Pliner Yakov Gdalyevich (born 27 December 1946, Rēzekne) - Latvian politician and Doctor of Pedagogy. He served as co-chair of the political alliance “For Human Rights in a United Latvia” (ZaPChEL) and chair of its parliamentary faction in the Saeima of Latvia.
From 1965 to 1970, Pliner studied at the Daugavpils Pedagogical Institute. Beginning in 1970, he worked as a teacher of chemistry and biology, later becoming deputy director and subsequently director of the Virbi Primary School in Talsi District. In 1975, he was appointed head of the Talsi District Department of Education (rono).
In 1983, Pliner moved to Riga to work at the Ministry of Education of the Latvian SSR, where he held several senior posts: Deputy Chair of the School Board, Deputy Chair of the Main Directorate of Secondary Education, Deputy Chair of the Main Inspectorate, and lecturer. His final position there was Head of the Department of National (Minority) Schools.
Since 1993, Pliner has served as director of the private school “Evrika” and head of the foundation “Parents for Children.” In the elections to the Fifth Saeima, he ran on the list “Harmony for Latvia – Revival for the National Economy.” In 1995, he joined the National Harmony Party (NHP) and stood on its list in the elections to the Sixth Saeima.
In 1997, he earned the degree of Doctor of Pedagogy from the University of Latvia, won the Latvian veterans’ heavyweight championship, and was elected deputy of the Riga City Council from the NHP. He received the V. Seile Pedagogical Prize. In 1998, he was elected deputy to the Seventh Saeima on the list of the NHP and its allies within ZaPChEL (“For Human Rights in a United Latvia”) and became Chair of the Public Council for Education, Culture, and Science under ZaPChEL. In 1999, he stepped down as director of Evrika.
In 2001, Pliner again received the V. Seile Pedagogical Prize. In 2002, he was elected deputy to the Eighth Saeima from the joint ZaPChEL list. In 2003, after the NHP withdrew from ZaPChEL, Pliner left the party and became head of the board of the newly formed party “Free Choice in a People’s Europe.” He also became co-chair of ZaPChEL and chair of its Saeima faction, and emerged as one of the leaders of the Headquarters for the Defence of Russian Schools.
In 2005, he headed the Council for Education and Culture of the renewed ZaPChEL movement. In 2006, Pliner led the ZaPChEL list in the elections to the Ninth Saeima as the alliance’s candidate for Prime Minister and was re-elected to parliament.
Selected Works
Evrika. Democratic Principles and Cooperation in School (Эврика. Демократические начала и сотрудничество в школе) (1996).
Personal Development in the Collective(Воспитание личности в коллективе) (Chelyabinsk, 1997; co-authored with V. Bukhvalov).
A Constellation of Educational Problems (Созвездие проблем образования)(1998).
The Latvian School of Euro-Ethnocultural Development (Латвийская школа евроэтнокультурного развития)(1999; with V. Bukhvalov).
Problems and Prospects for the Integration of Minority-School Students into Latvian Society (Проблемы и перспективы интеграции учащихся школ национальных меньшинств в латвийское общество) (Riga, 2000; with V. Bukhvalov).
Pedagogical Evaluation of Schools: A Guide for Methodologists, Deputy Heads, and Principals (Педагогическая экспертиза школы: Пособие для методистов, завучей и директоров школ) (Moscow, 2001; with V. Bukhvalov).
Skolas izglītojošā vide [The Educational Environment of the School] (Riga, 2002; with V. Bukhvalov).
Grūti audzināmu skolēnu uzvedības korekcija [Correction of Behaviour in Difficult-to-Educate Students] (Riga, 2002).
Education: Simple and Complex Truths…(Образование: простые – сложные истины…) (Riga, 2002).
Anti-Pedagogy of the Reform of Russian Schools in Latvia (Riga, 2004; with V. Bukhvalov).
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The Political Pseudo-Reform of Russian Schools: Bleak Prospects (Политическая псевдореформа русских школ — плачевные перспективы) (Riga, 2005; with V. Bukhvalov).
Quality of Education under the Reform of Russian Schools in Latvia (Качество образования в условиях реформы русских школ Латвии) (Riga, 2006; with V. Bukhvalov).
Cultural Aspects of Improving School Education Quality (Культурные аспекты повышения качества школьного образования) (Riga, 2007; with V. Bukhvalov).
Reform of Minority Schools in Latvia: Analysis, Assessment, and Prospects (Реформа школ нацменьшинств в Латвии: анализ, оценка, перспективы) (Riga, 2008; with V. Bukhvalov).