School, Reform and Society in the New Russia by Stephen L. s> Webber (review)

Abstract

578 SEER, 79, 3, 200 I hadpredictedconflictin Kosovo, andeffortsproliferatedbynon governmental organizations(NGOs) at conflictprevention. ProfessorMertusanalysesthese effortsandfindsthemwanting.While hercategorizationof theNGOs working in Kosovo is somewhat simplistic and a bit derisive ('war tourists', 'flag planters','seedplanters',and 'nearlyinvisiblehands'),some of the insightsshe offersresonate with the professionallytimid 'do no harm' school of developmental assistance identified by Mary Anderson. Mertus's exhortation to internationalNGOs to workconstructivelywith local counterpartsis as valid as it is elusivein a humanitarian'marketplace' where achieving a high profile and obtainingpublicityarenecessaryto securefunding.Lackof coordination, competition over turf,and inadequate accountabilityresult. ProfessorMertus's I998 postscriptshows that she favoursthe cause of the ethnic Albanians in Kosovo, and she urges NGOs to 'not pretend to be neutral', touching brieflyon a major debate among humanitariansthat itself is rifewith 'hidden transcripts'and relative'truths'. The recent electoraldefeatof Slobodan Milosevic at the time of thiswriting will be a key determinantof Kosovo's future,likelyunderminingthe quest of the ethnic Albanians for independence. But a return to normalcy will be difficultto achieve. Indeed, this book shows that the repatriationof Serbs to Kosovo could sparknew conflict. Council onForeign Relations ARTHUR C. HELTON New-York Webber, Stephen L. School,Reformand Societyin theNew Russia.Studies in Russianand EastEuropeanHistoryand Society. Macmillan,Basingstoke and London in association with the Centre for Russian and East EuropeanStudies,Universityof Birmingham,2000. XX+ 252 pp. Tables. Figure.Appendices. Notes. Bibliography.Indexes. f42.50. IT is important that despite all the disturbing political and economic developments in the heart of what was once the Soviet Union, educational changes takingplace in the Russian Federationreceive proper attention from youngerscholarswho, in additionto genuine andlastinginterestin the matter, find enough time and determination to conduct proper field research into exactly what changes are taking place in Russian education at the present time. This taskis, however, not easy, even for an investigatorwho possessesa perfect knowledge of Russian and adequate resources to conduct numerous penetrating interviews and discussions with Russian teachers, educational administrators,lecturers, officials,journalists, parents, students and pupils, and is able to visit several cities and many educational establishments of differentkinds.Fortunately,the authorof thisbook knowswell what questions must be askedand answered, searchesfor many differentviews and opinions and can critically assess and evaluate the available evidence. That may, however, be confusing, contradictory and incompatible. The complexity of the scene may, indeed, 'suggest a near chaos defying analysis' (p. i6). Formulatingvalid conclusions presents, therefore, a real challenge and one mustkeep this in mind when readingthe book. REVIEWS 579 The volume consists of three parts of very different length. The first scrutinizesthe aims of the reform effort;the second, constituting half of the whole book, examines in detail the patterns of change in the school system; the third,ratherbriefconsideringthe importance of the theme, deals with the relationshipbetween Russia'sschools and its society. The 'Introduction'identifiesimportantmethodological considerations:the approach to the study;the significanceof both macro- and micro-levelissues; the statisticalsources;the characterand the scale of interviewsand questionnaires ;the issuesconnected with access to educational establishments. The author visited over forty of the latter, at differentlevels of education, including research institutions as well as the FederalMinistry of Education. He also made indirectcontactswith over fiftyeducationalestablishments. Part One examines the need for change in Russian schools, describes the gradual evolution of the Reform Agenda going back to the I98os; the importantworkof teacherinnovatorsand the influence of progressivewriters such as Vasili Sukhomlinskii, Shalva Amonashvili, V. F. Shatalov and the famous VNIK (Vremennyi nauchno-issledovatel'skii kollektiv). The last section of this part constitutes a more detailed scrutiny of the reform programme of Eduard Dneprov and the I992 Law on Education. The importance of the individualityandpersonalityofthe childreceives,inevitably,properattention, but to identifyAnton Makarenkoas one of its promoters,next to Lev Tolstoi, Ushinskii,Sukhomlinskiiand Amonashvili(p. 42) mustbe questioned. Part Two provides an evaluation of the implementation of the reform proposals. The author stressesthat reforming education is a difficultmatter even in stable and prosperous countries, where, as a matter of course the introduction of reform is followed by its effective implementation. In today's Russia, 'the scenarioof a huge agenda callingfor radicalchange in all aspects of schools' organization, set against the backdrop of social upheaval and financialcrisis,appearsto offerratherbleakprospects'(p. 52). The cumulative effectof the real impact of frequentministerialchanges;the difficultiesarising from the inability...