This major project, which was based on a partnership between the British Council and the Russian Ministry of Education, has had a far-reaching effect on English language teaching and learning across Russia.

Client, stakeholders, partners

• Ministry of Education
• Local educational authorities
• In-service teacher training Institutions
• Russian and British publishers
• The World Bank
• College of St Mark and St John. UK
• University of Warwick, UK

Project focus
New textbooks for English for primary/secondary schools in Russia; training a new cohort of textbook writers.

The project
This major project, which was based on a partnership between the British Council and the Russian Ministry of Education, has had a far-reaching effect on English language teaching and learning across Russia.

Firstly, the British Council worked together with the Ministry on a baseline study and a needs analysis. These showed an urgent need for new, modern ELT materials, suited to the local context. A project was then designed, following the model of a successful project in Romania.

A team of 32 authors from 11 regions was created, after a competitive process. All team members were Russian school teachers. They were trained in textbook writing, and the textbooks were created, with the support of leading UK ELT specialists from the College of St Mark & St John and Warwick University.

Training for the authors continued for the entire duration of the project, through regular workshops which reviewed and revised materials, through feedback from pre-publishing piloting in schools across Russia, and through cooperation with publishers.

The result was a range of high quality ELT books and materials, based on the latest ideas on communicative competence and issues-based and task-based approaches. All were tailored to the practical needs of teachers and learners in Russia and tested through pre-publishing piloting. Partnerships with the National Training Foundation (World Bank) and British and Russian publishers helped fund the project. Three textbooks from the series were the winners of a World Bank competition for modern textbooks.

The project achieved the following outcomes:

• A series of textbooks Millie - New Millennium English for grades 2-11, all approved by the Russian Ministry of Education for use in schools 
• Over a million copies of the textbooks in use 
• 32 professional textbook writers trained. 22 of these achieved a Postgraduate Certificate in Trainer Development, Exeter University; 13 authors were invited by publishers for further writing of ELT materials, and 5 new textbooks for different levels and target audiences were written by them
• A follow up project in North Caucasus, using former participants in the role of consultants, resulting in an innovative course on "Tolerance through Languages".
• Russian and British publishers' capacities developed.

Because of the project, about 1,000,000 pupils in Russian schools are now learning English more effectively, from textbooks that are more communicative, relevant and stimulating.

What the stakeholders say

• From teachers :
  "The course stimulates students to be active and highly motivated, and to use the language communicatively. Students get clear ideas of what they are going to do. Teachers can find a wide variety of support materials. Even unmotivated students are challenged. They cooperate with each other and enjoy the tasks, which are extremely educational: they make us analyse, compare, evaluate and think. Thanks to these books, students are developing and acquire maturity."
  
• From students:
  "We are looking forward for English lessons."
  "When I work with this textbook I never get tired".
  "Here are also shown modern problems of youth and ways of solving them. New English Millennium shows us real life and helps not only to learn the language but also to use it."

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