VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
“We should avoid closing schools where they are needed. We should also improve tuition and make cuts on the expense of education – but how can we do it all at once? Basic educational centres with a network of affiliates might help solve the problem if we extended state-of-the-art online education”.
“The basic system was built fundamentally, and everything that helps us maintain the level of education in the highest bracket, certainly should not and cannot be lost. <…> However, we need to look ahead, look at current labour market demands and use modern teaching aids. Including remote learning tools – all of this needs to be introduced.”
“Children in rural areas should have access to quality education and modern learning tools on a par with their peers in cities and towns. The national programme for education has played a significant role in making that happen. Now almost all of Russia’s rural schools are connected to the internet. More than 1,000 sets of teacher's aids in subjects such as physics, chemistry, biology, and geography have been sent to schools located in out-of-the-way areas. As for small rural schools, we’ll continue to support those that belong to communities with an objective need.”
“I’d like to make is that teachers who live and work in rural areas now have the right to apply for reimbursements on their utility bills. A resolution to the effect was adopted late last year. And, of course, we should do more to promote culture and sport in the countryside and to support rural libraries.”
“Serious money will be allocated to support gifted children, including the organisation of school competitions, sports competitions, as well as the creation of centres for talented youth in the federal universities and distance learning schools at research universities. The country's leading universities – Moscow State University, the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Bauman Moscow State Technical University and others – are actively working with prospective students – their future students. This experience must, of course, be distributed as widely as possible.”
“We can’t forget about social issues, such as teacher pay, particularly per capita financing, which we’ve been talking about a lot in recent years. Whenever and wherever this system is introduced, it results in higher pay for teachers. <…> In Omsk, Pskov and Kaliningrad we are seeing salaries go up by about 25%, and in some cases by 40%.”
“As for education, here I would like to emphasise that we will allocate for the first time (as we did not do in many previous years) significant funding to the Russian Academy of Science for attracting young scientists. We will allocate wage-rates and some money especially for this purpose. We allocated another two billion roubles for the purchase of new laboratory equipment. And we'll discuss other costs in more detail now.”
“The question of making changes to the pension system for leading experts was also raised. And this, in turn, affects another problem, that of recruiting new staff. So if the leading scientists could increase the retirement replacement ratio, then those people could be safely transferred to a different status, they would not be lost to science, and full-time jobs would be freed for young professionals. Incidentally, I promised that we would create an additional four full-time positions in the appropriate institute of the Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Archaeology, so that they can hire new young professionals.”
“There were many good and efficient elements of our previous education system. However, we need to proceed from the fact that Russia is an open country, for our specialists as well, who may be in demand in foreign labour markets. This means that our diplomas should be adapted to the international standard, including the European, American and many others. To achieve this, we should be part of the unified European system of education. That is largely why we have joined the Bologna Process to integrate our education system into that of Europe. At the same time you are right that we mustn't lose what has always been our competitive edge. First of all, it is in fundamental sciences and all related areas, including specialist training.”
“In recent years, we have substantially increased funding for science as well as secondary and higher education. We have launched a national project in this area, and we have already spent 180 billion roubles on it. For example, new equipment and the introduction of modern programmes have allowed us to improve conditions at 30,000 schools with a total of nine million students. Overall, federal budget appropriations for education have almost doubled since 2006 - from 212 billion to 400 billion roubles.”
“…the Russian Academy of Sciences and national science as a whole cannot shy away from the modernisation agenda. The academy has always been and must remain a key institution of national and social development - both as a generator of new fundamental knowledge turned toward the future and as an instrument for selecting and promoting Russia's intellectual elite. And, finally, the reliable, long-term prediction of scientific and technological priorities is only possible with the involvement of the research community. Certainly, a primitive and utilitarian understanding of science's role is unacceptable. Fundamental research is not a commercial project based on investment volumes or profit-making. At the same time, the field of science in the modern world is based on a principle of encouraging tough competition and is characterised by a serious struggle for superiority. Leading states invest heavily in R&D projects in order to remain predominant in science. This concerns not only technology but also the humanities, politics and ideology”.
"I'd like to inform you about a number of new decisions adopted by the government to support higher education institutions. First, we have established special grants for up to 150 million roubles each to finance research in our institutions of higher education. This money will allow to hire respected specialists at Russian universities. I'm referring both to those working in Russia and abroad. Nationality is of no importance here, but we are primarily thinking about our compatriots who are teaching abroad."
“The government has decided to award prizes to outstanding young specialists in science and technology for 2009. We have selected 30 young specialists (under the age of 33) successfully pursuing promising and important projects in priority sectors. These projects involve cancer diagnosing, resource and energy saving plasma technologies, and development of nano-structures in electronics.”
“Educational institutions should become more open, regularly publishing full and objective reports on their activities. And the public governing boards being created in schools - I have mentioned one of them - must have real opportunities to influence key decisions affecting the school's life.”
“Starting on September 1, 2011, all first formers will study according to new educational standards. We must prevent the introduction of these modern standards from becoming a mere formality, ensuring that they improve both the quality and content of education and the conditions for children during their time in our schools. On a side note, I would like to draw the attention of the Minister of Education to the need to analyse these standards critically, with input from leading national experts, making sure they meet modern requirements. We should see how they will work. Special responsibility for this rests with the regional and municipal authorities.”
“We must show we are serious about enhancing the teaching profession's performance and prestige. <…> In addition to decent pay, Russian teachers will have an opportunity to continually improve their qualifications and learn new teaching technology. To this end, the Education Ministry is developing new programmes for additional professional training.”
“In the near future the government plans to introduce a package of alterations to the Tax Code and the law on education, which are intended to create additional incentives for small, innovative businesses, which we decided to set up at universities. These companies will be granted a five-year exemption to ensure a smooth transition to the insurance premium system. In addition, we are drafting amendments to introduce unified regulations for licensing start-ups.”
"In the past four years a total of 1,250 billion roubles have been allocated to education from federal sources alone. It is quite a big sum, given our expenditures in general. It is a huge sum! We launched a general modernization effort within the framework of the Education national project. We will continue to regard this work as an absolute priority."
"It would be better if we could teach Russian to people who want to study here in advance. Also, more people would like to study here in that case. We are aware of this fact, and we are trying to act on this issue, first of all in other CIS countries. We are sending textbooks there, training Russian-language teachers and starting courses. We would like to do this in more countries. Education over the internet and using modern technology play a big role in this respect".
"Recognition of diplomas does not often depend on the level of education of a young professional, but is instead connected with agreements between governments. As a rule, recognition is reciprocal. Today we have relevant agreements with 100 countries and we will try to increase this number."
