American Higher Education Versus Russian

(from an interview with Professor B. Gladkih who some years ago visited several American universities, including Harvard University).

Here we present some features of American higher education as described by Professor Gladkih and leave it to you to compare them with the Russian practice.

1. Americans see higher education as a personal business. If you wish to study for a degree – pay your money and go to university. They “invest” in higher education and expect that these investments will pay off in the future. They realize that a university degree gives them advantage in the labour market. Higher education there is very expensive – 20,000-30,000 dollars per year – but it is really valued.

2. Every American student has his individual curriculum. The list of courses offered is published on university sites. Every student is provided with a list of compulsory and elective courses for the chosen area of specialization. Before the semester starts the student chooses 3-5 subjects that he or she wishes to study. There are no academic groups, every student attends courses according to his individual plan.

If a student fails an exam in some course, he is not permitted to retake it. However, he can pay for this course again and take it next semester.

Every course is measured in credits, from 1 credit for the easiest courses to 5 for the most difficult ones. To complete a degree course an undergraduate must earn about 120 credits. Students pay for credits, that is if a student, for example, has chosen courses worth 14 credits for the given semester, he pays for them and passes exams in these courses at the end of semester. After he has accumulated the required number of credits and passed the compulsory courses, he gets a Bachelor’s degree.

3. The American university system comprises 2 levels – a Bachelor’s degree (4 years) and a Master’s degree (2 more years of study). A Bachelor’s degree is valued and a person who has got it displays it with pride on the wall in his home or office.

4. Normally, American students spend 12-15 hours a week in classrooms. They have more time for individual work, and they do work hard outside classrooms. Students bent over books and notes can be seen in all corners of the campus: on benches, lawns, in libraries and cafes.

5. University rules and regulations are strict and must be followed. Undergraduates are expected to do everything on time and meet all deadlines. All exams are written, most of them in the form of multiple choice tests that are assessed/evaluated in grades. Students’ progress is closely watched and grade point average –GPA- is calculated and every student knows his GPA. If his GPA is below 2 (the top grade is 4), the student is expelled.

6. All grades received throughout the degree course are stored in a data base. Information technology at American universities is superb! Each desk in a classroom and each room in a dormitory is connected to the Internet that is fast/speedy and free.

7. Students wear casual clothes: T-shirts, jeans, shorts and caps. Many move on bicycles or roller skates on the campus area. Drinking beer or smoking cigarettes inside academic buildings and even on University grounds is not allowed. To see a smoking student or professor is a very rare thing. At American universities one may meet a lot of Chinese students, especially among those majoring in sciences.

Read each item of the text above and compare it with the relevant Russian practice.

Model: Item 1. The approach to higher education in Russia is totally different. The Russian system was established in the 1930s, when there was an acute shortage of educated specialists for the national economy. The system of higher education was aimed at mass education in conditions of short funds. All the features of the Russian system stem from that approach to train a large number of specialists and to train them cheaply. Until recently all higher education in this country was paid for from the state budget and was free for the population. And as far as I know there are more people here with university diplomas than elsewhere…

Exercise 8.The poem below was written by Vladlen Shouster, a University alumnus. Read the poem and answer the questions.

Я поднимаю тост за Томск,

За тополя в морозной дымке,

За новогодние улыбки

Задорных новогодних толп.

За томских девушек, которым

Подобных не найти нигде,

За общежитий коридоры

Где «постучись в любую дверь».

За первокурсников, похожих

На нас самих… пять лет назад.

За споров яростных азарт

Такой же, как у нас, такой же.

По легкой новогодней вьюге,

Подняв повыше воротник,

От лекций, от серьезных книг

Спешит непройденная юность.

Друзья мои! Выпускники!

Расставшись, мы остались в Томске,

По Томску бродят наши тезки,

Однофамильцы, двойники.

Воспоминаний крепок трос.

В дни праздников, в недели буден

Навеки в нас наш Томск пребудет.

Я поднимаю тост за Томск!

What does the author think of:

1. girls in Tomsk?

2. dormitories?

3. first-year students?

4. University graduates?

5. connection between generations?

6. special atmosphere in Tomsk?

What is the general mood of the poem? Is the author filled with nostalgia for his University days?

