Advantages of Soviet education at school. Soviet and modern education. SP: What is the reason for this state of affairs?

April 18 ended early passing the exam. Experts ascertain the absence of fundamental violations. But will the well-established control over tests affect the knowledge of schoolchildren, which in Soviet times was not questioned? Let's try to understand this problem.

Russian self-knowledge

Article No. 7 of the "Law on Education" prescribes the introduction of Federal State Standards, according to which the current education system abandons the traditional format of education "in the form of knowledge, skills and abilities." Now the so-called universal learning activities(UUD), which is understood as "general educational skills", "general methods of activity", "above-subject actions" and so on. If you try to understand these phraseological units, then their meaning boils down to the fact that the specifics of knowledge give way to cognition and self-development. Instead of forcing students to cram and meticulously check their knowledge, the teacher invites children to deal with topics on their own. After all, federal state standards are loyal to negative results, in other words, to twos. In particular, the standards state that “failure to achieve these requirements by a graduate cannot serve as an obstacle to transferring him to the next level of education.” By the way, in the USSR, losers were left for the second year.

Teenagers in Italian

According to many experts, the compilers of the new Russian education system copied the format of most Western schools, the main postulate of which is: “If you want to study, study.” Meanwhile, teachers are sounding the alarm about the lack of sense of responsibility among high school students, which was typical for Soviet graduates. Many young people who have graduated modern school, the psychology of teenagers is observed. Associate Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics Ekaterina Hakim noted that two-thirds of young girls in Europe categorically do not want to work, setting a successful marriage as the main goal of their lives. In Russia, there are already half of them. About how "self-cognizant" education system, adopted in the West, affects adult life, can be observed in the EU countries. According to statistics, 80% of thirty-year-old Poles, Italians and Greeks live with their mothers and fathers, and in England half of all young people regularly require money from their parents for living. The director's adviser speaks about this problem Russian Institute strategic research Igor Beloborodov: "The endemic post-adolescence is not a personal choice of Italians or Japanese, it is a deep deformation, the crisis is already at an advanced stage."

Calligraphy: punishment or necessity?

The Western approach fundamentally contradicts Russian ethnopedagogy. For example, calligraphy required perseverance and concentration from children. Calligraphy was the only subject inherited by the Soviet educational system from the tsarist elementary school. “In the memoirs of those who remembered the pre-reform calligraphy lessons (before 1969), the latter are very often depicted as a punishment and a curse on a little person,” explains a philologist, leading researcher at the Institute of Russian Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences Konstantin Bogdanov. - Marshall McLuhan (an outstanding theorist of the 20th century in the field of culture and communications), and after them other specialists in the field of media anthropology and the theory of mass media, wrote a lot about the dependence of the meaning of information on the nature of its media transmission. The educational role of calligraphy seems to be more significant than just the role of the initial stage in mastering the alphabet, writing and literacy.

“The degree of generational continuity among children of the pre-revolutionary and Soviet era in this respect is higher than that of children who went through the Soviet school and those who are studying at school now,” states Konstantin Bogdanov. “In the latter case, the boundary between generations lies where, figuratively speaking, ink blots end.” The school traditions of the Russian and then the Soviet school have been completely ousted from the current way of life and replaced by the standards of Western entertainment culture. This concerns, first of all, the oblivion of the moral code of a young man, which took place in the USSR. This is especially evident now - in the era of the Internet. With all the technical advantages, the lack of self-censorship on the World Wide Web leads to the degradation of the child's personality. “The uncontrolled Internet cripples the child’s soul,” teachers are sure, “schoolgirls arrange selfie sessions, trying to shock the public. Boys become aggressive and cynical. They flaunt their cruelty." According to the general opinion of educators, children suffer from Internet addiction. Such teenagers will never change social networks and computer games for textbooks.

Horizon

The lack of requirements for system knowledge immediately led to a reduction in subjects. As a result, they removed everything that in Soviet times contributed to the development of horizons. Children, for example, are not taught astronomy, motivated by the fact that in America this subject is school curriculum no, "but the GDP is many times greater than ours." Besides, in Russian schools oh, they removed the drawing, they say, now they design using CAD (computer-aided design systems). Meanwhile, according to many mathematicians, it is drawing that develops geometric and spatial thinking.

