Pathways into Teaching: Policy, Practice, and Evidence from Russia (Research Brief)

Russia needs to recruit more teachers, and pedagogical institutions can help. Nearly 80 percent of teachers in Russia have higher education, but this statistic hides a high level of variability. Most institutions deliver several forms of education: daytime, correspondence, evening, and non-residence. While correspondence teacher education is in high demand, empirical studies comparing the correspondence and daytime programs in Russia are rare. Using data from interviews with schoolteachers and university faculty and students, this qualitative study compares the career paths of graduates of the two programs.

Erin Weeks-Earp, of Columbia University Teacher's College, was a 2012-2013 Individual Advanced Research Opportunities (IARO) fellow.