Formal Soviet education system has advantages

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33418, 27 December 1973, Page 11

Formal Soviet education system has advantages

B.u

EDMUND MEIJERS.

ad of the department of foreign languages. Rangitoto College. Auckland.)

Education in the Soviet I nion is a serious j business. This is the , overwhelming impres- • sion one gains from Soviet schools and unii versify. i The academic atmosphere and severe archi- ; lecture of school build- ' ings in Leningrad. ( Moscow and even in the rebuilt city of Volgograd ■ (formerly Stalingrad) i remind one of the West European schools 30 to 40 years ago and indeed ' of the old grammar 1 school in Auckland. , The schools are not in . i spacious grounds as in New , !Zealand. They lack the at- i Tractive colour scheme of: 1 our modern schools and are J I almost imperceptibly set) among the huge housing j [complexes. ■ There is formality inl ( idress, manners and teaching,' methodology in both prim-1J ■ary and secondary schools, i. Children all over the So-ij jviet Union wear the i uniform (one for boys and , one for girls) and sit up,J | straight on wooden chairs or[ ( benches, with arms folded, j They look very trim, happy and well cared for. Students in secondary ( schools want to study and do so purposefully. To [question “What do you want., 'to become later?” they” would answer unhesitatingly, and it was clear that they! had made up their minds to[[ achieve their goals. [ Many students would tell me they wanted to work “for the Motherland.” This frequently-heard remark, rather than the very cold Russian winter, made me realise the distance from New Zealand and difference be-; tween the two societies. I 'could not imagine New Zealand sixth and seventh formers telling overseas visitors i that they wanted to work [“for the Motherland.” Different ideals I do not believe that our [students have fewer ideals [than their Russian counter--parts, but these ideals are different. Our youth seem to be more interested in their’ individual futures. The aims of Soviet education are to prepare the indi-i vidual for his own life andfor his task as a member ofthe State. Schooling is part of the total mobilisation of' the economic, educational, artistic, political and mili-i tary forces in Soviet society | which are aimed at the strengthening of communismand Russia’s position in the; world. The teacher-student rela-l jtionship at both tertiary and! [secondary level is formal; -and businesslike, and seems! to be based on mutual respect. I

’ Teaching at any level isan honoured profession in; the U.S.S.R. and many teachers who have rendered outstanding services are rewarded with a medal. Soviet citizens consider education the finest investment for the future. As in other countries, the whole family, including grandparents, spend many : anxious moments towards the time Ivan’s or Natasha’s examination results are due. A great number of adults; are engaged in evening studies to improve their positions at work, broaden their intellectual horizons or simply, as one parent explained, to give the young a good example. Rote learning, frowned upon by many educationists in the English-speaking world, still receives considerable emphasis. A university teacher told me this' method was an essential part of learning and true scholarship, but a student must understand what he is' - learning. There is much that we -consider Victorian in Rus-i ■sian education. Class dis-; icipline is strict and in one! [Moscow secondary school: [the walls of ordinary class-[ -rooms are adorned with; framed oil paintings and hanging pot plants. Then on [every desk stands a potj [plant, which the children care for. All this does not mean, however, that education in Russia is old-fashioned. No! nation could have achieved 'super-Power status in such a short time as the Soviet Union without a progressive; -academic curriculum in its' -schools and tertiary institutions. Audio-visual aids are very; much in evidence in almostall subjects. Most exams are' oral and I watched lessons! where students saw the I answers flashed on a screen; -operated and controlled by! 'the teacher from his desk. Father of education One frequently hears the; name of A. S. Makarenko,; considered the father of So--viet education. His educational philosophy is basedon the belief that 90 percent of the upbringing of I children is completed by the; time they are five years old.' Pre-school education, there-' 'fore, is held to be of utmost! importance. Highly-trained specialists ■ with university qualifications in medicine or; educational psychology are : ■in charge of pre-school education, Speech training, the. cultivation of working habits, aesthetics, and loy-' alty to the Motherland and -Communist ideals are the key elements in this training. i Formal schooling starts at -the age of seven and the; -academic year at all levels; begins on September 1. -Primary schooling lasts -three years, then at the age [of 10 young people start their secondary training. -Most continue until they are 17 years old. The Soviet Union aims at universal secondary education to the age of 17 by 1974. After completing the eighth class at the age of 15 I (in the Soviet system children start in class 1 at primary level and enter class 4 at secondary school) pupils may go to a so-called “vocational school” to become skilled tradesmen and at the same time complete their secondary school. Others enter a “techinicum,” or specialised secon-! ! dary school, where they: ' study for three or four years to become technicians, accountants, nurses, primary

■ school teachers and others, i Holders of the technicum diploma can continue their' studies at institutes or uni-' versifies. Many continue school in the ninth and tenth class and may thereafter enter a tertiary institute. The secondary school i curriculum is generally similar to that in New Zealand: -schools: Russian language) and literature, foreign languages, social studies, music, mathematics, science and' physical education. Children with special ability in mathematics or foreign languages receive extra training. The “mathemati-i I cians” are taught mathemat- - ics in conjunction with a I computer, the “Ural 1." The children regularly practise, on this machine. Potential linguists go to a, special school like the Ang-I Jeeshkaya Shkola (English) school), where many other -subjects are also taught in -English. There are also [French and other language schools. Language students are given the normal cirriculum -but there is extra emphasis ion one particular foreign language. They start English - -at the age of eight in class' [2. From class 7 they are; -allowed to work as guides' [for foreign tourists in Rus-i -sian museums and they do I -this for a certain number of school periods. Value of languages It stands to reason that) this kind of language train-! 'ing produces a high standard! of oral proficiency. The Russians understand" well the) -value of foreign languages.! [Soviet Government and! .[trade delegations, tourists -and artistic ensembles travelling overseas are always ■ accompanied by one or two i - highly-trained linguists. ;i After secondary training, language students continue ,[their studies at university Jforfive years. Most diplomaholders then leave and -start work as interpreters, [guides or teachers, but some >.go on to their “Kandidat” ,;(our Ph.D) and perhaps .[then continue for three [years for a higher degree. , I spoke to students of •[French, German, English and [[even Indonesian at the Mos- : I cow State University. Their •oral work was excellent bv . any standard. They all spoke j fluently in the language -which was their special' [interest. It seems, however, that ■-students in the West in their--studies up to Master’s level! .-do more literature than their ■.[Soviet counterparts. Up to ; Diploma level (our M.A.) .'Russian students concentrate [ more on the linguistic aspect i of their language study. In spite of, the formal atmosphere and stricter con--ytrol in Soviet schools the ■ [children look cheerful, cons.fident and dignified. In mat.Iters of discipline the stu- ; ; dents’ council, made up from' ■ Komsomol classroom lead- ; ers, has no authority to , expel or punish — it is i there in only an advisory ; capacity. Serious breaches of discipline are discussed; ■ within the triangle of the council, teachers and par- ■ ents. Corporal punishment is i unlawful in Russian schools Because of a very high degree of motivation among students, difficult and disobedient pupils are few, a fact confirmed by Western experts on Soviet education. Undoubtedly the intense overt political indoctrination in Marxist-Leninism is instrumental in this but it [ would be a mistake to ascribe their good behaviour . to compulsion within Soviet [schools, as some Western commentators do.,

! In this respect some countries in the non-communist [world perhaps have something to learn. Soaked in material welfare, these so[cieties have provided for their children the finest •school buildings, costly methodology, the best books and teachers. Yet. without inculcating stronger motivation in students some of | their efforts could be in vain. Motivation rather than methodology is the driving force behind Soviet education.