Sport

Everyone knows that Soviet schoolchildren and schoolgirls went in for mass sports. For example, but according to the TRP standards, in order to receive the silver badge “Brave and dexterous”, students (boys) of grades 1-4 had to run 60 meters in 10.8 seconds, and a thousand meters in 5 minutes, and, of course, stretch on a high crossbar - 3 times. Tenth graders were presented with demands that are beyond the power of most of today's young men. To get again the “silver” of the third age level “Strength and Courage”, it was necessary to run three thousand meters in thirteen and a half minutes, and swim the “fifty-meter race” in fifty seconds. In addition, it was required to pull up on the crossbar nine times. Other tasks were also set: to throw a grenade weighing 700 g at 32 m (for boys); perform an exercise in shooting from a small-caliber rifle (distance 25 m, 5 shots) with the result: from a rifle of the TOZ-8 type - 30 points, from a rifle of the TOZ-12 type - 33 points. According to statistics, there were more than 58 million people in the USSR in 1972-1975. passed the TRP standards, including the majority of schoolchildren.

The current TRP standards are clearly losing to the Soviet ones. For example, a 17-year-old boy needs to run three kilometers in 14 minutes and 40 seconds to get "silver", and "fifty meters" - just to swim.

USE and Golden medal

The Soviet school gold medal was highly valued. “After the 10th grade, we passed 8 (!) compulsory exams (an algebra test, oral geometry, composition, oral literature, physics, chemistry, history, a foreign language), recalls the medalist of school No. 51 Minsk Anna Ostrovskaya(1986 release). - Moreover, the written works of the medalists - the composition and algebra - were checked by several commissions, both school and district. I remember waiting for this confirmation of the assessments for a very long time. By the way, in the end, my classmate, an excellent student, was not given a medal, but he entered the Moscow Medical Institute without it. ” According to the rules available at that time, medalists entered universities, having advantages over other applicants. They only had to pass a profile exam. Gold medals became “thieves” already during the period of perestroika, with the advent of the first cooperatives, - recalls the history teacher Maria Isaeva, - but I want to note that if the teachers of the university had doubts about the medalist, serious checks and the most stringent conclusions followed. When the feedback stopped working, then the school "gold" turned out to be fake. "As for the Unified State Examination, the whole history of this state exam is riddled with scandals and dramas, including those associated with schoolchildren's suicides. At the same time, university teachers have repeatedly expressed doubts about the reliability of these tests.

“Certainly, the current school system needs to be reformed,” says professor, science theorist Sergei Georgievich Kara-Murza. “Unfortunately, we do not see world-class scientific discoveries made by graduates of Russian schools, although a lot of time has passed since 1992, which is reasonable to take as a starting point. We have to state a sharp deterioration in the quality of knowledge of modern children.

SP: What is the reason for this state of affairs?

- It is logical to recall the background here in order to assess the level of the problem. Before the Great bourgeois revolution in France there were religious schools, whose graduates, receiving a holistic view of the world, became personalities in the high sense of the word. The way of teaching had a university basis. After the bourgeois revolution, some children began to be taught according to the same university system, but in the scientific picture of the world. As a result, the graduates of these elite lyceums had a systematic view of the order of things. The main mass studied at the school of the so-called second corridor, receiving a mosaic idea of ​​the world. The same problem became acute in Russia in the last third of the 19th century, when a mass school appeared. Our Russian intelligentsia, brought up on classical literature, rejected the division into "two corridors" - into the elite and into the masses.

The best minds of Russia believed that the school should reproduce the people, united by a common culture. The intensity of passions around this problem can be judged by the participation in this discussion of the tsar and the ministers of war. After October revolution in 1918, the first All-Russian Congress of Teachers was convened, which decided that the school should be unified and comprehensive, of the university type. Now the unified approach to university-type education has been lost. This, of course, is a huge minus.

"SP": - Was the Soviet Union the first country to introduce this system?

- Yes, our country was the first to start teaching children according to a single standard, without dividing children into elite and mass. Moreover, there were many specific moments. For example, children were not expelled for poor study, but they were placed under the patronage of excellent students, who additionally worked with them. I went through all this, and I will say this: helping a friend, you begin to truly understand the subject. Most of our leading scientists and designers also went through a system of mutual assistance to their lagging behind school comrades. I had to think how to explain to the loser so that he would understand. It is also reasonable to recall calligraphy here. It turns out that the human brain has a special feedback with the fingertips. It is noted that in the process of calligraphy the mechanism of thinking develops. The Chinese did not abolish this subject, although their hieroglyphs are more complicated than our Cyrillic alphabet. In general, the Soviet school had many positive features, which together brought up the personality.

