Позитивные изменения. Образование. Школа будущего. Тематический выпуск, 2022 / Positive changes. Education. The school of the future. Special issue, 2022

Schools in Russia and Abroad: What to Learn, and Why

Yuliya Vyatkina

DOI 10.55140/2782–5817–2022–2-S1–22–29

What is the difference between the approaches to learning in Russian and foreign schools? For example, why do graduates of British private schools often succeed in life, become politicians, Nobel Prize winners, and Oscar winners? The editorial board of the Positive Changes Journal tried to understand why secondary foreign education is so popular among our compatriots and find out what Russian schools lack and whether domestic education has any strengths in comparison.

Yulia Vyatkina

Editor, Positive Changes Journal

Traditionally, parents worldwide are interested in the schools of the United Kingdom, United States and Canada. The success of the students attending these schools can be measured by how many of them entered foreign universities, such as Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and other famous higher educational institutions in Great Britain and North America. Another way to gauge the level of preparation of students in foreign schools is to see what positions they get to in the future.

Karina Sharin, the founder and director of Chelsea Education, writes in her book "How to Give Your Child a British Education without Going Broke and Losing Your Nerve” that "the real English education is the best gift you can give your child, other than love". According to her, this will make a child grow up a confident person, capable of forming, expressing and defending his/ her own opinion. He/she will have friends all over the world, and he/she will speak pure English, which he/she will never forget. Having "soft skills" will make it easy for him/her to build a career.

What is the reason? As experts in international education say, the curricula of Russian and foreign schools differ greatly in their approach to teaching, to the children themselves, and to the organization of the school space.

For example, schoolchildren in Russia study a large number of subjects without any choice (any options only appearing in the senior specialized classes), while in Great Britain subject specialization begins much earlier. The older the child gets, the more narrowly focused the curriculum will be. In fact, by the time our schoolchildren reach the 9th grade, their peers in Britain have already completed the general education curriculum, and the high school education, with its specialized curriculum, gives them advantage when entering the University.

The U. S. and Canadian educational programs are much like the Russian educational system. American schools have their own final exams – the SAT and ACT, while Russia has the Unified State Exam, or USE. In addition, just like in Russia, there is a large pool of compulsory subjects there, which a student must master throughout the school years. Some subjects are studied all the way through high school. However, the older the children get, the more choice they have in what subjects they like or need for further study.

In Russia, school is primarily a knowledge base, which is important for admission to the university. In foreign schools, along with academic knowledge, a lot of focus is on developing soft skills. This includes, first of all, leadership skills, not necessarily entrepreneurial ones; rather we are talking about organizing teamwork.

Over the last couple of years, according to experts in international education, American schools have set more ambitious goals for themselves: they want to raise proactive leaders who will contribute to a better future, to benefit the world.

Other soft skills taught abroad include emotional intelligence and time management. The schedule in foreign schools is quite strict, you have to plan everything yourself and be responsible for the result. In the future, this helps when you enter the university and, of course, in professional life.

Foreign education is more practice-oriented. Visual aids are often used to study various phenomena, such as electromagnetic radiation in physics. This allows students, firstly, to memorize the material better, and, secondly, to get a practical idea of what it is, why and how it may be needed in life.

In Russia, school is a knowledge base, which is important for admission to the university. In foreign schools, along with academic knowledge, a lot of focus is on developing soft skills.

"I have attended many classes of this nature, and all of the students as one do compare studying abroad to studying in their home schools. It’s not just students from Russia, but also from China and Argentina. They all say they like this kind of learning more and get motivated more. Naturally, it’s easier to teach children who are eager to acquire new knowledge. And, of course, foreign schools always try to find some common ground that will help students better understand the material and master the program”, says Natalia Kravets, Head of Secondary Education Department at ITEC Llc.

Thus, foreign education programs are structured so as to induce a desire to learn. The child, his or her desires, interests and motivation is at the center of the education process. No one is forcing anyone to study or take extra classes or cram. Teachers and tutors help the students, support and motivate them, and are always there for the students to come for advice and recommendations.

"Sometimes even just by talking to the teacher, the child will hear that everything is fine and good, they just need to keep learning. The child calms down, stops being nervous, and after a while, everything starts to work out”, Natalia Kravets says.

