Materials to the speech of the Minister of education and science of the Russian Federation Andrei Fursenko at the meeting of the "Government hour" in the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of Russia, on May 8, 2009

Moscow, May 8, 2009

Dear colleagues!

The system of measures for improving the quality and competitiveness of educational services was defined in the Priority directions of development of educational system of the Russian Federation which were approved by the Government in 2004.

Three principal moments are key here:

Existence of a qualitative education;

Its availability;

Development of system controlling the first and the second: so that the quality of education would now lower, and its availability would increase.

The modern quality is inseparably connected with call for education in the society, its correspondence to today and tomorrow's requirements - as economic as social.

Due to the taken measures, firstly, within the priority national project, a network of institutions-leaders has been created on all levels of education in the country.

In general education it is a network of innovative schools. Today they are a basis for introduction of modern educational standards, realization of the initiative "Our new school".

In primary and secondary professional education it is a network of resource centers. It serves as a basis for as new approaches in non-university education, which responds to business demands and lets young people join new technological processes without swinging, as for realization of the program of anti-crisis measures in personnel development.

In higher education innovative programs of scientific-educational centers around the whole country have been supported. These are the strongest universities, closely integrated with leading scientific organizations. On the next stage we propose to increase the number of federal universities, to create a network of national research national research universities. According to the approved law in the nearest future a contest selection of development programs for universities will take place. All the necessary normative documents have been brought in to the Government.

Primary efforts were directed, firstly, on creating a modern material base of leaders. Only within the national project around 80 billion rubles were given on these purposes.

As a result in general education: if in 2004 less than 15% of schoolchildren studied in the modern conditions, then now this figure is coming to 50%, and in regions where complex projects of modernization are being integrated, it has exceeded 60%.

In professional education, by the estimation of participant of the national project, on those directions, to which money were invested, we have made a breakthrough forward of 10-15 years, making these institutions absolutely competitive as in Russia as at the international level. Today at these institutions around 10% of students are trained.

The quality is often defined by the content of educational programs. In 2007 a principally new structure of standards was legally fixed, which included requirements to programs, to conditions and results of education.

In the nearest month the Council on standards which was created according to the February order of the Government, will start examination of a new generation of standards. They will let flexibly build the content of education depending on various needs of families, maximally take into account inclinations and opportunities of concrete pupils, realize individual educational programs.

The obligatory requirement to creating new standards of professional education is the participation of employers. Nowadays the method of work with them has been completely put in order. Together with unifications of employers tens of new standards of basic and secondary professional education, baccalaureate and magistracy have been already elaborated. This work will be continued in 2009.

(For reference:

In 2007-2008 with the participation of leading employers standards of new generation were elaborated on 110 professions of BPE, 84 specialties of SPE; in higher education in 145 successive standards of baccalaureate and magistracy were worked out, and 10 standards - on the level of magistracy.

In 2009 elaboration of 217 standards of BPE, 152 standards of SPE, in 25 successive standards of baccalaureate and magistracy is planned).

The contest is straightly dependent from the quality of textbooks. Several years ago, as we remember, there were many claims to it. Since 2005 the expertise of textbooks is maintained by leading expert organizations among which there are RAS and RAE. The order of selection of organizations, publishing textbooks, which are admitted to be used at educational institutions, has just been approved and registered at the Ministry of justice.

Renewing the content of education it is impossible to forget that the quantity of information is far not always automatically transfers to the quality of education. Moreover, they often contradict each other.

It happens, when a thorough study of basis of sciences is replaced by a perfunctory report of a larger volume of strictly specialized knowledge, and it concerns both humanitarian and exact disciplines. The work on changing such a state of affairs, including participation of the best teachers - winners of the national project - is being realized.

Teaching personnel is one more basic condition for a qualitative education. The central task here is to raise the level of qualification of teachers on all levels.

Annually around 400 thousand teachers raise the level of their qualification, and for the years of the national project their number in innovative institutions has increased.

The Government's measures aimed at creating the system of "per-soul" financing of raise of level of pedagogical personnel. By this each teacher and school have a real choice. Competitiveness among organizations, offering programs and modules of raising the qualification is developed. Among them there are not only the institutions of raising the level of qualification, but also leading universities of various direction, innovative schools, - the best institutions, which organize trainings on their basis.