"SP": - And the Internet?

- The Internet is a given of our time, and denying or, moreover, prohibiting it is stupidity. At the same time, it is necessary to develop effective mechanisms that would neutralize the negative effects of the World Wide Web on children. This is very hard work which must be done.

SP: How do you see the future of our school?

- I am sure that sooner or later the state will return to the positive experience of the Soviet school, which, in fact, we observe here and there. We simply have no other way, otherwise Russia will not survive in this cruel competitive world.

This topic is of interest not only to the expert community. On Internet forums, former graduates actively recall their school years highlighting the pros and cons of Soviet education. To summarize the statements, people think the following about the Soviet school project:

pros- a solid theoretical base, versatility and encyclopedic knowledge, high pedagogical culture of teachers, the school provided not only education, but also upbringing;

minuses- lack of understanding of the connection between the acquired knowledge and everyday life, the predominance of cramming over comprehension, the atmosphere of authoritarianism, the ideologization of humanitarian subjects, very poor training in foreign languages, the system did not focus on an independent search for knowledge.

Natural Science Profile

Physical and mathematical training in the Soviet school was really strong. Experts and graduates themselves agree on this. Zhores ALFEROV, Nobel laureate, graduate of Minsk secondary school No. 42, cites the following arguments: “When we first launched Sputnik in 1957, Kennedy said that “the Russians did not win with rockets, but at the school desk.” In the Soviet system of school education, as a result, serious education won with a very powerful part of the main subjects: language, literature, mathematics, physics, biology.

“In the post-war years, the space industry arose in the USSR, the defense industry rose. All this could not grow out of nothing. Everything was based on education. Therefore, it can be argued that our education was not bad, ”the physicist supports the opinion. famousteacher-innovatorVictorSHATALOV, but he sees the reason for the success of Soviet education in a somewhat different way: “The strength of our school was that a huge number of children “from the plow and the machine” went into science. The roads were open to anyone. But the relatively high level of our education lasted somewhere until the 60-70s, then the “undermining” began, - the teacher shared in an interview.

Belorussianscientist-physicistAlexander KULMINSK(graduated from school in 1978), today a professor at a university in the United States, believes that the Soviet school was strong in practice: “It provided a versatile education, developing curiosity and teaching people to look at the world(of course, subject to some interest). The school definitely helped me in the development of a scientific career. School education allowed me to go to university without any external support, despite the fact that I studied at a regular high school in a small town. Comparing his education with modern school education in the United States, the scientist emphasizes that in American schools the student can choose the level of study of the subject in accordance with his desires and abilities, he has a great interest in learning, since much needs to be mastered independently during extracurricular time. This is a big plus, but this was not the case in the Soviet school. At the same time, in the United States, in order to get a school certificate, one must pass tests only in certain subjects chosen independently, which leads to a narrower education, ”the expert told AiF.

Some experts believe that the flow of strong mathematicians in Soviet schools is a merit not only of education, but also of the country's policy of mass involvement of children in chess.

Humanitarian component

Everything is much more complicated here. It is undeniable that the teaching of history and even literature was ideologized. For a long time, Platonov, Solzhenitsyn, Pasternak, Mandelstam and others were not studied in the Soviet school, Kafka was secretly copied by hand, since there was one book for the whole city, in contrast to the huge circulation of works of socialist realism. Saved only by a powerful layer of classical literature. According to scientificleaderInstitutedevelopmenteducationHigherschoolseconomyRFIsakaFRUMIN, cultural canons based on Russian literary classics pulled people out of the swamp of ideology. They even tried to give a "clear direction" to scientific disciplines. DoctorhistoricalSciencesMichaelGELLER in Machine and Cogs. History of formation Soviet man”cites such quotes from documents of 1977: “Studying the cycle of biological disciplines entails the belief in the absence of a divine principle in nature, helps to form a firm atheistic position.” It is clear that in this state of affairs, the skills of critical thinking - what is considered necessary today in the formation of an educated person - were not discussed in the Soviet school.

- If we talk about the ideology of education then and now, then the Soviet school had, of course, more lofty goals, but theory is one thing, and practice is another, - believes candidatepedagogicalSciences,assistant professorSvetlanaSCHUMANN.- The school realizes the goals that the state sets before it. Today it is “obtaining the material”, in the USSR the goal (ideology) was “the formation of a comprehensive, harmoniously developed personality”. Unfortunately, neither then nor now scientists, teachers, school teachers did not understand and do not understand how to do it. Modern teachers are torn apart by contradictions: whether they should form a "dealer", "seller", or a Personality. But the economy is “made” by people. And if we want to eliminate the problems that exist in society, we must form a Personality out of each person.

