Knowledge Day 2023: Russia's Unique Way of Starting the School Year: Part Two: Putin's Turn

President Putin’s role on Knowledge Day is to act as a lecturer as the director of the Znanei organization suggested last year and again reaffirmed that importance again this year. This is how the Kremlin described his participation:

On September 1, the Day of Knowledge, the head of state held an open lesson " Talk about important things "within the framework of projects of the Ministry of Education, Rosmolodezh and the platform"Russia – a country of opportunities". The event was attended by 30 students with outstanding academic achievements, winners of international Olympiads and competitions.

So, the children attentively sitting at their desks in the above picture are not ordinary students but part of the top echelon. Over the years, Putin has participated in these sorts of encounters and seems to greatly enjoy them. As you can see from the following photo, the students are a variety of ages and the majority appear to be young women.

Prior to his talk, Putin toured the Senezh Management Workshop youth center, which looks more like a small university.

That facility, others being built and already existing represent the investment Russia is making in its future as Russia well understands the connection between a highly educated citizenry and a functional society, government and economy. Russia and its regions are also busy refurbishing and modernizing current school buildings so they’re both attractive for students and functional for teachers as the strategic priority is to give every child the opportunity to groom whatever innate talents it has so it can excel—a philosophy that’s the exact opposite of what we see being applied in the West, unless you’re prepared to pay a high fee for what was once a public utility. As you read, you’ll be privy to a new competition as Putin called it that’s aimed at preempting the rise of Cancel Culture within Russia, which as an educator I view as outstanding since as Putin notes education begins in the family and its local environment—what’re technically known as socialization and enculturation. But enough from me; here’s President Putin talking to and interacting with some smart kids:

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon!

I'm glad to see you all.

If you have noticed, you probably know that the President of Kyrgyzstan and I have just started the process of building three Russian-language schools, or, more precisely, all subjects taught in Russian in Kyrgyzstan.

In this regard, I would like to draw your attention to this. Kyrgyzstan is a republic of the former Soviet Union. You know, we lived in the same country. But everything is very quickly forgotten, everything is very quickly diverged, except for one thing-except for the culture. But it also needs to be supported. Culture, language is an extremely important thing that underlies any society. And the fact that our friends in Kyrgyzstan have such an interest in the Russian language – and surprisingly, Russian is declared the state language at the legislative level in Kyrgyzstan-is an extremely important thing that, of course, should be cherished. And we are doing this together with the leadership of Kyrgyzstan, we have planned a whole network there, the creation of schools in Russian. This, of course, contributes to maintaining all the very best that was achieved when the former republics of the Soviet Union lived in a single state space.

And then we met with the Russian Minister of Education and held an event related to the opening of new schools and pre-school children's institutions. I must say that in general, we are moving very confidently towards organizing a new educational space and improving it, and this is encouraging. But, of course, there are still a lot of unresolved issues.

Nevertheless, I would like to start our meeting today with the most important thing – to congratulate you and all students, students, teachers, and all family members of students, students, and teachers on the new academic year, Knowledge Day, and September 1. I would like to wish you all success in the new academic year.

The school year is one of the most popular holidays in the country, just like the New Year. After all, the New Year is connected with something: it is connected with expectations of a miracle, it is connected with expectations of some kind of update. The same goes for the new school year ‒ that's why it's called the "new school year". It is also connected with something new ‒ with new discoveries, with new friends, with new knowledge, with another step forward in its development.

This is very important, and it affects almost every person in the country. There is probably no one who is not somehow connected with the events of September 1: some have children, some have grandchildren, some teach, and so on. This is indeed a very kind, nationwide holiday and, I repeat once again, it is also connected with new steps in the development of the country and people.

In this regard, I would like to say this. Of course, everything that happens in the field of education ‒ the first stage in education ‒ is of course connected with the family, with the way the family treats education. It is precisely this attitude to education that gives rise to a small person's interest in their own development, in obtaining knowledge.

