Students of the Lomonosov Moscow State University. Photo: TASS

Quarantine Diaries: Poll on Distance Learning

Published: June 1, 2020

Quarantine Diaries is a series of free language lessons from SRAS. Each lesson can take a variety of forms but all focus on building intermediate and advanced vocabulary and listening skills.

Read the text and familiarize yourself with the new vocabulary (you can hover over the bold Russian to reveal its English translation). Then, watch the related video below and see if you can answer the questions! Note that the asterisk (*) usually means that you can find additional cultural/linguistic information at the bottom of the article. 

The following is an опрос done by The Russian Public Opinion Research Center (known by its Russian acronym: VTsIOM). Between May 14-16, 2020, right at the end of the school year, it polled 1092 parents of recent high school graduates (with a предельная погрешность of around 3%) as well as 400 students of colleges and technical schools (margin of error: 4.9%) and 800 university students (margin of error of 3.5%). All opinions were taken through telephone interviews using random numbers.

In this translation, we’ve occasionally used “high school” to refer to the range of instructions Russia offers, including школы, гимназии, and лицеи.

Likewise, higher education in Russia has several divisions. First, there is the ВУЗ (высшее учебное заведение), which can generally be understood as a university, although the Russian lexicon breaks it down to университет, институт and академия.

Technical education is also broken down by type. Техникумы are technical colleges training specific professions such as metal workers or accountants. Колледжи are similar, but with more emphasis on theory over longer programs. A degree from a колледж is more prestigious than one from a техникум, and qualifies one for a higher position such as senior account or master welder.

The translation below is presented with side-by-side translation and should be helpful in the various ways that one can discuss statistics in Russian. This lesson is produced as a compliment to another translation by SRAS, posted to its blog, on the long-term changes that Russian education is likely to face. These statistics help inform the likelihood of online education being accepted in Russia. For additional balance, see the video below the text of Russian students discussing thier experience or this other entry to quarantine diaries, in which a Russian mother discusses her experience.

 

Выпускники школ и студенты высказали мнение о дистанционном образовании Russian Graduates and Students Give Opinions of Distance Learning
Высшие учебные заведения начали переход на дистанционные формы обучения 16 марта 2020 года в связи с распространением коронавирусной инфекции. Одним из главных требований Министерства науки и высшего образования к вузам было сохранение качества образования. Higher education in Russia began to transfer to distance learning platforms as of 16 March, 2020 in response to the spread of COVID-19. One of the demands made by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education was that institutions must maintain the quality of their educational instruction.
МОСКВА, 27 МАЯ 2020 г. Всероссийский центр изучения общественного мнения (ВЦИОМ) представляет данные опроса об удовлетворенности организацией дистанционного образования, об изменении уровня учебной нагрузки и о возможных последствиях для качества образования из-за перехода на удаленный формат обучения. Опрашивались родители выпускников школ, гимназий и лицеев, студенты вузов, а также учащиеся колледжей и техникумов.

 

MOSCOW, 27 MAY, 2020. The Russian Public Opinion Research Center (known by its Russian acronym: VTsIOM) has published data on public satisfaction with online education received from Russian educational institutions. Specific questions were asked about changes to the educational work load and on how the transition to online education might have affected educational quality. Polled were students of universities, colleges, and technical schools as well as the parents of graduates of Russian schools, gymnasiums, and lyceums.
Увеличение нагрузки на преподавателей заметили 55% студентов, опрошенных ВЦИОМ. Еще 19% учащихся вузов считают, что нагрузка на них сократилась. Каждый пятый студент уверен, что нагрузка на преподавателей не изменилась (20%). 55% of students polled by VTsIOM reported that they noticed an increase to teacher work load during this period. 19% felt that it decreased.  Every fifth student (20%) is sure that teacher workload did not change.
Примерно так же студенты оценили изменение собственной вовлеченности в учебный процесс. По мнению каждого второго опрошенного (51%), учебная нагрузка выросла. В обратном уверены 20% участников исследования. О том, что уровень учебной нагрузки остался прежним, заявили 28% студентов. Students rated the changes to their own workload about the same. Every second person polled (51%) is of the opinion that student workload increased. 20% are of the opposite opinion. 28% report that student workload did not change.

