OE-14126 Final Examinations in the by Nellie Apanasewicz in collaboration with Seymour M. Rosen Specialist for the USSR and Eastern Europe Comparative Research Branch Division of Higher Education Research U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE John W. Gardner, Secretary Office of Education Harold Howe II, Commissioner This publication is a revision of "Final Examinations in the Russian Ten-Year School," published in Information on Education Around the World, No. 6, October 1958. Superintendent of Documents Catalog No. FS 5.214:14126 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C., 20402 - Price 15 cents Introduction N PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS AND LITERATURE on the subject of Soviet education, considerable interest has centered on academic achievements and kinds of knowledge which teachers and state authorities demand of Soviet school children. For those persons who are concerned with testing methods and standards of achievement, and for students of comparative education, this document may have special interest. During part of May and June of each year, Soviet school boys and girls who have completed the regular 10-year school program, that is, those who have completed grades 1 to 10, face an experience which is crucial to their future careers: a final examination in each of the major subjects which they have studied during the years behind them. These examinations have been required of all graduating students everywhere in the USSR since June 1944, when the Soviet Government issued a decree, On Measures for Improving the Quality of Instruction in the Schools. This decree called for the present examination system to be applied throughout the federal union. The examinations are made up by the ministries of education in the various Soviet republics, and are submitted by them to the individual district school authorities. Although the actual number of subjects and the kinds of questions have varied over the years, the type, form, and purpose of the examinations have been relatively constant. The examination pamphlets are published annually a few months before examination time, and bear such titles as "Examination Papers for the Course of the Secondary School . . ." (Bilety dlia ekzamenov za kurs srednei shkoly na 1963-64 uchebnyi god), or "Examination Papers for the School-Leaving Certificate . . ." (Bilety dlia ekzamenov na attestat zrelosti za kurs srednei shkoly na 1957-58 uchebnyi god), and are issued by the state publishing house. The principal aims of these final tests are to verify the amount of knowledge acquired by the 10-year students, or upon completion of their secondary education, and to reveal "their development, independence of judgment, and ability to relate knowledge with life-theory with practice." The examinations manifestly reflect a principal pedagogical effort to have pupils master a prescribed amount of knowledge from textbooks, other required readings, and practical work. The resulting examination processes require a pattern of questions and problems which respond to the officially set achievement levels but which vary but little from one year's examinations to the next. A summary comparison of the scope and basic data of the 1958 and 1964 examinations follows by subject: Algebra-21 questions (each with three parts) given in 1958 and also in 1964. This examination aims to test the pupil's knowledge of basic concepts, rules, and theorems in algebra and his ability to understand and apply theorems in solving problems. Geometry—26 questions (each with three parts) in 1958 and 23 questions (each with three parts) in 1964. The aims are identical to those mentioned for algebra, but as they apply to geometry. Physics-32 questions (each with two parts) in 1958 and 25 questions (each with three parts) in 1964. The aims are to test knowledge of basic concepts and laws of electricity, optics, atomic structure, and certain problems of mechanics; the principles of oscillation and heat; ability to explain physical phenomena on the basis of theories and to confirm physical laws by examples from life and technics; and ability to do experiments. Chemistry—31 questions (each with two parts) in 1958, and 25 questions (each with three parts) in 1964. Pupils were tested on their understanding of "concrete ideas" about basic chemical substances and their transformations; ability to formulate chemical equality in reactions, and to make analyses of them; Butlerov's theories of chemical structures; the periodic law of Mendeleev; ability to perform uncomplicated experimental problems; and uses of chemical substances in the economy. History of the USSR and Social Sciences-In 1958 there were 30 questions (each with two parts) and the examination was entitled History of the USSR. In 1964 there were 39 questions (each with two parts): the first part on the history of the USSR and the second on social sciences. As in 1958 so in 1964, pupils were tested on their knowledge of the most important events, their signifi cance and consequences; historical leaders such as Marx, Engels, and Lenin; and the leading role of the USSR in history. In addition, in 1964, they were asked about the three component parts of Marxism-Leninism, programs of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) in the spheres of ideology, the "inevitable transition from capitalism to socialism and communism", and other similar questions. Foreign Languages-In 1958, there were three separate examination pamphlets, with 23 questions for the English language, 26 for German, and 25 for French-. all having two parts each. For example, on the English language, the question might read: a. Reading and translation of an unfamiliar text with a dictionary. Answers to questions relating to the text read. b. Find in the text verbs in the past perfect; explain the necessity of using past perfect in the given text. (Questions for the French and German languages followed the same pattern.) However, in 1964, a single pamphlet was used, entitled Foreign Languages (English, German, and French). There were 20 questions, each having two parts, as follows: a. Reading and translation of an unfamiliar text with dictionary, or Reading of an unfamiliar text without a dictionary and answers to questions relating to text read. b. Discussion of the XXII Congress of the CPSU. Each question in 1964 followed the same format-first, the reading and translation of a text with or without a dictionary, and second, a discussion made up of about 8 or 10 questions prepared by the teacher. In both the 1958 and 1964 examinations, pupils were tested on their ability to read aloud selected texts from foreign language books, newspapers, or journals and to translate them; their understanding of foreign speech and ability to respond in the foreign language to questions posed. The examination procedure is for each pupil, upon call, to go to the front of the room and to select from a basket one card, or ticket, bearing the questions which he will answer. After he has had time to examine the ticket and reflect on the problems, he is asked to provide the answers orally and, when appropriate, on the blackboard. Answers are judged by the examination committee of the school, composed of the school director, teachers, and an official from the local district education department. The grade which the pupil receives may range from 5 (the highest mark) to 1 (the lowest); a grade of 3 is passing, but anything lower is not passing. Pupils who receive 5 in all examinations as well as in their other subjects are awarded gold medals; those who make 5 in the final examinations but have three or less 4's in other subjects receive silver medals. Pupils successfully completing the 10year program, including examinations, receive the certificate of maturity, which is the Soviet secondary school graduation diploma. 1963-64 Examinations The examinations in each subject which follow are from the pamphlet Bilety dlia vypusknykh ekzamenov za kurs srednei shkoly na 1963-64 uchebnyi god (Final Examination Questions for the Secondary School for the 1963-64 School Year), published in Moscow in 1964 by the Prosveshchenie Publishing House. |