Парадоксы стандартизации: цифровое неравенство и адаптивные стратегии реформирования ЕГЭ

In order to discover how parents of school students evaluate the state of things at school and what their expectations are in the light of the pay rise for teachers, in May and June of 2013 the Center for Continuing Education Economics under the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration questioned 3,300 parents (legal representatives) of school students in three regions of Russia: Sverdlovsk Oblast, Voronezh Oblast and Ivanovo Oblast, i. e. in a donor region, in a region with average social and economic indicators, and in a heavily subsidized region. The monitoring has been continued for the year 2014. Based on the data obtained, we have analyzed parental demands towards school education, degree of parents’ satisfaction, sufficiency of school education to pass the State Final Examination (SFE) and the Unified State Exam (USE), parents’ perception of the efficiency of school education in the context of the teacher pay rise. No essential difference was revealed between parental perceptions of the state of things at school in different regions, despite the significant gap between the living standards. Parental demands towards school are restricted to three core objectives: give children knowledge required for grown-up life and work; provide socialization (discipline, rules of behavior, getting into the habit of working, development of communication skills, etc.); inculcate interest to sports and productive hobbies. Parents believe that strong specialized schools are more productive in performing those functions. Thus, we conclude that teacher pay rise has not yet been helping reduce differentiation between schools by quality of education. Despite a rather high level of overall satisfaction with school education, parents tend to believe that their children won’t succeed in getting high SFE and USE scores with no test preparation courses. Almost one third of parents think that teacher pay rise could influence quality of education significantly (31.4%), while 40.3% feel changes would be inconsiderable. An overwhelming majority of parents count school teachers as middle class, which means that Russian teachers are no more perceived by parents and, hence, by students as economically unsuccessful, as it used to be in the early 2000s.

The subject of the research in this article is the content of the Unified State Exam (USE), as well as an assessment of its ability to serve as a tool for selecting applicants to universities. Among the methods used in the research, the results of which formed the basis of this article, is the method of social experiment. Its essence is that the author of the study tried to pass the training versions of the Unified State Exam in social studies, and also looked at a number of tasks on the Unified State Exam in other disciplines. During the study, it was found that there are a number of tasks on the Unified State Exam, to which the correct answer is in principle impossible and the correctness of which is determined entirely at the discretion of the compilers of this test (the so-called ‘failed tasks’). Examples of these tasks are given. Given the absence of a real result in the USE certificates of knowledge by applicants of certain sections of the school course, which are associated with sections of the university course in a particular field of study, as well as due to the presence of ‘failed tasks’, it is concluded that the USE is ineffective as a tool for selecting applicants to universities. In some cases, ambiguous interpretations of certain concepts, especially in the field of social sciences, are not taken into account when compiling tasks for the Unified State Exam. Also, the compilers of the Unified State Exam ignore the psychological patterns of such an exam, which leads to so-called "gaps in thinking" among exam takers. Therefore, the results of the Unified State Exam do not always reflect the real knowledge of applicants. The ways of improving the USE procedure in social and humanitarian disciplines (history, social studies) are proposed.

Введение. Степень математической культуры определяется уровнем правильного восприятия и освоения изученного материала. Рассмотрена целесообразность использования синтетического метода при решении задач по математике. Материалы и методы. Определяется уровень сложности и трудности рассматриваемой задачи для правильного выбора метода её решения. Уделено особое внимание развитию логике мышления в применении синтеза. Как основной исследуется синтетический метод решения, неразрывно связанный с аналитическим методом. Их часто объединяют в единое целое и называют аналитико-синтетическим методом. Результаты. Приведены задачи, включённые в базу единого государственного экзамена (ЕГЭ), и их решения с использованием синтетического метода. Решение любой задачи должно быть доведено до логического восприятия всей проделанной работы по оптимальному использованию всех данных, не только численных, но и текстовых. Показана необходимость повышения использования математического материала условия задачи, основанного на базовом знании основных терминов и теорем классического математического образования в России. Выбор метода решения – всегда творческий процесс. Он может выявить наличие и одновременно способствовать повышению имеющихся знаний не только по алгебре и геометрии, но и по другим изучаемым и уже изученным предметам. Обсуждение. Начальным положением в отборе метода решения задачи является условие задачи. Тогда как характерным для аналитического метода решения являются сами требования, вопрос задачи. Заключение. Рассмотренный в статье синтетический метод решения задач может быть применён при выполнении различных заданий по физике, химии, географии и других. Introduction. The degree of mathematical culture is determined by the level of correct perception and mastering of the studied material. The article considers the expediency of using the synthetic method in solving problems in mathematics. Materials and Methods. The study defines the level of complexity and difficulty of the problem for correct choice of the method of its solving. Special attention is given to the development of logic of thinking in the application of synthesis. As a main method, the authors suggest synthetic method of problem solving, which is inextricably linked with analytical method. They are often combined into a single whole and called analytical-synthetic. Results. The research includes tasks included in the base of Unified State Exam (USE) and their solutions by means of synthetic method. The solution to any task should be brought to a logical perception of all the work done on the optimal use of all data, not only numerical, but also textual, tasks. The results show the necessity of increasing use of mathematical data of the task based on the fundamental knowledge of basic terms and theorems of classical mathematical education in Russia. Choosing a solution method is always a creative process. It can reveal the existence and, at the same time, improve the knowledge not only in algebra and geometry, but in other subjects which are being studied and have been already learned. Discussion. The starting point in the choosing the method for problem solving is the conditions of a problem. While the analytical method usually requires the conditions themselves, the question of the problem. Conclusion. The synthetic method in problem solving, considered in this article, can be applied to various tasks in physics, chemistry, geography, and other subjects.

