Strategies for Teaching Foreigners in Russia: Soft Power or Export of Services? (Internal Russian Aspect)

Modern Russia has inherited from the Soviet Union a vast network of educational institutions and some educational traditions. Over time, Soviet educational standards have partly become outdated, partly artificially eliminated, and the Russian state itself has faced a number of new challenges that suggest the return of the Russian Federation to the ranks of world powers with a highly competitive level of education. Most of the articles about practices and approaches to teaching foreign students in Russia are written by teachers. All kinds of statistics are used and analyzed mainly in universities, which indicates a direct interest of the teaching community in improving the quality of education for foreigners. However, state universities face difficulties in implementing improvements due to the absence of necessary laws and initiatives from the government. This is due not only to the need to update legislation in accordance with new conditions, but also largely due to the inherited Soviet practice of managing higher education from above. The author reviews the literature on key problems and trends in this sector, comparing and evaluating the Soviet legacy and modern practices, and suggests ways to solve some of the main problems based on both Soviet and foreign experience.