Over the past few years, active work has been going on in the field of Russian education to expand the list of exams that schoolchildren must pass at the end of 11th grade. Thus, the question of whether the Unified State Exam in English will become mandatory and from what year turned out to be one of the most controversial: it was this decision that caused the most controversy.
Why do we need a mandatory Unified State Examination in English?
English is a discipline that an ordinary schoolchild studies for 10 years: from the second to the eleventh grade. It would seem that during this time you can learn it at a good level. However, the news that the Unified State Examination in English will become mandatory has caused many negative responses from not only children, but also parents. This is due to the fact that most of them simply do not understand why another mandatory exam is needed if the graduate does not want to connect his life with linguistics or international relations.
The official position of the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for secondary general education, is as follows: English is the language of international communication, and in a world tuned to globalization, the skill of communicating with representatives of other cultures is especially relevant. Therefore, every student who has received an education must be able to understand and express himself in English. The development of these skills is the purpose of introducing a compulsory English exam.
Positive sides
Despite many complaints and dissatisfaction, the mandatory Unified State Exam in English for all has its advantages. Firstly, it is an incentive to learn a foreign language at least at a basic level. Thus, by showing a little more effort and perseverance in school lessons, the student will have key ideas about the structure, grammar and vocabulary of the English language. So in the future, if desired, he will be able to restore the remaining gaps and improve his knowledge to the required level. If in adult life he never needs professional English, at least his knowledge will be enough to support everyday dialogue abroad or place an order in an online store.
In addition, it is likely that the need to pass the Unified State Exam in English will encourage not only children, but also their parents to study it.
Minuses
Although the advantages listed above seem to be enough, there are still negative consequences, and there are many of them. First of all, let's be honest, a regular secondary school is not the place where you can learn a foreign language. Despite the allotted three hours a week, schoolchildren are at best able to complete standard grammar tasks and compose sentences according to a template.
An additional exam will only increase the level of workload and stress, which is already off the charts.
Due to the ineffectiveness of school lessons, the demand for tutors and language courses will most likely increase, but not every family can afford additional expenses, especially for a subject that is not required for admission.
From what year is the Unified State Exam in English a mandatory exam?
Whether ordinary schoolchildren and their parents like it or not, the decision to introduce English into the list of compulsory exams has already been made. In many interviews and public appearances, the Minister of Education O. Yu. Vasilyeva says that in some regions a trial exam will be held in 2020. The Unified State Exam in English will become mandatory by 2022. This means that current eighth-graders will be the first to write it, and in some regions, tenth-graders. It is believed that it is at this moment that the Russian education system will be completely restructured in accordance with the requirements of the new time, and schoolchildren will be ready to write an exam without resorting to the help of tutors.
Basic and profile level: what is the difference.
The current English exam is quite difficult. According to official sources, in order to write it as “excellent”, you need to have a level corresponding to B2 according to the pan-European system. It includes tasks of increased complexity, such as an essay or a detailed written statement, as well as oral analysis and comparison of pictures, which requires the ability to spontaneously and quickly express one’s thoughts in a foreign language. Without a long and thorough study of English, such results are extremely difficult to achieve, so it is not surprising that the compulsory exam is divided into two levels: basic and specialized.
The profile level is intended for graduates who are seriously involved in languages and who need an exam to enter a university. It will be very similar to the already existing Unified State Exam, both in structure and level of complexity. It probably won't even undergo any major changes.
To create a basic level, judging by the statements of the ministry, the existing format of the CDF in English will be taken as a basis.
What skills are required to successfully pass the compulsory English language exam?
The basic level will correspond to level A2-B1, the ministry says. This means that the student must be able to communicate on everyday topics: talk about his family, interests, hobbies, plans for the future. It shouldn’t be a problem for him to order food in a restaurant, pay a bill, or go to the store. He is able to discuss work issues at a basic level that is within his full-time area of expertise.
The student must understand unadapted English speech in simple dialogues or texts, but for more complex topics, such as, for example, reading serious foreign media, his knowledge is not enough.
Assignment format
Probably, the basic level will include four blocks: listening, reading, grammar and vocabulary, speaking. To complete the tasks, it is enough to know the simplest vocabulary, be able to understand and apply basic grammatical structures in practice.
