Routledge Teacher Education in Russia: Past, Present, and Future (Routledge Research in Teacher Education)

This book examines the history, recent developments, and direction of travel of Russian teacher education. It draws on scholarly expertise and professional experience in Russia and locates the policies and practices that are discussed within the context of the continuing global reform of teacher education. Providing a rich description of the trajectory of teacher education in Russia, the book analyses the processes of change between the history, current practice, and future directions for Russian teacher education. The chapters consider the relationship between research, policy, and practice and examine the respective influences of the former USSR, of processes of wider reform in the Russian Federation since 'glasnost' and 'perestroika', and of globalisation within education. What emerges from the book is that the Russian case is a prime example of 'vernacular globalisation' in teacher education. Many important insights into processes of education reform and some of the major themes in teacher education are discussed, thus providing new perspectives that are likely to be of interest to scholars and researchers of comparative education and teacher education, as well as policymakers. Review "We have seen a resurgence of interest in educational reform and practices in the former Soviet Union, including a spate of papers and articles that look at the nature of teaching in post-soviet states. But, there is still little recent, in-depth scholarship on teacher education. This book fills a conspicuous gap in our literature by providing a detailed and comprehensive look at Russian teacher education. The book is solidly situated in the historical context and in the English literature on Soviet and Russian education. It affords the reader an accessible, but detailed synopsis of the context of the changes and transitions that have go on in the modern period. The book clearly addresses the impact of globalization on teacher education and the case study of KFU gives us a sense of the dynamism – e.g. addressing issues of ethnic and religious diversity -- in what has often been considered a lock-step federalized system. It details how the political crisis of the late 1980s and 1990s ushered in a re-thinking of Soviet educational policies and programs, resulting in a new system that continues to be shaped by extensive federal reform efforts. The ongoing efforts to reform teacher education in the context of university system reform allows the reader to compare Russia with other nations that have engaged in broad attempts to reform teacher education."   Gerald LeTendre, Penn State College of Education, Pennsylvania State University, USA "This book takes us through a fascinating journey of the past and present of teacher education in Russia. It clearly illustrates how practice and policy in teacher education have been shaped over time through the complex interplay and influence of culture, politics, history and economics. While it presents the uniqueness of Russia’s case, it also points to future scenarios in light of the increasing influence of globalisation - an analysis that is also relevant to understand the reality of teacher education in other jurisdictions. A valuable contribution to the field and a must-read book for all those interested in teacher education." Maria Assunção Flores, University of Minho, Portugal About the Author Ian Menter is Emeritus Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Oxford, UK, and a Senior Research Associate in the Institute of Psychology and Pedagogy at Kazan Federal University, Russia. He is a former President of the British Educational Research Association.