The year 2023 has been declared the Year of Teachers and Mentors by the decree of President Vladimir Putin and is timed to the 200th anniversary of one of the founders of Russian pedagogy - Konstantin Ushinsky, whose ideas teachers have been guided by to this day.
Konstantin Ushinsky was born on February 19 (March 3), 1823. In the early 1840s, he graduated from the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University with a gold medal. His pedagogical work was at peak in the middle of the 19th century, at that time he combined the work of an advanced scholar and a public figure. It was he who developed the idea that education in Russia should be based on the principles of democracy and develop noting the latest scientific discoveries.
The reason for the democratic restructuring of education in Russia was the lack of schools, so Konstantin Ushinsky exclaimed, ‘My God! How many schools, schools, and schools are needed for all these people, revived to civilian life!’ This is how folk schools appeared, for which Ushinsky wrote simple and interesting textbooks, and prepared effective manuals for teachers. Whole generations of children and hundreds of thousands of teachers were brought up and studied on books created by Konstantin Ushinsky.
For Saratov State University, Ushinsky and his legacy are an important part of the educational process. After all, SSU is the only university in the region that has been training teachers for more than a century. It is no coincidence that the Year of Teachers and Mentors in the region was opened on the site of Saratov State University.
Today, SSU trains students in 18 bachelor's degree and 17 master's degree courses in pedagogical education, 2 bachelor's degree and 5 master's degree courses in psychological and pedagogical education, as well as 5 bachelor's degree and 3 master's degree courses in special (defectological) education. There are 8 bachelor’s degree courses in pedagogical education provided by Balashov Institute.
As part of the Priority 2030 federal programme, the Teachers in the Educational Paradigm strategic project is implemented at SSU. The aim of this project is to promote the idea that teacher training should begin during school.
The university has the SSU Pedagogical Classroom, the university curriculums are improved, and young teachers are trained. In the summer of 2022, the pedagogical networking entitled Young Teachers in the Modern Educational Environment took place for the first time. For four days, teachers learned about the intricacies of the profession at master classes, lectures, workshops, and case studies.
Every year, the SSU hosts the Research-to-Education Festival entitled The Week of Pedagogical Education, where lectures by practicing teachers are given, as well as master classes and panel discussions are held. During this festival, the results of the Step into the Profession university professional skills competition are summed up, students who want to work as teachers take part in it. This year, the 10th Research-to-Education Festival will be held from March 24 to 31.
At the site of Gymnasium No. 7, the following project is implemented – The CONSILIUM Centre for Support of Young Teachers of Saratov Region. It is for young teachers who want to improve their level of professionalism. This project solves several tasks at once – it provides a natural change of generations of teachers in schools, supports graduates who have received pedagogical education at Saratov State University, and most importantly, increases the authority of the teaching profession.
On the day of Ushinsky’s 200th anniversary, the university will host the #Ushinsky200 game, which is attended by students of different pedagogical courses of SSU. Challenges have been organised in the social networks of the university for the anniversary date.
