By Ekaterina Janashia | 2025-12-03

Teachers across Russia are expected to deliver patriotic lessons with perfect loyalty -- yet many stand in front of their classrooms feeling lost. Those who stray from the official script risk losing their jobs or face criminal charges for "spreading fake information about the army," as they disagree with the government line.

Inga, a psychologist from Moscow, said the climate left educators anxious and conflicted.

"Teachers are humans too. They are very confused and scared," she told Kontur on condition of anonymity. Many opposed government policy and the war but struggled to navigate the new curriculum. To avoid overt propaganda, some improvised.

"Sometimes, to escape this awkwardness, they choose random topics to discuss," Inga said, calling it potential quiet resistance.

Parents also sensed the strain.

Tatyana, a 37-year-old private-sector employee raising her 10-year-old son Valera in the Moscow region, told Kontur teachers were "just as disempowered as the rest of us. Perhaps even worse, because they're completely dependent on the state."

Although she was frank at home about her opposition to the war -- which she blamed on President Vladimir Putin and the Russian government -- she told her son to avoid discussing politics with teachers or classmates.

Ideology in the classroom

The Kremlin's push for ideological conformity reshaped school life through compulsory courses and carefully curated activities.

Since September 2022, every school week begins with a flag-raising ceremony and the national anthem. That is followed by "Razgovory o vazhnom" (Conversations about Important Things), a weekly subject rolled out nationwide that year.

The former "Fundamentals of Life Safety" class was replaced or expanded with "Fundamentals of Security and Defense of the Homeland," a course that includes basic military training, weapons instruction and drone operation. By September 2023, physical education also incorporated mandatory military drills.

Schools host letter-writing campaigns for soldiers, produce trench candles and camouflage nets and welcome veterans of the war in Ukraine to teach lessons.

Military youth clubs such as Yunarmia (Youth Army Cadets) are heavily promoted, with the Kremlin doubling the group's budget.

Alongside these activities, Russia introduced Federal General Education Basic Programs to eliminate regional curriculum variation and centralize control over subjects such as history and literature.

New national history textbooks reframe post-Soviet events to fit the current political agenda, justify the annexation of Crimea -- described as "reunification" -- and depict the full-scale invasion of Ukraine as a response to Western hostility. The war is presented as a campaign of "demilitarization and de-nazification" and an existential defense of Russia.

Children and parents react

For students, the centerpiece of the new system is the weekly "Conversations about Important Things."

Tatyana said Valera and his classmates regarded the class as a low-stakes ritual.

"He likes that there's no homework in these lessons," she said. "He just comes, half-listens and forgets."

Inga disagreed.

"Nothing goes without a trace," she said. "All this information is accumulated in children's minds, and one day, we all will face the consequences."

Many children and parents tolerated or accepted the class, held every Monday from first to eleventh grade.

Some grandparents recoiled at the content.

Alexander, 73, of Saint Petersburg, said he dreaded these lessons for his nine-year-old grandson.

"I hate Mondays," he told Kontur on condition of anonymity. "I'm even scared to think what kind of nonsense his teacher is talking about in this lesson."

Usually, the lessons cover national identity, patriotic values and world events from the government's perspective. They highlight unity, self-sacrifice and military glory, and justify the ongoing war -- officially called the "special military operation." Ministry-provided materials emphasize patriotic themes, often focusing exclusively on Russia. Pilot versions of the curriculum were recently launched in kindergartens.

Despite the pressure, some educators push back discreetly.

Tatyana said the teacher of her friend's daughter, a third-grader at a public school in Moscow, addressed parents directly.

"She simply promised the parents at a meeting that she wouldn't bring up politics in these conversations. And she doesn't," Tatyana said. "That is, she doesn't talk about the war or how Russia is good and everyone else is bad."