The problem of assessing the quality of education today is relevant. There are many problematic questions: What should the technologies for implementing the links between school teachers and schoolchildren’s learning outcomes be? How to identify these connections and work with them? Is it possible to establish multidimensional relationships between the activities of a teacher, the results of students, between the competencies of a teacher and the quality of their professional training at the university? In Tomsk Oblast, the research is being carried out in two areas: (1) development and testing of a technology that makes it possible to analyze the learning outcomes of schoolchildren and establish the relationship between these results and the level of teachers’ professionalism, (2) establishment of a relationship between the identified deficits in the subject and methodological competencies of teachers and the quality of their professional training at a pedagogical university. In the first direction of work, the results of research on assessing the level of school teachers’ competence were summarized. The study used machine learning methods. The data obtained in educational institutions of Tomsk Oblast for the period from 2015 to 2019 (unified state exam in mathematics, physics, Russian language, and social studies) were processed. This work made it possible to identify learning difficulties among schoolchildren, and then to connect these difficulties with a lack of competencies in the professional activities of their teachers. In the second direction of the research, the goal is set: the development of a new concept for the assessment and development of the professionalism of teachers in the system of higher pedagogical education. The object of study is the system of continuous professional development of teachers in the system of teacher education. The study uses the methods of theoretical analysis, structural analysis, analysis of products of activity, focus group, method of expert assessments, educational design. The types of interdependence of professional and educational deficits of different subjects of educational activities are described. These types of connections are important for achieving the integrity of the assessment system, developing the professionalism of professors of teacher education and structuring managerial actions to ensure the quality of general and teacher education in the logic of their relationship. The following conclusions are made. (1) The proposed concept of assessing and developing the professionalism of professors of a pedagogical university is an element of a system for achieving the quality of school and university pedagogical education in the “school student – teacher – university teacher” logic. (2) An assessment of the level of teachers’ professional competences shows deficits that need to be addressed. (3) Changes in the preparation of students can be based on the analysis of professional deficits of teachers, which makes it possible to change the preparation of students, including ensuring the prevention of deficits.

We attempt to prove the hypothesis that, under certain conditions, a phenomenon of propitious selection may arise on the higher education market: When talented university entrants favor applying to branded universities, the latter are able to automatically build up a positive reputation without having to actually improve the quality of their educational process. We have performed an econometric modeling and regression analysis on a set of data that were obtained from a survey of Moscow university freshmen to show that high school graduates with high scores on the Unified State Exam (USE) really are oriented toward branded universities and that these prospective students believe that obtaining a prestigious degree is even more important than entering any particular profession. Entrants lack complete information about the quality of education at any given university. The analysis of university rankings presented in this article shows that they are unable to completely solve this information asymmetry since they contain signal distortions introduced by their ranking methodology. These rankings primarily prioritize the research activity of faculty members, and they ignore their teaching performance and work with students. Therefore, often universities design their policies in such a way as to privilege the criteria that are used in rankings, and they focus on improving precisely these indicators at the expense of other considerations. As a result, branded universities are able to distinguish themselves from conventional higher education institutions not by actually providing higher quality educational services, but by selecting the best applicants and benefiting from the powerful peer effect of having these students study together. In this way, these universities can produce excellent graduates that ensure their positive reputation in the eyes of employers and at the same time increase their brand value by raising their position in the rankings.

