A History of Education in Modern Russia

A History of Education in Modern Russia is the first book to trace the significance of education in Russia from Peter the Great's reign all the way through to Vladimir Putin and the present day.
Individual chapters open with an overview of the political, social, diplomatic and cultural environment of the period in order to orient the reader. Dowler then goes on to analyse the aims of education initiatives in each era before considering the ways in which Russians experienced education, both as students and as teachers. Each chapter concludes with an assessment of the outcomes and consequences of education policies in the period, both the successes and failures as well as the impact of education on the cultural, social, economic and ultimately political environments. The chronologically arranged book also traces and then summarises underlying key themes like the tension between an open system of education and an estate-based system; the push and pull between utility and the broader goal of human development; and the effects of centralized, authoritarian control that for much of the period limited local initiative and starved the regions of adequate resources.

Wayne Dowler is Professor of History at the University of Toronto, Canada. He is the author of Russia in 1913 (2012), Classroom and Empire: The Politics of Schooling Russia's Eastern Nationalities, 1860-1917 (2000) and Dostoevsky, Grigor'ev and 'Native Soil' Conservatism (1982).

List of Images and Figures
Introduction
1. Facing West: Peter the Great to the Empress Elizabeth
2. Roots of a System: Catherine the Great
3. Refining the System: Alexander I
4. Engaging the Public: Alexander II
5. Reasserting Authority: Alexander III and Nicholas II
6. From Revolution to Revolution: The Duma Period
7. Schooling for Socialism: From Revolution to Cultural Revolution
8. Retrenchment: Stalin to Chernenko
9. Ends and Beginnings: Gorbachev to Putin
Conclusion
Further Reading List
Index