Article about Galina Gorborukova, Head of Sociology Department

April 25, 2013

Sociology is a favorite topic of Central Asians, though few identify the science with their everyday conversations. Kyrgyz differ from Turkmen in one way, while Kazakhs pour tea differently than Tajiks, differently than Uzbeks. Though anecdotal, these conversations provide the questions on which sociological research is based. At AUCA, the sociology department, one of the strongest in the region, is tackling these questions important to the region and its renewal as a group of independent nations over the past 22 years. The department is led by Galina Gorborukova, who has been lecturing and researching at AUCA since 1999.

Galina orginally studied history. It was only when she was looking for possible masters degrees that she was directed to sociology by a trusted professor. Galina told me in an interview that she did not really know what sociology was about when her professor suggested it, but once she read about it and got into the courses, she knew that she had made the right decision. In particular, Galina was intrigued by the changing dynamics of identity after the fall of the Soviet Union, and she did her dissertation on the changing Russian community in the Kyrgyz Republic.

Galina is part of one of the strongest faculties at AUCA; one that includes gender expert Gulnara Ibraeva, and Mehrigiul Ablezova, an expert on environmental change and migration. The department is always trying to push itself into new areas and to explore different ideas of teaching and learning. As the leader of the department over the last two years, Galina has used her energy to innovate and inspire withing the department. This includes constantly revising the curriculum to stay up to date with the most recent research and relevant topics for the region, including a focus now on identity and religion.

In the classroom, Galina is one of the AUCA professors pushing for integration of technology into the classroom. In her class Identity and Differences, Galina introduced a class wiki for assignments. Instead of students working individually on papers to turn into the professor, students were collectively responsible for answering class questions on the wiki. There was a participation requirement, and Galina found in the first semester that the quality of the work was much higher. "When the students know that nobody will see their work except the professor, they will, once in a while, turn in some trash because they have wasted time or not done the reading. With the wiki it has been different. Students don't want their peers to see that they are not doing the work. It not only brings down the entire class grade, but it is embarrassing for our students. They are competitive and want to get the best grade, and with the wiki the only way for them to do that is by producing something they are willing to share with the rest of the world," said Galina.

Galina is also a very active researcher, working with international organizations such as UNDP, the World Bank, OSCE, and Soros Foundation. She is currently involved, with other Sociology faculty, on a three-year project from the Volkswagen Foundation to compare livelihood strategies of private households in the Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan.  The research is conducted in collaboration with the Otto-Von-Guericke-University of Magdeburg in Germany, and L.N. Gumilev Eurasian National University and Al-Farabi University in Kazakhstan. In the project Galina has assisted with designing the household survey, and in collecting and processing the raw data. (Results of the research can be found at  http://www.uni-magdeburg.de/fgse/node/114#)

In the future Galina hopes to grow the Sociology Department and convince future AUCA students of the value of a Sociology degree, especially in a region that is not producing many sociologists. The Sociology Department will be heavily involved in the new Central Asian Studies masters degree program, the first such degree to be offered in Central Asia that will open in the fall of 2013 (www.casi.auca.kg). The Sociology department also organizes events such as Alternative Women's Day, an event held before International Women's Day on March 8th, that aims to empower and celebrate women as individuals and important contributors to society, and severely pushes against the traditional Central Asian view of women.

Galina told me that her motto is "live and let live". In some ways this is understandable coming from a region where different minority and majority groups have been oppressed, especially over the past 100 years. However, the Sociology department under Galina, and Galina herself, are committed to change that, based on their research and experience, leads to better lives for everyone in Central Asia. With that in mind, I might change her motto to "live and live better". At the end of the day, it is certain that each student Galina comes in contact with does live better, and that is a motto to which we can all achieve.

<< go to news list