КОЛЕБЛЯСЬ ВМЕСТЕ С ЛИНИЕЙ ПАРТИИ: ИЗМЕНЕНИЯ В ПРЕПОДАВАНИИ ОБЩЕСТВЕННЫХ НАУК В ВУЗАХ СССР В 1953-1964 ГГ
Hesitating together with the Party: Changes in the teaching of MarxismLeninism in Higher Educational Institutions of the Soviet Union in 1953-1964

Summary/Abstract: The article is devoted to the teaching of Marxism-Leninism in higher educational institutions of the Soviet Union during the Khrushchev decade. Since this discipline was extremely politicized, Stalin’s death and the changes in soviet leadership immediately affected its content. The article analyzes the changes in the teaching of the so-called “Social sciences” and their correlation with the political events in the USSR and in the world. A separate part of the article talks about how historical facts were used by teachers to explain current events that needed to be justified (for example, the exclusions of G. M. Malenkov, L. M. Kaganovich and V. M. Molotov, the use of troops in suppressing protests in Hungary, the removal of Khrushchev from all leadership positions, etc.). The article also pays attention to the place of Marxism-Leninism in the curriculum, students’ academic workloads, and the ratio of academic hours allocated to "social sciences" and profile subjects. Students' attitudes toward the subject are also important. The article analyses the situation in the Arts and Humanities Schools, where Marxism-Leninism was perhaps the main subject, and Faculties of Sciences, where it was an extra but mandatory load. The author provides various manifestations of student protest against the “social sciences”, identifies its causes and considers the measures that the KPSS, Komsomol, and university leadership took to deal with it. The article is based on regulatory documents, methodological recommendations for teachers, and transcripts of party and Komsomol discussions about this problem.

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