 

Говоря об уровне преподавания в дистанционном формате, более половины студентов оценили его как высокий или скорее высокий — 53%. Каждый третий опрошенный назвал его средним — 32%. Низкие оценки уровню образования в коронавирусный период дали лишь 12% студентов. More than half of all students (53%) gave a high or above average evaluation of the instructional quality received during distance education. Every third respondent labeled it as average – 32%.  A low evaluation was given of education during the coronavirus period by only 12% of students.
При этом подавляющее большинство студентов удовлетворены тем, как организовано дистанционное образование в их вузе в условиях распространения COVID-19. Об этом сообщают 72% респондентов, причем каждый четвертый говорит о крайней степени удовлетворенности — 25%. О том, что организация дистанционного образования осуществлена в той или иной степени неудовлетворительно, высказались 26% студентов. A large majority of students of higher education reported being satisfied with the organization of their distance learning courses. 72% reported it as satisfactory or better. Furthermore, 25% of respondents valued the organization at the highest possible level. Dissatisfaction at any level was reported by 26% of students.
Оценка уровня оснащения учебных заведений оборудованием, необходимым для проведения занятий в удаленном формате, следующая: оценили его как высокий или скорее высокий 38% студентов, среднюю оценку дали 38%, а назвали его низким или скорее низким 19% респондентов. Evaluations of efforts to equip educational institutions with the equipment needed to carry out distance learning were as follows: 38% of students gave a high or above average rating, low or below average ratings were given by 19% of respondents.
Большинство родителей выпускников, оканчивающих 11-й класс в этом году, отметили увеличение учебной нагрузки ребенка в связи с переходом на дистанционный формат обучения. Об этом сообщили 62% родителей, причем о существенном возрастании нагрузки сообщили 36%. Напротив, отметили сокращение учебной нагрузки 24% родителей выпускников. Считают, что нагрузка осталась на прежнем уровне, 13%. A majority of the parents of graduating seniors for this year reported that their children had experienced an increase in educational workload under distance learning. This was reported by 62% of parents, with 36% calling the increase “significant.” 24% of graduates’ parents felt that workload decreased. 13% felt that the work load was unchanged.
В той или иной степени удовлетворены организацией дистанционного образования 44% родителей учеников 11-х классов. Среди учащихся колледжей и техникумов об этом сообщают 74%, а среди студентов вузов — 82%. 44% of graduates’ parents gave a satisfactory or above rating to the organization of distance learning for their children. 74% students of colleges and technical institutes and 82% of students of institutions of higher education gave similar satisfactory ratings.
Мнение, что переход на дистанционный режим образования увеличил нагрузку на учителей, поддерживает каждый второй родитель школьников выпускных классов — 56%. О том, что это скорее сократило нагрузку на преподавателей, сообщают 25%, а 9% считают, что объем нагрузки не изменился. 56% of graduates’ parents are of the opinion that distance learning increased teacher workload. 25% believe it decreased. 9% believe it was unchanged.
Финальную аттестацию в формате ЕГЭ необходимо организовать в конце июня — начале июля текущего года — так считают 65% родителей одиннадцатиклассников. Также каждый пятый считает, что лучше провести это мероприятие в начале августа (19%), а 13% назвали другие периоды для проведения экзаменов. The unified state exam, used for college admissions in Russia, should be given in late June-early July, said 65% of graduates’ parents. Every fifth (19%) believes that it should be held at the start of August, and 13% gave other opinions of when to hold the exam.

 

Listening Comprehension

1) Какая сейчас самая обсуждаемая тема в мире?
Коронавируc
2) В каком классе учится школьник Иван?
В 8 классе
3) Ученикам каких классов, по мнению Ивана, придется трудно?
Ученикам 9-х и 11-х классов (им нужно будет сдавать экзамены)
4) Какое приложение использует для учебы студентка Эльмира?
Приложение Zoom
5) Где живет студентка Эльмира?
В пригороде

About the author

Josh Wilson

Josh Wilson

Josh lived in Moscow from 2003, when he first arrived to study Russian with SRAS, until 2022. He holds an M.A. in Theatre and a B.A. in History from Idaho State University, where his masters thesis was written on the political economy of Soviet-era censorship organs affecting the stage. At SRAS, Josh assists in program development and leads our Internship Programs. He is also the editor-in-chief for the SRAS newsletter, the SRAS Family of Sites, and Vestnik. He has previously served as Communications Director to Bellerage Alinga and has served as a consultant or translator to several businesses and organizations with interests in Russia.

Program attended: SRAS Staff Member

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Elena Nesterova

A native of St. Petersburg, Elena Nesterova holds a BAs in English Pedagogy and Humanities from St. Petersburg State Pedagogical University. Elena comes to SRAS after many enjoyable years working in the administrative section of the U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg. As SRAS’ Administrative Specialist, Elena is responsible for providing overall support to our organization and its various programs and services. In her free time, Elena likes travelling and exploring new places, meeting with friends, and playing sports.

View all posts by: Elena Nesterova