Over the past few years, Russian education has been actively working to expand the list of exams that schoolchildren must pass at the end of grade 11. So, the question of whether the USE 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 exam in English?

English is a discipline that an ordinary student 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 USE in English will become mandatory caused a lot of negative feedback 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, in whose department secondary general education is located, is as follows: English is the language of international communication, and in a world tuned to globalization, the ability to communicate with representatives of other cultures is especially relevant. Therefore, every student who has received an education should be able to understand English speech and speak it. It is the development of these skills that is the goal of introducing a mandatory English exam.

Positive sides

Despite a lot of complaints and dissatisfaction, the USE, which is mandatory for all in English, has its advantages. Firstly, it is an incentive to learn a foreign language at least at a basic level. So, having shown a little more diligence 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 desired level. If in adult life he does not need professional knowledge of 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 Examination 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, an ordinary comprehensive school is not the place where you can learn a foreign language. Despite the allotted three hours a week, students are at best able to complete typical grammar tasks and form sentences according to a template.

An additional exam will only increase the level of workload and stress, which goes off scale without it.

Due to the inefficiency 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 needed for admission.

Since what year is the USE 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 speeches, the Minister of Education O. Yu. Vasilyeva says that in some regions a trial exam will be held as early as 2020. The USE in English will become compulsory by 2022. This means that the current eighth graders will be the first to write it, and in some regions, tenth graders. It is believed that it is by this moment that the Russian education system will be completely rebuilt 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 "excellent", you need to have a level corresponding to B2 in 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, it is extremely difficult to achieve such results, therefore it is not surprising that for the mandatory delivery, the USE is divided into two levels: basic and specialized.

The profile level is intended for graduates who are seriously involved in languages, who need an exam for admission to a university. It will be very similar to the existing USE, both in structure and level of difficulty. 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 VLOOKUP in English will be taken as a basis.

What skills are required to successfully pass the required English exam?

The basic level will correspond to the level A2-B1, the ministry says. This means that the student should be able to communicate on everyday topics: talk about his family, interests, hobbies, plans for the future. It should not be a problem for him to order food in a restaurant, pay a bill, go to the store. He is able to discuss operational issues at a basic level that is within the scope of his permanent competence.

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.

Task 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 constructions in practice.

In listening, students are invited to listen to a short friendly dialogue and answer questions, the answers to which are directly given in the recording.

When performing reading assignments, students must match headings and short, no longer than 3-4 sentences, texts.

The block of grammar and vocabulary includes the simplest word formation, where you need to transform the given word so that it fits correctly into the text, as well as the task of matching spaces in the text and matching words.

Oral utterance involves a description of a photo from a choice of three. At the same time, the student must imagine that he is telling his friend about it and use the vocabulary appropriate for the situation, be able to accurately name the objects depicted in the picture, and also clearly formulate his thoughts.

Important Note: This assignment description is based on an existing English VLOOKUP. Probably, some tasks may change or disappear altogether, some may be added. It depends on the year from which the mandatory USE 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, in which every student who regularly attends school lessons can get credit, he will not require special preparation. It is probably worth taking English lessons more seriously, doing homework on your own and sorting out existing mistakes with the teacher, knowing the vocabulary and grammar provided by the school textbook.

Additionally, you can watch films and TV shows in English to better understand spoken language, as well as read adapted literature or at least entertainment English-language media to expand your vocabulary. If you wish, it is useful to find a pen pal in order to learn in practice how to formulate your own thoughts into statements in a foreign language.

Summing up, we can say that no matter what year the mandatory USE in English will be introduced, you can start studying it now, because this is a truly important skill in the modern world.

In Russia, it is planned to introduce a mandatory Unified State Examination (USE) in a foreign language by 2022. This statement was made by the head of Rosobrnadzor Sergey Kravtsov at the annual meeting to sum up the results of the USE campaign.

“From 2022, a foreign language will be introduced, we are already developing assignments. We take into account the results of the OGE in order to have objective results. In 2021, we will probably conduct a mass approbation. If a foreign language is mandatory, then it will be two-level. The fact that English will be divided into two levels is out of the 2010 standard,” Kravtsov explained.

The Minister of Education Olga Vasilyeva also stated this earlier. During a direct line with Russian President Vladimir Putin, she said that it was planned to introduce a foreign language exam in 2022, and in 2020 to test this project in 19 regions.

Also on topic

"The basic content of textbooks should be the same throughout the country": Minister of Education Vasilyeva - in an interview with RT

The Minister of Education and Science of Russia Olga Vasilyeva, in an exclusive interview with RT, spoke about the priorities in the development of the education system ...

Speaking about the situation with foreign languages ​​in Russia in general, the minister said that in the near future there are no plans to introduce a second compulsory foreign language, as this is a very big burden on students and teachers.

