Latvian policy regarding Russian-language education

Abstract

The article considers the development of Russian-language school education in independent Latvia from 1992 to 2020, as well as the process of reforming the system by official authorities. At the time of declaration of independence and withdrawal from the USSR, a bilingual education system which was formed in Latvia, made it possible to get education at all levels (from kindergarten to technical school and university) in both Latvian and Russian languages. The rise to power in the 1990s of nationalist politicians and the perception of the Soviet period as a period of“occupation”, made it impossible to keep the Russianspeaking school unchanged. The transformations were not long in coming – already in 1995 amendments to the law on the primary school and gymnasium were adopted, proclaiming the need to introduce several subjects teaching in the Latvian language in schools for national minorities. The largest reforms were carried out in 2004, when high school link in Russian-language schools (grades 10–12) was required to study in a 60/40 ratio — at least 60% of subjects in Latvian and no more than 40% in Russian. The second set of reforms began to be implemented in 2017, when the high school (of national minorities) completely switched to the Latvian language of instruction, and the secondary school was only partly switched to the Latvian language. The Latvian authorities explain the need for these reforms by the desire to increase the level of knowledge ofthe state language among national minorities, primarily Russian-speaking.The reform continues and will be completed only in 2021. The article is the first attempt at understanding the reform of the Russian school of Latvia with taking into account the latest transformations. The work uses statistical data from public organizations and the Ministry of Education of Latvia, as well as sources in the Latvian language, which are introduced into scientific circulation for the first time.