| Author (Person) | Akule, Dace |
|---|---|
| Series Title | European Voice |
| Series Details | Vol.10, No.28, 29.7.04 |
| Publication Date | 29/07/2004 |
| Content Type | News |
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By Dace Akule Date: 29/07/04 LATVIA will be in the public eye at the start of the next school year on 1 September as Russian-speaking schoolchildren are threatening to stage wide protests against planned educational reform. The reform aims to improve knowledge of the Latvian language among mostly Russian-speaking minorities, so as to advance their integration. As of September more classes will be taught in Latvian in the country's 108 public high schools and fewer in Russian, Polish or Ukrainian. The new law sets 60% as the desirable proportion of subjects taught in Latvian, with the rest of the classes still conducted in minority languages. The plans, approved in 1998, will be introduced gradually. "We are talking only about the 10th grade, the first year of high school," Sergejs Ancupovs, advisor in minority issues to the minister of education, told European Voice. He stressed that, as part of the 60% target, classes can be taught in Latvian as well as in foreign languages, such as English or French, thus not radically increasing the proportion of Latvian teaching. According to the ministry of education, 95% of schools have received approval of their programmes. The rest need "technical polishing", but will be ready by September. The ministry says that only 11 of 1,000 teachers in minority schools are not qualified to teach in Latvian. Some teachers challenge this optimistic view. "Some lying will take place in the Autumn," teacher Viktor Gluhov said, explaining that, although officially classes will be taught in Latvian, in reality Russian will be used. Andrej Strizevsky considers himself lucky to be in the final year of high school. His education, unlike his little brother's, will not be affected by the reform. "We want to study in Russian because not all children are that talented [to be able to learn in another tongue], which means that their results will get worse," he said. He added that Russian pupils would start a strike on 2 September and would not go to school until the government withdraws the reform. Big demonstrations are expected on the first schoolday, 1 September. "The problem is not that they don't want to learn Latvian, but speaking on conversational level is one thing - and knowing the terms of academic subjects quite another," teacher Tatjana Dubrovsk said. Dubrovsk teaches Russian language and literature in the Latvian high school in Rujiena, a small town close to the border with Estonia. After 25 years in the town, she still speaks Latvian with a strong accent. Nearly one third of Latvia's 2.3 million inhabitants are of Russian origin and some of them, especially the older generation, have very limited knowledge of Latvian. Speaking the country's official language is mandatory to be able to work or enrol at universities. The EU has so far stood aside from what it calls an internal matter. But with the help of Latvian MEPs, the issue has now landed on the European stage. Some 40 teenagers invited by Latvian deputy Tatjana Zdanoka protested against the reform in front of the Parliament's building in Strasbourg last week. Such tensions have not occurred in neighbouring Estonia, where a quarter of the population of 1.4 million are Russians. Numerous Russians attend Estonian schools and there are no plans to introduce similar reforms. In Lithuania, 6% of the 3.4 million inhabitants are Russian.
Latvia will be in the public eye at the start of the next school year on 1 September 2004 as Russian-speaking schoolchildren are threatening to stage wide protests against planned educational reform. |
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| Source Link | http://www.european-voice.com/ |
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| Countries / Regions | Latvia |