In listening, students are asked to listen to a short friendly dialogue and answer questions that are directly answered in the recording.
When completing reading assignments, students must match headings and short texts, no longer than 3-4 sentences.
The grammar and vocabulary block includes the simplest word formation, where you need to transform a given word so that it fits correctly into the text, as well as a task to compare spaces in the text and words that go with them.
An oral statement involves a description of a photograph to choose from three. At the same time, the student must imagine that he is telling his friend about it and use vocabulary appropriate to the situation, be able to accurately name the objects depicted in the picture, and also clearly formulate his thoughts.
Important note: this description of tasks is based on the existing PDF in English. It is likely that some tasks may change or disappear altogether, and some may be added. This depends on the year in which the compulsory Unified State Exam in English will be introduced, and how the approaches and requirements for monitoring students’ knowledge will change by that time. However, the general level of knowledge testing will remain the same.
language?
Considering that Basic English is positioned as an easy exam, which every student who regularly attends school lessons can pass, it will not require any special preparation. It is probably worth taking English lessons more seriously, doing your homework on your own and sorting out existing mistakes with the teacher, and knowing the vocabulary and grammar provided in the school textbook.
Additionally, you can watch films and TV series in English to better understand spoken language, as well as read adapted literature or at least entertaining English-language media to expand your vocabulary. If you wish, it is useful to find a pen pal in order to practice learning how to formulate your own thoughts into statements in a foreign language.
To summarize, we can say that regardless of what year the compulsory Unified State Exam in English will be introduced, you can start studying it now, because this is a truly important skill in the modern world.
The new educational standard for grades 10-11 provides for the introduction of a third compulsory Unified State Exam - in a foreign language. Galina Rynskaya, an English teacher at the Moscow Second School Lyceum and an expert in the UNESCO Information for All program, discusses the benefits and risks of innovation in an interview with RIA Novosti.
Galina Olegovna, the decision to introduce a compulsory Unified State Exam in a foreign language has been made, but the question of the timing remains. All schools in the country will operate according to the standard for high school only by 2020, but HSE Rector Yaroslav Kuzminov proposes making the Unified State Exam in a foreign language mandatory as soon as possible. How do you feel about this idea?
I support the idea of a mandatory Unified State Exam in a foreign language, but the timing and methods of its implementation can and should be discussed. As a teacher, I believe that we need to act in this situation carefully and gradually: introduce the mandatory Unified State Exam in stages, first in a pilot mode and, depending on the results, extend it to the entire country. I propose to start the experiment in Moscow, where English teachers earn more than other subject teachers and where most schoolchildren choose the Unified State Exam in foreign languages.
The Unified State Exam in foreign languages is unpopular among graduates. Thus, this year only 8.5% of the total number of children passed English, German and French - generally tenths of a percent. Compared to 54% of those who took social studies and 25% who took physics, these are not numbers at all. How can we explain such a low rating for such an important subject?
Firstly, in very few universities a foreign language is a major. Secondly, our KIMs for the English language are developed based on foreign analogues, are overly complicated and are designed more for native speakers than for average Russian children. It is no coincidence that many graduates who take this exam simply want to practice before entering foreign universities and colleges.
But we must prepare our children not to go abroad, but to work for the benefit of our industry and science. The English language, along with information technology, today becomes an integral “gentleman’s kit” when applying for any more or less promising job. Knowledge of foreign languages broadens your horizons, allows you to freely communicate with peers from other countries...
Will the introduction of a mandatory Unified State Exam in a foreign language help improve the quality of teaching this subject?
I hope this is exactly what happens. And most importantly, this will allow the state to pay attention to this problem and get its solution off the ground. Mandatoryness implies control, which means that the demand from students and teachers will be stricter. So far, English, as well as other foreign languages, is taught poorly, as a secondary subject: if there is no mandatory independent exam, it is quite difficult to make demands on teachers. Of course, interested parents will find tutors and pay them money, but not everyone has such an opportunity, and this is not a way out.
As for students, they will finally have an incentive to learn a foreign language - and not only in high school, but throughout their entire school career.
At the same time, we will not be able to implement the proposed innovation only through a “carrot and stick” policy. A whole range of measures will be required.
- What needs to be done?
