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Supporting Elementary and Secondary Education During the Pandemic: A Case Study from the National Research University Higher School of Economics
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a formidable challenge to the Russian school system. Such global challenges and crises highlight the signifcance of the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE)’s third mission: responsibility for the well-being of the community. As one of the frst universities to offer support to elementary and secondary education systems in Russia during the pandemic, the HSE relied on its ability to create new scientifc knowledge and make it useful in practice to provide versatile and targeted aid for students, teachers, regional administrators, and parents across the country. There were two main vectors of HSE activity at the time of the pandemic: (1) promoting the development of the Russian education system through research, monitoring, and coordination of scholars and analysts and (2) direct work with secondary and high school stakeholders using contemporary approaches for talent development and digital tools. The pandemic revealed the importance of developing new areas of research and analysis. In line with the frst vector, the HSE focused on: • Monitoring and studying the situation and collecting and promoting university and school case studies on organizing work during a pandemic • Leading and participating in professional refections and discussions regarding experiences and training practices in the context of a lockdown The institution organized an array of surveys with students, teachers, parents, and representatives from regional and municipal education organizations and analyzed the results as quickly as possible. The main areas of research were problems of educational inequality and digital transformation. Based on the collected data, the Institute of Education managed to publish more than 30 analytical works between April and June of 2020. For the second vector, the HSE developed programs that seek to expand its geographic reach, implement fexible recruitment, and digitize communication with school students. Such programs aimed at: • Training personnel while consulting with administrators and educators on the technological and legal aspects of the work of schools. • Providing online instruction and assistance for students learning software tools and preparing for exams. • Helping parents arrange support for children in the transition to distance learning. For this period, the HSE quickly and effectively expanded cooperation with schools in Moscow and regions around Russia that the institution developed over the last 15 years. Key current projects working in this direction are: • The HSE School District • The Lyceum Distributed Schools • The Higher Students Academy • The Higher School for Parents