Now my colleagues have told me a lot about how this Senezh platform is developing, how various projects are developing at the Russia ‒ Land of Opportunities platform. There are a lot of them, they are very interesting, but there is no one that, in my opinion, would be the most interesting, broadest and most popular in the literal sense of the word.

There are no purely family competition projects ‒ my colleagues and I talked about it this morning, and now only the head of Senezh remembered it. Of course, such a competitive project at the family level would, in my opinion, be extremely popular and would certainly be very interesting. We have agreed that starting from September 4, it will be possible to apply for participation in such projects. We are talking about families with children, and we would very much like ‒ when I say "us", I also mean my colleagues in the Presidential Administration, in the Government ‒ to have representatives of different generations of families take part in it, to show how the family develops, how knowledge is passed on from generation to generation, how our traditional family values are passed down from generation to generation, what is the significance of the family in our society and in maintaining our traditional values, on which our entire state stands.

I very much hope that this project will contribute to the development of the very values that I mentioned and that form the basis of our development. This-along with the knowledge that you get at school, and then at universities, in higher education, and in institutes - will help young people realize themselves in life. The first is to choose your own path in life and then, following this path, achieve maximum results.

This is a very important, key moment in every person's life-the choice of the path that they should follow. I'm sure we'll be talking about this now. If a person manages to find himself in life and, as it was said in the famous work "Two Captains", get the opportunity to reveal all the potential forces of his soul, choose such a business, then this is the main and main guarantee of success in the future for each person.

Following this path, developing, achieving results, of course, you will get satisfaction from your own success, from your own achievements and will contribute to the development of the whole country. This is very closely related to each other. Because if a person is simply passionate about art, science, but, whatever it was, even if he is engaged in some abstract business, still in the end, somewhere in the depths of his soul, a person expects public recognition of what he has done and achieved, recognition by other people.

We all live in a society, and this is certainly an extremely important thing ‒ recognition. Recognition of their success gives a person new strength, it is another impetus for internal development. I am confident that by acting in this way, you will achieve the greatest, most significant, and necessary results for the country in all areas of our development: construction, space, roads, infrastructure, medicine, and the environment are among the challenges that we and each of you will face in the future.

I would like to wish you all good luck on this journey and once again congratulate you on the beginning of the school year. I would like to finish here, and we will talk to you. Although you are young people, but you are advanced people, I don't know if I can answer all your questions: I even suggest that our meeting should be made not a day of answers and questions, but an exchange of opinions. I think it will be even more interesting.

Please, I'm happy to give you the floor.

Tatyana Yedysheva: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Tatiana Edysheva, I am a lecturer at the Russian Society "Knowledge". First of all, as a young mother, thank you for choosing the topic for our "Conversation about important things".

Today, with your permission, my colleague Anastasia Baskakova and I will be helping you with the education of the Rostov ‒ on-Don Law School.

Now we have the winners of the "Children's Mentoring School" in our class, all of them are winners of All-Russian competitions and subject Olympiads. I think everyone will be happy to ask you questions today. Can I?

Vladimir Putin: I did not suggest a question-and-answer session, but an exchange of views. I think it will be more interesting this way. Questions – of course, with pleasure, let's start with that.

I would be interested to hear your opinion on the business you are doing, and your opinion on how you think it would be necessary to organize what you are doing, and what kind of support you would need from adults ‒ some officials, administrations at various levels. Can we just try to reformat our meeting a little?

Tatyana Edysheva: Of course.

Vladimir Putin: Please.

T. Edysheva: I would suggest that you give the first word to Ruslan Sharko, the city of St. Petersburg. Ruslan, please.

Vladimir Putin: Hello, fellow countrymen.

R. Sharko: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

I am just your fellow countryman, I am from St. Petersburg, I am 17 years old. I have already moved to the 11th grade now, on September 1, and I study at school No. 94. I am an activist of the Russian Movement of Children and Youth, and I am a co-author of this project, because I participated from the very beginning, from its very origins and develop it together with the children.

We have values, very important values that we keep, that we live with. And one of the values is a strong family. This is exactly the topic you mentioned.

