Legislative initiatives in the field of independent evaluation of the quality of education were discussed in the State Duma29.11.14
On November 14, 2014 in the State Duma of the Russian Federation a Round Table "Improving the legal security in the field of public and professional public accreditation of independent forms of assessing the quality of education" was held. It was attended by Sergey Anisimov, Director General of AKKORK, and Yuri Rubin, Chairman of the Editorial Board of journal "Quality of Education", Corresponding Member of Russian Academy of Education, winner of the Government of the Russian Federation in the field of education.The roundtable discussion was held on the draft of the Federal Law No.587696-6 "On Amendments to Article 96 of the Federal Law "On Education in the Russian Federation" (about the professional public accreditation of educational programs), introduced in the State Duma of the Russian Federation Government.
Opening the event, Vyacheslav Nikonov, the Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education, drew attention to the fact that at the X Congress of the Russian Union of Rectors of Vladimir Putin, Russian President, in his speech focused on the issues existing in the community for the quality of vocational education and the need for objective evaluation of the quality of education.
The parliamentarian emphasized the role that President assign to the state and independent assessments of the quality of education interaction, stating that an assessment of the quality of training should be taken into account when deciding on the state accreditation of the university. "This is no accident", said Nikonov V.A. "We have a paradoxical situation. The vast majority of high schools have state accreditation of their programs, and the company is convinced that many of them give the education of poor quality".
Head of the Committee noted that the current education law distinguishes three forms of accreditation: state, professional public and the public, and the task of the round table is to re-examine the goals and objectives of each of these tools, its place in determining the quality of vocational education programs and quality of professional education organizations work.
Describing the world practice of education quality assessment, Yuri Rubin, Corresponding Member of RAO and Winner of the Government of the Russian Federation in the field of education, noted that in Russia at the same time there are several types of accreditation. This is what causes the debate about their correlation and mutual consideration, as well as the role of the state in education quality assessment procedures, and in the maintenance of the register of organizations that are involved in it.
However, the main question, around which should be built the model, procedures, and control elements of education quality assessment - is the question of its independence. "I'd like independent evaluation to be independent in reality", said J. Rubin. "The world practice treats independence in two ways. Firstly, it is an independence of experts. Secondly, it is an independence of decision-making. But if any organization is included to some registry by someone who is designated by the Community Council, which in its turn is designated by some very dependent people, then it is very difficult, in my view, to ensure this independence".
In his speech, Sergey Anisimov, Director General of AKKORK, rated the draft law tabled to the professional community as a very important and timely, but also pointed to the need to form motivation at educational institutions to undergo procedures of professional public accreditation. Noting major changes in the independent evaluation occurred over the past year, he thanked the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP), "SUPPORT OF RUSSIA", Engineering Union, the Russian Managers Association, the Federation of Restaurateurs and Hoteliers – the employers who actively supported the idea of professional public accreditation and started to implement it.
The discussion was attended by deputies of the State Duma, representatives of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation and other federal departments and agencies, legislative and executive authorities of the Russian Federation, the educational community, university rectors, and employers.
