Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia
Mikhail V. Larin, Ph.D., Prof.
Director, All-Russian Scientific and Research Institute for Archives and Records Management (VNIIDAD),
Russia, Moscow, 117393, Profsoiuznaia ul., 82, e-mail:www.vniidad.ru; larin@vniidad.ru
Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia abstract
Basic stages of archival education development in Russia are shown in the report. Distinctive features of specialists' preparation in archival science in the Soviet period - a historian-archivist with higher education and professional portrait of a modern historian-archivist on the basis of two-level system of archival education: bachelor's degree and magistracy are given. The system of the Russian higher educational institutions with professional training of archivists is presented.
Keywords: archival education, Russia, higher education
Moderne tendenze della formazione archivistica in Russia
sintesi
Sono presentate nell'articolo le tappe fondamentali dello sviluppo della formazione archivistica in Russia. Ven-gono riportate le diverse caratteristiche della preparazione degli specialisti in scienza archivistica nel periodo sovietico - uno storico-archivista con livello di istruzione superiore, e il ritratto professionale di un moderno storico-archivista sulla base del sistema a due livelli di formazione archivistica: laurea e laurea magistrale. Viene presentato il sistema degli istituti di istruzione superiore russi per la formazione professionale degli archivisti.
Parole chiave: formazione archivistica, Russia, formazione superiore
Sodobne smernice arhivskega izobraževanja v Rusiji izv^leček:
Prispevek prikazuje osnovne faze razvoja arhivskega izobraževanja v Rusiji. Predstavljene so posebnosti izobraževanja strokovnjakov na področju arhivistike v obdobju Sovjetske zveze - zgodovinar - arhivist z višjo izobrazbo ter sodobne zgodovinar-arhivist, katerega izobraževanje poteka na podlagi sistema dvostopenjske arhivske izobrazbe: dodiplomskega in podiplomskega (magistrskega) študija. Predstavljen je sistem ruskih visokošolskih izobraževalnih ustanov s strokovnim usposabljanjem arhivistov.
Ključne besede: arhivsko izobraževanje, Rusija, visoko šolstvo
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Mikhail V. LARIN: Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia, 159-164
1	History
The first attempts of archival education in Russia date back to XIX century. However, serious work on archivists' preparation began in 1930 when the Institute of archival science was created in Moscow. In 1933 it was renamed into the Moscow state historian and archival institute (MGIAI).
The institute has played a great role in formation and development of archival science based on scientific principles and realized by professional experts in the USSR. During a long period of time MGIAI has been a unique higher educational institution of the country realizing archivists' training. Only in 1970 specialization "historical and archival science" was opened as a part of the Ural state university at the historical department. This measure allowed to increase a number of specialists with higher archival education in the east of the country.
A combination of deep historical education and training of archival science's theory and practice was a distinctive feature of specialists' preparation in MGIAI. It was a unique feature of archival education, a model of training, practically not used in other countries. It is worth to say that archivists from Eastern Europe and some Asian states got archival education at historical and archival institute.
There were archival science, scientific and technical archives (information), and state records keeping departments in MGIAI. Annually about 500 specialists graduated from the institute.
The outstanding scientists and experts, prominent figures of historical science worked in MGIAI. It is important to mention that theoretical knowledge ofstudents was supported with practical training in archives, research work during the educational process. This educational process at the historical and archival institute has always been famous for its deep respect to historical sources and historical truth. Probably, for this reason in the 1980s of the last century during "perestroika" period, MGIAI became the centre of political attraction, one of the units of democratic, iberal movement leading to public changes. The educational process was characterized by academic freedom for students, a variety of scientific and training programs, a considerable expansion of international cooperation, including universities of western countries. At the same time MGIAI managed to keep and develop its own special approaches to education and science in combination with innovative technologies.
The following scientific and teaching schools, well known in the Russian Federation and outside the country: a source study, auxiliary historical disciplines; history; archival and records science were created in the institute. In 1990s - 2000s the scientists, included into these schools, published hundreds of scientific articles, tens of monographs, manuals and the all-Russian textbooks, realized many other scientific and educational projects. Historical and archival institute (IAI) is carrying out close scientific and educational cooperation with the professorship of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAN), the Moscow State University (MGU), the Federal archival agency and etc.
2	The Historical and archival institute inclusion into the RGGU structure
New stage in development of historical and archival education is connected with political changes in the country. After the USSR disintegration, the historical and archival institute has lost its unique status. The Russian state university for humanities (RGGU) was created on its base. Since that time archival education has greatly changed.
The change of historical and archival institute status led to its look and activity changes. The historical and archival institute (IAI) became only one of structural parts of a new university, it was a little lost among the other institutes and departments of a large humanitarian university. This change of the institute status has directly affected material and technical base of the institute, its financing and archival profession prestige as a whole. For a short period of time - 3-4 years - the historical and archival institute from an elite higher educational institution, with a big competition among the university entrants, became an ordinary educational institution.
