V.P. Kashchenko and the Birth of Higher Defectological Education in Russia

Background. The article is dedicated to the 155th anniversary of the birth of Vsevolod Petrovich Kashchenko (1870–1943) — Russian and Soviet teacher, defectologist, public figure, specialist in the field of education and training of children with developmental disorders and disabilities, the founder of a unique medical and pedagogical institution — a sanatorium-school for defective children (1908), which contributed to the emergence and widespread distribution of a network of special correctional institutions for children with disabilities in subsequent years. Objective. The article is focused on the restoration of scientific and biographical data concerning the contribution of V.P. Kashchenko to the creation of higher defectological education in Russia. Methods. Theoretical methods are applied to the analysis of scientific literature on defectology (correctional pedagogy) and related disciplines. Biographical materials, as well as original works of V.P. Kashchenko, which reflected the main events related to the training of defectologists, served as sources for this historical and pedagogical study. Results. The steps taken by V.P. Kashchenko in the pre-Soviet and Soviet periods to organize higher defectological education in our country are presented. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of curricula for training the future specialists in their work with children with special needs. V.P. Kashchenko’s contribution to the development of defectological education is assessed on the basis of the works of well-known specialists in the field of abnormal childhood. Conclusions. V.P. Kashchenko entered the history of pedagogical science as one of the organizers of higher defectological education in Russia. The ideas developed by V.K. Kashchenko about the objective need to create a network of institutions engaged in training specialists for the education and upbringing of children with disabilities were further developed. They led to the emergence of centres of higher defectological education throughout the country. The appeal to the legacy of V.P. Kashchenko is becoming especially relevant in connection with the spread of inclusive education and, as a consequence, the growing need for qualified teaching staff.