If you look at the span of the last 5–10 years, it is a fairly small period for education, but still quite indicative. The pandemic, digitalization, new subjects, the development of inclusivity, and globalization, have all had an impact on schools.

One significant change is the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) educational model. This is a specialized interdisciplinary training in biology, physics, chemistry, engineering, and mathematics in the context of solving real-life technological problems. For example, robotics and rocket science are based on STEM. A person doesn’t have to learn everything, to build the Starship space rocket like Elon Musk. The work can be done in teams.

STEM education in American schools began about 10 years ago. In Russia, STEM education was first mentioned in the last three years, when articles on the topic began to appear in business publications. Meanwhile, the concept got a new wave of development in the West: the letter A, which stands for Arts, was added to the STEM acronym. It turned out a new concept – STEAM.

"I think this is a very important addition, because Arts implies creativity and some new ideas, everything that machines and artificial intelligence cannot replace yet. The direction is still in its infancy, but it is becoming increasingly popular. I think it has a great future. Perhaps soon we will be assessing technology products in terms of how creative they are. Creative technologies are used, among other things, in the production of smartphones", Natalia Kravets says.

There are educational institutions in Moscow and St. Petersburg that follow the principle of English boarding schools, which means that parents now have a choice: to send their child abroad or to educate him or her in Russian private schools, following the British system.

"Of course, when we talk to parents, we always point out that a British school in any country outside the UK is still a school that follows the mentality and language of the country where it is located", says Tatyana Glitsan, Leading Consultant, IQ Consultancy.

The cost of education is probably the last thing parents consider when choosing where to send their child to study. First and foremost, Russian families are focused on the future results the school can deliver. As mentioned above, this is an opportunity to enter a top-ranking university.

The second aspect is the content of what the child will be doing at school. For example, someone needs a strong academic component to get into a particular major.

Another aspect is the atmosphere in the school, how friendly and pleasant it is. Everything matters: the location, teachers, and even the comfort of living.

Some companies advising on international education offer special diagnostics to reveal the child’s abilities and talents and facilitate professional self-determination in the future. This is what IQ Consultancy does in conjunction with the American Staffing Association.

“The Association studies the labor market around the world and makes predictions for the next six to ten years, regarding what professions will be in demand, what qualities and skills will need to be developed. The Association works with the Ivy League and top-ranking universities, so their tests are usually very helpful in getting the child firmly on the ground (given the right choice of subjects) or in seeing why they are underperforming in school. Perhaps it’s because he’s not doing the right thing at all, or there are some peculiarities in his training”, says Tatyana Glitsan.

Karina Sharin, in her book “How to Give Your Child a British Education without Going Broke and Losing Your Nerve", quotes Mike Buchanan, executive director of the HMC (the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference), an organization that brings together some 350 of the best private schools in Britain and fifty international schools, on what to look for when choosing a school. It is the relationship between teachers and students, the effectiveness of school leadership, and the school’s relationship with the local community, including residents and other schools.

There are so many events going on at the schools that parents get a calendar of events for the semester ahead, and there are so many sports sections, halls, clubs, and clubs on the boarding grounds that there is no need to take your child anywhere else.

According to the experts, children’s involvement in the local community is highly developed in British schools. For example, students who excel in physics give open classes to children who are not doing well in that subject at another school or in the lower grades. Sometimes the more affluent schools help equip the less affluent schools. In addition, volunteering and charity activities are also extensively developed: charity events, races are held in order to raise money and draw public attention to a social problem, such as helping the elderly.

“Parents are often engaged in school life. Both children and parents are frequently interviewed there because they believe that the school is a second family. Parents participate in charity and get-together events with other families. Networking that develops in this way is also very useful for schools. Parents are invited to share their experiences, to talk about their ups and downs, hardships and worries. Our Russian families are often intimidated by such things, as the vast majority are not accustomed to sharing their stories with someone, especially doing it in public. Very few people go for it. But, again, it’s very interesting and useful in terms of networking", Natalia Kravets says.

American and Canadian schools also have strong enough PTAs (Parent-Teacher Associations) that perform big projects.

