Sergei Brilyov: Good afternoon, Ms Golodets.
Olga Golodets: Good afternoon, Sergei.
Sergei Brilyov: You are indeed the main newsmaker, because this week they talked about the Academy of Sciences, pensions and the Unified State Exam (USE). Let's start with younger Russian citizens. According to a poll by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, half of Russians believe that falsifying the USE results has become common practice in our country, with 56% of respondents finding it difficult to come up with a solution to the problem. How should this issue be addressed?
Olga Golodets: Indeed, it’s a major problem. We haven’t yet learned to be honest on the Unified State Exam. This year, we had 143 officially reported leak cases when the genuine examination paper with correct answers became publicly known prior to the exam.
Sergei Brilyov: Real examination papers?
Olga Golodets: Yes, 143 real examination papers. Of course, fake papers have also been posted. Of these 143 exam papers, we now know the sources of their on-line publication in 138 cases.
Sergei Brilyov: Who posted them online?
Olga Golodets: The children themselves. All of these children who have posted their results on the Internet, had the results of their unified state exam cancelled. This is a very bad practice. We have held a special conference call. Now, we want to make sure that the heads of those schools get their deserved punishment.
Sergei Brilyov: I heard your discussions during this conference call. You talked about the need to take into consideration the Grade Point Average (GPA) when deciding on admitting prospective students to higher education institutions. When will this be the official policy?
Olga Golodets: This requirement is supposed to be introduced in 2015. That is, the 2015 secondary school graduates will not only have to take the State Unified Exam, but also provide the GPA of their certificate of secondary education.
Sergei Brilyov: Is the idea of keeping only the Unified State Exam on technical subjects but not on the Humanities actually being discussed?
Olga Golodets: No, we do not plan to expand the range of the Unified State Exam, because this year, for example, 26% of students took the test in physics.
Sergei Brilyov: Everything is clear with physics, since it’s all about numbers. Do you plan to replace the Unified State Exam (with just checking boxes) in the Humanities with an oral exam, or, for example, writing a composition, if we’re talking about literature, for example?
Olga Golodets: Yes, we are about to introduce oral exams on foreign languages, because today, unfortunately, the foreign language exam is a written exam, which does not meet current requirements and needs. Students who choose a foreign language are preparing for it in earnest.
Sergei Brilyov: When will this happen?
Olga Golodets: We have it scheduled for next year.
Sergei Brilyov: What about the composition in literature and the Russian language?
Olga Golodets: What we have now is not a composition, but an essay. We have it as part of the state exam.
Sergei Brilyov: Though it doesn’t show in the young job applicants as we see, to be honest.
Olga Golodets: Unfortunately, we still have problems or questions in this area and, thank God, we have learned to put these questions to ourselves. We will analyse all USE results in all schools. In September, we will publish a list of the top 500 schools in Russia. This will be interesting, because we see that the best schools are not always located where you’d expect them, such as in Moscow or St Petersburg. We see very strong performances by several regional schools. We will put together this list so that everyone can have access to today's best practices and set appropriate goals for themselves.
Sergei Brilyov: Is there any hope that the students who took the Unified State Exam will ever become members of the Academy of Sciences? Speaking of this, you will submit to the State Duma a new government draft law on reforming the Academy of Sciences on July 2. What are you going to say and why do this in the first place?
Olga Golodets: I like your question about academicians. Indeed, schools give a good start to many children. Nobel Prize winner Andrei Geim, for example, graduated from a regular Russian school. The gap that exists between our secondary and higher school education and scientific research should be bridged. The reorganisation programme in question has been discussed for a long time – back during the elections of president of the Russian Academy of Sciences, as well, and now the academy members speak openly about current problems.
Sergei Brilyov: This is what you discussed with Mr Fortov (Vladimir Fortov, President of the Russian Academy of Sciences), correct?
Olga Golodets: No, the academicians have always been open about it, especially in recent years. They deplore the fact that 50% of the Academy of Sciences is staffed with people of retirement age and older. They talk about the efficiency and effectiveness of research, which, of course, are wanting. They are openly saying that federal property management by the institutions of the Academy of Sciences is ineffective. Something has to be done. Today, we are discussing critical reform issues. Starting Monday, the Ministry of Education and Science will begin working with each institution run by the Academy of Sciences, and each institution will submit its own development programme. We need to create an effective scientific research platform and a completely independent scientific community. This is extremely important today, because government funding for science is on the rise across all national development programmes.
