Average exam score. How USE scores differ by region: results of schoolchildren and regional inequality

As the head of the Ministry of Education and Science, Dmitry Livanov, confirmed, in 2014 the number of hundred-point students of the Unified State Examination was reduced by three times, and the average score in almost all subjects decreased by 10 points. These results, he emphasized, testify to the objectivity of knowledge assessment achieved this year with the help of the Unified State Examination. And, therefore, the additional costs of the campaign in the amount of 660 million rubles were not in vain.

According to the latest updated data of the Ministry of Education, the number of graduates who did not pass the compulsory subjects - Russian language and mathematics - in 2014 decreased by 24% compared to 2013. So, it is impossible to talk about any catastrophe, they emphasize in the department.

At the same time, Dmitry Livanov admitted that this indicator was achieved only after the minimum threshold for both subjects was reduced to 24 and 20 points, respectively. Moreover, it was impossible not to do this: otherwise, with last year's minimum in the Russian language of 36 points, 30 thousand schoolchildren or 4% of the graduation would now be left without certificates. (For comparison, in 2013, only 11,000 eleventh-graders, or 1.5% of the total graduation, did not receive certificates).

The unprecedented honesty of the Unified State Examination this year has led to a decrease in all other indicators. The average score in almost all subjects, Livanov stated, fell by 10 points compared to last year. Moreover, the results of the exam in Russian sank less than other subjects: from last year's 63.9 to 62.5 points.

Worst of all in this respect is the case with chemistry, where the drop was 13 points (from 68.6 last year to 55.6 this year). Almost as bad with English language, the average result for which fell by 11.8 points - from 73 to 61.2. The average score in mathematics decreased by 10 points - 39.6 versus 49.6. And in other subjects, the picture of this year is not much better: in physics - 45.7 points against 54.6 in 2013, in biology - 54.3 against 59, in history - 45.7 against 55.9, in computer science and ICT - 57.2 against 63.5, in social science - 53.1 against 60.1, in geography - 53.1 against 57.5, in literature - 54 against 59.9 in 2013.

At the same time, the number of hundred-pointers also decreased. Moreover, significantly - three times - after rechecking these works by experts from Rosobrnadzor. All this, the head of the Ministry of Education and Science emphasized, was due to the maximum objectivity of the USE in 2014. So now it remains only to reveal weak spots in the education system, and above all - schools that do not provide the proper quality of education.

True, they will not be punished, he promised. Moreover. Livanov, according to him, has already ordered the development of programs to support secondary schools in regions where the results of the Unified State Examination in the Russian language turned out to be a complete failure. (The minister did not name them, but first of all, one must think we are talking about the national republics, in previous years, eclipsed by the number of excellent students in Russian all other territories of the country, including Moscow and St. Petersburg).

It must be admitted that the honesty of the current USE campaign was not cheap: the additional state expenses for its implementation this year increased by 660 million rubles due to the installation of 40,000 video cameras and payment for special communications services. (The delivery of examination materials by the latter cost 60 million rubles). However, next year, the cost of the exam will be reduced: the cameras will not go anywhere, and you only need to pay for special communications.

And the last. According to the head of Rosobrnadzor Sergey Kravtsov, it is premature to panic about the fact that this year's USE campaign revealed a sharp drop in the quality of teaching the Russian language in schools. In the Russian language, as, indeed, in all other subjects, the current indicators have returned to the level of 2010, so “we cannot say that the quality of the Russian language has seriously decreased without a deep analysis,” he said.

Recently, a new wave of the unified state exam has started, and for those 8 years that the USE has been in a mandatory mode, the controversy around it has not subsided. In this article, we make an attempt to show the dynamics of the average USE scores in Russian language and mathematics in the regions, as well as explain what regional differences in exam results may be related to.

The data presented here is collected from open sources. The results of the USE were obtained from the regional websites of educational departments and centers for assessing the quality of education. Other indicators are collected on the websites of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, Rosstat, and the Federal Treasury.

USE results: regional differences

If you look at the map, you can see that the highest average scores in both the Russian language and mathematics show the regions of the Central federal district. In 2015, the Orenburg and Samara regions were among the leaders in the Russian language, as well as Perm region, By specialized mathematics- Republic of Kalmykia, Perm Territory and Udmurtia. The lowest results, contrary to stereotypes, are observed not in the North Caucasian regions, but in the Far East.