I have a grandmother, Galina Vladimirovna. She is a great person, a person with a capital letter, as they say. I can say that I started to get interested in the history of my family a long time ago, and when I started to do this, I turned to her.

We talked together about how to memorize all the knowledge, how to remember the whole history of our family, and we wrote our own tree, wrote the whole six generations of our family. We looked through all the photos, "dug up" all the archives – we searched everything to find out and figure it out. Just the same, my grandmother and I did this not alone, but with my whole extended family. This is one example of how you can interact with your family, how you can narrow the gap between generations, and how you can spend your free time – just like that, for no good reason.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, I have a question for you. Do you think it is necessary to create a special collection that will help you make a pedigree? Maybe we should develop an album that will store the entire family history, and then this album can be passed down from generation to generation.

I fully support your idea of joint events, when the whole family is together, three generations participate in one common cause and do something good for the country.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: First of all, the idea is good, and I will certainly try to support it. You just need to understand what needs to be done for this. There are colleagues from the [Presidential] Administration here, they also hear and see. Of course, we will support you.

I want to draw your attention to this. You said that it's good to get together and work on something common and interesting for no apparent reason. There is a reason, and it is very important, as you also mentioned just now – it is a generational connection and a shift in time between what happened and what happened to people you may never have seen or known, and what is happening now around you and in your life.

I don't remember whether I said it or not, but I got the letters from my grandfather, whom I didn't see – he passed away before I was born. I got his letters, which he wrote to his son-my uncle, it turns out - to the front.

Do you know what I noticed?

First of all, my grandfather is a peasant, he lived in a village in the Tver province, right next to each other. Do you know what I noticed? First, he addresses his son as "you", and his son also addresses his father as "you".

Here's what I've been thinking. He's just a simple country man, and that's what he wrote with mistakes. But what a deep internal culture our people had. This is amazing.

I have a large social circle, and there are different people: artists, scientists, military personnel, and so on. Many people even consider it a special fun to use a strong word and so on. And a simple village man had such an internal culture, which I said: his own son is addressed as "you", and that to his father as "you". This is in an ordinary Russian village.

When I read it, I somehow began to feel differently about both my family and myself, and I began to think that it would be nice to look up to the best in the history of our family.

He writes, among other things, how my grandmother died, and how she died in his arms: there was fighting, and a bullet-they were lying somewhere in the trenches, the villagers-and a German bullet hit her in the stomach, she died in his arms. And you know what the words are – they just stuck in my soul. He tells his son in a letter about the last words of his grandmother. She understood that she was passing away, and he understood, and she said to him (this is what he writes to his son at the front), to his grandfather, to his husband, says: "Don't cry, don't upset me." Can you imagine the depth of the relationship? She's dying, and she's worried about him, and he's upset, like she said, and she's crying. Do you understand the depth of relationships between ordinary people, what kind of love? But how can we not take examples from this?

When we talk about our traditional values, we also mean this, this inner love that underlies relations in our society.

And then he gives a description, gives an order to his son at the front: "Beat these reptiles!". In a letter, a normal family letter. You know, these are our values, so how can we not protect them? They form the basis of our being, our life. And so what you're doing – writing your family's history - is, in my opinion, extremely important, extremely important. I wish you every success in this endeavor, and we will do everything we can to support you.

R. Sharko: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: By the way, when I read my grandfather's instructions to my son, I understood why we won the Great Patriotic War. It is impossible to defeat such a people with such an attitude. We were absolutely invincible, and we are now. An extremely important thing. Here is just one sketch from the history of the family, and we have the overwhelming majority of such families. It is very important.

T. Edysheva: Thank you.

I propose to give the floor, if you don't mind, to the gold medalist of the International Olympic Games Yaroslav Shastin, Republic of Mordovia.

Y. Shastin: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Shastin Yaroslav, I am from Saransk, I study at the republican lyceum for gifted children and I am moving to the 11th grade.

