Trends in the Development of the Russian Education System
The article reveals statistical trends in the field of education in Russia. In recent years, the number of its educational institutions has decreased by almost 20,000 units to 18,907, with this trend affecting the number of basic vocational education (vocational) schools as well. The present aim, in consequence, is to reverse this trend by boosting the number of higher educational institutions and expanding the network of private universities. The document maintains that the 20-unit decrease in the number of schools over the last three years was caused by factors including a change of legislation in the educational field, a demographic collapse and a significant reduction in the demand for a number of specialties. Yet, the number of students in all forms of secondary, primary and secondary education, including in vocational and higher vocational schools, has increased in the 2010-2011 academic year. This year, it has recorded 2.5 times the number of students listed in higher education in 1990. It would appear, therefore, that in spite of the conflicting dynamics of learning, the integration of science and education in this sphere has significantly affected intellectual capacity. Against this backdrop, the authors have analyzed the performance of materials published on higher education. Their conclusions, given in this paper, are that structuring problems - including lack of public funding for universities, elderliness of the teaching staff, low salaries for teachers, insufficient economic and scientific-methodological teacher training and competition for university admission students - are behind the current crisis in Russia’s higher education.