Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Mr Fursenko, the programme for advancing education will expire this year, and the ministry has drafted a new document on this issue. Today, I would like to discuss some aspects of the newly drafted programme. First of all, this concerns the general school education system, as well as vocational education and specific criteria for evaluating the performance of educational establishments.

Andrei Fursenko: Mr Putin, first of all, the principles behind the new programme hinge on the part of the national education project that deals with the comprehensive development of education in the regions. I have told you why this project has turned out well. Therefore the new federal targeted programme stipulates the very same idea, namely, helping to establish  regional centres of excellence, centres providing the best early childhood education and the best school education and training centres in the field of primary and secondary vocational education, including the retraining of adults.

The idea of the new programme is to encourage the regions to develop independently. This approach has already been tested,  and we believe that assistance through a federal targeted programme will be most effective. In about a year we should switch over to national programmes that will encompass the entire educational system. But these specific guidelines may yield substantial results in the next 12 months.

As you have said, performance evaluations are among the programme’s priorities. It is very important that purely departmental evaluations, namely, unified state exams, be supplemented with public evaluations. In terms of pre-schools and general education schools, it is important to have supervisory councils and the involvement of parents. Regarding vocational education, professional associations and employers should be involved in evaluating the quality of specialists being trained for them. We have drafted a new targeted programme that includes all of these features.

Vladimir Putin: Mr Fursenko, let’s discuss another issue now. We have both visited the Siberian University in Krasnoyarsk. Our partners there raised a number of issues and problems. I would like to review them now.

Andrei Fursenko: First, they have raised the issue of small companies. The relevant laws have been amended. To the best of my knowledge, one of them has already been passed in the second reading. Moreover, we have made certain additions to the budget, have increased funding through the fund for promoting the development of small companies in the sphere of science and technology, and have agreed that small enterprises which have been established by universities will be supported through this fund. As you remember, employees complained that they are allowed to contribute intellectual property, but that it is impossible to do this without funding.

We also set up a tender for the development of university infrastructure under Resolution No. 219, which you signed. As of today, 65 universities have received rather substantial grants of up to 150 million roubles for three years for developing infrastructure and this will help them to expand the small companies.

Vladimir Putin: And what about the right to lease premises to their own small companies without any tenders?

Andrei Fursenko: We have drafted precisely this bill. Hopefully, it will be passed during the current session.

Vladimir Putin: Are you working with State Duma deputies in this direction? When will the document be approved in the third reading?

Andrei Fursenko: We expect that the bill will be approved by the State Duma and the Federation Council during the fall session and subsequently signed.

Vladimir Putin: I would like you to oversee this process.