Development of the education system in Russia under Nicholas I: the choice of evaluation criteria

Abstract

The article considers different points of view on the Russian education system under Nicholas I. Attention is drawn to the fact that with regard to the policy of Nicholas I in the field of educational system there are a number of hackneyed phrases and there is no criterion for assessing the development of this system. It is argued that such a criterion can only be quantitative characteristics (growth in the number of educational institutions and the number of students) and the effectiveness of the system as a whole. The effectiveness of the system can be determined only by the degree of contribution of graduates of higher mining schools to the development of the industries in which they were specialized and of the state administration at that period. The author insists on applying this criterion to technical and legal education as well. As the first experience of such an analysis at the Department of History and Political Science of the G.V. Plekhanov Leningrad Mining Institute is mentioned.