One of the most popular topics of discussion last year was the transition of education to Estonian. The views of ministry officials and teachers are more or less clear, but what do young people who are directly affected think? This article presents the views of students from different regions of the country.
From the first of September 2024, teaching in kindergarten and in the first and fourth grades of primary school will have to be entirely in Estonian. Primary school pupils, as well as students in secondary schools, upper secondary schools and vocational schools, have already started to actively introduce Estonian into their studies. Preparations for this process have been years in the making, and now that the programme is being actively implemented, unforeseen circumstances inevitably arise. What difficulties have arisen?
First of all, it is worth mentioning the problem of the language itself. Given the fact that our country is a multicultural society, it is difficult to ensure a uniform language area in all regions. It is difficult to learn a language if you only hear it at school, and even then mostly from teachers, because at recess and outside school the dominant language of communication is not Estonian. This is what students from Ida-Viru County, especially Narva, say. There is some truth in that. Living in an environment where the Estonian language is hardly used at all or not used much, students are not motivated to learn it. “Why do we need to learn the language if we don’t use it only at school and not elsewhere?” is a question many students ask. A complete switch to learning Estonian does not increase motivation, but rather reduces it. Of course, motivation is a personal matter for each individual and not all students can be judged on the basis of the opinion of a few. But this opinion is also very important. How can we solve this problem? The students suggested creating Estonian-speaking community artificially, by organising meetings with people whose mother tongue is Estonian, language cafés in schools, and perhaps using a student exchange programme between different schools.
The second point is the need for teaching in Estonian for pupils whose mother tongue is not Estonian. Learning Estonian requires effort from both pupils and teachers. The lack of such effort inevitably causes tensions in a multilingual society. The language barrier for pupils whose mother tongue is not Estonian creates problems in mastering the material, communicating with teachers and other pupils and understanding the tasks. “It’s difficult to learn in another language if you don’t understand the subject matter even in your mother tongue,” is how students see the situation. The students mostly talked about difficulties with science subjects such as mathematics, chemistry, physics.
Conflicts in class are more frequent because of the different language skills, as some students consider others as unworthy or simply stupid. “What’s the use of the category I will get after ninth grade if it doesn’t help me understand the teacher now” was the opinion about their level of language skills. The students may have good grammar skills, but their communication skills are at a low level, and as a result they find it more difficult to adapt to rapid changes in the teaching system. “At the moment I have enough knowledge to communicate a little in Estonian, but if you do absolutely everything in Estonian now, it is very difficult to learn. I don’t think I could manage.” Asked how they could improve the situation, students said they would like to improve their communication skills and actively use the language outside school. They suggested organising meetings with native speakers where they could interact. However, if such meetings were to be organised, they should be more frequent than once a week. They also suggested creating such an environment in schools, starting from the lower grades, where all children, regardless of their mother tongue, learn together. In this way, there will be closer interaction between children of different languages and cultures, there will be no segregation and their knowledge of Estonian will improve.
The language barrier leads to a decline in the quality of education. The switch to Estonian will inevitably have an impact, as some pupils will have difficulty understanding the material. In the future, this could lead to inequalities in education and a decline in student achievement. If a pupil does not understand what he or she is being told, his or her performance will eventually drop and this will be detrimental to both the individual and the school, as final results may fall. This, in turn, can lead to increased discrimination and conflict in the classroom based on academic performance. When discussing this issue, the students talked about the fact that success in mastering the material also depends on the teacher. When the teacher is working with the class, it is his/her responsibility to monitor the programme as well as to impart knowledge to the students. If the teacher is attentive and responsive, there are far fewer problems with comprehension.
Pupils take the issue of teachers seriously. They think that the main problem is that some of the teachers who started working with them entirely in Estonian are used to working with Estonian-speaking children and do not always take into account the specificities of the class. “The new maths teacher speaks too fast and unclearly and doesn’t always give the concepts needed in class”; “The new teacher is good at physics, but the explanations are just awful” are examples given by upper secondary school pupils. Their opinions suggest that the new teachers, who have replaced the old ones, know the language but are not always ready to explain and give support and help to the students. “It’s sad that experience has been replaced by language”, commented some students. It’s not enough to know your subject, it’s important to be able to pass it on to your students. Some new teachers don’t have enough experience of working with a class and this leads to problems. Teachers have the opportunity to take part in in-service training, to improve their knowledge and to have time to learn a new curriculum. Pupils are active and discuss with teachers ways to work better together. Pupils report that the learning process is easier after such discussions.
In spite of the serious difficulties mentioned by students, they are generally positive about the transition process and understand the benefits it brings. In spite of the difficulties related to the transition to Estonian, it is an important step for the future of the country. It will help to create a stronger and more cohesive society, where every citizen can communicate and learn freely in the official language and have access to all the information they need. “It’s important that there is no division on the basis of language, that everyone has the same level”, “I don’t want people to be divided by language when they live in the same country”, “It’s much easier to understand the culture of the country I live in in a language, and I think it’s worth starting already at school” – say the students.
In addition to improving language levels and reducing inequalities in society, the transition will also help to preserve the Estonian language and culture. It will help to strengthen national identity, promote integration and increase the language skills of all Estonian citizens. It can also create more opportunities for students in the future. “I want to go to university after school and I understand that I need Estonian”, “It is nice to maintain a conversation with a person in his/her mother tongue and not just with short phrases, but with a normal way of speaking”. By understanding the necessity and benefits of the transition, students become motivated and the process is easier.
Every large-scale project has its strengths and weaknesses. It is important to take into account the views of all parties involved in such projects in order to avoid problems as far as possible. The transition to Estonian in the education system is a complex and multi-faceted process that requires the attention and efforts of all stakeholders. In the future, it will bring many benefits for the future of Estonia and its citizens.
Ingrid Raudsepp, Tartu watchdog
PHOTO: Kriste Kald