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Russian lessons in Brandenburg: A sad end for the language!
Russian lessons in Brandenburg schools are falling drastically. You can find out where the decline comes from and what consequences it has here.
Russian lessons in Brandenburg: A sad end for the language!
In Brandenburg, Russian lessons in schools have declined sharply. As [rbb24](https://www.rbb24.de/panorama/teil/2025/07/ Fremdsprach-russisch-verschwindet-schulen-brandenburg.htm/alt=amp.html) reports, Russian will be completely removed from the curriculum at the high school in Lübbenau after the summer holidays. The trend is obvious: the language is only offered at every third high school and every second high school. Just 20 years ago, Russian was part of the curriculum at 87% of high schools in Brandenburg, now it is only 33% - a dramatic decline.
Over the last two decades, the number of students learning Russian nationwide has fallen by a massive 83%. In the 2020/21 school year there were 94,000 students, while in 1992/93 an impressive 565,100 students learned this language. What is particularly striking is that 70% of students who are currently learning Russian go to school in eastern German states. In the GDR, Russian was even a compulsory subject and was considered the first foreign language.
The change of course after the reunification
After the fall of communism, however, students' interest shifted towards other languages such as English, French and Spanish. The headmaster of the Paul-Fahlisch-Gymnasium, Matthias Lösche, reports a blatant lack of interest among the students. Russian was offered from level 7 onwards, but there were hardly any classes that opted for it. With the impending retirement of the school's only Russian teacher, the subject will now be eliminated entirely.
A look at the latest figures shows a further decline: In the last ten years, the number of students learning Russian has fallen from 31,000 to just 21,600, according to the Ministry of Education in Brandenburg. Nevertheless, Brandenburg remains in a leading position nationwide with 20% of students continuing to learn Russian, as Tagesspiegel informs.
The image and future of the language
Marlies Ruppel, chairwoman of the Brandenburg Russian Teaching Interest Association (Biru), sees hope: According to her, Russian will not disappear completely. There are still enough well-trained teachers. However, Helgard Lörcher, chairman of the German Russian Teachers' Association, highlights Russia's prevailing image problem and its impact on students. He describes a vicious circle: without lessons there is no knowledge about Russian culture, without this knowledge there are no Russian lessons.
The Biru is committed to preserving the Russian language and culture in Brandenburg schools, including exchange programs and continuing education events. Language competitions, such as the Russian Olympiad, take place every two years, with the winners having the chance to qualify for the Federal Olympiad. All of this is intended to prepare students for future conversation situations and strengthen the use of the language in a professional context.
The question remains how Russian teaching will develop in the coming years. Concern for the future preservation and appreciation of the language is growing as student interest continues to shift.