Exercise 9.Read the poems below and say where you agree or disagree with the author and what you would like to add.

TOMSK STATE UNIVERSITY

The grand imposing façade,

the heavy oak door,

the marble stairs, the airy flood

inspire reverence and awe.

Since it was opened, on private donations,

amid the taiga and wild game,

TSU’s graduated quite a few generations

who brought this town much fame.

BUILDING No. 2

This plain-looking building

doesn’t catch your eye,

yet here every corner

is always occupied.

Lectures, classes, seminars

are held, to my amazement,

in all the rooms, on all the floors,

and even in the basement!

THE LIBRARY

The library is a sacred place,

here students read and read…

and the mighty Internet

cannot compete with it.

The book depository is stocked

with Stroganov’s donations,

old scripts, rare books, computer disks,

and latest publications.

THE PARK

At leisure, my friends,

go for a stroll in the park

among the dreamy pines, lilacs and limes,

and the birches with shining bark.

The lovely shooting buds,

the fragrance of bird cherry,

the sight of squirrels eating nuts

will make you fresh and merry.

THE FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

There is a special faculty

At our TSU.

It was established recently,

In fact, it is quite new.

The faculty is headed

By a wise and mighty Dean.

Her voice is soft but words are strict,

We know what they mean!

Among the teaching staff there are

Young girls and white-haired ladies.

They spare no effort, no time,

To teach are always ready.

As to the students, oh, where else

Are there such pretty girls?

With long dark lashes, dimpled cheeks,

With blonde and fluffy curls.

Beware! Their sweet angelic looks

Conceal their nails and fists,

They are ambitious, they are cool,

True Russian feminists!

They learn a hundred foreign words

And grammar rules each day.

They read Charles Dickens, Bernard Shaw,

And William Thackeray.

To master English, German, French

These students travel lots,

They know all the world today

Demands top polyglots!

The winners in a linguistic contest
THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT (The IRD)

In nineteen ninety-two

Our TSU

Opened a new department.

It enrolled

Most promising boys

To promote Russia’s advancement.

The dean told them,

Now and then,

Receiving them in his office:

“My dear friends,

You must understand

Russia’s future is in your hands!”

Five classes a day,

No rest, no play,

In rooms with no fresh air,

Economics and law,

And many things more

Sometimes drove us to despair.

English, of course,

German and French,

We couldn’t leave them out.

We also need

A good expertise

In Chinese and Japanese.

Now we are employed

In many fields,

We found inspiration

In foreign offices,

Companies, firms,

Municipal administration.

And looking back

On those days

We feel nostalgic.

Thank you for all!

May you always be!

Three cheers for the IRD!!!

A Chinese class in the IRD
THE UNIVERSITY SONG

Filled with great aspirations

we came here at seventeen

to get an education, absorb information,

obey all the teachers and deans.

Prominent professors

brilliantly lectured to us,

the stressful exams and tricky tests

were not very easy to pass.

Fortune favors the brave!

No pain, no gain!

We repeated, to stay undefeated,

those maxims again and again.

Brief moments of relaxation

were spent in the gyms and the park,

among the evergreen pine-trees,

where squirrels wished us good luck.

Four, five, six years

swiftly flew by and seem far,

we were awarded the degrees

of Bachelor and Master. Hurrah!

They’ll always stay with me,

my University days,

busy and hectic, bright and romantic,

they left in my heart a deep trace.

Exercise 10.a) Guess what events the photos below illustrate. Try to give an extended answer. Support your ideas with facts from your experience.

Model 1. I think it is a typical lecture. Students are in a lecture theatre, waiting for the lecture to start. Lectures are given to large audiences, students listen to lecturers and take notes. Here it seems to me some students are missing. I personally try to attend all the lectures but last week I missed 2 lectures since I was unwell.

b) Make a dialogue on the basis of a photo.

Model 2. St.A: It’s an ordinary lecture.

St. B: Yes, like the ones we have every day.

A: It seems there are not many students yet. Perhaps some will still arrive.

B: Yes, some are obviously missing. To tell the truth, yesterday I missed my morning class,too.

A: Did you? It’s so unlike you. You never miss and always arrive in time.

B. This time I overslept! I stayed up too late the night before.