A STUDY ON ACHIEVING THE GOALS OF TEACHING RUSSIAN IN CHINESE UNIVERSITIES BASED ON THE CONCEPT OF OUTCOME-BASED EDUCATION

Abstract

The relevance of the study is determined by the growing pragmatic demand for the Russian language in China and the need to improve the effectiveness of language training. The objective is to empirically test the hypothesis of the superiority of the outcome-based education (OBE) model over the traditional process-oriented model. Design: a quasi-experimental longitudinal study over four academic years in four universities. The sample of first-year students was divided into an experimental group, trained under a program redesigned through backward design, and a control group, trained under the standard curriculum. Comparability was ensured through pseudo-randomization and pair matching by entrance scores; initial differences were statistically insignificant. The intervention included the explicit formulation of final outcomes aligned with TORFL levels (B1–C1) and professional competencies, constructive alignment of content, active methods (projects, case studies, simulations), and criterion-referenced assessment. Data collection ensured triangulation: standardized tests, timing of competence-based tasks, scores for the final interdisciplinary project, validated questionnaires on engagement and autonomy; qualitative data were obtained from teacher interviews. Quantitative analysis was conducted in SPSS using t-tests, ANOVA, and correlations; qualitative data were thematically coded. The results confirmed the advantage of OBE. By the fourth year, the share of students who achieved levels B2–C1 reached 72.12% in the experimental group compared to 48.35% in the control group (∆=23.77 p.p.); the dispersion of final scores in the experimental group was 15.4% lower. Operational efficiency was higher: mastering key communicative competencies required 27.48% fewer classroom hours; the greatest gains were observed in telephone communication (+31.60%) and business correspondence (+29.57%). In the integrative task “commercial proposal for the Russian market,” the average score of the experimental group exceeded the control group by 15.57, with the largest gap in communicative effectiveness (+21.40). Psychological and pedagogical indicators were stable: the increase in engagement in the experimental group was +42.88% compared to +14.98% in the control group, and autonomy +45.76% compared to +12.24%; a strong positive correlation was recorded between engagement and final score. The discussion shows that clarity of goals, high expectations, and expanded educational opportunities embedded in OBE enhance motivation, accelerate the transition from basic to advanced level, and increase the predictability of outcomes. Conclusion: OBE in Russian language education in China represents a comprehensive engineering architecture that provides a statistically significant and practice-oriented improvement in the quality of training and justifies scaling to the level of national policy.