2023 was declared the Year of Teachers and Mentors in Russia. Tatyana Butskaya, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Family, Women and Children, member of the commission guaranteeing citizens’ housing rights and coordinator of the Duma, said that this shows that the role of the teacher for the country is now more important than ever. ONF project “Time to Give Birth”
“Perhaps we lost a few years trying to focus on Western countries because it was impossible for this to still continue as friendship. You cannot lose your identity and blend in; You have to hold on tightly to your history, your literature, your country’s geography, your family’s history. Because the best thing that can be taught to our children now is history, for example, through the Family Studies course we return to schools,” he said.
According to him, this way children will be able to learn the history of their family and their country. He emphasized that a lot depends on the teacher.
“A school teacher of all subjects, including history, geography, literature and the first teacher – all lay the foundations of a child’s worldview,” Butskaya said.
The MP also emphasized that the announcement of the Year of the Teacher and Mentor shows that people in these professions are deemed worthy of the “Person of the Year” status. According to him, this situation can also be seen regarding teachers in the regions.
“I travel a lot, although I mostly deal with hospitals and maternity hospitals, but I still ask if there are support programs in each region. “They will definitely tell me that in addition to programs to support healthcare workers, there are also programs to support teachers and professors,” the deputy shared.
Butskaya said that housing and some social support measures are provided to the families of teachers who come to teach children or come to higher education institutions.
“Now our country really needs experts in every field. We have import independence rather than import substitution. This is one of the main goals we face right now. We need talent today. And starting from school, we train them then in higher education institutions, and therefore the teacher is especially valuable,” the deputy concluded.
Let us recall that UNESCO established World Teachers’ Day in 1994, which is celebrated every year on October 5. Starting from the same year, Russia was also included in the list of countries celebrating Teachers’ Day on the same day.