The Southern Federal University in Rostov-on-Don has hosted a seminar entitled “ROPRYAL and the Russian World” dedicated to contemporary issues in teaching Russian to multi-ethnic students.
The event started with a roundtable on migrants’ adaptation strategies in poly-ethnic and poly-cultural environments. Experts listed among the problems encountered by migrants in their attempts to fully integrate into the Russian-speaking environment the following: the identical educational requirements imposed on Russian children and migrants, the migrants’ refusal to speak Russian outside of school and the lack of funds for volunteer activities.
The attendees discussed the discrepancies between the federal education standards and the specifics of multi-ethnic environments in middle schools where most children have Russian as a second language. Many experts admitted there was a need for updating textbooks and preparing special texts describing the history, traditions and customs of various peoples in Russia.
Among the solutions to the problem of motivating migrant students and preventing ethnic conflicts was the idea of introducing migration management practices to Russian schools. According to Lyudmila Sukhorukova, professor at the Academy of Psychology and Pedagogy, migration managers could prevent delinquencies among migrant students and help them form a respectful attitude toward Russian as a language of inter-ethnic communication and the cultures of various peoples in Russia.
The seminar continued with lectures, practical lessons and master classes on teaching Russian in poly-ethnic environments. Notably, Elena Bakasova, head of the school for migrants under the People’s Friendship University of Russia, spoke about the practice of using the integrated exam in Russian language, history and basic legislation with the purpose of effectively integrating foreign nationals into the Russian society.
Irina Lysakova, professor at the Herzen University, shared her experience in teaching Russian to migrant children in St. Petersburg using textbooks for Armenian, Georgian and Azerbaijani students. The attendees were especially impressed with the “Russian Alphabet for Migrants” learning kit aimed at Russian middle schools with poly-ethnic composition.
The second day of the seminar was devoted to socio-lingual aspects of the Russian language in the region, as well testing migrants in Russian. Georgi Alexandrov, leading expert at the Center of Language Testing under the St. Petersburg State University, talked about the practice of using European language testing standards during the integrated exam in Russian as a foreign language, Russian history and basic legislation. Members of the seminar had a chance to assess the communicative competencies of candidates applying for a work permit at a master class given by Elena Kosareva, professor at the Department of Russian as a Foreign Language under the St. Petersburg State University.
