly, it is not going to be easy to
combine the study on these courses and the usual
study in university, nevertheless, for those indeed motivated and inspired
this additional opportunity to obtain the needed skills and knowledge will
be only highly desirable. This policy could last as long as it is considered
necessary. At the same time, providing the whole set of proposed means
is utilized simultaneously, there is a certain hope that the situation
will be improved in as little as 6-8 years, the period needed for qualitative
changes in the profile of graduates of country and small remote town schools.
The
implications for government operations.
The proposed course of activity will undoubtedly require the appropriate
changes of regulatory and legislative character. First of all, there should
be adopted corresponding amendments to the Law on Higher Education, and
the Labor Law of the Russian Federation. Accordingly, there should be certain
corrections in local legislation. As concerns the means of evaluation,
they are connected with the primary objects of the proposed activity. The
improvement of the situation should be demonstrated through the increase
of competitive abilities of country schools graduates, equalization of
balance of socio-geographic origin of students and university graduates,
rise of prestige of a teacher's profession, increase of quality of higher
education in Russia, and increase of social responsibility of corporations
and financial groups in this country.
This course of actions is hard to understand for mass consciousness and psychology that were being formed during several decades according to the principle: 'the state pretends it pays, the people pretend they work'; almost predictable unwillingness of 'big business' in Russia to share social responsibility in the sphere of higher education, thus, contradictions of interests and necessity to persuade the representatives of this class; the most crucial issue – peculiarities of legislative procedure in Russia according to which all legislative initiatives are supposed to originate from the depths of the appropriate ministries and agencies. Such presumable agents of social policy as think tanks, groups of interests, NGOs, public committees, etc. are considered as possible sources of societal changes only in accordance with a degree of their closeness to power structures in Russia, that is, according to their lobbyist potential.
All these issues could be managed only through the creation of a favorable public environment, that is, an atmosphere of understanding and support. The last could be produced through a series of concerted actions with utilization of all possible means of communication. To create public awareness and concern, to persuade entrepreneurial circles of Russia, and to convince governmental bureaucrats there should be deployed simultaneously several communications vehicles, from the local and federal media to refereed academic journals, to the possibilities of the Internet, to local branches and headquarters of Russian political parties at all segments of political spectrum, and to deputies of local legislative assemblies and the State Duma of the Russian Federation.
The
main objective of communications on the issue and the key message is the
necessity to improve the situation with access to higher education in Russia.
To ensure the rights of allRussian
citizens to obtain higher qualification and, thus, to increase the life
chances. That is, to make one more significant step toward the new, prosperous,
and indeed democratic society in this country.