It seems that with the latter we both had and still had problems.

CONNECTION OF TIMES

Soviet schoolchildren often won Olympiads. What is the picture today? According to official data, in 2014 at the International Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad for schoolchildren, Belarusians received 1 gold, 5 silver and 1 bronze medals. At the International Mathematical Olympiad in Cape Town (South Africa), in which 560 schoolchildren from 101 countries took part, our children won five medals, at the Biology Olympiad in Bali (Indonesia), which brought together students from 61 countries, Belarusians won three medals: 1 silver and two bronze. Belarusian schoolchildren returned from the International Physics Olympiad in Astana (Kazakhstan) with four silver medals. Also, our students brought 4 medals from the Chemistry Olympiad in Hanoi (Vietnam), a silver and two bronze medals from the Olympiad in Informatics in Taipei (Taiwan), a silver medal from the Olympiad in Astronomy and Astrophysics in Suceava (Romania).

FROM THE HISTORY

In 1918, the "Regulations on a unified labor school" was adopted. All the "attributes of the old school" were eliminated: exams, lessons, homework, studying Latin, student uniforms. The management of the school was transferred into the hands of the "school team", which included all the students and all school workers - from the teacher to the watchman. The word "teacher" was canceled: he became a "school worker" - "skrab". Direct management was carried out by the “school council”, which included all the “skrabs”, representatives of students (from the age of 12), the working population and the department public education. In the 1930s, all experiments in the field of teaching methods and programs were curtailed and declared a “leftist deviation”, and the autonomy of the school was a “counter-revolutionary manifestation”.

The education system in Russia has undergone many changes since the collapse of the Soviet Union and is still in the process of reform. Today it becomes fashionable to criticize weaknesses educational process in schools and universities (what is the sensational epic with the Unified State Exam, the pros and cons of which are still being debated), but we must not forget that everything is known in comparison. Let's try to find out whether the modern education system has any advantages.

A little about the system itself

The structure of the education system in modern Russia inherited a lot from the times of the USSR. The child, entering this system, goes through several stages:

• kindergartens or private preschools;
• elementary School(grades 1-4);
• high school(grades 5-9);
• higher school (grades 10-11);
• secondary vocational or higher educational institutions;
• postgraduate education (postgraduate studies, advanced training courses, etc.).

Institutions within these 6 links are of 3 types:

• state;
• municipal;
• private.

Education at school takes place in accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard - a unified state standard. In turn, educational institutions can combine several types of training:

• state;
• self-education;
• additional.

The forms of studying the material became flexible:

• within the walls of an educational institution (full-time, part-time, part-time);
• intra-family, self-education;
• external student

The latest innovations regarding the permission of home schooling and the delivery of subjects externally are a definite plus. They help to avoid “equalization”, enable children with chronic diseases to study according to the general program in comfortable conditions, and strong students move forward faster.

But this is not the only obvious plus of modern education ...

Not only theory, but also practice

If a Soviet graduate or university student could boast of deep theoretical knowledge in subjects, then modern teenagers from school can afford to plunge into practice thanks to the conditions of the modern education system and the variety of extracurricular institutions.

Schoolchildren and their parents can seriously think about career guidance issues from the 7th grade, attending classes in specialized centers. Business games, extra-curricular activities during which children solve real life questions, visiting creative workshops makes you look for application of the acquired knowledge and gain valuable practical experience.

In their student years, young people can already, while studying at a university, work in parallel, applying the existing theoretical knowledge and practical skills.

Technique does not obscure the soul

Technological progress is inexorably entering the education system, and there are many positive aspects to this:

• interactive whiteboards, audio and video in the classroom, search for material on the Internet make the learning process bright, varied and more visual, which has a positive effect on the quality of learning;
• usage electronic diaries, with which parents can monitor the progress of their children and have a quick direct connection with the teacher;
• participation of schoolchildren in international olympiads, online competitions without leaving home;
• the opportunity to receive additional education in absentia on the Internet.

Technical means broaden one's horizons, open up international experience in the study of the problem. Students' access to foreign electronic libraries, rare materials and archives helps to deeply explore the topic, saving time and money.