During these years there were 5 departments in the IAI: archival science; records science; history, political science and the rights; technetronic archives and records; "Archival school".
With inclusion of separate historical, political science departments and a set of other disciplines into the institute structure in parallel with archival department the position of archival education in
Mikhail V. LARIN: Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia, 159-164
the new higher educational institution became unenviable. The situation was affected also by the fact that in new Russia the appearance of new professions in higher educational institutions has ceased to be a state prerogative. It was enough to prepare appropriate curriculums for any higher educational institution (university) to get ready to apply for opening of a new profession after procedure of their coordination. Thus, tens of higher educational institutions all over the country declared about beginning of a professional training of historians-archivists, without having neither qualified lecturers' personnel, nor experience in this sphere. In our opinion these circumstances were eading to decrease the quality of archival specialists' preparation.
In order to change such situation the development of state educational standards of the higher vocational training was started. The first standard for a specialty "historical and archival science" was worked out and confirmed by the Ministry of education and science in 2000. According to this standard the preparation of a historian-archivist at a full-time course of study within 5 years was provided.
The qualifying characteristic of a graduate has included preparation for the following activity:
-	formation and preservation of the Russian Federation Archival fund as a main part of society's cultural heritage, its spiritual experience, history of the Russian statehood;
-	organization of archival records use with the aim of inclusion of archival heritage into the system of society's information resources, information environment of modern world as a whole, and also demonstration of public and individual experience fixed in archival records in order to deepen historical, humanitarian and natural sciences knowledge;
-	organization and management of archival science in institutions, enterprises; support of acquisition, registration, arrangement, storage and use of records according to the established order;
-	preparation of finding aids; work on appraisal of scientific and practical value of records.
The basic educational program of historian-archivist preparation provided studying of the following courses of disciplines:
a course of general humanitarian and social and economic disciplines;
a course of general mathematical and natural sciences disciplines;
a course of general professional disciplines;
a course of specialization discipline;
optional subjects.
3 Transition to two-level model of archival education
The new stage of archival science specialty development deals with the Russia's entering into the Bologna process in 2003, with creation of general European educational system. For archival science specialty this process meant transition to two-level system of professional training "bachelor-master". In the transition period the higher educational institutions continued to turn out certificated specialists as well.
The process of transition of the Russian higher educational institutions to two-level system of bachelors and masters preparation in concrete learning directions as a whole finished by 2010/2011 academic year. The approval of standards for bachelors and masters has allowed RGGU to admit on a bachelor degree since 2008/2009 academic years, and a new combined specialization on records science and archival science became an approbation platform. The bachelor degree system has a number of advantages: inclusion of up to 15 profiles of students' preparation, and also flexibility and compatibility of courses with foreign programs of archivists and records managers' education (for example, the Parisian National school of charters).
The new system of the higher education suggests extended learning directions of preparation instead of traditional specialties. So, with the new tendencies in higher education a speciaty "records science and records support of administration" and "historical and archival science" were united in one - "records and archival science" in lAI RGGU.
Mikhail V. LARIN: Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia, 159-164
A new curriculum in "records and archival science" with changes in training technology not in contents is accepted now. Along with general professional requirements to graduates, concerned the obligatory disciplines, the principle of academic orientation of students, giving a wide list of disciplines for choice, is reflected in it. And besides, another principle - a combination of general "introduction" course and more private and simultaneously more profound subjects - is also realized. The curriculum, based on educational alternatives and freedom of courses' choice is rather flexible and opened to the further development. It allows inclusion of new profiles and correction of variation part without damage to obligatory courses.
So, new educational programs on basic learning directions of bachelors and masters preparation are created taking into account the main principles elaborated by the countries - participants of the Bologna process. Among these principles the key one is the change of correlation between the contents of educational programs and a set of qualifications, required by profile employers. Moreover, the main developers of these requirements to the competences of graduates became employers, and then under these competences the higher educational institutions are working out educational modules (they define a set of disciplines).
This competence approach strengthens practice and orientation of education, its subject and professional aspect, underlines a role of experience, abilities to realize knowledge in practice and solve industrial problems. Such education combines direct and mediated interaction by means of information technologies.
The change in education contents assumes the development of new organization of educational process, and also the creation of personnel preparation and retraining system. There are developed federal state educational standards of the higher professional education (VPO) of the third generation in the lAI RGGU. The base part of the standard, which is general for records managers and archivists, includes three blocks: professional, legal and informational. It is the result of the incorporated learning direction "Records science and archival science" is characterized not only by unity of basic preparation and studying object. But it is also specified by identity of labour areas, considerable conformity of records managers and archivists competences, by realization of the program 032002 - "Records support of administration and archival science" at the level of secondary vocational training, and also by preparation of post-graduate students and doctoral candidates according to integrated learning direction 05.25.02 - "Documentation, records science and archival science".
In the institute there are profiles of bachelors' preparation, on the base of which educational programs are put into life.
