Russian aggression prompted educational reforms in Estonia, while Lithuania maintains Russian language instruction in minority schools.
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The Russian aggression against Ukraine prompted changes in education policies across the Baltic states. In Estonia, Minister Kristina Kallas stated that the war was a decisive factor in pushing through school reforms, expressing concern that separate Russian-language education systems negatively affect Russian-speaking children’s future opportunities in Estonia. She emphasized the need for children to identify as Estonian while retaining their Russian heritage. In contrast, Germany integrates Russian as a foreign or supplementary language in state schools, allowing cultural identity preservation, though there is no single national policy for minority languages. Poland primarily teaches Russian as a foreign language, with declining popularity. Moldova maintains Russian instruction in most schools. In Lithuania, discussions about eliminating Russian-language schools intensified after the invasion, with a former minister suggesting closure due to cost and potential propaganda risks, but this was later reversed. The Ministry of Education in Lithuania confirmed that eliminating Russian as a language of instruction is not planned, focusing instead on improving the quality of education in minority language schools by increasing Lithuanian language instruction hours. Data shows differences in academic results between students in minority language schools and those in Lithuanian-medium schools. Currently, 12,800 students in Lithuania study in Russian-language schools. Estonia is also reforming its system, planning a full transition to Estonian instruction by 2029.
