Daria Khantseva, a student of the Faculty of Philology of Tomsk State University, won the international competition of the volunteer movement “For Russian!” The award is a foreign internship in Armenia. Daria became the only finalist from Tomsk. In Armenia Daria plans to give Russian lessons and talk about the culture of Russia, which will strengthen the intercultural dialogue between the two countries.
The Volunteer Movement Competition “For Russian!” is an international project of Rossotrudnichestvo aimed at popularizing the Russian language and culture abroad. It is aimed at 3-5-year students of pedagogical and philological specialties and takes place in four stages: video presentation, essay, test and the final in the form of a three-day intensive training in Moscow. The organizers of the competition are Rossotrudnichestvo together with the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. The best graduates may complete a 30-day internship in one of six countries: Egypt, India, Mongolia, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan.
The trip to Armenia will take place in mid-November and will last 30 calendar days. Daria will become a representative of the culture of Russia and Tomsk State University abroad. She will conduct Russian language lessons in Armenian schools and organize events related to the cultural heritage of our country.
– There is an idea to conduct a lesson called “Russian Armenians: Famous Armenians Who Glorified Russia”. I would like to discuss with children the peculiarities of the cultural interaction of peoples, – said Daria Khantseva, a student at the TSU Faculty of Philology. – I plan to pay special attention to the famous Armenians who made a significant contribution to the development of Russian culture, science, sports and business. I would like to acquaint students with the rich history of the Armenian people in Russia, dispel stereotypes and emphasize the importance of interethnic harmony and mutual respect. Such initiatives make it possible not only to talk about Russia, but also to learn from others – to learn traditions, customs and views, thereby strengthening the intercultural dialogue.
The winners were announced at a three-day intensive training in Moscow. According to Daria, during the training, the finalists spoke about ethnic stereotypes, intercultural communication, reflection of national and cultural meanings in personal names. They also learned to create educational infographics, made memes and recorded podcasts about the Russian language.
– Good specialized training at the Faculty of Philology helped me to get to the final of the competition: I easily coped with both the essay and the test. I became part of 70 participants invited to the intensive training in Moscow. The program was eventful and the lectures were quite diverse. It was especially valuable to communicate with the participants from all over Russia – I met many enthusiastic, energetic and very erudite guys. We discussed why and how to read Russian literature and how exactly the artistic text helps to develop language competence and cultural thinking. Special attention was paid to soft skills: team building, project management, creating a personal brand, – added Daria Khantseva.
As a result of the training, 30 winners received the right to go for an internship abroad. Ten of them will go to Armenia, including Daria, the only participant from Tomsk.
– Our program “Russian as a foreign language” has a high quality of training for specialists, which is proved by the victories of students in various competitions, including professional skills competitions. At the bachelor course students study three blocks of disciplines: general education, general professional and professional courses. besides, students have a large number of practices: introductory, project, research and methodological, pedagogical training. The Department of Russian as a Foreign Language actively cooperates with China, joint programs and practices in summer schools are being implemented with several universities. We are also working with Vietnam, India, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, – commented Svetlana Ermolenko, head of the Department of Russian as a Foreign Language, associate professor of the TSU Faculty of Philology.
For reference: Bachelor’s program “Russian as a foreign language: theory and methodology of training” was opened in 2022 at the Faculty of Philology of TSU. Students receive fundamental knowledge in the field of modern Russian language and methods of teaching it as a foreign language, including online projects with partner universities, internships abroad, contacts with employers.