System measures on attracting to teaching successful professionals from other spheres are also realized. More and more often winners of contests of the best teachers within the national project are teachers of physical training - professional sportsmen, teachers of music - professional musicians, teachers of technology - specialists with a higher technical education.

Improvement of personnel, and thus - the quality of teaching, is impossible without improving the social status of teachers. The important role in this is given to the introduction of new systems of labor payment (NSLP) at educational institutions.

Today with the federal support of complex modernization of education at schools, which moved to NSLP, the salary of teachers has increased 60% in the average, and of more qualified - twice and more. In more than one third of regions, which received the support, the average salary of teachers in schools, which moved to NSLP, is higher than the average salary in economics. By the operative data, in regions there are no vacancies of teachers almost at all. The surge of young people to schools and rejuvenation of personnel at universities are marked.

The new systems of labor payment together with a number of other measures, approved by the Government, let provide if not full solving of personnel issues, but at least movement in this direction.

In efficiently working Moscow universities today the average salary of teachers reaches 30 thousand rubles per month. The transfer to new systems of labor payment, to our estimation, will let significantly increase their salaries. At this the new systems are introduced in such a way, that the growth of salaries would be accompanied by the increase of the level of responsibility for the quality of education.

Dearest colleagues,

The complex approach, which provides a system development of material base, education content, personnel potential, has let change trend, and from unrestrained commercialization of education of the 90s, when the main task was not the economic development but creation of workplaces for teachers without considering who and how they trained, to get back to support of a qualitative Russian education, to create a sufficient group of institutions on all levels, which give education of the necessary quality.

It is fundamentally important that it would be available for all, who strive to get it, including the opportunity to enter a chosen university and necessary conditions for studying there.

The opportunity of entering today is ensured by the system of admission to universities on the basis of the USE or subject Olympiads, which let young people make a choice and demonstrate their abilities. By our estimations, through the system of Olympiads up to 10% of school graduates will be entering.

(For reference: Olympiads of schoolchildren are help under the guidance of the Rectors council).

By existing estimations, during last years families annually spent around 1 billion dollars for the entering campaign. Among them around 700 million they spent for the travel to the place of entering and living for entrants. These expenses of families with introduction of the USE are considerably decreasing. In fact we are overcoming the geographic inequality which took place.

I am going to cite several concrete examples.

With the USE introduction in Chuvashia the portion of school graduates, which entered universities outside the republic, has been increased from 5 to 18-20%. The portion of non-resident first-years in Saint-Petersburg has been increased from 32 to 47%. The analogical situation is in Moscow.

The portion of country schoolchildren, which enter universities, is comparable to the portion of country residents in Russia. In average in Russia the number of first-year students of universities and secondary special educational institutions from locations with population up to 100 thousand people in Russia has been increased.

So that opportunities to learn would not depend on the material income, we, in spite of the demographic decline and financial crisis:

1) keep the number of budget places at universities, increasing them in demanded directions of training;

2) provide the transfer of well advanced paid students to vacant budget places;

3) "freeze" prices at paid places. At present all universities, within the jurisdiction of Rosobrazovanie, have approved the corresponding decisions;

4) develop the system of educational credit. Privileged conditions have been elaborated, which ensure availability of educational credits. Simultaneously we make mechanisms of credits the efficient regulators of education quality - as in demand and level of services, given by universities, as in motivation and responsibility of students. The project of the corresponding regulation of the Government has been agreed with interested departments and introduced to the Ministry of justice.

One more important measure on ensuring availability of a qualitative education is the creation of normal conditions of living for nonresident students. During last years significant means have been sent for repairing and building of students hostels (in 2007-2008 - around 3-4 billion rubles and 1 billion rubles correspondingly). In spite of the crisis events in the economy, for 2009 in the corresponding programs we have managed to keep annual volumes of financing for repair (around 4 billion rubles) and to considerably (up to 3,5 billion rubles) increase - for building, which will let systematically finish the started works on renewal of housing. At this the obligatory condition is cofinancing of works by universities.