Relevance. Passing the unified state exam in the Russian language is the first really important test of the effectiveness of students' knowledge under the strict guidance of a teacher. Having considered many different methodological manuals, books, magazines on preparation for the Unified State Exam, I came to the conclusion that each teacher builds his own methodology for organizing preparation for the exam.Purpose. To increase the efficiency of preparation for the Russian language exam for 1st-year students of a physical education college.Methodology and organization of the research. Analysis of the test results within the framework of the Unified State Exam tasks showed the most problematic areas in the development of the secondary general education program in the Russian language. Next, we have analyzed the main tasks of writing an essay, the features of this genre of writing, as well as the purpose of its use in teaching the Russian language. After that, work was carried out with the students aimed at eliminating the identified errors and clarifying the features of the essay-reasoning as a genre of written work.The results of the research. For half a year, I conducted a study in which I identified the benefits of writing a reasoning essay for 1st-year students who study at the College of Physical Culture in the direction of "Skiing". When writing the first essay of judgment on a free topic, students identified certain types of errors.Conclusions. Solving training tasks, analyzing tasks that cause difficulties in solving - this is the right way to successful completion and good scores. The test tasks are selected in accordance with the sections of the Russian language. Each student had an improved dynamic of writing the reasoning, at least in one of the points.

The article presents the results of the USE (Unified State Exam) in Physics statistics taken over graduates of the Soviet District of Novosibirsk in 2008-2010. Individually identifiable SESC graduates of NSU. Statistics is based on official data from the exam - the protocols, statements, analytical report FIPI. The purpose of statistical analysis is to identify the ability of applicants in terms of solving physical problems. Showed a trend to polarization of the graduates of this criterion and decreasing informative test scores on the physics exam and their average values

The article examines the importance of introducing the value aspect into the Russian school social studies curriculum. It justifies the need for high school students to learn about traditional Russian spiritual and moral values, as expressed in current legislation. The article raises questions about the prerequisites for studying social studies in high school, as well as approaches to conceptualizing these values in a way that is accessible to students while still considering relevant theoretical developments in the social sciences. The content of old and new social studies textbooks for grade 9 is compared, and the empirical experience of the author, a social studies teacher at HSE Lyceum grades 10–11, is described in detail in relation to discussing traditional Russian values with students. The article discusses a range of topics that will be introduced into the new social studies curriculum, based on the federal educational standard for secondary general education. The author has compiled a list of verified content elements from the current code of verified requirements for the outcomes of mastering the secondary general education program, as well as content elements for the Unified State Exam (USE) in social studies. As a result of the author’s experience teaching social studies and preparing students for the USE, there are some conclusions about the potential value of including this aspect in the school curriculum. There is also speculation on the tasks that teachers and other members of the academic community face in achieving this goal.

In this article the chronology of the development of the system of pedagogical education is considered. By analyzing the traditions of Russian education, two institutional models of higher pedagogical education – "university" and "specialized" - were identified almost always coexisting peacefully, as well as eight stages in the history of pedagogical education in Russia. Some systems of continuous pedagogical education abroad are analyzed. Despite the specific differences in the systems of education in Russia, France, Germany, England and the United States, career guidance, focusing on the choice of teaching professions, is based on similar principles and requirements for applicants and students. The system of education in the conditions of modern society is considered. The development of the system of pedagogical education in Russia continues through research and practical implementation of modern principles of professional pedagogy, one of which is the principle of advanced training of future teachers; a comparative analysis of the trends of modern training of teachers in Russia and abroad shows the commonality and difference of some approaches to this problem. The article defines that the main characteristic of a pedagogical university should be a scientifically understood professional orientation of the educational process, successfully solving the problem of training for direct professional activity and the formation of the competitiveness of the teacher.The authors present some conditions for the successful development of pedagogical education in Russia.

The article summarizes the results of the comparative study of Reading comprehension texts used in B2 level tests: Unified (Russia) State Exam in English (EGE) and Cambridge First Certificate in English (FCE). The research conducted was mainly focused on six parameters measured with the Coh-Metrix, a computational tool producing indices of the linguistic and discourse representations of a text: narrativity, syntactic simplicity, word concreteness, referential cohesion, deep cohesion, Flesh Reading Ease. The research shows that the complexity of EGE texts caused by lower than in FCE texts cohesion is balanced with a simpler than in FCE texts syntax and higher narrativity thus resulting in about the same text complexity of the two sets of texts studied. EGE and FCE texts demonstrate correspondence to grade six and very similar Means of Flesh Reading Ease (FCE Mean is 71.06; EGE Mean is 78.25) which fit the band FAIRLY EASY.