Our lyceum specializes in the Olympic movement, and I have already achieved a lot in my Olympic life. I have a gold medal at the International Scientific Olympiad, I am a two-time winner of the final stage of the All-Russian Olympiad of Schoolchildren in physics. And I sometimes ask myself this question: did I succeed in this field?

And I probably have a goal in life – this is to take place as a person. And I would like to know your opinion and the opinion of the guys: what does an accomplished person mean to you personally?

Vladimir Putin: I have already said that I started with this: it is important for a person to find himself, and if he finds himself, then he has a chance to realize himself to the maximum. What is it to realize yourself to the maximum? This is to get satisfaction from what you do. This is both a result and a recognition. Both are very important, because the result itself is very important, but the person needs feedback.

Here's Pushkin:

"I have erected a monument to myself not made with hands,

It will not be overgrown with a folk path,

He ascended higher as the head of the rebellious one

The Pillar of Alexandria".

Pushkin wrote about himself. He is, as they say, our everything, yes, he is the founder of the modern Russian language, he is a brilliant writer, poet. And he waited and wanted this public recognition – and talked about it.

And this is due to the need to set yourself up to serve society: a) achieve maximum results in the field that you have chosen, and b) devote your life and your results to your family, the world around you in the broadest sense of the word, and the country in which you live. It seems to me that the combination of these components makes a person happy.

Y. Shastin: Thank you.

T. Edysheva: Young inventor Alena Varlashova, Perm Region.

A. Varlashova: Hello!

My name is Alyona Varlashova. I live in the city of Perm, and from early childhood I actively expressed myself in life. I am now an activist of the Russian movement of children and youth "Movement of the First", a young inventor, a young geologist. Probably one of my most significant events in my life is the confirmation of the implementation of the ideas of my experiment on board the International Space Station. The essence of the experiment is to send oil-destroying bacteria…

Vladimir Putin: Bacteria?

A. Varlashova: Oil destructors. These are the bacteria that eat oil.

Vladimir Putin: Why should we eat oil? Is this the one that's being bottled?

A. Varlashova: Yes. This is for the disposal of oil spills. If they mutate there and become a little more efficient, then, I believe, this can help us solve environmental problems.

Vladimir Putin: Alyona, I don't understand, have you already launched something? Some kind of bacteria?

A. Varlashova: This is getting ready to launch.

Vladimir Putin: So you want to launch some bacteria into space, they will mutate there, and then they will eat oil?

A. Varlashova: Yes. On Earth, this will be used effectively.

Vladimir Putin: They won't eat us?

A. Varlashova: They won't eat it.

Vladimir Putin: Thank God. It's very important that they don't eat us, because if something mutates… I'm not kidding, by the way. We need to keep everything under control.

A. Varlashova: In the experiment there is a test for pathogenicity. Check whether they will be safe.

And so, probably, the support of Quantorium and Perm University, Perm Poly, became very significant for me. It is thanks to this and participation in the competition that my project has developed to such a scale.

I believe that professional support is very important. But nevertheless, the foundations are laid in school. I really like the subjects: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology. But there are some subjects that I don't really like.

And you, I would very much like to know what was your most disliked subject at school, and how it was useful in life?

Vladimir Putin: Please sit down.

First, I wish you every success in mutating these bugs so that they eat everything we don't need and don't get to us. This, first of all.

Secondly, I am very glad that you are doing well, you have people who are close by and help. Is everything really going well there, do you need to support something there? You can ask the management of Roscosmos to support your projects. Is it worth it? Or is everything already planned for you?

A. Varlashova: It is already being prepared for launch. And so, it would probably be very pleasant to receive support not only for me, but also for other students from universities, if they are inventors, perhaps from business representatives.

Vladimir Putin: Well, I will talk to the leadership of Roscosmos to make sure that they pay attention to this, although I know that Roscosmos has specialized educational institutions – not higher education, but schools in many regions of the Russian Federation. But we will definitely come back to this.

As for the main part of the question – favorite and unloved subjects, and what were my favorite and unloved ones. When I was in high school, I went to a school with a chemistry profile and advanced study of physics and mathematics, but I decided very quickly that I wanted to enter law school, and so I immediately thought about what subjects I should take. And the subjects I had to pass, exams, just in history, literature, Russian, a foreign language, so I had to start studying these subjects.