“We cannot now afford two languages ​​in all schools, we will not learn them! We need to know Russian well, which we do not know very well. We need to know a foreign language well, preferably English - this is the language of international communication today, ”said Vasilyeva.

"The right way"

Representatives of educational institutions positively evaluate the initiative of the ministry. According to the director of the Moscow School No. 548 Efim Rachevsky, in the light of the strengthening of Russia's position in the international arena and the development of interaction with foreign countries, it is simply necessary to improve the quality of teaching foreign languages.

“The Minister of Education Olga Vasilyeva outlined the right path, she did it a year ago when she first spoke about it. Rosobrnadzor is doing the right thing by introducing this exam. Today, when we talk about the need to build a digital economy, digital culture, new engineering, it is impossible to do without the language of international communication - and so far English is one. But we need to change methods and technologies, textbooks, organize language practices,” he stressed.

• Moscow City News Agency

Marina Shmulevich, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, is also of the same opinion. In an interview with RT, she explained that a foreign language gives any specialist access to the international level and opens up wider horizons.

“What the Minister of Education has proposed is reasonable. When a child leaves the walls of an educational institution, he is ashamed not to know the international language. This cuts off the opportunity to be in the center of events, to receive information, ”the teacher explained.

According to Shmulevich, it is not so difficult to implement the ministry's program "with a competent approach and despite the fact that this will be done by professionals." In her opinion, it is necessary to make several levels of the exam: those who have a specialized foreign language for this will take the more difficult option, and those for whom it will become only an auxiliary discipline will take the easier option.

“When basic mathematics and profile mathematics were introduced, no one switched to a special program, everyone should know the basics. I believe that there should also be such a division with the English language, ”concluded the director of school No. 606.

Preparatory work

Lyubov Dukhanina, member of the central headquarters of the All-Russian Popular Front, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education and Science, said that a lot of work would need to be done in all areas to implement the initiative.

“Behind this is not one, but several complex problems - the level of teacher training, the material and technical base, the quality of educational literature, the opportunity to practice with native speakers. In order for 2022 not to turn into low scores for most graduates, their (problems. - RT) must be decided now,” she stressed.

Dukhanina also noted that today not all teachers have sufficient skills to prepare students for the exam in a foreign language. Especially in rural educational institutions, some teachers of a foreign language "do not have a perfect command of phonetic and grammatical norms." It is also necessary to change the content of textbooks, where the distribution of work in the classroom and at home is not well thought out.

“When we carried out a test purchase of a line of English textbooks, the sellers recommended that along with the textbook and workbook, we also buy materials for the teacher and for the parent, since sales practice suggests that the child cannot do homework on his own, and the parent even with the knowledge language without the author's instructions will not be able to help him, ”said the deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education and Science.

• © Grigory Sysoev
• RIA News

In 2018, it was possible to pass the exam in English, French, German and Spanish. This was announced by the head of Rosobrnadzor Anzora Muzaeva.

“About 88,500 people applied to take the oral part of the Unified State Examination in foreign languages, of which more than 85,000 signed up for the English language exam,” the ministry’s press release says.

The mandatory USE in a foreign language for all graduates is planned to be introduced in 2022. It will be much lighter than what we have now. In the 2018-2019 academic year, graduates will have an innovation - a mandatory all-Russian test work (VPR) in English, which will be an excellent workout before the mandatory USE in 2022. Assignments to it will be made so that each student can cope with them.

Director of the Institute for Pedagogical Measurements Oksana Reshetnikova said that the mandatory USE in a foreign language will be introduced in 2022 and is aimed at the final school assessment of graduates who study it at a basic level.

The exam will be much easier than the one that is currently taken by choice, which is chosen by graduates for admission to higher educational institutions in some specialties.

The basis for the mandatory USE in a foreign language will be the tasks of the All-Russian test papers (VPR). In the 2018-2019 academic year, for the first time, graduates who studied English, French and German will pass such an exam.

This year, the VPR did not include tasks for the development of written texts, because they are the least required for those who are not going to associate their profession with a foreign language.

In the current USE, graduates are offered popular science texts, and in the VPR and, accordingly, in the future simplified USE, texts about Russia and the life of Russian schoolchildren will be offered. The USE developers believe that every graduate should be able to tell about himself and his country.

Rosobrnadzor established the testing of the Unified State Examination in a foreign language until 2022

Rosobrnadzor approved the introduction of approbation of the mandatory USE in a foreign language for 2018-2022. The exam will be divided into 2 levels - basic and advanced.

Chairman of Rosobrnadzor Sergey Kravtsov said that by 2022 the USE in a foreign language will be introduced and this decision will not be reviewed. He also noted that tasks in terms of complexity should correspond to the average level of the school.

