Soviet Education System - Cold War DOCUMENTARY

Our historical documentary series on the history of the Cold War continues with a video on the Soviet education system, as we look at the early reforms, the attempts of the Soviet leadership to find the balance between the working population and the professionals, as well as the entry exams, daycares, schools, and universities.

#ColdWar #Soviet #Education

[-dh]

I live in a post socialist country.
My mom had a subject called "Marxism" when she attended highschool.
I had a subject called "Democracy" when I attended highschool.

We were taught by the same teacher.

[nemeczek]

On a positive note: Annual International Olympiads in Math, Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy, etc. for high school students were originally competitions for socialist countries. And now they are trully global events.

[AnEnemy]

After the fall of the Berlin Wall I met a Russian former translator who had served in Afghanistan. He spoke multiple languages and struck me as a highly educated and civilised individual. He was personable with a well developed self deprecating sense of humour. Happy to discuss Monty Python or Tolstoy. Most impressively for me he could not only speak multiple languages but could do so in a variety of dialects. He could pass as Geordie, Scouse or Estuary English!

So, while I admit my sample group is only one man, it would be difficult for me to fault an education system that could produce such a person.

[pyatig]

As an 80s Soviet kid I can say that the primary education I received was enough to get 1100 on my SATs when my family came to the US in 1990, while speaking very little English. I loved my school, my teachers, my friends. I was one of the first in my class to be inducted into the “pioneers”, and I was very proud of that fact not because my head was filled with Soviet propaganda but because I had to get good grades and work hard for them. I wouldn’t trade my Soviet childhood for any transformer toy in the world.

[technologyinnovationandwar]

Yes, an episode about Soviet boarding schools would be a great thing to include in your series. I recently read Stalin's Niños to review for JMH and providing something accessible about the Soviet boarding schools of the Cold War era would be useful to bring to the public. Thanks!

[patbyrneme]

I think there were two big holes in this episode. Firstly, about the fact that such a huge number of Soviet citizens received a University education. To the extent that the average level of education of USSR citizens was higher than almost any other country. And this was reflected by the fact that at one time the Soviet Union was producing around half of the world's scientists. But this was not just in science and technology. There was also a massive number of arts students and in lusic conservatories. This tradition still carries on. For example, in Turkey where I lived for two decades, there was a serous problem of Russian musicians taking over many Turkish jobs in the music industry. The Russian musicians all had a high level of musical training.
The second key question not covered was on the quality of the education.
As a result the piece was unnecessarily negative. Education was regarded generally as one of the successes of the Soviet Union.

[HistoryOfRevolutions]

Fyodor Dostoevsky once wrote:

"People talk to you a great deal about your education, but some good, sacred memory, preserved from childhood, is perhaps the best education. If a man carries many such memories with him into life, he is safe to the end of his days, and if one has only one good memory left in one's heart, even that may sometime be the means of saving us"

[WildBillCox]

Sleep is the unsung hero of human creativity and productivity. A few recent studies have emphasized the need for at least 8 hours/night, specifically as an inhibitor of Dementia later in life. In simpler terms: you can prevent senility later by getting enough sleep now.
You folks who think Sleep is a priority you can set low need to understand how important your tomorrow self is to your today self-and vice versa. Sleep, nutrition, exercise; the triumvirate of senior health and well being. Start now and avoid assisted living later.

[lautaromoyano]

Fully expecting a video about the results of theinternats. Also, really good work with this video! I'm absolutely fascinated by the history of education. I'm studying to be a history teacher at university and I think my thesis may be related to education in general. Please keep on doing this high quality documentaries for as long as possible, we all love them!

[thomasdeering]

“Always snitch, even though snitching will probably get you murdered” is certainly a tough sell imo

[TheWedabest]

The soviet education system, beside the ideological b.s, was very practical! Teaching kids agriculture and mechanics.

[ati]

In Hungary being part of the pioneer organization wasn’t mandatory, however it was advisable. For example, my father wasn’t part of it.
The structure of the organization was the same, but youngest members were called “Little Drummers” instead of “Little Octoberists”

[aaizner]

Not sure why you keep calling them "YOUNG Pioneers"; we were just called "Pioneers". Also, the story of Pavlik Morozov (equally fictional to the version you present here), was pitched to us slightly differently: Pavlik Morozov reported on both of his parents for being "Kulaki", members of the production/farmer class who refused to distribute their stockpiles of food (bread, meat, milk, etc.) to the people. The parents were sent away to the gulags, and there was no mention of Pavlik Morozov being killed.

Btw, the Internat system, full of children raised without parents' love, but often with verbal, emotional, physical and sexual abuse, produced not just mostly criminals, but some real monsters without a sense of empathy or regard for human life. Even the biggest bullies in my old neighborhood in the industrial outskirts of Leningrad, were terrified of the Internat kids.

[TomKroupa]

The episode on the USA educational system in the '50s and '60s would be great. And do not hesitate to discuss the racial and financial aspects involved! And to throw there a little bit of info about Japan's, Germany's etc... educational systems for comparison would be great... Otherwise great work with the channel. I am always looking forward to the next episode.

[Раковийсупець]

It was actually possible, throughout most of the Soviet times, to not enroll into the Pioneers (and actually to be thrown out for some things as well) but the family would've take such an abuse that it wasn't worth it for most...
Mostly the hard-core religious families chose it and were paying dearly.

[runfire]

Looking forward to this video. My limited interaction and understanding of former Soviet citizens gave me the impression that they emphasized education. And emphasized it more than Americans. Sergei talks about his education experience growing up in the USSR (Ukraine) if you want to hear a personal account

[static_anachromatic]

Yes please for an episode on the boarding schools!

[ekmalsukarno]

The Cold War, can you please make a video on South Africa during the Cold War. That way, you can talk about how South Africa's apartheid system worked, as well as the role that South Africa played during the Cold War. Thank you very much.

[ryannorris]

Please do a separate episode about the Soviet orphanage/single-parent/poor parents school system @11 mins in! Specifically the breaking down of cultural & ethnic lines that resulted "by accident".

[WillNGo]

James Loewen, who just passed away, in Lies My Teacher Told Me pointed out that more education usually means more indoctrination and more conformity - and he wasn't talking about the Soviet Union. After the anti-war protests of the 1960s and 70s a lot of which was on college campuses there was a general bias about 'radical students.' So Loewen would ask his students: Which group do you think first opposed America's involvement in the Vietnam War: people with very little education, high school graduates or college graduates? (Before I turned the page to find his answer, I paused and thought, "Who first told me the Vietnam War was a boondoogle?" My grandmother, third grade education. When I was in college most other students thought our anti-war protesting was just making trouble.) Yep. That's what Loewen said too.
Loewen also pointed out that the commitment to education in the U.S. increased as more immigrants arrived in the U.S. in the 1880s bringing with them anarchist and socialist ideas.