But the Russian education system is good not only because it keeps up with the times. As before, live communication between the teacher and pupils, students, during which the teacher transmits his life experience, positive moral attitudes, not only teaches, but also inspires independent knowledge of the world (of course, if we are talking about the Teacher with a capital letter).

Abraham Lincoln asked in his "Letter to a Teacher of a Son": "If you can, teach him to be interested in books ... And give him also free time so that he can meditate on eternal mysteries: birds in the sky, bees in the sun and flowers on green slopes of the hill."

Attention to calligraphy

The Soviet system of education formed a wonderful reflex in us: a schoolboy should have a notebook in which to write beautifully, without blots. Although to a lesser extent than before, elementary school continues to pay sufficient attention to calligraphy. In our country, children in the 1st grade are given copybooks, forcing them to write with a pen, and calligraphic handwriting is perceived as one of the virtues of a person.

It is no secret that quick skillful movements of the fingers improve the brain, contribute to the development of the speed of thinking. Refusing to teach calligraphy to children, we impoverish them, depriving the lion's share of the development of their abilities.

For comparison: in the USA they organize special courses for people who want to learn how to read and write capital letters!

I don't want to, but I must!

The modern school, to some extent, retains the spirit of totalitarianism left over from Soviet times. To many, this will seem negative. Opponents of the current education system may object: get interested, generate a desire to learn, and do not force!

However, in life we ​​do not always do what we want. And the conscious “should” goes hand in hand with us. The school instills in the child the consciousness that some things need to be known, you need to be able to do. It breeds discipline and fosters self-control.

Maintaining a unified educational program for the whole state, even if not perfect in everything, makes certain requirements for teachers, makes them receive comprehensive knowledge, develop logical and creative thinking. Thanks to the compulsory study of literature, grammar of the native language, physics, mathematics and other subjects, students can look at the world from different points of view, subsequently combining them into one picture of the world.

Duties, the fulfillment of public assignments are an unspoken side of the modern educational system. Thanks to this practice, teenagers do not grow up as individualists, but realize that they are part of society, and a certain proportion of their time and effort can and should be given to other people for the good.

What about the USE?

Today it is customary to condemn the unified state exam, introduced under the influence of the Western education system. Many influential teachers argue that preparing for the exam leads to coaching, devaluation of oral answers, and poor grades obtained in the exam give rise to deep stress in schoolchildren.

But the government is not yet ready to abandon the USE for a simple reason: it allows you to successfully fight corruption in the field of education, and a worthy replacement has not yet been invented.

Weaknesses to work with

The modern system of education, no doubt, cannot be called perfect. There are still many major and minor flaws that need to be worked on. Here are some of them:

• The lack of synchronization of knowledge in subjects, as a result of which it is difficult for students to build a complete picture of the world in their minds.
• Limited number of budget places in universities.
• Leveling the significance of the gold medal, which reduces the motivation to study.
• Lack of subjects aimed at educating teenagers as future wives and husbands, parents; insufficient moral component of training.
• Excessive workload of children, as a result of which they lose interest in learning, do not have free time for hobbies, full communication with parents, peers.

Shortcomings in the development of modern educational reforms can be called for a long time. But we, parents and teachers, must remember one thing: in any conditions, it is important not only to educate a child, but also to grow a highly moral strong-willed personality who will use his knowledge and skills to make this world a better place! Knowing the shortcomings, we must pay attention to them and try to make up for the shortcomings of the existing system by personal participation in the life of the child.

Our country is changing rapidly and this process has been going on for almost thirty years. Everything is changing: society, the economy, people, and, naturally, the changes have also affected such an important part of society as education.
How did these changes affect your life? individual person, not much to say.
Let's compare the education system Soviet Union and modern Russia.
Before school education
Pre-school education in the USSR was the first, and perhaps one of the most important stages in the development of a Soviet citizen. And there is nothing surprising in the fact that kindergartens were built by the whole country. As a result, the system existing at that time preschool education covered all children from birth to seven years of age. Already at the age of two, young mothers could carry their babies to the nursery. From the age of three, the baby moved into Kindergarten, where they went until they were seven years old, but there were often nurseries - kindergartens that combined both organizations.


Despite many social problems of that time, the preschool education system of the USSR not only ensured the competent upbringing of children, but also helped the young mother to lead an active life.


During perestroika, due to the decline in the birth rate and the emergence of such a thing as "natural population decline", many buildings of preschool education passed into private hands. As a result of this process, many have lost such an institution within walking distance, and taking a child to a preschool every day is an overhead measure. As a result, many grandparents retired and nursed their grandchildren.


