Annex 22:
2-2TA: The Modification of the State and Municipal Management Curriculum in Content and in Delivery, and the Development of Special Courses in Public Finance for Full-Time and Part-Time Students at UAPA.
1. Project description
Project number |
2-2TA |
Project title |
The Modification of the State and Municipal Management Curriculum in Content and in Delivery, and the Development of Special Courses in Public Finance for Full-Time and Part-Time Students at UAPA. |
Responsible institution |
|
NASPAA partner |
|
2nd NASPAA partner |
|
Budget: planned |
$7,500 USD |
Budget: resources really used |
$7,500 USD |
Project period: |
1.9.2003 – 31.1.2004 |
2. Project purposes and goals
The project proposal stresses that academic staff of UAPA and managers and politicians in municipal and regional government revealed both the need and desire to re-orientate the practices of municipal management towards a more outward-looking (rather than inward-looking) approach to service delivery. Themes, which assumed significance for UAPA, relate to the refinement of the state and municipal management curriculum in content and in delivery, as well as the need to develop a special course on public finance, including surveys on the goals and mechanisms of the public management of government financial resources with a specific focus on the goals of international development. The newly-designed course was planned to be compulsory for all students in the third year of their full-time or part-time studies.
It was expected that approximately five staff at UAPA will be contributing to the project to varying degrees. In addition, two staff at UNM were to be involved, conducting training workshops for the academy faculty and delivering lectures and seminars to the students, thus exposing both the faculty and students to alternative teaching methods and new content.
The plan was to organize four workshops for the faculty, two lectures for the students, three seminars for the students and individual consultations for the faculty (as needed) during the two weeks of the American experts’ stay in Yekaterinburg. The American professors were also expected to visit classes conducted by their Russian counterparts in order to analyze the teaching methods used, with recommendations for future improvements.
The course modules in public finance, which will be developed through the partnership, were expected to be assessed in terms of quality provision and accredited by UNM/UAPA as an integral part of the curriculum.
The dissemination of results was also expected to be realized via eight UAPA branches throughout the region. The courseware for the modules can be easily transferred from one branch to another by virtue of the peripatetic approach to teaching and learning which already exists. The peripatetic approach was expected to allow for focused dissemination in the eight branches and, by extension, gradually to cascade throughout the region by the sharing of best practice, facilitated by the extremely close ties which currently exist between UAPA and senior staff in municipal and regional governments in the Urals.
3. Project realization
No major problems occurred during the project realization; all team members and other participants actively cooperated in the project, fulfilling their roles and responsibilities on time and with quality work.
Some slight changes in the time schedule were caused by objective reasons and did not influence the final achievements. The site visit was postponed because of different teaching periods of UNM and UAPA.
As an extra contribution, Dr. Gleason traveled to
4. Project outputs, outcomes and impacts
The goal of this project was to develop a new generation of public finance and public management materials for instructional purposes. The project assumed that direct interactions between specialists at the
As the result of interaction between Russian and American partners a new course in public finance and financial and budgeting policy was developed and introduced at UAPA. The site visit also led to proposals for follow-up activities.
The Russian participants have incorporated the materials, insights and lessons learned into their teaching materials. Several of the materials have been translated into Russian, published and made available for application. The course is scheduled for delivery from
The potential impact of this project lies in its contribution to the paradigm of change in training and ultimately in service delivery in municipal and regional government. Such a contribution has been effected through staff development activity and curriculum development. The staff at UAPA has developed expertise and experience in content, delivery and assessment and students have been introduced to the elements of a new paradigm.