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Inconsistencies were found in the legislation on the ucranization of schools. Open source photos
The current September 1 is a kind of “H” date for Russian schools in Ukraine.
In the education law adopted in 2016, from September 1 this year, all Russian schools were supposed to switch to the Ukrainian language of instruction. At the same time, schools in which teaching is provided in the languages of national minorities, which are the official languages of the EU, were delayed by three years, until 2023.
SN People’s Deputy Max Buzhansky registered bill No. 2362, which details such a delay for Russian schools. However, after protests organized by Poroshenko’s party, he was not put to a vote by “servants of the people” and he was now completely withdrawn from consideration.
And everything remained as it is, that is, with the total Ukrainianization of Russian schools.
“There is a valid law and it says that as of September 1, all Russian schools must switch to the Ukrainian language. Only in primary school, up to grade 4, there may be a Russian-speaking component, but it is very limited,” said the deputy director of the union of pedagogical workers Sergey. Romanyuk.
According to the education law, as of September 1 in the lower grades those children who have already entered Russian classes, but are not recruiting new ones, continue to finish their studies.
However, as the “Strana” survey shows, in practice, schools are in no hurry to switch to Ukrainian as of September 1. Many have taken the first grades with Russian as the language of instruction and claim that there will be no transition in primary school. In doing so, they are referring to another law, on secondary education, which was passed earlier this year and contains small indulgences for Ukrainianization.
“Strana” found out how Russian schools in Ukraine came together on September 1.
How will the Ukrainianization of schools be carried out?
In the scandalous state language law, which was adopted under Poroshenko and which provides for the total Ukrainianization of literally all spheres of life, including education, culture and even service in stores, the transitional provisions detail amendments to the Articles 18 and 19 of the transitory provisions of the education law.
According to them, students studying in official languages for EU countries received a postponement for Ukrainianization until 2023, while everyone else did not. That is, Russian schools must switch to Ukrainian from 2020.
But there is also another law: on secondary education. It was adopted fairly recently: Zelensky signed the law on January 16, 2020. And it also has a clause on languages of instruction.
Article 5 of the law on comprehensive secondary education stipulates that persons belonging to national minorities of Ukraine, whose languages are the official languages of the EU, study in the state language (Ukrainian) at least 20% of the annual volume of time of study in grade 5 with an annual increase in this volume to no less than 40% in ninth grade. For a specialized school (upper classes), the percentage of subjects in Ukrainian increases to 60%.
People belonging to other ethnic minorities (including Russians) receive basic and specialized secondary education in the state language in the amount of at least 80% of the annual amount of study time, explained to us a lawyer in the field of Andrei Chernykh education.
These rules will also go into effect on September 1 of this year.
But anyway, it is expected to reach the 80% level of teaching in Ukrainian. In fact, it turns out that after that only Russian language and literature will be taught in Russian, the teachers explained to us. Because 20% are about 6 lessons per week.
However, this law reserves the right to create classes with instruction in Russian in primary school, if enough requests are collected from parents (with the transition to 80% instruction in Ukrainian in secondary school).
It was this rule that many Russian schools took advantage of, forming Russian-speaking first grades this year.
High school, in Russian, for the rest, a smooth transition
At the Pushkin gymnasium in Kiev, they explained to us that they had taken the first grades with Ukrainian and Russian as the language of instruction. The transition to Ukrainian will be gradual, with an annual increase in the proportion of subjects in the state language.
The principal of school No. 71, Yulia Dziuba, says they planned to open the first class with Russian as the language of instruction only if there were enough requests, which they had previously consulted with the district education department. As a result, a class of 27 students was formed (in the first Ukrainian grades, 30 children each).
“For the first grade, learn completely in Russian. But by the end of primary school, 80% of the subjects will already be in Ukrainian, and in Russian, the Russian language and reading will really remain. At the same time, it is planned to graduate the upper classes in the school according to the set, that is, or in Ukrainian We have children of 20 nationalities, many immigrants from Donbass and Crimea. There are Russian classes in each parallel and we plan to leave them that way, although not everything depends on the school ”Dzyuba told us.
At the Kiev school №135 they also say that they have recruited first grade students for the Russian class this year, and the gradual transition to Ukrainian will be from the fifth grade. “As it is written in the law on secondary education, up to 80% of the subjects will be in Ukrainian. That is, in the upper grades, in fact, only Russian language and literature remain in Russian,” they say at the school.
School # 25 principal Fyodor Gubenkov said his elementary school also continues to teach in Russian. Starting in fifth grade, a gradual transition begins. 20% of the subjects are taught in Ukrainian, the rest in Russian. In sixth grade, the subjects in Ukrainian will already be 30%, and so on, incrementally.
“We did not violate the education law, as it clearly indicated a gradual transition. An abrupt transition is a strong stress, especially for secondary and smaller schools, so we are acting gradually,” says Gubenkov.
In this school a Russian first grade was recruited, he has the same number of children as in the Ukrainian: 30. “There are many Kievans, immigrants from Donetsk and Lugansk, Crimeans,” said the director.
Ukrainianization – separately, schools – separately
As the Minister of Education Sergei Shkarlet explained to “Strana”, according to the law, since September 1, 2020, in grades 5-11 with teaching in the language of national minorities (except the languages of the countries of EU), including Russian, 80% of educational material is studied in the state language, and 20%, in the corresponding language of national minorities. The list of subjects and languages in which they will be studied is determined by the educational program of the institution.
“Relevant preparatory work was carried out, according to operational information from regional education departments, no problem problems arise, students are given textbooks in Ukrainian if necessary. At the moment, the Ministry of Education has not received requests on this issue, “Sergei Shkarlet told us.
At the same time, he said that the distribution of subjects by languages of instruction in the case of Russian schools should be 80 to 20 in favor of Ukrainian. And immediately, as of September 1 of this year.
“A smooth transition, starting at 20% from fifth grade, worries other national minorities,” Shkarlet said.
As explained by the head of the law firm “Kravets & Partners”, there are concepts of general and special law in the legislation, the latter being a priority.
“For schools, a special rule is precisely the secondary education law, and not the education or mov laws. Therefore, the regulations of the secondary education law are mandatory. Why do they differ from the mov law? Did our legislators forget to agree to them or was it done? Deliberately – an open question “, – says Kravets.
In schools, taking advantage of the fact that the law gave them the right to make plans themselves – what subjects and in which languages to teach – they do not plan to force Ukrainianization.
“We will consult with parents and act very gradually. I do not think it is a crime if the percentage of subjects in Ukrainian is slightly lower than specified in the law,” the headmaster of one of the Russian schools told us on the basis of anonymity.
“Most parents are in favor of continuing education in Russian. And we take it into account. Therefore, we will see what can be done in this situation. We will try to leave teaching in Russian to the maximum. And we will wait for the situation politics in the country changes when this madness will stop, ”says the director of a Russian school in one of the regional centers.
However, it is not known how education officials will react to such “freedoms” and if schools will have to tighten the screws of Ukrainianization in the future.