(For reference:

Given means from the federal budget for capital and current repair of universities (among them 40% are recommended for hostels):

2007 - 7,5 billion rubles;

2008 - 10,8 billion rubles;

2009 - 9,5 billion rubles (primarily planned 12,1)

Given means from the federal budget for building of hostels:

2007 - 1,16 billion rubles;

2008 - 1,24 billion rubles;

2009 - 3,49 billion rubles)

Creating of new hostels at the best universities is also provided in the program "Scientific and scientific-pedagogical personnel of innovative Russia". The start of these works has been delayed yet, but we count that planned means will be given in 2010-2011.

Availability is closely connected with the system of control of the quality of training, increasing responsibility of students and teachers. And obviously it cannot be limited only by entering the university.

That is why we are working on introduction of objective independent procedures of evaluation of the quality as at transferring from baccalaureate to magistracy, as during intermediate attestation at universities. Including within voluntary estimation of quality at confirming meanings of accreditation figures. Within development of procedures and criteria of accreditation we lay the emphasis at evaluating not only the formal level of preparation of teachers, but, in the first place, the level of preparation of students.

The special attention is paid to the questions, connected with social accreditation and introduction of professional qualification exams. Their initiator is the Association of Russian layers. The core of the initiative is to introduce an obligatory exam for admission to work, taken by employers. At this if graduates with the diploma of a university cannot systematically pass qualification exams, it will serve a foundation for reconsidering the decision of his/her accreditation.

Returning to the USE, I will mark: its transfer to the regular regime is ensured by all the necessary documents.

Regulations on holding the USE and the final attestation of school graduates, rules of admission to the institutions of professional education have been approved and registered. The rights of all learning people with special needs and health limitations have been provided.

Unified for all the country lists of admission exams on preparation directions have been approved (by proposals of training and methodical unifications of universities).

Unified terms and transparent procedures of admission have been stated.

Duration and scale of experiment on introducing the USE have ensured continuity and painless transition to a regular regime. Pre-term holding of the USE this year has already taken place - it was without fails and violations.

Eight-year experiment, in which all regions and millions of graduates and entrants took place, has earnestly showed objective advantages of the USE. The objectiveness of its results has been admitted. By the way, the vast research of VCIOM, which was finished a month ago, showed that the USE was supported by those who aimed at receiving qualitative education.

I would like to disprove still spreading myths around the USE. They are, as usual, built on unfair distortion of facts. And faults at using the data, which took place, have led to lawless and even offensive public statements towards a number of national republics.

Thus, in the beginning of the experiment distrust to high results of the USE on mathematics in Yakutia was expressed. There was organized a series of tests, which completely confirmed authenticity of the USE results, and thus - success of strong mathematic school of this republic which is famous in the country.

Several years ago analogical assaults were expressed towards Dagestan and Kalmykia. As though unbelievably high results of the USE of graduates of these republics on the Russian language and mathematics correspondingly were publicly put to doubt.

Actually the statistics of the USE results shows.

There were not too high results in the Russian language in Dagestan. In 2006 in the USE in Russian 12% graduates of the republic took part (the average mark - 35). And in 2007 - almost all (average mark - 30, and in average in Russia - 49). But it is necessary to mention that for two years, when in the USE in Russian all the contingent of graduates of the republic participates, the results are improving (in 2008 - 42 point), which is still lower than the average mark in Russia yet.

On mathematics in Kalmykia. For several years the results in average increased average results in Russia (54-59 point at 49 average in Russia). But it is necessary to take into consideration, that around half of graduates took the USE in the republic, on a volunteer basis. As a rule, these are graduates of profile mathematic and physical-mathematic classes. In 2008 the USE in mathematics was for the first time taken by all the graduates of the republic. The total mark in comparison to previous years was lessened a little, that is naturally (42 points), still staying at this at several points higher than in Russia in average.

The analogical trends are seen in all the regions of Russia. At this in cases, when the results at centers of the USE holding are higher than average statistical, the necessary checks take place.

Everybody, perhaps, knows about violations at the USE holding, which were revealed in Tatarstan. By the results of court investigation the violators were convicted and today serve their sentence. I do not remember at least one case in previous times when people, who lawlessly gave final marks to the certificate or golden and silver medals, were punished.

Dearest colleagues,

In the end of my speech I would like to mark for one more time: the key to success in the issues of providing the quality of education is in the system approach and unconditional realization of the most important social tasks with refusal from irresponsible populism.