Education of Teachers in Russia

Delbert H. Long and Roberta A. Long. Education of Teachers in Russia. Contributions to the Study of Education, Number 75. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1999. xv, 218 pp. Selected Bibliography. Index. $65.00, cloth.Education of Teachers in Russia is a comprehensive analysis of the teacher-training system from the Imperial Russia of Alexander II to the most recent period. It comprises five chapters, each dealing with teacher education in particular a historical period: in the nineteenth-early twentieth century; under Lenin and Stalin; under Khrushchev and Brezhnev; under Gorbachev and Yeltsin; and on the eve of the twenty-first century. In each chapter, the authors briefly compare Russian and American teacher training. In the last chapter, the Longs discuss the teacher-training issues and challenges in both countries.Chapter 1 serves as an introduction to the research subject and outlines the fundamentals of nineteenth-century Russian education, examining closely its structure, various school curricula, the major governmental circulars and legal decisions on national education, as well as the influence of different Ministers of Education. Teacher training is discussed in a detailed manner, accenting professional preparation at universities, seminaries and institutes. The authors also address official institutional responses to modern pedagogical theories and child psychology. Statistics are presented, as well the list of features common for teacher training in Russia and the United States from roughly 1861 until 1917.Chapters 2, 3 and 4 are structured according to the same pattern. Each opens with a commentary on the historical and educational setting, follows by a discussion of education, pre-service and in-service training, and ends with brief conclusions. The authors describe the major educational developments which had a significant impact on teacher training in each period: i.e., dismantling of the tsarist general educational system and replacing it by the secular "united labour school" immediately after the October revolution; strengthening the academic curriculum and ideological indoctrination under Stalin, integration of vocational training and labour participation during Khrushchev's regime, reverting to a great degree of normalcy in the 1960s-1980s and the search for new approaches, methodologies and curricula and their implementation during and after perestroika.In their study, the Longs attempt to present a balanced perspective on the issues discussed. However, their critique of Russian education and teacher training, especially that of the second part of the twentieth century, is considerably milder than the criticisms brought forth by Russian educators. In Chapter 3, the authors acknowledge the achievements of Soviet education. These accomplishments range from the elimination of illiteracy in an atmosphere of acute teacher shortages, inadequate funding and lack of resources during the first decades of Soviet rule, to introducing mandatory complete secondary education for all students, establishing various institutions of post-secondary training, and providing opportunities for lifelong learning and qualifications upgrading in the 1970s-1980s. According to the Longs, the national system of education raised "significantly the cultural level of Soviet people" and "provided the trained manpower that enabled the Soviet Union to become one of the world's industrial and military powers" (p. 70). At the same time, the authors suggest that well-educated post-war Soviet citizens became more cynical about their society, including its educational system. It would be relevant to note that Russian educators and other intellectuals during the last decade of the Soviet Union highlighted the fact that the national education system was characterized by a rigid bureaucratic administration, authoritarian teaching methods, political indoctrination of students and staff, and a non-diversified curriculum, which limited the opportunities for teacher initiative. …