How Russian is taught in Colombia
About the school
I work in Colombia at a large public school with 2,000 students, where children study eight foreign languages, including Russian. And almost everyone there knows me! Once, some fifth-graders came up, tugging at my sleeve, saying: "Profe Dina! We want to learn Russian, too!"
Classes in Colombia are large. I have classes with up to 60 students! Naturally, one teacher isn't enough for that many children, so other teachers assist with the lessons, help keep things organized and keep the students engaged.
About the little ones & the grandparents
The students are very diverse. The youngest are in the third grade. However, the international humanitarian project ‘Russian Teacher Abroad’, implemented by the Center for International Cooperation of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, with support from the ministry itself, has also sparked great interest among grandparents in their 60s and 70s. They approached the principal, asking if they, too, could learn Russian and I took them on as students. These grandparents spend a lot of time with their grandchildren; whenever they learn something new about our president or our culture, they share it with their entire family. During extra-curricular sessions, we paint ‘matryoshka’ dolls and wooden boards. We’re also preparing presentations; they’re getting ready to talk about ‘blini’ (pancakes), ‘pirozhki’ (pies), ‘pelmeni’ (dumplings) and the ‘Olivier’ salad (Russian salad). We’re also planning a workshop and the skills they learn will hopefully be passed on to their children and grandchildren! This fosters not only a love for the Russian language, but also an appreciation for Russia, its culture and its traditions.
How the classes are conducted
My initial professional qualification is as a primary school teacher, which is why I truly enjoy working with young children. Their eyes light up; they find everything interesting: ‘Cheburashka’, ‘matryoshka’ dolls, ‘Dymkovo’ toys – they love it all! Sometimes, their parents even come up to express their gratitude.
Working with high school students is more challenging; they have very little free time, as they are busy preparing for their state exams. Nevertheless, they still manage to put together wonderful presentations for their extracurricular classes on Russian culture.
My colleagues and I have concluded that we help our students fall in love with the language by sharing extra information about the country and its culture. With Christmas approaching, for instance, our Colombian students are very curious about how we celebrate it and why Catholics and Orthodox Christians observe the holiday on different dates.
They also enjoy decorating Easter eggs, even though our Easter dates don’t always align. Preparing for these lessons requires a great deal of care, as I have to explain all the differences between the calendars and the holidays.
Colombian children also enjoy playing ‘gorodki’ (‘towns’, a traditional Russian folk game). And, in general, many Colombian children’s games – such as tag, chase and jump rope – are quite similar to those in Russia.
Colombians are very talented and love to sing. That’s why I often use Zaitsev’s melodic exercises in my teaching; we sing out syllables and practice vocal drills designed for speech development.
On the challenges of learning
First-year students in the basic program are able to hold a simple conversation in Russian – they can state their names, say where they live and answer other basic questions.
The main challenge for beginners learning Russian is phonetics. The "hissing" (sibilant) sounds are quite different and require specific instruction – a process that’s much like speech therapy. This is where those speech-development drills and the Zaitsev method come in handy and prove so useful. We’re currently working on adapting these materials specifically for Spanish-speaking students. It’s also difficult for a Spanish-speaking student to grasp the concept of grammatical gender in Russian. Russian has three genders: masculine, feminine and neuter. In Spanish there are only two: masculine and feminine. It can be tricky to explain why words like ‘papa’ (dad) and ‘dedushka’ (grandfather) appear to be feminine in form, yet are actually masculine! That said, similar cases exist in Spanish, so I can draw upon those to help students make the connection.
What the Russian language offers students
In 2026, the Russian Embassy issued 180 offers of admission to Russian universities. This represents a significant opportunity for Colombian applicants. Given the challenges within the country, not every family can afford to send their child to a university – even if tuition is free – because they would still need to cover the student's living expenses during that time. So, for Colombians, this opens the door to a potentially promising future.
I know several Colombians who studied in the Soviet Union; many have since become prominent figures in Colombia. They now support our diaspora, making it possible for us to organize various competitions and other activities.
Republic of Colombia, City of Simijaca, Agustín Parra Departmental Educational Institute