In general, as for the beloved, unloved-I somehow never thought about it, did not think about it. I'll tell you frankly, honestly: I just assumed that there is a set of subjects that are mandatory for studying, and I just did them, that's all.

But what I would like to say. In my opinion, this is such a significant point. First, favorite or unloved – it is connected, of course, with the desire to learn more and is connected, of course, with teachers who are interested or not very well convey to their listeners, their students certain knowledge in the field of which they are specialists. You can be a good, deep specialist, but not be able to... No, it happens that a person has such a vein that he gives an interesting material. This is normal, there is nothing unusual here, in the sense that everyone should constantly work on themselves, study, and get additional education, including teachers. But this is a separate topic.

In general, it seems to me that a favorite subject or an unloved one is not even very important. It is important that… You know, even what seems unimportant matters. For example, there are natural sciences: mathematics, physics, chemistry, and there are humanities. A person thinks – and not only thinks, but aspires to be a journalist, a writer, a historian, a specialist in linguistics, and so on. It seems to him that why should he study mathematics, physics, chemistry, he will never apply this knowledge. Why waste your time? Conversely, a person who is passionate about the natural sciences thinks: why should I spend time on some kind of history, on literature? I'm going to be successful here.

First, our knowledge is accumulated not only so that we can apply it concretely. Knowledge, especially from different fields, forms a person, character, they form a worldview, that's what is very important, and give such skills that will certainly be useful in life. For example, a future writer, journalist, or linguist develops logical thinking skills while studying mathematics; he learns to count in the broadest sense of the word, not "six came to mind, but seven went crazy" – but these logical thinking skills are extremely important in any type of activity.

Conversely, a person who is engaged, conditionally, in mathematics or physics, if it seems to him that, say, history is not necessary for him, then it will be very difficult for him to determine the understanding of what he is doing his research for.

As I said before, feedback from the society you live in is very important. If you don't feel it, don't understand where you live, don't know either the history of your own family or the history of your own country, then it is very difficult to navigate the value system. And that is why it is important that everyone calls what adults call harmonious development. Yes, you need, of course, to delve into a specific field of activity and specialize in something, but at the same time, of course, you need to have a broad outlook on life, on the things that surround you. Otherwise, it will be very difficult or almost impossible to enjoy life.

So I think it is advisable to move away from the concept of "beloved", "unloved", and try to work in terms of your own development on a wide range of issues, delving, of course, into a specific discipline. But I think you can do it. Good luck!

T. Edysheva: Alina Novoselova, Omsk region. Alina at her age already has a second category in sewing.

A. Novoselova: Hello! My name is Novoselova Alina, I am from the Omsk region, the village of Shipunovo.

I am twice the winner of the regional stage of the All-Russian Olympiad of schoolchildren in the subject "Technology", I have the status of a teacher's assistant, I am engaged in sewing. By the way, I'm wearing a shirt that I made myself.

Here [on the wall in the hall] there is a very significant quote for me: "Great talent requires great hard work." And for me, as a person who develops his talent, creates something new with his own hands, the topic of labor education is very important. At my school, work education is treated as a tradition: everyone from young to old is on duty in the classroom, doing general cleaning, high school students are on duty in the cafeteria and keep order in the school as a whole. This, in my opinion, develops the inner core of a person, responsibility, punctuality, prepares a schoolchild for independent adult life.

It would be great if, as part of labor education, workshops with modern equipment – sewing machines, machine tools-were created in every school, where children could develop according to their interests, that is, create something new for themselves and for society as a whole.

Vladimir Putin: This is what we are trying to do, and within the framework of the course you are talking about. There are a lot of areas of activity there – sewing, cooking, IT technologies, and driverless transport. There are a lot of directions, and this, of course, is supported and will continue to be supported. Specific skills, of course, are important, including for early career guidance of a young person. This is certainly very important.