We need to act in different directions. First of all, rework KIM in English: in their current form they do not correspond to the tasks of our school and the real capabilities of students and teachers. In other words, the level of assignments must correspond to the requirements that are imposed on schoolchildren in the learning process, and not to exorbitant foreign standards. To do this, methodologists and teachers who know school practice well should take part in the development of CIM. I also consider the introduction of the oral part to be promising: the ability to communicate is one of the key competencies.
And current English language programs and textbooks should be re-evaluated, since many of them, recommended for schools, turn out to be completely ineffective.
Without a doubt, it is necessary to improve the qualifications of teachers and conduct their certification in the form of the Unified State Exam. Let them prove that they know the language they are teaching: they can communicate freely, answer questions, and write correctly. The more teachers we have who have confirmed their qualifications, the more experts we will have who can take and evaluate the oral part of the Unified State Examination in a foreign language. Those who fail the exam should look for another job.
What basic principles should be followed in teaching a foreign language when moving to new standards?
The goals and objectives of teaching English at school must meet the needs of society, and the requirements for graduates must be feasible. Then the tasks for the Unified State Exam will become realistic, and teachers and students will catch up.
Prepared by Olga Dashkovskaya, National Research University Higher School of Economics, especially for RIA Novosti.
Unified State Exam in 2017: compulsory subjects and changes
Gaining knowledge is a long and difficult task, and showing the results of your achievements is even more difficult. How will the Unified State Exam be held in 2017, and what changes does the Ministry of Education plan to make to these exams?
The path to achieving your goals is not easy, and you have to “struggle and search” from an early age. The first schoolchildren who have experience passing the Unified State Exam have already graduated from universities, but what will today’s future school graduates face, how many subjects will they need to take in 2017?
What changes are planned to be made
Until now, the Unified State Exam was conducted in writing using the testing method - this gave the opportunity to a student who doubts the correctness of the answer to use many hints.
Students were offered specific options for answering assignments; choosing the right solution was not difficult. Careless students had the opportunity to choose the correct answer intuitively.
Considering these facts, the Ministry of Education is thinking about making changes to the methods of conducting the Unified State Exam in 2017.
The difference from previous years is that it is planned to completely eliminate the test component; the exams are supposed to be conducted in the form of a survey, as was the case before 2009.
The number of compulsory subjects will also change; previously, students took the compulsory Unified State Examination in the following subjects:
- Russian language;
- mathematics.
What is required?
Deputy Head of the Ministry of Education Natalya Tretyak proposed adding one more mandatory Unified State Examination in 2017, and increasing their number to four by 2020!
The purpose of making changes to the Unified State Examination is to obtain reliable information about students’ knowledge.
The Russian language exam takes place, as before, in the form of an essay; this compulsory type of Unified State Examination is carried out first, and it serves as an indicator of the student’s preparation for passing other subjects. It was supposed to evaluate the essay according to the principle: “pass”/“fail”, but this system does not suit many people, since this option for evaluating work may be biased.
Any student who fails the essay on the first attempt can repeat it, but if he fails again, he will have to postpone all exams until next year.
As for the list of subjects that schoolchildren must take to choose from, it will not change:
- physics;
- geography;
- literature;
- chemistry;
- story;
- foreign languages;
- Informatics;
- social science.
It is planned that from 2017 the exam results will be reflected in the final grade in the certificate.
Basic and profile
Today's schoolchildren can choose their math exam level:
- Base.
- Profile.
- Two levels at the same time.
The basic level is necessary to obtain a certificate and be able to enter a university where mathematics is not an entrance exam. The basic level will be assessed using a five-point system.
The exam in mathematics at the profile level is taken by schoolchildren planning to enter a university where mathematics is included in the list of mandatory entrance tests. This exam will be scored on a 100-point scale.
Another attempt
It is noteworthy that schoolchildren will have the opportunity to additionally retake the Unified State Exam: they will be able to take the exam twice during the year. Ninth-graders will also be given the opportunity to take the exams again; previously this was only possible if they received an unsatisfactory grade.
It is planned to give schoolchildren the opportunity to improve their performance for any result, that is, even if they receive a passing grade, they can retake any subject in order to improve their grade.
What item will be added?
Disputes over an additional compulsory subject for the Unified State Exam continue; in 2017, it was planned to add a history exam. The fact is that today’s youth have very little knowledge in this area: distortion of facts and changes made after the change of political leaders did not have the best impact on them. This has led to the fact that today's schoolchildren began to receive historical knowledge in a distorted form.
