According to the results of an all-Russian competition, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation has assigned SSU the status of a federal innovative venue. It is a part of the innovative infrastructure in higher education and related continuing education which has been updated in 2021.
The status of a federal innovative venue (FIV) is assigned to universities implementing innovative projects or programmes that ensure the modernisation and development of the education system taking into account the main areas of social and economic development and the implementation of priority aspects of the state policy of the Russian Federation in education. Among 127 applications supported, this status was given to SSU five-year project titled the Centre for Research and Methodology Support of Young Teachers. It was developed by a team of university experts led by Doctor of Philology, Professor, Head of Priority Projects and Programmes Elena Yelina.
The SSU FIV is associated with the foundation of the Centre for Young Teacher Support where they will be able to apply three years after their graduation. The concept of the Centre is based on the need to strengthen the scientific principle in the pedagogical, methodological and subject internships of a young school teacher, in the use of innovative educational technologies, in solving problems related to the digitalisation of modern education. At the Centre not only teachers who start working but also students studying in pedagogical courses will be able to join the same venues (educational, scientific, discussion, consulting, competitive, and creative ones).The connecting link in this case is SSU master degree students and postgraduates, with the majority of them being included in teaching, and the strategic core is schools in which the corporate departments of the university successfully work, and there is cooperation in supervising the hub schools of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The Centre will start operating in 2021 and keep on working until at least 2025, providing support for at least 150 teaching staff annually. The teaching staff of Saratov Region and other regions of Russia will be involved in such activities of the Centre as the SSU research and methodology conferences, the competition of pedagogical skills titled the Step into the Profession" (for SSU students and young teachers), the annual research and education festival titled the Week of Pedagogy Education, permanent research and methodology seminars, webinars, and teacher creative laboratories. The Centre will have an online advisory centre for teachers – the Consilium. A number of events will be held at the SSU Centre for Talented Children. Most of the events will be available remotely.