You are also right that even if it does not play a big role in career guidance, it will discipline you internally, and this is very important. It is very important for a person to realize that he knows how to do something with his own hands.

I have already said this publicly and I am proud to repeat it again. I worked in a construction company, I was awarded the qualification "carpenter of the fourth category". I'm still proud of it. Although I did not become a carpenter of the fifth or sixth [category], as you can see, my fate was different, but I remember this and I am happy to talk about it, because I learned to do something with my own hands, and this is important.

And the idea is absolutely correct. We intend to continue moving in this direction.

A. Novoselova: Thank you very much.

Tatyana Yedysheva: Mr President, we may have a future civil aviation pilot in our class today. At least this is what Bulat Nurgaliyev from the Republic of Tatarstan dreams about.

Boris Nurgaliyev: Hello, Mr President!

I am Bulat Nurgaliev from the Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan.

I am fond of operating unmanned aerial vehicles, I assemble them myself, fly them, and I also model frames for them. During this year, I managed to participate in 33 competitions, and in 20 I won. As we have already said, my dream is to become a civil aviation pilot in the future.

I don't have a question for you anymore, but a request. After the introduction of restrictions, it became problematic to fly drones and especially train. Could you build several copter parks all over Russia so that people like me can safely fly legally?

Vladimir Putin: You are engaged in unmanned aerial vehicles, and you want to pilot an airplane yourself.

B. Nurgaliyev: Yes.

Vladimir Putin: I see. OK.

Unmanned vehicles in general have their own vector of development, are extremely important and are becoming more and more important in the world in various industries. These are unmanned aircraft, unmanned vehicles, sea transport, and so on. And it is used, as you probably know, everywhere: in the post office, in the field of defense security, and in the field of forest protection ‒ there are a lot of areas of use of unmanned, in this case, flying equipment.

It's really cool that you're into it. We have a program: I think we need to train a million specialists in this field by 2030. I don't know, maybe even this will not be enough, because this area is developing very quickly.

But, of course, there are a number of limitations. Your adult colleagues and I met a few months ago and talked about this topic, and they also drew attention to the fact that, of course, restrictions are always associated with the need to ensure security, but nevertheless many of them hinder the development of this area of activity.

These parks you mentioned…

B. Nurgaliyev: There are several of them in Moscow.

Vladimir Putin: There is one in Moscow. I am sure that our conversation will be heard in Tatarstan as well. In Tatarstan, managers are very flexible, mobile, and creative, though. I know they are very good at supporting all the latest initiatives. I think that it will be possible to do this there, and they will certainly do it.

B. Nurgaliyev: Thank you.

Tatyana Edysheva: Bulat even brought drones for the shift and showed them to our participants.

Vladimir Putin: Excellent.

T. Edysheva: Uman region, Zaporizhia region.

To.Umanskaya: Mr President, good afternoon!

My name is Umanskaya Karolina, I am from Zaporozhye region, the city of Melitopol. I am 15 years old and study five languages. I am also an activist of the "Movement of the First", thanks to which I went to the VDC [All-Russian Children's Center] " Smena "and" University shifts " in Tula, St. Petersburg and Moscow. I have also been engaged in public speaking and acting since my early childhood. At the moment, I am interested in the topic of international relations and history.

My question today interests not only me and residents of the entire Russian Federation, as well as new regions, but also people I met at the "Children's Mentoring School", as here I met people from the Luhansk People's Republic, from the Donetsk People's Republic.

So, my question is: how do you see the further development of new regions, and do you have a concrete idea of them in five years? I will be glad to hear your answer. Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: You know, it seemed to me that in general, people in the new regions see how the federal authorities are determined to develop these regions. Many things are simply elementary things that were forgotten by the previous authorities, and you just need to catch up, get to the average Russian level. This is obvious.

This is not the fault of the people who live in these territories ‒ people who are very talented, able-bodied, and energetic. I know, I've met people: no one stands with an outstretched hand, everyone is ready to work, you just need to create conditions. But, of course, you need support.

