Putin: General education will be free

The Russian authorities will maintain free general education and continue to fully finance the content of schools. According to RIA Novosti, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin stated this, speaking at the All-Russian Congress of Teachers. “We will definitely retain a free general education. This is one of the basic provisions of our Constitution, and of course, no one will retreat from it,” Putin said.

According to him, the state should and will fully pay for the entire process of education and bear one hundred percent load on the maintenance and development of schools, including the repair and purchase of equipment, and the payment of salaries to teachers. The prime minister noted that at the expense of the budget, within the framework of state standards, the whole main educational program should be taught, including such compulsory subjects as Russian, literature, foreign language, mathematics, physics, geography, chemistry, history, biology, physical education and others.

The head of the government noted that participants in discussions about the development paths of Russian education often lead as an example of the American, Western European and Asian models, but Russia will have its own way. According to Putin, education in Russia will retain all the best, including from the Soviet school.

The prime minister also noted that the unified state exam system needs improvement, and criticism of it is fair. According to him, "not 100 percent are protected by the exam procedures from various kinds of abuse."

However, according to the prime minister, "the pluses from the introduction of the exam are obvious and indisputable." “The main goal is to move towards a more objective, independent assessment of the quality of both the education of children and the work of teachers themselves, - cites Putin ITAR -TASS.“ And most importantly, we significantly expand the possibilities of capable children from rural areas, remote territories to continue education in the best regional and federal higher educational institutions. ”

According to him, the education system "must fully fulfill the function of a social elevator, opening the way to come to the economy, politics, culture of bright, talented, initiative youth." “Only at the expense of such an update, the influx of fresh forces we can provide the dynamic development of the country,” the prime minister added.