Mass Media in Latvia: The Two Parallel Worlds…

Discussing with my students the role of the mass media in the political and social situation in Latvia, we have already got used to make one and the same conclusion for the period of time… - the last ten years: if we compare the way, how one and the same initially sensitive issue – both for the Russian- and the Latvian-speaking communities in Latvia – is being commented in the Latvian and the Russian mass media; we have got the feeling, that the speech is about the situation/events/activities, etc. in the two different countries…
For example, if the speech is about the Reform of the Secondary Education in the Schools for the National Minorities, we have got the following acknowledgements:
- the Russian media (the broadsheet daily newspapers: Cas and Vesti Segodna) have been constantly moaning all the time since the year 2004, that the Reform will turn out the Russian children into… “the completely illiterate idiots”, who have forgotten their mother tongue – the Russian language;
- the Latvian media, on the contrary, - have constantly tried to emphasize the idea, that the Russian children, who have properly studied the Latvian language, will have more chances and the wider perspectives on the job market in Latvia, becoming more competitive.
Unfortunately, the overseas readers, who naturally accept that the Russian mass media offer the clear and the authentic picture of the contemporary situation in Latvia, - have been constantly making this genuine mistake, relaying on the information published in Cas and Vesti Segodna… As a result, they will never get the idea about the vast spectrum of the viewpoints of the representatives of the national minorities in Latvia…

The Evident Success!

The Results of the Centralized Exams 2007 must be taken into account as the reliable argument when evaluating the quality of the secondary education in Latvia.
The crucial conclusion about the situation at the Schools for National Minorities could be studied, examining the officially accepted evaluation of the students’ knowledge in the official documents: The School Leaving Diploma and The ISEC Certificate (The Centre of the Contents of Education and the Exams, Ministry of Secondary and Higher Education of Latvia).
The basis for the comparison was the following: last year the students – the representatives of the national minorities, attending the so-called “Russian Schools” - had the possibility to pass the exams in the Russian language; this year – only in the Latvian language.
The verdict is: there had not been stated any changes, when comparing the results of these two successive years.
So, could we now stop all these insinuations?
Unfortunately, - no!
As, this issue was initially politically engaged; and the role of the mass media in this process should be discussed separately.

The Successes and Failures of the Reform of the Secondary Education in Latvia

The Swedish News Agency’s journalist visited our School yesterday, with the aim to face and to evaluate the progress in this specifically sensitive issue for the National Minorities’ Schools - in the frameworks of the contemporary, both social and political, situation in Latvia.
When, for the first time, he visited the Riga Secondary School Nr.21 three years ago – the situation seemed to be really explosive: tense, aggressive, and the unknown, as well.
In 2004, the worldwide community, with the mediation of the mass media, was able to watch the thousands of children - the representatives of all the national minorities living in Latvia - severely protesting in the streets against the Reform of the Secondary Education.
The three years have passed…
What are the successes and, definitely, the failures of the Reform of the Secondary Education in Latvia?
You are eager to know, aren’t you?
So, you are welcome to find out the most relevant and authentic information about this issue in my blog!
With best regards,
Ludmila