In my opinion, in the next 2.5 years alone, it is planned to allocate almost two to 1.9 trillion rubles from federal sources for the development of these territories. That's a lot of money.

We have several territorial development programs. I repeat once again, the first stage is to reach the all ‒ Russian level in social issues. These are medicine, education, development and, first of all, the restoration of infrastructure – a lot has been destroyed. These are prosaic things, but nevertheless very important for people ‒ housing and communal services, road construction, the restoration of higher education, the restoration of cultural objects and, of course, industry and agriculture.

Agriculture is well represented here, but it requires, of course, support and creation of conditions. I won't go into details right now, so as not to upload it. This may seem boring at first glance, but it is nevertheless very important.

So we will not just look at how people live, but we will do everything possible to ensure that, despite the difficulties that still exist today with ensuring security ‒ I just said at previous events ‒ we will do everything in parallel: we will strive to create the necessary conditions in terms of security, but we will not We will wait for the end of all activities in this area, and we will develop the areas that I have mentioned.

The goal is simple and clear ‒ to make people feel part of a big country and use all the advantages of this big country, to feel it for themselves, to live not only in safe conditions, but also to have the opportunity to develop, achieve results in life and ensure the future of their children.

To.Umanskaya Street: I would also like to ask you if you have any plans for the development of the resort in new territories? We have a lot of places that I think can be developed.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, I totally agree. Not so long ago we talked about this with the acting head of the region, and he also drew attention to these recreational and tourist opportunities. He has very good ideas for developing this area of activity.

I am sure, I just have no doubt, that the citizens of the Russian Federation ‒ this vast territory of ours ‒ will also discover these opportunities, and this will benefit the regions and those people who live here and can work in this area.

To.Umanskaya Street: Thank you very much.

Tatyana Yedysheva: Mr President, we have a professional athlete here who is still actively engaged in scientific activities. May I give him the floor?" Timur Akhmedov, Moscow.

T. Akhmedov: Hello!

My name is Timur Akhmedov, I am from Moscow, I study at the Marshal Chuikov School in the South-East, I am a gold medalist at the International Mendeleev Olympiad and the winner of the All-Russian Chemistry Olympiad for schoolchildren. As mentioned above, I am also actively involved in research work thanks to my school.

Vladimir Putin: What school is this?

T. Akhmedov: "School in the South-East named after Marshal Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov".

Vladimir Putin: I think it's in the top 20 [educational organizations in Moscow], right?

T. Akhmedov: Yes.

So, if we talk about the Olympics, then we are performing as a full-fledged national team. We are forming a fairly close-knit team, and this is a great merit of our teachers and mentors.

However, in the scientific world, design and research works are of great value. I, like my classmates, am very lucky, because our school cooperates with leading scientific specialists from various research institutes, under whose guidance we carry out a variety of projects in chemistry, physics, and biology.

I know a lot of guys from all over the country who are also attracted to this research. But, unfortunately, there is no one around them who can help and support them in this. In this regard, I would very much like every student who has shown interest in research to have their own mentor or specialist who could show them the real science, its practical component, share their experience, supervise their work, help them prepare and speak at conferences. Such a person helps the student to pave the beginning of his path to the scientific world. After all, this can really be a big boost to the formation of a dense scientific community of young scientists throughout the country.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: So you're talking about developing the mentoring institute, right?

T. Akhmedov: Yes, but in the scientific world.

Vladimir Putin: Of course, I understand. In general, we attach great importance to this, and we develop the institute as soon as possible and wherever possible. This should also be done in the scientific sphere, of course. Of course, this is very important.

The host said that you also do sports?

T. Akhmedov: Yes. I'm a volleyball player.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, it looks like it.

T. Akhmedov: You can tell by your height.

Vladimir Putin: Do you practice as a volleyball coach? Where do you play?

T. Akhmedov: Central blocker.

Vladimir Putin: Oh, you see how it is.

This is what I want to say here right now. I'll use this question to get back to yours. How important it is that the participant of our meeting is engaged not only in science, but also in sports. Why are you doing this?

