Hunt Probes Soviet Drive In Learning

The Soviet Union is totally committed to education, said Herold C. Hunt, Charles William Eliot Professor of Education, speaking on "Education in the USSR" in the Thursday afternoon Lecture Series.

A member of the official ten-man delegation recently sent to Russia to study educational methods, Hunt visited "schools of every kind," including institutions in three cities previously closed to tourists.

The "most interesting and significant trend" in Soviet education, he observed, is the boarding school. Training children all year, the schools have been met with enthusiastic response and offer incredible opportunities for indoctrination.

Discussing the University of Moscow, a "monument of faith and conviction of the Russian people in education," Hunt called the facilities there "among the finest I have ever seen--like a private club."

Principles of Education

Hunt described several important concepts which underlie Soviet education. Competitive motivation, for example, is typified in production posters which urge, "Take and overtake America."

Another significant principle is regimentation. In illustration, Hunt stated that no Russian children may write left-handed. "The educational process is largely regurgitative," he added, "for there are no controversial issuse."

In conclusion, Hunt said that although "sobered" by what he observed, he disapproved of people who, regardless of the ideological disparity between American and the USSR, return from Russia strongly endorsing the Russian system.