Http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/tempus Unit 1 The Bologna process and its impact on the Russian system of higher education

http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/tempus

Unit 1

The Bologna process and its impact on the

Russian system of higher education


What is the Bologna Process?

The Bologna Process is named after the Bologna Declaration, which was signed in the Italian city of Bologna on 19 June 1999 by ministers in charge of higher education from 29 European countries.


The aim of the Bologna Process

The aim of the Bologna Process is to create a European Higher Education Area (EHEA) based on international cooperation and academic exchange.


THE KEY STATEMENTS

OF THE BOLOGNA DECLARATION?


1. Making academic degree standards more comparable and compatible throughout Europe; the basic framework adopted is of two/three cycles of higher education qualification (bachelor-master-doctorate) that are defined in terms of qualifications and ECTS credits.


2. Fair recognition of foreign degrees and other higher education qualifications in accordance with the Council of Europe/UNESCO Recognition Convention.


3. Quality assurance in accordance with the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area.


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4. Facilitate mobility of students, graduates and higher education staff.


5. Prepare students for their future careers and for life as active citizens in democratic societies, and support their personal development.


6. Facilitate broad access to high-quality higher education, based on democratic principles and academic freedom.


7. Develop links between higher education, research and innovation; equitable participation and lifelong learning.


The key dates of the Bologna process


19 June, 1999 – the date when the Bologna Declaration was signed by the representatives of 29 European countries (47 countries are involved now); it is considered to be the starting point of the Bologna process;


19 September, 2003 – the Conference of Ministers responsible for Higher Education in European countries, Berlin; 19 May, 2005 – Conference of Ministers responsible for Higher Education in European countries, Bergen; 18 May, 2007 – Conference of Ministers responsible for higher education in European countries, London;28-29 April 2009 – Conference of European Ministers responsible for higher education, Leuven and Louvain-la-Neuve; 11-12 March, 2010 – Declaration of European Ministers responsible for higher education, Budapest-Vienna; 26-27 April, 2012 – Conference of the Ministers responsible for higher education in the 47 countries, Bucharest.


The next EHEA Ministerial Conference will take place in Yerevan, Armenia in 2015, where the progress on the priorities set above will be reviewed.


The Bologna Process in Russia


Key reasons for Russia to join the BP:

• integration processes in economics;• self-revision of the Russian system of

higher education.


Inception phase in Russia

2000-2002 – The period of argumentation and discussions.2003 – The Russian government created a working group and defined the universities responsible for developing and implementing a particular priority of the Bologna Declaration.


Saint Petersburg State University was responsible for:•developing the framework of two/three cycles of higher education qualification (bachelor-master-doctorate);•developing quality assurance management of higher education; •implementing Diploma Supplement as a tool of academic mobility.


Russian University of Friendship among Nations was responsible for:•implementing ECTS as a tool of academic mobility;•developing the system of recognition of degrees and other higher education qualifications in the Russian Federation and other BP countries.


19 September, 2003 – the Russian Federation joined the Bologna process at the Conference of Ministers responsible for Higher Education in European countries that was held in Berlin.


2010 – all institutions of higher education in the Russian Federation moved to the framework of two cycles of higher education qualification (bachelor-master).


The Bologna Process at Mordovia State University• 2005 – first students recruited to bachelor

programs (after three years of specialist program);• 2007 – 11 bachelor programs + 4 master

programs;• 2007 – the program of implementing the two

cycles system of education (bachelor +master) at MRSU was adopted;

• 2010 – 53 bachelor programs + 28 master programs + 7 specialist programs.


Achievements and challenges

2013 – results and perspectives of BP at MRSU:•We have recruited students for bachelor and master programs. We have graduates of these programs. •BUT GREAT difficulties with employment (no laws, no clear understanding of their competences among employers etc.).


• No academic freedom for students – (options of courses exist formally, students have no real choice);

• quality assurance management – a lot of paperwork, no critical analysis of the questionnaires; no measures to improve the current situation;

• academic mobility of students and university staff – developing very slowly (absence of experience and knowledge – Diploma Supplement – very few people (both students and relevant administrators) have clear idea of this document and its application;

• ECTS – a very sore subject (since 2012 the workload has been calculated by credits, but neither teachers nor students know how to earn a credit – no score rating in assessing student’s knowledge).


The Bologna Process in other countries

involvedMost countries do not currently fit the framework – instead they have their own time-honoured systems.However, the process is now moving away from a strict convergence in terms of time spent on qualifications towards a competency-based system.


ReferencesCommuniqué of the Conference of Ministers responsible for Higher Education in Berlin on 19 September 2003. On: EALTA – European Association for Language Testing and Assessment. [Online.] Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htmCommuniqué of the Conference of European Ministers Responsible for Higher Education, Bergen, 19-20 May 2005.[Online.] Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htmTowards the European Higher Education Area: responding to challenges in a globalised world, London Communiqué, London, 18 May 2007.[Online.] Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htmCommuniqué of the Conference of European Ministers Responsible for Higher Education, Leuven and Louvain-la-Neuve, 28-29 April 2009; [Online.] Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htmMaking the Most of Our Potential: Consolidating the European Higher Education Area Bucharest Communiqué, Bucharest, 26-27 April 2012.[Online.] Available at:http://ec.europa.eu/education/lifelong-learning-policy/doc48_en.htmШевченко, Е. В. 2002. Будущее европейского образования. Болонский процесс (Сорбонна-Болонья-Саламанка-Прага). Изд-во СПбГТУ, 2002. С. 6-13.

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Http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/tempus Unit 1 The Bologna process and its impact on the Russian system of higher education