Information on Russia and the Russian Language

Achievement & Equality Team

Information on Russia and the Russian language

Praised be the fatherland, cherishing home of ours,

Cent’ries-old union of peoples in free

Popular wisdom given us by forefathers

Praised be our country!

And we’re proud of thee!

National Anthem of Russia

RUSSIA AT A GLANCE

Location – Eurasia

Neighbours – Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan,

China, Mongolia, North Korea, Kaliningrad, Oblast (Russian enclave), Lithuania, Belarus, Poland

Size – 6,592,850 square miles

Population – 142,008,838 (9th)

Capital city – Moscow

Potted History

Rules by Viking princes, the first East Slavic city states emerged in the 9th century. The Grand Duchy of Moscow was their chief successor. Between 1682 and 1725, Peter the Great transformed Russia into an empire. In 1917 the Bolshevik revolution put Communists in power until 1991. A turbulent post-Soviet period continues to shape this world power.

Political pressure points

Under former president Vladimir Putin, political dissent was largely crushed, but small vocal interest groups continue to show resolute opposition to the Kremlin under his successor Dmitry Medvedev. Relations with Ukraine and the Baltics are tense and war broke out in summer 2008 over the disputed South Ossetia region. Russia has recently ended its decade long campaign in Chechnya.

Population mix

Russians 79.8%, more than 200 other ethnic groups 10.2%

Religious makeup

Orthodox Christian 70% Muslim 10% Other 20%

Main languages

Russian (Official)

National icons

Yevgeny Yevtushenko (poet), Vasily Aksyonov, Boris Akunin (authors),Vladimir Menshov, Nikita Mikhalkov (film directors), Yuri Zhirkov,

Andrey Arshavin (footballers)

The Nottinghamshire Context

Most new arrivals Russia come to Nottinghamshire for economic reasons. They often have established business links and arrive to work in skilled jobs, especially as there have been restrictions for unskilled migrants from outside the EU.

Education in Russia

Russians have always shown a great concern for education. The right to education is stated in the constitution of the Russia Federation. It is ensured by compulsory secondary schools, vocational schools and higher education establishment. It is also ensured by the development of extra-curricular and evening courses and the system of state scholarship and grants.

Education in Russia is compulsory up to the 9th form inclusive. The stages of compulsory schooling in Russia are: primary education for ages 6 to 10 inclusive; senior school for ages 10 to 13 inclusive, and senior school for ages 13 to 15 inclusive. If a pupil of secondary school age wishes to go on to higher education, he or she must stay at school for a further two years. Primary and secondary school together comprise 11 years of study. Every school has a "core curriculum" of academic subjects.

After finishing the 9th form one can go on to a vocational school which offers programmes of academic subjects and a programme of training in a technical field, or a profession.

After finishing the 11th form of a secondary school, a lyceum or a gymnasium one can go into higher education. All applicants must take competitive exams.

The system of higher and secondary education in Russia is going through a transitional period. The main objectives of the reforms are: to decentralize the higher education system, to develop a new financial mechanism, to give more academic freedom to faculties and students. All secondary schools, institutes and universities until recently have been funded by the state. Now there are quite a number of private fee-paying primary and secondary schools, some universities have fee-paying departments.

Information about the Russian Language

Russian is an Eastern Slavonic language closely related to Ukrainian and Belarusian with about 277 million speakers in Russia and 30 other countries including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania and Moldova.

Russian belongs to the family of Indo-European languages and is one of three (or, according to some authorities, four) living members of the East Slavic languages; the others being Belarusian and Ukrainian (and possibly Rusyn, often considered a dialect of Ukrainian). Russian is the native language of some 160 million citizens of the Russian Federal Republic. Russian is written in the Cyrillic alphabet, whose origin dates from the 9th century. Its creators were two missionaries form Greece, the brothers Cyril and Methodius, who based it largely on the Greek. Though appearing formidable to one who has never studied it, the Russian alphabet is not difficult to learn. A number of letters are written and pronounced approximately as in English, (A, K, M, O, T), while others, though written as in English, are pronounced differently (B=V, E=YE, Ё = YO, H = N, P = R, C = S, X = KH). The Greek influence is clearly visible in Г (G) Д (D) Л (L), Ц (P), and Ф (F). The bi is a vowel pronounced something like the i in “bit,” the Й is used in forming diphthongs, while the Ъ and the ъ are so-called hard and soft sings respectively. Russian is notorious for its long personal and place names e.g., Nepomnyashchiy, Dnepropetrovsk, for its long words (upotreblenie- use, dostoprimechatelnosti – sights, zhenonenavisttnichestvo – misogyny), and for its unusual consonant clusters ( vzvod – platoon, tknut – to poke, vstecha – meeting). Nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and numbers are declined in six cases: nominative, genitive, dative, accusative, instrumental, and propositional or locative. The Russian verb has two aspects, each represented by a separate infinitive – the imperfective to indicate an action already completed or to be completed. The genders number three, masculine, feminine, and neuter, with a different declensional pattern for each (though the neuter is similar to the masculine), and a fourth one for the plural. The stress in Russian is particularly difficult, impossible to predict in an unfamiliar word, and frequently shifting in the course of declensions or conjugations.