"Generally, parents are involved in the school life, with the school giving detailed answers to their questions and feedback on each child, the class, everything that happens in the school. Parents receive weekly newsletters, invitations to school events, from concerts and sports competitions to regular meetings with the principal or information updates. Often parents themselves participate in some theatrical productions", says Tatyana Glitsan.

A person doesn’t have to learn everything, to build the Starship space rocket like Elon Musk. The work can be done in teams.

In Russia, such activities are still underdeveloped, and only individual private schools can afford them. Of course, schools should have a person to handle it all.

British schools are strong with their traditions: they have centuries-old history, are proud of the personal achievements of their students in sports, give not only the classical academic knowledge, but also inspire human values, develop soft skills and reveal talents. It is the culture of communication and own traditions that Russian schools still lack, experts say.

"School is, after all, a social institution in which a child spends many years. At school age, the mentor and the environment, the peers with whom the child is in constant contact, play a very important role. In most of our schools we talk about learning and knowledge, not culture and education. I would like to see some kind of influence from the school on teenage minds that are just forming and growing. Who will they be in the future, what ideas will they promote? What good will they do for themselves and society? There’s a lot of talk about this now in foreign schools – about ethnic diversity, about the importance of doing something good for the community, no matter who lives in it. In our country, unfortunately, this is not developed at all. And children are not only unenthusiastic about going to school, where they are simply given knowledge, but they also do not receive any development as individuals”, adds Natalia Kravets.

Russian schools need more involvement and enthusiasm on the part of the teachers to help children not just learn theory, but understand the world around them through the viewpoint of the subject being studied.

"It’s quite a lot of analytical work, which requires a lot of creativity on the part of the teacher and his/her desire to convey the topic of the lesson in a way that every child will be comfortable with. Not all children perceive the same information in the same way. In Russian schools, as a rule, teachers have a lot of paperwork and so they lack the emotional resources to tell children how the laws of physics relate to real life, why children need to learn it at all, and where it can be observed. And, of course, the equipment in the schools leaves much to be desired”, says Tatyana Glitsan.

The feature of our education that is not available abroad is the opportunity to participate in numerous School Olympics, creative camps, which any Russian student can apply to.

However, things are not so bad in Russian schools. Our strengths are in the natural sciences: physics, mathematics, engineering. Schoolchildren and students from the CIS countries, Asia, Iran, and China come to Russia to study technical specialties in the future. And Russian students take first places in math, physics, and computer science at international Olympics.

In addition, a new format of schools has recently emerged, i.e. schools that do not only educate but also have a cultural component. They are located mostly in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

"These are private schools for the most part, available to a small number of people. But they have a community created on the basis of the schools and comprising students and teachers. They have a spirit of support and motivation that makes you want to come to school. Private schools can afford good equipment and visual aids, they can employ good teachers with a great desire to work in the school, to teach children, to see their eyes sparkling with interest. In a foreign school, it is difficult to imagine a person who just comes to class, conducts the lesson and ticks a box in the class register. The teachers there have a benevolent and motivating approach. And naturally, children react differently to them. This approach is just gaining ground in our private schools. This is very encouraging to see”, says Natalia Kravets.

According to the expert, the schools of the future will develop towards ensuring a holistic development of the child, raising awareness in children and parents.

Another feature of our education that is not available abroad is the opportunity to participate in numerous School Olympics, creative shifts and camps, which any Russian student can apply to. For example, Sirius Educational Center offers monthly intensive programs in the following areas: "Science”, "Art”, and “Sports”, for children ages 10 to 17 from all parts of Russia. Children learn from the best teachers, experts and coaches, meet managers of Russian companies, famous scientists, artists, athletes and writers.

“Overall, the students of today have more opportunities than what they did 15 to 20 years ago. Thanks to advanced digitalization, the Olympics are available to anyone. In no other country I was talking about, a child can join the Olympics from anywhere and compete with anyone. It’s not really about the school, but about the opportunities provided by the state. But in any case, students have access to regular newsletters, competition announcements, etc. You can try yourself even if you don’t have the funding or great knowledge”, says Natalia Kravets.

There are quite a few teachers in Russian schools who know how to bring children together and give them a sense of community. Students graduating from the 11th grade tend to speak with great warmth about their years in school and their teachers. There is a tradition of alumni reunions.

