In Pavel Talankin’s film, Mr. Nobody Against Putin, one scene depicts Russian schoolteachers struggling to explain the reasons for Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine to their pupils, early on in the war.
One cannot say “denazification”, a word the Kremlin often uses to justify its onslaught. Later, though, a history teacher displays no hesitation.
“The economic component of hybrid warfare, these are the sanctions against our country”, he tells a class of 12- and 13-year-olds. “You already know that Europe, not Russia, is suffering the most from these sanctions now … There are no local agricultural products: No wheat, oils and so on. Well, OK, in France they’re used to eating oysters and frogs. They’ll be around a while. But what about the others, like England”?
Classrooms, lecture halls, and even kindergartens across Russia have since the start of the war to reflect the new norm in a militarized curriculum, which is accused of indoctrinating children into a warlike ideology.
Talankin’s documentary aims to expose how the “special military operation”, as the invasion is officially termed, has spilled over into the nation’s schools.
“Wars are won not by commanders, but by schoolteachers”, Russian President Vladimir Putin says in archival footage in the film.
Talankin has been employed since 2018 at the Ural mountains’ small industrial town of the same name. He served as the school’s designated videographer and organized events like concerts and school discos.
Soon after the start of the war, he received a mandate from the Ministry of Education to document how the new patriotic program was being implemented at his school.
But he told Al Jazeera that since he felt “broken” at the news of the invasion and found it “incomprehensible” that he would be forced to take part in a pro-war agenda, he secretly shared the footage with American filmmaker David Borenstein.
He has described himself as feeling like “these kids ‘ propagandist”.
“At the beginning of the war, various special events were held to support the soldiers and the military”, said Talankin.
“The children had to sing songs, read poems, cut out some pigeons and stick them on the windows. My job was to film it all and use hashtags to promote it so that the general public understood that everyone backs it.
Since 2022, the Russian educational system has undergone changes.
The Kremlin’s current geopolitical outlook has been reframed as a historical lens. Numerous schools now house war-related mini-musearooms and exhibits. Portraits of local soldiers who have perished on the front lines as well as everyday items from the battles, such as wet wipes, are displayed in one school in rural Bashkortostan.
Weekly classes were introduced in 2022, under the banner “Important Conversations”. They emphasize the value of sacrificing one’s country and themes of self-sacrificing and military history, such as Soviet heroism in World War II. They have even been taught in kindergartens. The Russian national anthem is performed before the flag is raised and the lesson is presided over.
“It was every Monday, at first, and then Thursdays as well”, Talankin said. “The classes were planned completely, from start to finish: What should the teacher say, and when? What inquiries ought to be made of the children? What formats should be used for presentations? Everything is well thought-out, and I was a little offended,]and felt] sorry for the teachers because we do not have adequate equipment at school. There are no textbooks, there are no manuals for teachers. In the same way, they could explain physics, they could do]any other subject] like this, but this is not the case. But they have all this strength for propaganda”.
In his film, one teacher is seen telling a group of bored-looking children, “If you live in our country and don’t love it, then you’re a parasite. Leave”.
In addition, extracurricular activities such as drills and parades led by veterans who have served in Ukraine, grenade-throwing contests, and classes to instil discipline in students are all aimed at stoking patriotic fervour.
Since 2023, military training, including firearms, has been reintroduced in schools, a practice from the Soviet era.
Moscow is “putting together a number of educational projects aimed at shaping the worldview of Russian citizens,” according to a representative from the Education Ministry’s email.
“The most optimal conditions for accumulating impressions, forming ideas, and nurturing children’s feelings are created at primary school age”, they said. It is crucial to explain to him what the all-Russian civic identity is at this age, when a person begins to develop as an individual. One of the most significant spiritual and moral values is rooted in the state’s and people’s histories.
They added that “it is crucial to instill in the younger generation of children a sense of love for the Motherland, a duty to the Fatherland, and respect for the history and traditions of their native country.”
In another scene of Talankin’s film, students sit through a presentation by the mercenary outfit Wagner Group, fully kitted out in camouflage and berets, and pass around a landmine. In another, a group of irate teachers complain that regular classes are hardly ever scheduled.
According to Ian Garner, historian of Russia and author of the book Z Generation: Into the Heart of Russia’s Fascist Youth, “the purpose of militarizing both the school curriculum and extracurricular life for Russian children is explicitly aimed at raising a large number of indoctrinated young Russians ready to serve in the military and support the state’s aggressive military expansionism.”
“These policies are being adopted with one eye on the long-term: not the war against Ukraine, but the next war in five, 10, or 15 years ‘ time. Russia’s sociocultural fabric is being totally reshaped and militarised. Children’s education is a vital component of this”.
Along with other Soviet officials, the history professor claims to be fascinated by Lavrentiy Beria, the notorious leader of Josef Stalin’s secret police and the architect of the Gulag system.
“History lessons in Russia now teach national and quasi-religious myths about the country’s messianic destiny, past imperial glory, and exceptional military history”, continued Garner.
The rehabilitation of Joseph Stalin, who is portrayed as the wise leader who unified the Soviet peoples, saved the world during World War II, is “most notable in this.” The terrors and purges of the 1930s, let alone crimes like the Holodomor, are completely absent”, he said, referring to the mass famine in Soviet Ukraine from 1932 to 1933.
Garner believes that the system has at least partially succeeded in raising a generation of militaristic young nationalists despite the fact that many students are likely already jaded with the subject matter and the pro-war propaganda from Russian society and social media.
“It all depends on their age”, said Talankin. The teacher’s words “they trust the small children very much: they are very receptive to their words” are true.
Some educators, in his opinion, continue to try to defuse or minimize the Important Conversations classes.
“There are teachers who resist a little”, he said.
“For example, they’ll say today we are talking about something important … and we are talking about important mathematics, for example. But this is rare. I really feel sorry for the teachers. They are like hostages in captivity, forced to say all sorts of things”.
Resisting the Kremlin’s instructions for education poses both personal and professional risks.
Parents, pro-Kremlin campaigners, and even their students have accused teachers of dissention of their positions in opposition to the official position. In some cases, their colleagues have turned against them, leading to them being fined or prosecuted for “discrediting” the Russian armed forces.
Teachers in Crimea have been targeted by activists because they post a Ukrainian flag on social media, track them, and coerce them into making an apology video that is then shared on social media. The harassment can continue after that, until the teacher loses her job.
However, according to independent human rights monitor OVD-Info, which tracks politically motivated persecution in Russia, by 2024 the number of teachers being penalised dropped sharply, perhaps indicating a climate of self-censorship or fear.
Some of Talankin’s students have since enlisted in the army, according to Talankin, who left his job and fled Russia in 2024.
His film, which has played at international film festivals, has stirred controversy in his hometown.
“The reactions are varied”, he reflected glumly. “From calling me scum and a b*****d and a traitor to Russia to, ‘ Well done, you finally showed this swamp. ‘ Everyone in Russia and around the world should watch it, in my opinion. There is a lot of love in it: To the country, to the homeland. But not to Putin’s Russia. Because it clearly demonstrates how Putin destroys everything that is alive.
Source: Aljazeera
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