The model of the universal secondary school. Problems and solutions (Table 2).

Aspect

Problem

Solution

The assessment system.

Many students do not understand the real purpose of the marks. They do not have any wish or motivation to gain knowledge. However they claim to understand its importance.

The marks are needed mainly for teachers and parents because they confirm them in students’ activity at the lessons. The assessment system should be made the most objective and used mainly for a school report.

Learning time distribution.

The quarter system has some disadvantages such as students do not have enough time for studying or correcting their marks at the end of the quarter. However, it is rather hard for young students to devote so much time to school.

We suppose that secondary school should be divided into two stages as in the British and Japanese schools. We have already mentioned that there was incomplete and complete secondary school in the USSR. In connection with people’s disagreement about the length of learning in secondary school we believe, that the school should be divided into junior secondary (5-7 forms) and senior secondary (8-10 forms) school. According to this model junior secondary school may use the quarter system of education and the senior secondary may use semesters.

Educational methods.

The newest educational methods are still not in use all over Russia that is why we cannot say that the education is effective. Japanese schools use lectures. Japanese students study very hard and have difficult tests at the end of every semester. This system cannot be appropriate in Russia.

One of the most effective forms of education is believed to be the use of visual means and electronic information, different kinds of cooperation and communication between students and teachers (discussions, debates, group work). Students should be aimed at getting knowledge by themselves that is self-education. According to these conditions students need some additional sources of information. They need a big library with a wide variety of books and technical sources such as computers. This kind of education would help to form some students’ personality, develop their independence.

Subjects.

Students lose a lot of time and energy for nothing. Some subjects in secondary school are uninteresting and useless. The list of school subjects should be changed, as we have already proved.

We should cancel some subjects like:

• Painting (children are not taught how to paint at these lessons and just do nothing. For those who love painting some art schools and clubs are organized);

• Life Safety (children get the main points of life safety at the primary school, the information of this course is similar to Social Studies programme.);

• World Art (culture is usually studied at History and Geography lessons);

• Music (another lesson in which children do not get any knowledge or skills);

• Physical education (2 hours per week is enough, moreover there is no lack of sport clubs).

Some subjects should be introduced:

• Aim setting (mini-class hour is a real need in school because class teachers do not have enough time to give some organizational points. Moreover students cannot set their aims properly. They should have some time in the morning to understand what they came to school for. This ability is very important at work nowadays, because aimless labour is useless);

• Rhetoric (modern people do not know Russian very well and they are more likely to be illiterate. They are unable to express their thoughts properly);

• Etiquette (modern people do not know how to behave and it does not allow to create a civilized society like European’s);

• Science (some subjects like Biology, Chemistry and Physics should be united. If a person starts a profile level he/she studies these subjects separately if he/she needs).

School uniform.

In some Russian secondary schools a uniform is still not obligatory or students do not wear it even though they have to. Some people do not think that a uniform is so important in learning process and does not influence the mental abilities. Some Japanese students think the same, but they wear a school uniform which is obligatory for them and they also like it.

Almost all parents and teachers are “for” the uniform and more than half of students and graduates are “against”. Although a uniform does not influence children’s abilities, it helps to keep up the discipline and school atmosphere. Moreover this also helps children to adapt to future work, because many organizations demand formal clothes. A school uniform does not infringe a person’s right for self-expression. It is a way of teaching the student to be accurate and keep the rules of social behaviour. We believe students would not protest against the uniform if it is comfortable and pretty.

Additional education.

Additional education is aimed to develop students’ creative thinking, skills and talents, which are not taught in school. There are extra lessons and sport sections in some schools, but children do not like to attend them. The reason against them is that these sections are run by teachers who cannot wake up students’ interest and wish to work. Modern education cannot cope with this task.

We believe that this problem can be solved by creating some clubs and sections that would be run by students. Students should create the club programme; mention their aim; how they are going to realize these tasks. The teacher has to check this programme and organize any help students ask for. These clubs take place after the main school lessons. Children can set up a club that is not very much connected with school programme, but it should be useful for children. The aim of such clubs is to develop students’ specific skills, to help the students find people with the same interests, to become more socialized, to learn how to organize the work. Moreover, students should present the results of their activities. Festivals are the perfect solution to this problem. Students should have a week in the middle of the third quarter to present the results of the club activity (they may organize master classes, exhibitions, concerts or anything else if they have creative ideas). These festivals should also be attended by parents and students from other schools and some other organizations. Such festivals are aimed at creating contacts between school and parents or other institutions.

Olympiads are also considered to be a kind of additional education and mainly represented with some test (British Bulldog, Russian Bear), school and university Olympiads. Unfortunately, they can hardly give an objective assessment to students’ knowledge and institute Olympiads are held for the school-leavers.

We know that some schools take part in “Eidos” Olympiads, but there are not a lot of them. These Olympiads are much more interesting than any others. First of all, students know exactly why they take part in them; secondly, they really develop their creative skills while they do exercises in a chosen scientific or art field. In the end students analyse their work, find out what was wrong or hard and why, what new things they got from this Olympiad. This very activity forms the individuality.

Organization of school campus.

A school yard often looks untidy. Sometimes the school yard has a green lawn. We are not sure that such surroundings have a good influence on people. It is appropriate to keep in mind “The Broken Window Theory” introduced in 1982 by social scientists James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling. The theory says that maintaining and monitoring urban environments in a good condition may stop further vandalism which can grow into a more serious crime. This theory may be referred to schools. We can hardly imagine that clever students study in a school painted with graffiti from the top to the bottom.

The online survey persuaded us that the school and the school yard should be neat and well-kept. The territory should be looked after both by staff and students.