Associate Professor of the Department of Phonetics and Vocabulary of the English Language at Moscow State Pedagogical University Evgenia Baida explained that if a student has mastered the school curriculum, then he should not have any problems in the exam.

In addition to introducing simpler tasks in the exam, another solution to this problem is to reduce the minimum score. It can be installed after the study of the level of knowledge of Russian schoolchildren. All-Russian verification work will also contribute to this.

Until now, only 8-9% of graduates annually choose to take the exam in a foreign language. Basically, these are those who are going to enter philological and parallel specialties. The rest of the graduates were not tested for language proficiency at the federal level.

According to the organizing committee of the project, thanks to the teleconference, residents of 10 regions of Russia were able to directly participate in the event. The All-Russian Parent Meeting was broadcast live on the websites of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science and Rossiyskaya Gazeta, as well as on the official channel of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science on YouTube.

The host of the event was Valeria, mother of three children, singer, People's Artist of the Russian Federation, member of the National Parent Association (NRA). The Association is the main partner of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science in organizing the event and developing the entire project "All-Russian Parents' Meeting".

In his opening speech, Dmitry Livanov noted the complete readiness of the education system for the new academic year. In 2015, 1.6 million students will go to the first grade, which is 145,000 more than a year ago. The total increase in the number of schoolchildren, compared with last year, will be 560 thousand people.

The head of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science emphasized that no major changes are planned in the school system either in the coming or next academic year.

“Naturally, life is changing, life is moving forward, but there will be no conceptual and fundamental changes in how our school lives, how teachers work, how children study,” said Dmitry Livanov.

For an hour and a half of communication, a wide range of topics and issues of concern to parents throughout the country was covered: the Unified State Examination, additional education, voluntary donations to the school, the purchase of school uniforms, the introduction of unified textbooks in basic subjects, the provision of electronic textbooks, preventive examinations, etc.

Read about the main theses of the Second All-Russian Parent Meeting below.

About the new methodology for testing work for grade 4

Testing work after grade 4 has always been and will be. Now we are talking about conducting them in different regions, different schools according to the same methodology, so that there is a possibility of comparison. For this, the new content of these verification works is introduced.

But this has nothing to do with the final certification and the Unified State Examination and will not lead to an increase in the burden on children and teachers.

About the introduction of the Unified State Examination in English

Federal educational standards suggest that from 2022 the English language exam will become the third mandatory exam along with the Russian language and mathematics exams. It will indeed happen, and we are preparing for it.

On the introduction of unified textbooks on subjects

It is essential that the teacher has a choice. We really need to provide all our children who are educated in school with a single core of fundamental school knowledge.

We are not talking about the transition to standard patterns, according to which all students will study and all schools will work.

We are talking about the freedom of teachers in choosing teaching materials that are most useful for children and contribute to the fullest possible solution to the problem of upbringing and education.

About purchasing a school uniform

No one can force a parent to buy at a particular store. Or from a certain manufacturer. The school uniform sets a certain model of clothing, but it can be purchased from any manufacturer.

On the provision of electronic textbooks

Each child receives a free set of textbooks before the start of the new school year. Starting this year, each textbook is accompanied by an electronic version. Naturally, this electronic version is supplied with new textbooks at the moment when the textbook is purchased from the publisher.

Therefore, gradually, not immediately 100%, but all electronic textbooks will enter the life of every school, become available to every student.

About voluntary donations to the school

Everything related to ensuring the federal educational standard - the educational program, additional classes, issues of safety and comfort for children - should be resolved at the expense of budgetary funds. Each school should receive funding in the amount necessary for the full performance of important functions.

This does not exclude the possibility that parents can voluntarily provide assistance to the school to solve some specific problems.

If, for example, parents believe that the level of security at the school is insufficient, they can, on a voluntary basis, by agreement, "sink in" and find additional money to strengthen security. The same applies to other aspects of school life. The voluntary nature of these donations is fundamental. There is nothing wrong with parents helping the school. It has always been. But everything should have a reasonable limit and be justified.

parents and school reorganization

It can only be justified if it benefits the students themselves. The main beneficiaries of this process are students. If the association is beneficial, it increases the educational achievements of students, this can be done. If not, then it's pointless to even discuss it.

How can parents influence issues related to the reorganization of schools?
In the most direct way.

Such decisions can only be made on the basis of the voluntary will, firstly, of the teaching staff themselves, and secondly, of the governing councils that are at schools. Parental councils and pedagogical teams must necessarily speak out on issues related to associations. Only if they have a desire to unite, only if the advantages that the association brings are obvious, can this be done.

About school admission

The school is obliged to accept all children who happen to be - either living or temporarily staying - in the territory of the respective municipality.

No child should be left without a place in school.

The only reason for refusal is the lack of vacancies. Then the municipality is obliged to provide a place for this child in another school. So this issue is resolved by our legislation.