“We still have teachers who are enthusiastic about their work. And, of course, we have a lot of motivated kids who are eager to learn. We have children with unique abilities. The credit also goes to the teachers, to a larger extent. The school equipment changes, the teachers’ attitudes toward children are changing. After all, they do understand a child is a child, and learn to find their ways with the kids, learn to find the time for each child, using different methods and experience of foreign schools. It’s just that this approach is not being widely implemented yet. But let’s hope that things will be different in the school of the future”, Tatyana Glitsan concludes.

Экспертные статьи / Expert Publications

Гуманная педагогика 2.0: от идей Антона Макаренко до Людмилы Петрановской и Димы Зицера

Алексей Семенычев

DOI 10.55140/2782–5817–2022–2-S1–30–39

Образование, приближенное к жизни, индивидуальный подход к ребенку, школа, где радостно, а не страшно – одни из немногих идей гуманной педагогики. Исследователь альтернативного образования Алексей Семенычев рассуждает, как гуманная педагогика может помочь построить образование будущего.

Алексей Семенычев

Основатель проекта «Альтернативное образование в России», автор книг по методикам семейного образования, писатель, публицист

Какой мне видится педагогика будущего? Гуманной. Я думаю, что образование XXI века во многом будет построено на идеях Антона Макаренко, Януша Корчака, Генриха Альтшуллера, Шалвы Амонашвили и других педагогов-новаторов. Попробую обрисовать в общих чертах и назвать главные направления, в которых будет меняться образование в ближайшее время.

НОВАТОР И ДЕМОКРАТ

Начнем со всем хорошо известного, но малочитаемого Антона Макаренко. Его имя хотя бы раз все слышали. Он открыл школу для беспризорников, долго руководил ей, написал много книг, опираясь на опыт своей школы и личные размышления.

В 1921 году, уже в первый год существования школы, ей было присвоено имя А. М. Горького. А в 1927 г Макаренко начал работать в трудовой коммуне им. Ф. Э. Дзержинского. В этот же год его подход к образованию беспризорников критикует Надежда Крупская. Надо сказать, что у многих наших педагогов-реформаторов не особо хорошо складывались отношения с государством, как мы это позже увидим. Но постепенно отношения с властью им удавалось наладить.

Так, Макаренко помирится с Крупской и с удовольствием будет выступать, писать книги, жить в знаменитом Доме писателей в Лаврушинском переулке. Его идеи получат развитие, и в СССР начнут открываться другие школы-коммуны. Рядом с Москвой будет работать самая известная из них – Болшевская трудовая коммуна имени Генриха Ягоды.

В 1939 году в возрасте 51 года Макаренко умирает от сердечного приступа в вагоне поезда. Наследие он оставляет достаточно важное, чтобы и сейчас, через сто лет, его считали одним из выдающихся педагогов XX века.

Любопытно, что Макаренко в своих книгах не пишет о том, как преподавать математику или литературу. Главные идеи Макаренко – как создать в школе атмосферу сотрудничества и взаимопонимания между учителями и учениками. Это сложно, но еще сложнее сделать это с детьми-беспризорниками. Макаренко говорит об ужасно странных для советской власти вещах – о самоуправлении, о честных выборах (в школе был управляющий совет, члены которого избирались путем голосования), о том, что нужно прислушиваться к мнению учеников. Через эти, в целом, не сложные механизмы и создается ситуация, когда для ребенка школа становится не только местом получения знаний, но и местом эмоционального благополучия, где он может реализовать себя как личность. Интересно, что и учителя у Макаренко не диктаторы, которые приказывают на правах сильного, а люди, с которыми нужно договариваться и можно спорить. Макаренко говорит о том, что среда, атмосфера школы, коллектив (для него это самое важное) влияют на образование и воспитание ребенка.

Ученики Макаренко осваивали множество специальностей. Мастерские при школах выпускали вполне реальную и очень нужную стране продукцию. Даже фотоаппараты производили. Это важный момент: не просто что-то делаем, а потом отдаем родителям, чтобы они посмотрели и порадовались, не просто молотком на уроке труда стучим, а делаем работу, которая приносит реальную пользу и мотивирует развиваться.