Overview
- In an interview with RIA Novosti, Vladislav Grib said Russia is ready for a shift to a 12-year general education program and described the change as a question of timing.
- He cited the preschool “zero year” as de facto preparation for primary school and said a formal extension could keep graduates entering universities at 18 and help retain teachers as first‑grade cohorts shrink.
- Grib said falling numbers of first‑graders should not translate into reductions in the teaching workforce.
- He declined to support a blanket move to 9 a.m. lesson starts, urging school‑level decisions after consultations with parents and psychologists and noting challenges such as winter darkness and parents’ work schedules.
- A separate education expert told TASS that a transition to a 12-year system could take 13–15 years and questioned doing so before curriculum and materials are fully standardized.