About the inclusive model of education

Currently, more than 50% of children with special educational needs are studying in regular schools. The position of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia is that parents should have a choice: to receive education in the inclusive mode or in a specialized school or a specialized class.

The network of correctional schools should not be reduced in any case.

There should be no unreasonable reduction in schools that are specifically designed to work with children with special educational needs.

school work in one shift

Modern high-quality education is possible only in the But today, on average, about 20% of children in Russia study in the second shift. Many school buildings have exhausted their resources. This is a serious challenge facing the education system. Within 10 years - until the 2025/26 academic year - more than 6 million new places in schools will have to be created.

More than 100 new buildings across the country have been built this year.

But this is clearly not enough to solve such a large-scale problem.

Therefore, starting next year, the government is launching a special program with substantial funding from the federal budget to build new school buildings and expand educational infrastructure.

On supporting the technical creativity of schoolchildren

In the past academic year, the coverage of children with circle work reached the level that was at the end of the Soviet period. The failure that arose in the 1990s has been overcome, but we need to move on. Modern technologies and modern fields of activity have appeared, for example, robotics. In the federal state educational standard of the basic school - from grades 5 to 9 - a special time is devoted to the issue of early vocational guidance for schoolchildren. These can be special lessons at an enterprise, in an engineering center, or at a technical university. These can be extracurricular activities, any form of circle or sectional work designed to arouse in the child an interest in technical creativity.

There are opportunities today.

New educational standards provide these opportunities with resources. And it is very important that in each region the program for the development of children's technical creativity be adopted and implemented.

About information security in the school curriculum

Every year in September, a special lesson dedicated to Internet security is held throughout Russia. The upcoming academic year is no exception. But it is important that attention to this topic is not limited to one day and one lesson in September. Information security issues should be reflected in the school curriculum: both in the subject called "Fundamentals of Life Safety" and in the course of information technology. And in general, the whole environment of school life should prepare children for the time when they become adults and will have to be able to independently withstand the harmful influences and risks that modern life brings.

About professional examinations and admission to school without a certificate

A medical certificate is not a mandatory document for a child to be admitted to school on September 1. But the issues of caring for the health of children are really extremely relevant. It is very good that for the past two years all children, without exception, have been undergoing an annual medical examination.

For the first time, ninth-graders will take this exam without fail in three years. And in 2022, it will also enter the Unified State Examination - along with Russian, mathematics and history

The head of the Ministry of Education and Science Olga Vasilyeva thinks with horror about how ninth-graders will take the mandatory OGE in English in 2020. The minister admitted this at a meeting with young scientists at the Eastern Economic Forum.

Vasilyeva suggested changing the methodology of teaching a foreign language at school, relying not on reading and translation, but on live communication. It is worth recalling that already in 2022 the unified state exam in English will become mandatory for all school graduates. Oleg Smolin, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education and Science, shares Vasilyeva's concerns:

Oleg Smolin Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education and Science“I would like to say two things. First: I understand Olga Vasilyeva's concern about the opportunities for ninth-graders to take the OGE in English so far. The fact is that, firstly, in Russia there is a certain amount of a shortage of teachers in foreign languages ​​in general. Secondly, if we are talking about a rural school, then this deficit is aggravated there even more, since graduates of pedagogical universities and classical universities who have graduated from a foreign language can quite often get jobs as translators, employees of mixed firms, and so on, where they pay more . But secondly, and perhaps most importantly, I would even think about whether it is worth introducing a mandatory main state exam, and then the Unified State Examination in English? The fact is that, of course, knowledge of a foreign language is extremely useful, especially for those who live in big cities, will travel abroad, and so on. But these guys, as a rule, master a foreign language with the help of tutors. As for the majority of our citizens, I would rather think, for example, about the compulsory state exam in literature, but, of course, not in the form of the Unified State Examination. Choice: either in the form of an essay, or in the form of oral literature. Let the guys read more and think more about applied ethics, which, in fact, is literature.”

Vsevolod Lukhovitsky, a member of the council of the Interregional Independent Trade Union of Education Workers “Teacher”, believes that the capital's schools will have the hardest time. Teachers have gone into private practice, and this situation needs to be changed.

Vsevolod LukhovitskyMember of the Council of the Interregional Independent Trade Union of Education Workers "Teacher"“Just a Moscow English teacher can easily earn money outside of school. Considering that English teachers suffered the most in the post-Luzhkov period, under Luzhkov, English teachers actually received double salaries compared to other teachers. This was considered unfair. Accordingly, in the year 2012-2014, many left schools because of this. The “Germans” were hit harder by normative funding, because they said: well, you have small groups, which means you should receive little.”

English will be the fourth mandatory exam after Russian, mathematics and history.