In this regard, a proposal was made to introduce a history exam into compulsory subjects. But today the issue of making the Unified State Examination in history a compulsory subject in 2017 has not yet been resolved. But the Ministry of Education is preparing a project to introduce a foreign language as a compulsory subject.
From 2017, a foreign language exam will be tested; from 2022, it is planned to make it mandatory, along with mathematics and Russian.. What other mandatory Unified State Examinations will be included in this list has not yet been decided.
Ninth-graders today can receive a certificate after passing the GIA-9 in mathematics and Russian, and they will also take any two elective exams. In 2017, ninth grade students will be able to receive a certificate of education only after successfully passing all four exams.
The mandatory Unified State Exam in a foreign language will be easier than the current one. The tasks will be designed in such a way that a student of the most ordinary school can cope with them. They will be created on the basis of materials from all-Russian test papers, which 11th graders are writing for the first time this year. A wide range of schoolchildren are offered simple texts about Russia to read and discuss; essays and writing have been excluded from assignments. A mandatory Unified State Examination in a foreign language is planned to be introduced for all graduates in 2022.
As Oksana Reshetnikova, director of the Federal Institute of Pedagogical Measurements, told Izvestia, the mandatory Unified State Exam is focused on the final school assessment of graduates studying a foreign language at a basic level. It will be easier than the current state elective exam, which is written by those wishing to enter universities for some specialties.
The basis for the mandatory Unified State Examination will be the tasks of the All-Russian Test Work (VPR). This year, for the first time, such final tests are written by graduates studying English, French and German.
This year, the VPR does not include tasks for creating written texts - this type of speech activity is the least in demand for those who do not connect their profession with a foreign language, explained Oksana Reshetnikova. - But the need for writing tasks in the compulsory Unified State Exam is still being discussed.
The content of the current Unified State Exam (USE) and the VPR are also different. Nowadays, graduates who choose a final certification in a foreign language are offered popular science texts during the exam. In the VPR and, accordingly, the future “lite” Unified State Examination, there are texts about Russia and the life of a Russian schoolchild. According to the developers, it is important that any graduate can talk about himself and his country. They were guided by the principle of “dialogue of cultures,” which requires, among other things, the ability to “represent one’s native culture in the foreign language being studied,” Oksana Reshetnikova explained.
compulsory Unified State Examination in foreign languages for 2018–2022. It has not yet been decided whether (and how) the exam will be divided into two levels - for those who need it to enter the university, and those who do not.
Today, the Unified State Exam in a foreign language consists of two parts - written (40 tasks in three hours, including essays, writing, listening) and oral (four tasks in 15 minutes).
“The head of Rosobrnadzor, Sergei Kravtsov, stated that the decision to introduce a compulsory Unified State Exam in foreign language from 2022 will not be revised. The head of the service admitted that schools have problems with resources, but noted that rescheduling cannot solve them.
The complexity of tasks for the compulsory Unified State Exam should correspond to the average level of the school, Evgenia Baida, associate professor of the department of phonetics and English vocabulary at Moscow State Pedagogical University, explained to Izvestia. In her opinion, if a graduate has mastered the school curriculum, he will not have problems in the exam. It is the teachers’ task to give him everything he needs for this, Evgenia Baida emphasized.
In addition to simplified examination materials, one of the ways to solve the problem of introducing a mandatory Unified State Exam in a foreign language is to introduce a low minimum score. It will be determined when research is carried out on the level of knowledge of Russian schoolchildren, which will also be helped by all-Russian testing.
Nowadays, 8–9% of graduates take the Unified State Examination in a foreign language every year. These are those who are going to enroll in linguistics and related specialties. The level of language proficiency of the remaining graduates has not previously been checked at the federal level.
Izvestia Help
This year, about a quarter of Russian schools (12 thousand) conduct CPR in foreign languages, Sergei Stanchenko, director of the Federal Institute for Assessment of the Quality of Education (FIOKO), told Izvestia.
They are required to be written only by fourth and fifth grade students, and by sixth and 11th graders - at the discretion of the school. It is not recommended to use the results of the VPR to set annual grades, Rosobrnadzor told Izvestia.
