The changing value of higher education: comparative analysis of Belarus, Russia, China
Research Article
How to Cite
Titarenko L.G. The changing value of higher education: comparative analysis of Belarus, Russia, China. Humanities of the South of Russia. 2023. Vol. 12. No. 1. P. 124-141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18522/2227-8656.2023.1.10 (in Russ.).
Abstract
Objective of the study is to identify changes in perceptions of the value of higher education in the mass consciousness of young Belarusians, Russians and Chinese, as well as to clarify the real possibilities of obtaining it in each of these countries, taking into account the social stratification of the population and other factors. The article shows how the attitude of young people to higher education in selected countries has changed in the last decade, and what factors in these countries caused these changes. The trends of differentiated attitudes towards higher education among young people representing different social strata of the population are revealed.
The methodological basis of the research. The article proceeds from the principle of social justice in its application to the problem of assessing the opportunities of different groups of young people to get equal access to higher education. Social justice is one of the terminal values for the population of post-Soviet Belarus and Russia, since the Soviet Union cultivated the idea of social equality and ensuring equal access to higher education regardless of the income level of different social groups. The value of equal access to higher education remains in the mass consciousness today. However, as the market economy develops in these countries, the cost of paid higher education increases, which in the current difficult socio-economic conditions makes it unattainable for young people from low-income segments of the population and forces these young people to look for other strategies for successfully entering the labor market. In China, high competition for admission to the second-stage programs of higher education makes it unattainable for a large number of young people who have insufficiently high academic performance, even if there are material opportunities for admission to paid education. This factor has caused the mobility of Chinese youth to Russia and Belarus to obtain a master's degree, which is necessary in the future for employment. The empirical basis of the study is statistical data on changes in the number of students in the higher education system in Russia and Belarus, secondary vocational education in Russia, as well as available statistics on higher education in China. For an in-depth study of the opinions of Chinese youth who came to Belarus, data from sociological studies of Chinese students who studied at master's programs were used, which clarified the reasons that prompted them to come to study in Belarus, personal motives in studying, expectations from the education they receive in terms of future employment and improving social status. Similar questions were found out in the national survey of Belarusian students conducted in 2022 (n = 2666).
Research results. In the article, from the standpoint of the continuing value orientation of post-Soviet Russian and Belarusian society on the equality of youth access to higher education as a terminal value, it is shown that, firstly, the problem of social inequalities in higher education is relevant for both countries, but manifests itself in different ways. In Russia, young people with insufficient financial resources have begun to reorient from higher to secondary vocational education; in Belarus, young people are limited to bachelor's degree, not considering further continuation of education practically valuable for entering the labor market. In turn, Chinese youth, who do not have the opportunity to realize the need for a second-level education at home, go abroad, since only a high level of education guarantees them employment and social status in their country. Secondly, the relationship between the issues of access to higher education, the income of the population and the subsequent access of young people to the labor market has been revealed. With a lack of income, low-resource groups prefer to focus on secondary vocational education or bachelor's degree, which guarantee young people a faster entry into the labor market and financial independence. Resourceful Chinese young people are ready to invest in obtaining a master's degree abroad, because without it they may not find a job in China at all. Thirdly, modern practice shows that, despite the stereotypical high ratings of higher education by young people, in a specific life situation, in all three countries, they are oriented towards obtaining education instrumentally.
Prospects of the study are related to further analysis of the dynamics of attitudes of young people to receive education at different levels in the context of changes in household incomes and strategies for entering the labor market. According to the author, management structures need to monitor the dynamics of changes in the attitude of young people to higher education, since highly educated personnel are the driver of the development of any society. The social discontent of the youth cohort is a danger to the political stability of society.
Keywords:
higher education, secondary vocational education, Belarus, Russia, China, youth attitudes to education, social justice in education, terminal and instrumental values of youth in education, access to the labor market
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Article
Received: 28.01.2023
Accepted: 17.02.2023
Citation Formats
Other cite formats:
APA
Titarenko, L. G. (2023). The changing value of higher education: comparative analysis of Belarus, Russia, China. Humanities of the South of Russia, 12(1), 124-141. https://doi.org/10.18522/2227-8656.2023.1.10
Section
HIGHER EDUCATION: PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS
