Student ‘pressured to study Russian’ despite fleeing Ukraine war for UK

A 19-year-old student who fled the war in Ukraine three years ago has claimed that she was pressured by a teacher at her Stoke-on-Trent college to study Russian

View 2 Images

A student who fled Ukraine^[1] for a new life in the UK is no longer at Sixth Form college after “refusing to study Russian”.

Kateryna Endeberia left her home in Donetsk following the Russian invasion^[2] in 2022 and moved to Stoke-on-Trent^[3], where she took her GCSEs a year later. She then completed a foundation year at City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College and studied economics, politics, and statistics.

However, the 19-year-old has claimed that she was not allowed to sit her end of year one mock exams this summer, saying that there was an attempt to persuade her to learn Russian^[4] instead.

Kateryna, who lives in Norton, told StokeonTrent Live^[5]: “I love my studies. I’ve worked hard to learn the English language and earn the place I have today.

“But at the end of my first year, something unpleasant happened. A teacher started pressuring me to study the Russian language. For me, this was impossible: my country is at war, and my father serves in the Ukrainian army.”

View 2 Images

The student continued: “I explained openly that I do not want to study the language of the state that has brought so much pain to my people.

“I went to do my mock exams, and they told me I wasn’t allowed. I wanted to give it a try, because I want a chance to prove myself. After that, my mum was told that my place at the college had been closed.”

Kateryna, who is no longer a student at the college, said the situation was “really unfair”. She added that at 19, she is unable to go to another college and wants to finish her A-Levels as her future “depends on it”.

“I’d love to study economics, politics or some kind of finance degree. Now I won’t be able to do that,” Kateryna said.

The college explains on its website that “equality of opportunity and inclusivity” are among its “guiding principles”, stating: “We are committed to celebrating diversity and creating opportunities for the development of mutual understanding to foster respect for others and to support the development of rounded and reasoning individuals.”

City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College said it couldn’t comment on individual cases, with a spokesperson telling Stoke-on-Trent Live: “The college cares deeply about our students and every effort is made to resolve issues and complaints in accordance with our complaints and resolution process. We do not comment on individuals for reasons of confidentiality.”