Fortunately, over the past few years, this situation has begun to improve and new, modern kindergartens are being opened, equipped with the latest technology, and old kindergartens are being reconstructed. But the problem of lack of places is still quite acute, besides rampant corruption has led to the fact that even if there are empty places in the kindergarten next to your house, it is very difficult to get there without expensive gifts or financial support. In addition, monthly fees for various needs have appeared, although kindergartens, like schools, which we will discuss later, receive their funding in full.


General education (school)
How many braids were twitched and glasses were broken. However, for many people, it is the school that evokes the fondest memories of childhood. First love, first kiss and other things from adult life were discovered at school. In the USSR, due to the large area of ​​the country, there were several types of schools, which were divided into primary, providing education from grades 1 to 3, eight-years - grades 1-8 and ten-years, providing a full cycle of education. Naturally, such a system had to ensure the uniformity of education, so that the child could easily move from one school to another.


An important role in the school system was played by boarding schools and “extension schools”, which allowed parents not to worry about their children and work for the good of the country.
important points in system schooling was the medal system. Senior graduates who received semi-annual, annual and examination marks "excellent" in all subjects were awarded a gold medal, and those who had one mark "good" - a silver one. In addition to moral satisfaction, the medal gave benefits when entering a university in the traditional form.


Currently, schooling takes 11 years and the main goal of education is admission to a university. At the end of school, students take the Unified State Examination (USE), which is mandatory in mathematics and the Russian language. The remaining subjects are chosen by graduates themselves based on their needs. With the introduction of the Unified State Examination, all benefits, such as medals, lost their meaning and were canceled. The issuance of medals is made only as a moral encouragement.


The USE system causes a lot of criticism from both teachers and parents. Recently, it is not uncommon for children to commit suicide by failing this exam. In addition, according to many experts, this exam does not reflect real knowledge, because the last two years of schooling, students are trained to solve specific test problems, and are not allowed to develop comprehensively.
Unfortunately, the quality of secondary education in Russia leaves much to be desired. In 2009, Russia ranked only 41 out of 65 possible places in terms of the quality of education, falling below such countries as Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.


Naturally, we should not forget about corruption. Endless school fees, financial aid to schools for medals and other extortion have become commonplace in the education system of modern Russia.


Out-of-school education
The basis of out-of-school education in the USSR was a pioneer organization, and at the beginning of 1971, more than 4,000 palaces and houses of pioneers, more than 1,000 stations young technicians, almost 600 stations of young naturalists and other circles, covering a variety of areas of activity. Any student could choose a circle of interests, because the classes were free. In addition, classes in such organizations could not only pass the time, but also teach the child real professions and gain knowledge that would be useful in the future.


There is no need to talk about free circles and sections in modern Russia. You will have to pay for everything, and even electives in some schools also exist exclusively on a commercial basis.
Secondary vocational education
To replenish the workforce in the USSR, vocational schools were created, which allowed not only to gain knowledge, but also to master a working specialty, which usually did not need highly qualified specialists.


In modern Russia, most of the technical schools have been transformed into colleges. The name has changed, but the essence remains the same. Technical schools and colleges teach in specialties in which secondary vocational education can be obtained in 3 years, and in certain specialties - 2 years.
Higher education
Perhaps one of the achievements of the Soviet education system is higher education, which could rightfully be considered the best in the world at that time. The system of higher education was represented by institutes and universities, and if the former mainly specialized in the training of technical specialists, then the second category of universities was focused on the training of humanitarians and teachers.
In addition to the direct training of specialists, universities in the USSR had an extensive scientific and research base, which made it possible to engage in scientific and innovative activities.


We think that it is not worth saying that higher education in the USSR was free, and students were paid scholarships based on their grades. The average scholarship in the USSR was 40 rubles. Is it a lot? Given that wage engineer was 130 - 150 rubles, students could afford to live quite well.
In addition, it was in the USSR that the system of correspondence education was born. The first in the world! Despite the fact that tensions between the USSR and political opponents were not uncommon, the education system of the USSR, especially in engineering and technical specialties, occupied a leading position in the world.


