Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Liliya Hrynevych says that the Russian Federation has "absolutely strange reactions" to the way Ukraine is developing, an UNIAN correspondent reported from the official’s briefing following her meeting with Romanian Minister of National Education Liviu Marian Pop.
Answering the reporter’s question about the Russian State Duma’s statement condemning Ukraine's law On Education, Hrynevych noted that "the Russian Federation, in general, has different, absolutely strange reactions and positions on how the state of Ukraine is developing."
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She noted that children whose only language of command at school is a language of a national minority tend to perform more poorly in passing their school finals.
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"This also does not allow them to fully integrate into Ukrainian society, occupy relevant positions in civil service and local government. By expanding the opportunities for learning the Ukrainian language and using it as a language of command in other classes, we expand the opportunities for Ukrainian children," Hrynevych said.
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According to the law, persons belonging to national minorities of Ukraine are guaranteed the right to study in public education facilities having the language of a respective minority a language of instruction, along with the state language.
Persons who belong to the indigenous peoples, national minorities of Ukraine, who have started to receive general secondary education before September 1, 2018, shall continue to receive such education by September 1, 2020, in accordance with the rules enforced before the new law becomes effective, with a gradual increase in the number of classes taught in Ukrainian.
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