“Fair Russia” proposes to limit the number of migrant children in schools

The Just Russia – For Truth party proposed dispersing children who do not speak Russian well in schools. The deputies want to set a limit for them – no more than 10% of the total number of the class. According to the authors of the initiative, this will help their socialization in the Russian-speaking environment. And the head of the Presidential Council for Human Rights, Valery Fadeev, added that “it is necessary to change” the law that obliges “every child” to be admitted to school. Experts note that such an initiative violates the Constitution, and the socialization of migrant children is more likely to be helped by daily communication with Russian-speaking peers.

The head of the Just Russia – For Truth party, Sergei Mironov, suggested that Minister of Education Sergei Kravtsov “consider urgent measures for the socialization and adaptation of children of foreign migrants” (the document is at the disposal of Kommersant). The letter from Spravoross states that more than 100 thousand children of foreign citizens are studying in Russia, which is less than 1% of the total number of students. However, “migration flows from abroad, primarily from the countries of Central Asia, are unevenly distributed across the territory of Russia,” writes Mr. Mironov. According to him, schools in the suburbs often “have a high percentage of students from migrant families,” and “the presence of students in general education classes who speak Russian poorly creates a special pedagogical situation that requires special specialists to work in.” Therefore, the party proposes to introduce in schools where “the number of children who speak Russian as a foreign language exceeds 3% of the total number of students” courses of additional study of the Russian language – “on a commercial basis.” The SRZP also wants to “limit the number of children of foreign citizens and children with insufficient knowledge of the Russian language” – to allocate for them a quota of no more than 10% “of the total number of students in the general education class.”

Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Education Yana Lantratova (SRZP) told Kommersant that “first of all, this will help the children of migrants themselves go through socialization faster and more efficiently and get a good school education.” The deputy admitted that the introduction of quotas could create difficulties for families: “We will have to send children to more distant educational institutions.” Nevertheless, Mrs. Lantratova believes that “such difficulties should encourage labor migrants to integrate deeper into Russian society, in the long term with obtaining citizenship.”

Recall that in June, the chairman of the Presidential Council for Human Rights (HRC), Valery Fadeev, reported that the Ministry of Education plans to create school programs for learning Russian as a foreign language, as well as develop special courses for training teachers who work with foreign children and children, recently who have become citizens of the Russian Federation (see Kommersant of June 15). The department has not yet responded to Kommersant’s request for details of the initiative. But yesterday, Mr. Fadeev, in an interview with Kommersant, emphasized separately: “According to the current law, any child on the territory of the Russian Federation must be admitted to school.” “In form, everything is correct, but in essence it is a mockery: both on children and on teachers. I think, and my colleagues agree with me, that the law needs to be changed,” the head of the Human Rights Council said.

Svetlana Makhmudova, Head of the Department of Linguodidactics and Intercultural Communication at MSUPE, agrees with the need to create separate classes or adaptation courses for children without knowledge of the Russian language. “It often seems to those around them that these children are stupid and weak. But this is not true at all. Just imagine how you will be forced to study something in a language that is unfamiliar to you, ”the linguist complains. In her opinion, separate classes for children of foreigners can be opened in elementary school in order to “bring them to a general language level.” Starting from high school, children will be able to learn all together. “But teachers in such classes must necessarily be qualified in teaching Russian as a foreign language, since for such children this is a full-fledged foreign language,” the expert emphasizes.

Svetlana Gannushkina (also recognized as a foreign agent), chairwoman of the Civic Assistance Committee (dealing with assistance to migrants; included in the register of foreign agents), recalls that the SRHR initiative and Mr. Fadeev’s proposal contradict Art. 43 of the Constitution: “In our country, everyone not only has the right, but is also obliged to receive an education – there can be no restrictions here.” Ms. Gannushkina is sure that the children of migrants need to study together with their Russian-speaking peers. “Thus, everyone will be in the black: the adaptation of non-Russian-speaking students will be much faster, and they will easily catch up with their peers,” says Ms. Gannushkina. “The rest of the guys will be able to expand their knowledge of other cultures and understand that the world is not monotonous.” Also, Svetlana Gannushkina is surprised “where did the numbers come from” in the SRHR project: “Why exactly 10%, and not 13%? How is this justified?

Olga Kryazhkova, a candidate of legal sciences, a specialist in constitutional law, emphasizes that in this case “it is proposed to create a structural restriction on the accessibility of education.” The expert invites the deputies to think about whether “there are no alternatives more sparing for human rights and, finally, how this restriction is compensated.” “Who or what is protected by the 10% quota for children with poor command of Russian? What to do with those who do not fit into the quota? How will such children be selected for classes?” – According to the lawyer, all these questions must be answered at the stage of preparing the proposal.

Polina Yachmennikova