Unfortunately, perestroika, whose fruits we are still reaping, actually completely destroyed higher education, as it was in the USSR, and in 2003 the Bologna system of education was introduced throughout Russia, which basically had interesting theses, but in reality - completely destroyed the system of higher education, which was created in the USSR. The main difference between the new system and the previous one is the introduction of two levels in the system of higher education. The first level lasts 4 years and as a result graduates receive a bachelor's degree, the second level - a master's degree lasts 2 years. But most students complete their studies at the first stage, because there are no state-funded places in the master's program in individual specialties, and the cost of education is extremely high


Speaking of tuition fees. Over the past few years, there has been a trend towards a significant reduction in budget places, and not many families in Russia can pay a round sum for the education of a child.
Currently, scholarships are paid to students who pass the next session without triples. There are several types of scholarships:
- state social scholarship is 730 rubles per month;
- state academic scholarship - 1340 rubles per month;
- state scholarship for postgraduate students is 6,000 rubles per month;
- The state scholarship for doctoral students is 10,000 rubles per month.
As you understand, the announced amounts are clearly insufficient for the student's living, so one way or another, parents have to help their children who entered the university on a budgetary basis.


Specialties that do not provide budgetary places are prohibitively expensive for the average Russian family. So, a year of study in the humanities starts from 70 thousand rubles, technical from 100 thousand rubles. Of course, the cost of education depends on the university and its prestige, and we have given the announced figures for a provincial university. So, unlike the times of the USSR, higher education has become for many a luxury that cannot be afforded.

In the last 10 years, a huge number of universities have appeared that do not even have their own premises and teachers working on a permanent basis. The "study" of subjects, as well as obtaining a diploma, consists in timely payment. However, such "specialists" work in a wide variety of fields, including medicine. Fortunately, recently a struggle has begun with such organizations, and licenses are promptly canceled.


Despite all the current problems, the hope is that higher education, and indeed the entire education system in modern Russia, will not only reach the level of education in the USSR, but also surpass it. There is hope, but there is no action to achieve it.


How do you feel about modern education? Can it at least in some way compete with the Soviet one?

Annotation This article analyzes two education systems in Russian Federation- modern and soviet. A comparison is made and the problem is identified, from the very initial stages of education (kindergartens) to higher education.

Key words: education, crisis of the traditional system, Soviet system of education, modern educational system in the Russian Federation, corruption, quality of education.

Keywords: education, crisis of the traditional system of the Soviet education system, modern educational system in Russia, corruption, the quality of education.

Progress has been going on rapidly in our country for almost thirty years, many things are changing, people, society, economy, politics, and naturally, this has affected another important part of society, such as education. Now, many are wondering about the quality of education, which affects not only the intellectual potential of the younger generation, but also the future of the country, the development of the national economy. The former Soviet education system was destroyed, however new system education is in the making. The crisis of the Russian education system is affected not only by the change political system but also increasingly globalization.

In the Soviet Union, teachers had a special status: parents did not doubt the professional suitability of teachers and did not question their recommendations for the upbringing and development of children. Preschool education in the USSR was perhaps the first of the most important stages in the development of a Soviet citizen. Kindergartens were built throughout the country, during this period there was a system of preschool education, which in turn covered all children from birth to the age of seven. At the age of two, they were first sent to a nursery, then from three they moved to a kindergarten, where they went until the age of seven. Despite many social problems of that time, the system of preschool education in the USSR ensured the competent upbringing of children.

During perestroika, there was a decline in the birth rate, there is such a thing as "natural population decline", many buildings of preschool education passed into private hands. As a result of this process, many have lost such an institution within walking distance, and taking a child to a preschool every day is an overhead measure. For a very long time, the process of closing preschool sectors took place, as a result of which an active shortage of places began, an overabundance in groups of children, and some of which could not even be given away, either during the child, or did not take the children to school at all.

It should be noted that in the past few years, this situation has begun to improve and new, modern kindergartens are being opened, equipped with the latest technology, and old kindergartens are being reconstructed. But the problem of lack of places is still quite acute, besides, the corruption cases of kindergarten employees have led to the fact that even if there are empty places in the kindergarten, it is very difficult to get there without expensive gifts or financial support. In addition, monthly fees for various needs have appeared, although kindergartens, like schools, which we will discuss later, receive their funding in full.

General primary education - schools Under the USSR, there were three types of schools, which were divided into primary (from first to third grade), eight-year (from first to eighth grade) and ten-year, providing a full cycle of education. There was also a uniformity of education, so that the student could easily move from one educational institution to another. An important role in the system of school education was played by boarding schools and “extension schools”, which allowed parents not to worry about their children. A feature in Soviet times was not school education, pioneer organizations, pioneer houses, palaces, circles, stations for young specialists and technicians, and much more, any of the school students could choose an activity to their liking and interests, and most importantly, the activity was free. Such classes taught children the future, perhaps their professions, received knowledge in various fields. There is no need to talk about free circles and sections in modern Russia.

