Modern education problems in the context of the knowledge economy formation (the case of Russia's regions)

In modern conditions of information society formation, Russia cannot successfully develop on the economy of natural resources’ exploitation. We should base the development on the knowledge economy; one of its main components is the educational level of population. The main purpose of the research is to identify key regional trends, as well as negative factors in the educational sphere of Russian territories that hinder formation of the knowledge economy. The authors have studied the educational role in forming the knowledge economy. The article examines Russia’s place in the cross-country rankings in terms of development level of education and university complexes. Based on the results of the analysis conducted for the period from 2010 to 2018, the paper has identifi ed the key trends in education development in the Russian Federation in the interregional context. The authors show that the insuffi cient level of educational state funding, high level of paid educational services, as well as low level of spatial accessibility of educational institutions are the key reasons that limit the educational opportunities of population of Russian regions. The work proves that the knowledge of graduates of educational organizations is often not accompanied by a high level of professional competencies. This makes it necessary to adjust the standards of education and requirements of the regional business environment. The paper presents subjective assessments of population’s satisfaction of the Russian Federation and European countries with the quality of education, studies the problems in the fi eld of education caused by the pandemic including on the data of a sociological survey of the Vologda Oblast population. The research suggests that there are prospects for developing the knowledge economy in the Russian Federation in terms of expanding IT sector and knowledge-intensive industries. The authors conclude that there is the need for the development of continuing professional education.