English words of Russian origin include vodka, tsar, samovar, ruble, pogrom, troika, steppe, and tundra. The word sputnik entered the language in 1957.

Sample text in Russian

Все люди рождаются свободными и равными в своем достоинстве и правах. Они наделены разумом и совестью и должны поступать в отношении друг друга в духе братства.

Words, Phrases and Numbers

Useful guidance is available from:

New Arrivals Excellence Programme Guidance

(2007) Ref 00650 – 2007BKT- EN

www.nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk

This resource is for primary and secondary schools and contains guidance on admission and developing classroom practice

A language in common: assessing English as an additional language

QCA (2000) (QCA/00/584).

www.qcda.gov.uk/resources/6200.aspx

This document sets out steps used in assessment of EAL, linked to English National Curriculum levels. It provides guidance and exemplifications.

Aiming High: guidance on supporting the education of asylum seeking and refugee children (DfES 0287 – 2004)

www.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/ethnicminorites/links_and_publications/AH_Gdnc_AS_RFG_Apr04?asylumguidance.pdf

This guidance helps explain the value of an inclusive ethos and curriculum to all pupils.

Aiming High: meeting the needs of newly arrived learners of EAL

(DfES 1381 -2005)

www.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/primary/publications/inclusion/newarrivals

Information on working with newly arrived isolated EAL pupils in settings that have little or no access to EAL support.

Excellence and enjoyment: learning and teaching for bilingual children in the primary years (DfES 0013 – 2006PCK- EN)

Key Stage 3 National Strategy: Access and engagement in English:teaching pupils for whom English is an additional language (DfES 0609 – 2002)

Publications/Catalogues are available from:

MUNDI Tel: 0115 8546418

Mundi

Global Education Centre

Foxhall Lodge

Foxhall Road

Nottingham

NG7 6LH

(under construction/Aug 2010)

Mundi loan resources to schools in Nottinghamshire free for up to half a term e-mail:

GRANT AND CUTLER Tel: 0207 734 2012

55-57 Great Marlborough Street,
London'
England
W1F 7AY

Web:

A one-stop shop for foreign language resources including language-learning material, reference books, technical dictionaries, literature, history, politics etc.

MILET PUBLISHING Tel: 0207 603 5477
6 North End Parade
London W14 0SJ
England

Web:

Milet publishers a wide range of bilingual picture dictionaries, including board books for use in early years settings.

TRENTHAM BOOKS LTD Tel: 01782 745567

Westview House,734 London Road,

Stoke on Trent,

UKST4 5NP Web:

Trentham publishes 'a wide range of titles plus seven professional journals, mainly in the field of education and social policy.

MANTRA LINGUA Tel: 0208 44 55 123

Global House

303 Ballards Lane

London
N12 8NP
UK

Web:

Mantra Lingua creative learning resources Audio CDs, Big Books, e-books, fun tales, folk tales, friezes, games, language learning, packs posters, story props, toys videos and so on.

Classroom Resources are available from:

Free computer programs contain interactive video clips showing the child teaching their home language; available at,

The following website translates words, phrases and short paragraphs from English to Russian available at;

DLTK's Crafts for Kids features a variety images that can be used for creating pupils own subject-specific dictionaries.

Activities for ESL Students can be adapted for EAL pupils in primary and secondary schools. Has bilingual quizzes in large number of languages, available at

Omniglot writing systems and languages of the world available at

EMA Online resource base for teachers has been developed by Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester LAs with funding from the DfES, available at;

Racist bullying. Advice designed for schools to dip in and out as appropriate for them and offers discussion topics and activities to stimulate debate and spark activity involving everyone in the school community, available at; http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/behaviour/tacklingbullying/racistbullying.

Teachernet states that a successful home–school relationship can be a key element in making a school stronger and more effective. In particular, it can make a real difference to groups of underachieving pupils and their families, available at; http://www.teachernet.gov.uk.

Nottinghamshire Achievement & Equality Team