You will have to pay for everything, and even electives in individual schools also exist exclusively on a commercial basis. Many parents cannot afford this. An important point in the Soviet school system was the system of medals. Senior graduates who received semi-annual, annual and examination marks "excellent" in all subjects were awarded a gold medal, and those who had one mark "good" - a silver one. In addition to moral satisfaction, the medal gave benefits when entering a university in the traditional form. Currently, schooling takes 11 years and the main goal of education is admission to a university. At the end of school, students take the Unified State Examination (USE), which is mandatory in mathematics and the Russian language, graduates choose the rest of the subjects themselves based on their needs. With the introduction of the Unified State Examination, all benefits, such as medals, lost their meaning and were canceled.

The issuance of medals is made only as a moral encouragement. System of the One State Exam raises some criticism, both from teachers and parents, in addition, many experts show that this exam does not reflect knowledge, because the last two years of schooling students are trained to solve specific test problems, and I do not develop comprehensive thinking. It is worth noting that the introduction of the USE was also to reduce corruption among schools. High level of corruption in educational institutions blocks the possibility of vertical mobility through quality education for children from disadvantaged families. Endless school fees, financial aid to schools for medals and other extortion have become commonplace in the education system of modern Russia.

To replenish the workforce in the USSR, vocational schools were created, which allowed not only to gain knowledge, but also to master a working specialty, which usually did not need highly qualified specialists. In modern Russia, most of the technical schools have been transformed into colleges. The name has changed, but the essence remains the same. Technical schools and colleges teach in specialties in which secondary vocational education can be obtained in 3.10 years, and in certain specialties - 2.5 years. One of the achievements of the Soviet education system is higher education, which could rightfully be considered the best in the world at that time. The system of higher education was represented by institutes and universities, and if the former mainly specialized in the training of technical specialists, then the second category of universities was focused on the training of humanitarians and teachers. In addition to the direct training of specialists, universities in the USSR had an extensive scientific and research base, which made it possible to engage in scientific and innovative activities. Higher education in the USSR was free, and students were paid scholarships based on their grades. The average scholarship in the USSR was 40 rubles. Is it a lot? Given that the salary of an engineer was 130-150 rubles, students could afford to live quite well.

In addition, it was in the USSR that the system of correspondence education was born. The first in the world! Despite the fact that tensions between the USSR and political opponents were not uncommon, the education system of the USSR, especially in engineering and technical specialties, occupied a leading position in the world. If we turn to the document "Forecast of the long-term social - economic development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030”, then we can see that we are waiting for no small changes that should make good changes in the education system of the Russian Federation. Necessary condition for the formation of an innovative economy is the modernization of the education system, which is the basis of dynamic economic growth and social development of society. Within the framework of the state program, it is necessary to provide funding for the development of vocational education, the development of general education and additional education children; accessibility of education; updating the quality of education.

Since 2013, the implementation of the first stage of the state program of the Russian Federation "Development of Education" for 2013-2020, approved by the order of the Government of the Russian Federation dated November 22, 2012 No. 2148-r (hereinafter referred to as the State Program), has been implemented. The total amount of financial support for the State Program from the federal budget in 2013-2020 in current prices is 3992.2 billion rubles (an average of about 0.85% of GDP in the corresponding years). At the same time, the annual volume of financial support increases from 446.9 billion rubles in 2013 to 631.2 billion rubles in 2020.

It is very important to try either to return the Soviet system of education - to correct and adjust it to a new style, or to adjust Western education systems and identify ours - our own style of teaching and education in general. Despite all the current problems, the hope that higher education, and the entire education system in modern Russia, will not only reach the level of education in the USSR, but also surpass it, will become much more efficient and better due to modern technologies and scientific progress.

Literature: 1. Vert N. History of the Soviet state 1900 - 1991. - M., 1992.

2. "Forecast of the long-term socio-economic development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030" from 2013

3. Leonidova G. V. “Problems of efficiency government controlled. The sphere of education of territories. State and development prospects” Vologda, 2014 ISBN: 978-5-93299-262-3

4. http://www.strana-Soviet education

5. http://www.bibliofond.ru

6. http://fulledu.ru - site "Education Navigator"

Borisova Veronika Sergeevna, Molokova Elena Leonidovna