Post-Soviet Identity and Teacher Education: Past, Present, Future

Research into the historical background of ongoing global and national reforms is essential for the development of effective strategies, models and content of teacher education. Historical and anthropological research in education offers a good perspective on the matter as it draws from interdisciplinary and cross-cultural scientific approaches, thus helping to fully comprehend sociocultural processes. The article explores the development of teacher education in the Post-Soviet countries (Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Ukraine) from its beginning in pre-revolutionary Russia up to the present day. The purpose of the research is to analyze the evolution of initial teacher education up to the end of the 20th century and its further transformation during the past thirty years. Until the early 1990s, the teacher education system represented a common education area that shared the same content and approaches to pedagogical education. After that, compromised by political factors, the system was transformed. The juxtaposition of convergent trends and national features of teacher education systems in the Post-Soviet countries provides an opportunity to thoroughly assess current teacher education policies through the lens of pedagogical, geopolitical, economic and cultural partnership of the CIS countries.