INSTALLATION OF THE UNIFIED STATE EXAM IN RUSSIA AS A CASE OF POLICY TRANSFER IN EDUCATION
Afonina, Aleksandra (2017)
2017
Kuvaus
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Tiivistelmä
This paper studies installation of the Unified State Exam in Russia in 2001 up to the cur-rent period as an example of policy transfer. There are several research questions in this study. Firstly, it is important to define whether the USE reform qualifies as policy trans-fer and what are the factors defining its outcomes. Besides, this case allows to make some theoretical conclusions on policy transfer as a method. Russia is a complicated set-ting that borrowed a policy from a different institutional setting, therefore this case can show how Russian setting clashes with new policy, changing it while it highlights its problems in a illustrative way.
This paper analyzed the USE reform in its entirety, studying the standardised tests as a policy, looking at Russian setting, the actors involved in the transfer and the process of the USE implementation. Respective theories on policy transfer in general and policy borrowing in education were applied to this case of transfer in order to assess it. This work also analyzes political dimension of the transfer, since it is necessary to take it into consideration when assessing the USE’s results.
After conducting the research, it is possible to give the following assessment of the USE. It is good example of policy transfer; both internal features of this policy and spe-cific setting that did the borrowing define its controversial outcomes. On the one hand, the USE reached its goal by helping to fight corruption and educational inequality. On the other hand, it simplified the educational system and level of education dropped, so the USE may be dismantled. However, it is important to notice that these results are not unique, as standardized tests can have detrimental effect on education system. Besides, if the USE is replaced with a different system in some time to come, this can be ex-plained by shifts in the country’s political course and should not be attributed purely to the USE’s performance and the outcomes of this transfer itself. These contradictions stress the importance of conducting comprehensive analysis when studying policy trans-fer. Policy features and the setting are to be analyzed very thoroughly in order to assess the results of transfer objectively.
This paper analyzed the USE reform in its entirety, studying the standardised tests as a policy, looking at Russian setting, the actors involved in the transfer and the process of the USE implementation. Respective theories on policy transfer in general and policy borrowing in education were applied to this case of transfer in order to assess it. This work also analyzes political dimension of the transfer, since it is necessary to take it into consideration when assessing the USE’s results.
After conducting the research, it is possible to give the following assessment of the USE. It is good example of policy transfer; both internal features of this policy and spe-cific setting that did the borrowing define its controversial outcomes. On the one hand, the USE reached its goal by helping to fight corruption and educational inequality. On the other hand, it simplified the educational system and level of education dropped, so the USE may be dismantled. However, it is important to notice that these results are not unique, as standardized tests can have detrimental effect on education system. Besides, if the USE is replaced with a different system in some time to come, this can be ex-plained by shifts in the country’s political course and should not be attributed purely to the USE’s performance and the outcomes of this transfer itself. These contradictions stress the importance of conducting comprehensive analysis when studying policy trans-fer. Policy features and the setting are to be analyzed very thoroughly in order to assess the results of transfer objectively.