Of particular interest is the dynamics of the USE results in the regions. It is incorrect to compare scores by years directly - over the years, the exam has experienced many changes. For example, in 2013, during the massive leaks of answers, the scores of participants in the whole country were higher, and in 2014, after tightening security measures, they fell. With this in mind, we looked at the position of the regions relative to the average score in Russia and used standardized z-scores. In other words, we compared the dynamics of the regions relative to the national average. The results of the regions in 2010 and 2014 were compared, since during this period the content and structure of the exam were the most stable.

In general, a significant (more than one standard deviation) growth over these five years was demonstrated by 16 subjects of the Russian Federation in mathematics, and 11 subjects of the Russian Federation in the Russian language. Basically, these are the regions that in 2010 showed results below the average. A serious decrease in scores occurred in mathematics in 6, and in the Russian language in 3 regions - where in 2010 there were quite high scores. In the subjects of the Russian Federation with average results, there were no significant changes in scores.

Factors of Regional Differences in USE Results

2009-2014:

In order to understand what explains the results of the USE in mathematics and in the Russian language in 2009-2014, we analyzed their relationship with a number of regional characteristics. The focus was, firstly, on the role of resource support for schools, and secondly, on the role of family resources.

School resources are largely determined by the amount of public funding. If per capita school funding is adjusted for inflation and differences between regions in the cost of living, then the increase in this indicator from 2006 to 2013 was about 40 percent. At the same time, the maximum gap in per capita financing over the same period slightly decreased - from 6 to 5 times. Greatest growth funding for schools occurred in 2012, when the “May Decrees of the President” were adopted.

Changes in school funding are important for student outcomes. According to our estimates, regions with a higher level of per capita funding show higher average USE scores in mathematics (with an equal level of economic development, incomes of the population, and a number of other characteristics of the regions). According to the Russian language, there was a significant correlation between the results of the USE and per capita funding (taking into account other regional indicators) in 2009-2014. not detected. In part, this can be explained by the fact that the social characteristics of families play a large role in the results in the Russian language.

The main share in the budget financing of schools is teachers' salaries. At the same time, the dynamics of their salaries relative to the average level of wages in the region is important. In general, this trend has been positive. The most significant increase in the relative salaries of teachers was observed in 2008 and 2012-2013, with a slight decrease in 2007 and 2010.

According to our estimates, the level of teachers' salaries relative to the average salary in the region is positively associated with the regional results of the Unified State Examination in both the Russian language and mathematics. What teachers will come to schools and with what attitude they will work depends on wages. For example, data from the 2012 PISA survey of school principals shows that teachers in regions with higher relative salaries are more motivated, enthusiastic, and driven to achieve.

In addition to the state, families invest in the education of children. The resources of families are determined by their income. Our analysis shows that in regions with a high level of poverty (the share of people with incomes below the subsistence level), the USE results are lower. High level income inequality within the region also has a negative impact on average USE scores (with an equal level of budgetary funding for schools and a number of other regional characteristics).

In other words, family resources are also important for improving the educational achievements of schoolchildren. At the same time, in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation with low incomes, the resources of regional budgets, and hence the funding of schools, are on average lower.

In general, at this stage, equalizing the level of budgetary funding of schools between regions is not enough to equalize the scores of children.

2015:

If we talk about the results of 2015, then the gap between the regions with the minimum and maximum average USE scores can be 28 points in the Russian language and 16 in mathematics. Socio-economic characteristics of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation (gross regional product, school funding per student, share of the population with higher education, as well as the share of the urban population) explain the average USE score in mathematics by 25 percent and the average USE score in Russian by 34 percent. Children from less prosperous regions are less likely to score high on exams than those who live in more economically developed parts of the country. Moreover, in the Russian language this gap is somewhat larger than in mathematics.

Almost to the same extent (28 percent in mathematics and 30 percent in Russian) the average scores in the regions are explained by the characteristics of schools and teachers. It is important to take into account how many children in the region go to college after grade 9, and how many remain in high school and take the exam. As our analysis shows, in schools where less than half of the ninth-graders remain in the upper grades, the results are also higher than in those where the selection (or self-selection) of children is less strict.

