On Monday, the first Unified State Exams in English were held in Russia. During the test, graduates were unexpectedly asked to explain the meaning of National Unity Day, Victory Day, Defender of the Fatherland Day, Russia Day, May 1, and other holidays. The channel Ostorozhno, Novosti drew attention to this.
According to students, the written section required them to describe the origin and meaning of state holidays observed in Russia. Graduates said they had not been prepared for such tasks. Their teachers and private tutors reportedly said the same.
“To figure it out, you need C1. It seems like nonsense, but try formulating it briefly on the spot. I have two students taking it. I’m afraid the weaker one will not remember what Defenders' day is. She won’t remember the verb defend,” one teacher said.
Many also pointed to the difficulty of the word commemorate and other specialized vocabulary, which they said belongs to at least the C1 level. Teachers noted that they had usually prepared students for more universal topics such as hobbies, travel, art, ecology, and others, but not for explaining Russian holidays.
“Last year my student wrote the letter task perfectly. The topic was ‘Scientists and discoveries.’ I thought nothing could be worse than that. But no, it turns out we had not yet seen National Unity Day,” one teacher said.
According to tutors, many of their students experienced stress during the exam. They believe this kind of knowledge is more appropriate for a history exam.