Sergei Brilyov: Even though we’re hearing complaints, as usual, the budget is growing, it's true.
Olga Golodets: Correct. In three years, funding for research will amount to 170 billion roubles. Thirteen percent of all Russian scientists are working within the system of the Academy of Sciences. We should create equal access to state funding for all schools of thought, institutions, and research activities. The new Academy will have 1,641 academicians, including Zhores Alfyorov and Yevgeny Velikhov. The real researchers should be the ones who identify and indicate which direction scientific development should go in under our national programme.
Sergei Brilyov: The academy owns vast amounts of land and buildings, which are now being transferred to a special agency that will report directly to the Prime Minister. Where will they go next? To the municipal authorities or will they be put up for auction?
Olga Golodets: Each institution owns property and land. And each institution will submit its development programme that will determine the fate of this particular institution. Some institutions will go to this agency. Some institutions will go to the system of higher education. Still others will be used as the basis for creating new educational or research institutions.
Sergei Brilyov: Is it a conspiracy by some wheelers and dealers who want to put academic lands on the market, as the scientific community likes to think?
Olga Golodets: All the property and all the land should be used for research or educational purposes. All you need to do today is boost efficiency. We must create a system where our young researchers not only won’t choose to go to the West (about 100,000 of them are working there today), but on the contrary, people will start coming here in order to participate in projects that are beneficial for Russia. We have recently signed an agreement for collider research between the Kurchatov Institute and CERN. There was a large convention in Geneva attended by many researchers who had left Russia earlier. The Kurchatov Institute presented their projects. I believe that one of the major successes of this convention is that some people asked to work on these projects at the Kurchatov Institute. What we expect researchers to do is move back to Russia, join interesting projects, and realise their potential. l
Sergei Brilyov: Let’s wait until July 2, when you'll be talking to 450 State Duma members. Ms Golodets, you are a Deputy Prime Minister and a curator of social issues, which includes pensions. Could you please explain what the system is all about?
Olga Golodets: You know, we shouldn’t be digging deep into the point system, because things can be explained in a more straightforward manner. How does the new formula differ from the old one? No one will see their pension revised down, only up. There are no losers here, it’s a win-win situation. The retirement age is not being raised. People with longer employment records and people who make greater contributions to the pension system will benefit from the new formula. Those who decide to continue working beyond retirement age will also benefit from it. This is absolutely voluntary. We’ve made things easier for the people and posted an online retirement calculator on the website of the Pension Fund so that they don’t have to count points themselves. All you have to do is answer a few simple questions, and then compare the amounts of your pensions based on existing and new rules.
Sergei Brilyov: Have you done so?
Olga Golodets: Let me give you an example. For example, you have 15 years of employment, and your pension will be 10,000 roubles. You then type in a different number, such as 30 years of employment. Your pension will increase to 21,464 roubles. I played around with these numbers. If you retire five years later than normal, your pension will increase to 33,000 roubles. The pension formula is being publicly discussed today. I urge everyone who cares about this issue to visit this website, take a look and make their suggestions. The new formula gives amazing results. The amount of contributions to the Pension Fund went up by 46 billion roubles in a matter of four months.
Sergei Brilyov: Is the Pension Fund doing all the work?
Olga Golodets: Yes. It manages pension funds itself. Surprisingly, this was the first time we had employee representatives at the trilateral commission meeting where employers, government and workers gather together and discuss social issues. This was the first time that people came and said that their employer isn’t making pension contributions for them and asked us to audit their industry, which was the film industry. Employees have become interested in their employment contracts and whether employers are paying pension contributions for them.
Sergei Brilyov: One more question for you: I’ve been receiving various retirement plans by mail over the years. Will my existing savings remain intact?
Olga Golodets: The funded pension has not been cancelled, and its rules are also explained. You can choose one and see for yourself. To help you navigate your options, just use the calculator, and it will help you make your choice.
Sergei Brilyov: You are saying that the discussions will continue. How soon will it start working?
Olga Golodets: The new pension reform draft should be submitted by the Government prior to August 1. It’s being discussed now on the forums of the Pension Fund’s website. Everyone is welcome to take part, because it is happening not only in Moscow, but in all other Russian regions as well.
Source: the “Vesti v Subbotu” TV programme
