Management of Russian-Speaking Education in Sri Lanka: Problems and Solutions

Introduction. Promotion of national traditions, cultures and languages is an important component of the foreign policy of countries in the modern conditions of globalization and dynamically developing international relations. The Russian language occupies an important place, being one of the world’s languages with a centuries-old history and rich cultural heritage. The Russian Federation is currently paying great attention to the preservation of the Russian language and the strengthening of its position in the world. In the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka the Russian language is not widely spread, but with the development of economic, scientific, educational, cultural international cooperation the interest of Lankans to study the Russian language is growing. The relevance of the study is due to the fact that the expanding trade, economic, humanitarian ties between Russia and Sri Lanka cause the need to study the Russian language and coordinate efforts to interact all participants of the educational process. The development of a set of measures aimed at increasing the number of Russian-speaking citizens, establishing long-term ties with educational organizations of Sri Lanka is an important task in strengthening and developing coopera­tion between Russia and Sri Lanka. The aim of the article is to develop a set of institutional mechanisms and measures aimed at improving the effectiveness of targeted management of the Russian-speaking educational process carried out in Sri Lanka. Materials and Methods. During their research the authors adhered to the following sequence of work: during the preparatory stage data collection was carried out, then a sociological study among teachers and students and a qualitative study using the method of focus groups were conducted, after obtaining the necessary information the data were analyzed and specific recommendations on the functionality of the Russian language department of the linguistic direction of the National Institute of Education of Sri Lanka were developed. Results. The research allowed us to highlight the demand for the study of the Russian language in Sri Lanka and measures for its promotion. Regulations for the formation of new management mechanisms to strengthen the position for the study of the Russian language, taking into account local traditions and peculiarities of the worldview of the population have been identified. Realization of the proposed measures, in our opinion, will provide effective coordination of actions of parties concerned in the study of the Russian culture and language. Discussion and Conclusion. Practical significance lies in the use of the results obtained in the course of scientific research, expeditions to make up a list of systemic measures that will effectively manage Russian-language education in schools of Sri Lanka. The materials of the article can be useful to the authorities in the sphere of education and international cooperation, heads of educational organizations in Sri Lanka in order to improve the level of teaching Russian as a foreign language.