Bachelors' preparation in the combined learning direction "Records science and archival science" take into account the changes outlined at the turn of XX-XXI centuries. Time is correcting the formed system with existing realities. As far as the profession "archivist" is concerned the main accent was displaced from the work with records of the Middle Ages and new times (retrospective) to the work with records of modern times (the Soviet and Post-Soviet periods). Processes of privatization and decentralization in archival sphere led to the fact that departmental and non- state archives began to play a great role in storage and use of the Russian Federation Archival fund records (AF RF).
Requirements to archives have considerably raised. Along with the increase in volumes of traditional work there are new problems on introduction of modern information technologies and reception of electronic records for storage in archives.
Bachelors-archivists are trained on three learning profiles, such as: "State and municipal archives", "Military archives", "Archives management abroad".
The professional educational program of archivists' preparation within the learning profile "State and municipal archives" contains the disciplines with complete representation on specific features not only of federal, but also of many municipal archives of the country.
Peculiarities of the profile "Military archives" are in specific professional work of military archives employee who should know military history, military records keeping, execution of military papers, existence of military records, legislation, regulating access and use of military archival records and included personal data in them, structure of military archives and the location of military records of archival value.
Mikhail V. LARIN: Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia, 159-164
Within the profile "Archives management abroad" the department successfully put into life international exchange of students under the following programs: "History, culture and archives of France", "History, culture and archives of French-speaking America: civilization of Quebec", "History, culture and policy of Sweden", "The Jewish languages, culture, texts and archives". A key point of the learning profile curriculum "Archives management abroad / History, culture and archives of France" is the history of revealing, description and use of historical and documentary heritage of Russia and France with special attention to traditional cultural contacts of the French and the Russian.
Preparation of specialists for work with scientific and technical and audio-visual records and materials which combine professional knowledge of history, archival theory and practice, history of science, techniques, documentary communications, modern documentary systems and also methods of source study analysis of records, main tendencies of development of film-photo works of art, photojournalism, sound recordings and broadcasting, methods of scientific and technical records processing by special services of institutions and organizations is carried out at the department of technetro-nic archives and records (FTAD).
Specific features of FTAD educational programs is defined by originality of technetronic archives and records as a set of film-photo-phono-records, video tapes, scientific and technical records and electronic documents. So, training on learning profiles of bachelor and master degrees with specific character of all mentioned types of information resources is provided at this department.
The features of bachelors' preparation curriculum within the profile "Scientific and technical and business archives" is characterized by studying of the most significant particulars of work with records of scientific and research institutions, technical organizations, industrial enterprises, financial institutes. These numerous and dynamically developing structures produce a wide labour market for graduates of such profiles.
The program "Management of records and documentary heritage under the Russian modernization" is opened in the magistracy on the learning direction "Records science and archival science".
4 Conclusions
The peculiarity of bachelors' preparation program on the profile "Electronic records and archives" is that its graduates get knowledge not only in the field of creation, storage and scientific description of electronic records, but also in sphere of use of such type of information resources for holding historical researches.
By all means the Historical and archival institute of RGGU will have to up-grade its material and technical base, to re-equip it by getting modern hardware and software products, including systems of electronic records circulation, information and finding aids systems and so on.
Historical and archival institute of RGGU is the largest centre of historical and archival and records science education not only in our country, but also in the world. Therefore the actual problem of lAI RGGU personnel today is expansion of international cooperation in records management. It deals with the active process of international practice standardization of records management. It is necessary to note that one of the important aspects of modern practice of domestic archival science education is its integration into the system of international professional cooperation of archivists.
Thus, humanitarian traditions of the Russian higher school and modern approaches to historians-archivists preparation, a width of common cultural outlook with practical skills of revealing, organization, studying and generalization of documentary sources have incorporated in the Historical and archival institute.
Mikhail V. LARIN: Modern Tendencies of Archival Education in Russia, 159-164
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summary
Archival education in the Russian Federation has got its history. The Moscow state historical and archival institute, established in 1930, played a significant role in it. The institute was an independent educational institution, carrying out professional training of historians-archivists of high qualification for the Russian archives in the Soviet period. Combination of historical and archival education was a key point in the training process of specialists. The Historical and archival institute was of prime importance in formation of professionally prepared archivists. In modern history a tradition of historians-archivists' training at the Historical and archiva institute as a part of the Russian state university for humanities has been continued. Besides this university, a lot of educational institutions all over the country were engaged in preparation of archivists. Such situation led to decrease in quality of specialists' preparation. So, the Ministry of Education let out a state standard with the requirements to specialists' training. In the beginning of this century the transition to two-level model of specialists' preparation "bachelor-master" was carried out in Russia. Changes have concerned also the preparation of archivists. A developed state standard of archivists' training within the uniform direction "records and archives science" is working now. The transition to two-level system of bachelors-masters preparation in the majority of higher educational institutions is realized at present time.
Typology: 1.04 Professional article Submitting date: 28.01.2014 Acceptance date: 07.02.2014