Teacher characteristics also matter. In all regions, teachers with completed higher education predominate, however, where there are more than 80 percent of such teachers, the results of the USE of students are higher. But the connection between the results and the category of a teacher turned out to be not so unambiguous - the highest results are among graduates in regions where the proportion of teachers with the highest category varies from 22 to 30 percent.

Thus, our analysis shows how much students from different regions chances of getting high USE scores are not equal. By the way, the average results of Moscow schoolchildren on the Unified State Examination are 13 points higher in specialized mathematics and 5 points higher in the Russian language than those of schoolchildren from the Republic of Buryatia.

In general, the economic and educational characteristics of the regions determine the USE scores by 64 percent in the Russian language and by 53 percent in mathematics. At the same time, these factors are outside the sphere of influence of teachers and schools themselves, so it is incorrect to evaluate them by this result.

conclusions

As our analysis shows, there are rather large regional differences in the educational results of schoolchildren in Russia. These differences can determine further fate children, including influence on admission to universities.

In many respects, this difference is related to how well-off students are. educational resources. Inequality of resources exists both at the level of families and at the level of public funding of schools. Often one accompanies the other.

Our analysis does not take into account variations in the scores of the unified exam within regions, although this task seems to be extremely useful in the development of educational policy measures. Such an analysis requires access to anonymized USE data for researchers. IN developed countries the results of such tests are used to analyze and develop management decisions, and it is important to use this experience in Russia as well.

The USE, as an objective tool for evaluating school graduates, showed the existence of a problem with inequality in education. It is impossible to place the entire responsibility for solving this problem on the exam itself or teachers. Equalization of educational opportunities is a task of state policy.

MOSCOW, 2 July. /Corr. ITAR-TASS/. The average score on the unified state exam in mathematics, which graduates took this year, was 39.6 points. Last year it was at the level of 49.6 points. This was reported in the press service of the Ministry of Education and Science.

The decrease in the average score occurred in almost all subjects. So, for example, in physics last year, the score was 54.6, this year - 45.8, in English - 73 points last year and 61 one - this year.

The main wave of the Unified State Examination in Russia took place from May 26 to June 19, including reserve days. Mathematics graduates handed over on June 5, 272 papers were canceled at the exam. The USE in mathematics is one of two mandatory state exams for passing at school (the second is Russian). Not having overcome the minimum threshold, the student does not receive a certificate.

5,000 people failed to pass both mandatory USE

The Ministry of Education and Science noted that the number of those who did not pass both compulsory subjects - in Russian and mathematics - at the unified state exam this year amounted to almost 5 thousand people throughout Russia. This is less than last year: then more than 6.5 thousand people could not cope with the Russian language and mathematics.

As for high scorers, that is, students who score from 80 to 100 points on the USE, their number has decreased significantly. In 2013 there were more than 180 thousand people, this year - only more than 110 thousand.

Almost three times decreased and the number of hundred points. If in 2013 there were more than 9 thousand of them, then in this year - 3.5 thousand people.

A support program will be developed for regions with low scores

The head of the Ministry of Education and Science Dmitry Livanov said that for the regions where poor results were revealed during the main period of this year's state exams, a program to support weak schools will be developed.

"We have weak schools, the objective USE of 2014 helped to diagnose existing problems Livanov said. - A program to support weak schools will be developed in each region. It is important to use the state exam results to narrow the gap between strong and weak schools."

The Unified State Examination has risen in price by 663 million rubles.

It took 663 million rubles more to conduct the unified state exam this year than in 2013.

"For all positions conducting the exam funding remained at the level of last year, except for two. The first of them is video surveillance, 600 million rubles were spent on it. In total, more than 46,000 cameras were installed; Rostelecom was responsible for installing the cameras. On average, 10-11 thousand rubles were spent on the equipment of one audience, Livanov said. “In addition, this year 63 million rubles were spent to strengthen control measures during delivery to some regions.”

Last year, for the unified state exam in total 500 million rubles were spent.

The Unified State Examination is a centrally conducted exam in Russia in secondary educational institutions. Since 2009, the USE has been the only form final exams at school and the main form of entrance exams to universities.