The article explores the problem of the discrepancies between the careers that the Russian education system currently prepares students for and the needs of the labor market. Employers on the labor market and educational institutions cannot function effectively without an established mechanism for social exchange. However, the reality of the current situation is such that the current educational services market exists almost entirely independently of the labor market. A document-based content analysis has allowed us to identify key problems for the Russian labor market. These include a shortage of certain specialists, which is particularly glaring in certain fields; a high level of youth unemployment; a lack of demand for certain highly trained specializations and thus the inability of the country to effectively compete on the international market; and Russia’s lagging position in the technology field. The education system also faces a number of problems. Some of the most pronounced ones include the brain drain of qualified and talented workers abroad; the insufficient funding of the research community; the decline in the prestige and quality of education; and the development of shallow thought patterns among young people that have resulted from the problem of fragmented culture. All attempts by the state to ease this crisis situation have not moved past creative window dressing. They have avoided addressing the fundamental roots of the problem. Our analysis has revealed a basic discrepancy between the types of subjects that educational institutions currently teach students and the needs of the labor market. Educational institutions have proven themselves unable to flexibly respond to changes on the labor market, and they have ignored its demands. In fact, most Russian schools do not subscribe to a unified system to help children choose a future career path. Schools use a formal approach to providing vocational guidance for young people: At best, students take one-time tests and receive brochures from for-profit institutions of higher education. If a unified, systematic model for career counseling were developed based on a mutually beneficial cooperative relationship, we would be able to establish an effective mechanism for social exchange between educational institutions and the labor market.

The article examines the problems of implementing project activities of students in school education. Project activity allows students to assert themselves, self-actualize on an intellectual and creative level, showing their best qualities and character traits. The law "on education in the Russian Federation" also pays great attention to teaching the basics of project activities to schoolchildren. Today, this issue has gone beyond discussion and has become widespread in practice. Project activities are implemented not only in primary, but also in secondary and high schools. In many regions of the Russian Federation, school teachers are actively learning the basics of project activities in the framework of training platforms, teacher training courses, and the basics of project activities are studied in the curricula of pedagogical universities. However, the practice of implementing project activities in the educational process has caused a number of problems that significantly reduce the potential inherent in it. These include: the lack of internal motivation of students to implement projects, almost complete lack of successful experience in implementing projects by school teachers, the contradiction between the accepted forms of final certification (Unified state exam, General state exam) and the requirements for projects, the inability to assess the quality of completed projects by objective criteria. In this work, the sources of these problems are considered at the system level, the contradictions that cause their occurrence are formulated, and the directions for finding solutions to eliminate the above-described problems are indicated. Solutions are proposed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of project activities of students at school.

Before turning to a presentation of the basic tasks and directions of the development of Russian Education it is necessary to emphasize that in spite of all the difficulties of the past ten years, the system of education in Russia has not only survived as one of the largest and most acclaimed education systems in the world; in quite a few aspects a number of progressive structural and functional changes have taken place in Russia's system of education in the past ten years. Here are just a few of them.

The paper examines methodological conditions necessary to achieve the expected learning outcomes of studying Russian as a school subject. To be more specific, careful attention is paid to such aspects of teaching school students as written text creation, analysis, and assessment of their own and other learners’ speech acts from the standpoint of the communicative task, situation, and the conditions of communication. The performed analysis of learners’ final (‘December’) essays and detailed (comprehensive) answers written in the Unified State Exam (EGE) in the humanities testifies to the existence of serious shortcomings in teaching school students to produce written speech spontaneously. One of the most significant problems is the mass creation of pseudo-texts by school students in conjunction with written speech templating. The major reasons for this phenomenon lie in methodological flaws such as the replacement of writing skills formation by preparation for a specific essay type. Other flaws consist in the lack of attention to the specific features of writing as a speech activity and in the prevalence of teaching practices related to producing texts on the basis of clichés and templates suggested by the teacher. The aim of the paper is to substantiate the point that teaching writing will only become effective in case learners are aware of the specific nature, features, and laws of writing treated as a type of speech activity. The analysis of methodological research into learners’ speech development issues, works on speech studies and the psychology of speech combined with a comparative analysis of learners’ detailed written answers enabled the author to obtain the results presented in this paper. The method employed in the study is modelling a system of tasks on the basis of a rhetorical approach. The analytical tasks described in the study are specially tailored for school students. Doing them, learners will definitely gain an insight into the dialogic nature of written speech as it is addressed to an ‘imaginary interlocutor’. They will also become aware of the distinctive features of a writing person’s motivation as well as primary objectives that have to be achieved at each stage of writing. The excerpts from school-leavers’ essays with comments made by the author confirm the effectiveness of the proposed methodology.

Today, there are new tendencies in the Russian educational sphere, especially in Chinese Studies. Since the pivot of Russia to the East, Chinese language has become one of the most popular foreign languages to learn. Nowadays the Chinese language is included in the curriculum of many schools and universities. Nevertheless, there are still a lot of problems in Chinese Studies. The All-Russian Chinese Language Olympiad is the first step of the Russian sinological community to harmonize standards of teaching this foreign language, and the introduction of the Unified State Exam in Chinese continues this process of unification and standardization of studying Chinese in Russian schools.