The risks of educational failure for studying youth

Abstract

The article is devoted to the sociological study of the risks of educational failure for studying youth. The authors show the magnitude of such a phenomenon as schoolchildren’s and students’ educational failure, as well as the relevance of its research in the context of new challenges faced by modern Russian society. The authors reveal the widespread, pervasive nature of the risks of educational failure for all spheres of public life. The authors emphasize the contradiction between the need to take them into account when it comes to the strategy for developing Russian education and this problem being ignored by the authorities and education management. The authors’ interpretation of key concepts (educational failure, its risks, human capital of educational communities) is presented. The classification of risks of educational failure for studying youth is given. Four groups of risks are analyzed specifically: for the development of the continuous education system; for the economy and labor market; for social security and well-being; for the education system. The final section of the article is devoted to analyzing the opportunities for minimizing the risks of educational failure. It is proven that it is necessary to develop approaches for overcoming the risks of educational failure at the levels of state educational policy, educational organizations of various types and educational communities. Special attention is paid to the importance of transforming educational policy in relation to unsuccessful educational communities, of changes in the environment of educational institutions, of implementing social technologies for the educational support of unsuccessful pupils and students. The empirical basis for this article consists of the results from studies conducted in Yekaterinburg and Sverdlovsk Province. © 2020, Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.