T. Akhmedov: First of all, I really enjoy volleyball, as I started playing since childhood. I like to spend time with the team, but I still want to achieve certain results there, too.

Vladimir Putin: You know how important it is: it seems to me that if you move like this ‒ you should not forget about sports, science, and art, ‒ You will really enjoy your life. This is very important ‒ such versatile development is extremely important.

The fact that you have now raised the issue of mentoring in science is also important. Of course, I promise you, I will talk about this with the Minister of Science and Higher Education, and with the Minister of Education. We are doing this, but if you are talking about it, then it is not enough.

You just mentioned participating in conferences. First of all, I congratulate you on your results at the Olympics, but apparently something is missing in this area of activity when preparing for conferences?

T. Akhmedov: It's not that it's not enough. In Moscow, however, this is already developing: specialists both help and are already scientific supervisors for schoolchildren. However, this is not fixed (I do not know how to say it correctly) as an official job, and people are just ready to work with schoolchildren themselves.

Vladimir Putin: It's just that they don't have a status, they don't have a legal status, although, in my opinion, we do have a regulatory framework for mentoring them.

I'll look at it again. If you say this, it means that something is missing in practice. I promise you that we will definitely look at this, so that people who could or can engage in mentoring will have an additional incentive to do so. We will definitely do this.

T. Akhmedov: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you for your question.

Tatyana Yedysheva: In Russia, the Year of the Teacher and Mentor is underway. Since Timur raised the topic of mentoring, I suggest that you give the floor to the future teacher – at least, this is what Elizaveta Vindilovich from Tyumen dreams about.

Yelena Vindilovich: Good afternoon, Mr President!

My name is Elizabeth Vindilovich, I am 16 years old, and I represent Tyumen.

I really want to become a history and social studies teacher. At the age of 16, I became the winner of the "My Pedagogical Start" competition in Artek and received the status of the best camp counselor.

I also developed my own career guidance board game for top pedagogical universities located in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other Russian cities.

Vladimir Putin: What kind of game is this? What is its meaning?

Elena Vindilovich: I chose the format of the [board game] "Monopoly", where fields with property are presented, and high school students can buy it, buy institutes, and at this time the host will talk about the directions, faculties, and USE subjects that children need to pass for admission.

Also in this game there will be fields with tasks where the child can immerse himself in student life by purchasing an education loan or receiving a scholarship. Even a field with failed exams is provided, as a person will survive this and move on.

In the future, I would like to return to work in my native school and raise our beautiful younger generation there. Today, on the Day of Knowledge, as part of the "Thank You Teacher" campaign, I would like to thank our mentors for their huge, especially important work.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, let me start with my teacher and thank my homeroom teacher Oksana Starostina for her responsibility and contribution to the students ' achievements. Oksana Alekseevna, you are a real professional example for me.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, but I would also like to ask you: which of your mentors would you like to thank today with warm words of gratitude?

Vladimir Putin: First of all, the idea is very correct and good, and I think we should develop and expand it. Everything we owe in life is to our parents and mentors, teachers and educators.

Imagine, I remember my first teacher – Tamara Pavlovna Chizhova. I remember what her name was: last name, first name, patronymic. 1st class. Vera Dmitrievna Gurevich, who was our homeroom teacher, and Mina Moiseevna was already in higher grades when I was studying. I remember them all, and I really owe them a lot. I also want to come back to it again, as each of us does.

Of course, it depends on us, on our hard work, how we will develop what our parents, our mentors and teachers have created for us as a base, of course. But we must never forget what they have done for us. We should treat them the same way, this is the old formula, how we want to be treated.

Tatyana Edysheva: I suggest that you give the floor to Daria Seroi, Smolensk Region. Daria helps children with cancer in her region.

Dmitry Seraya: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Dasha, I'm from Smolensk. I study at the 8th school with advanced study of foreign languages. As Tatiana [Edysheva] mentioned, I have actually developed a project aimed at helping children with cancer. I also study seven foreign languages. I recently started studying Latin. Together with my homeroom teacher, we also developed a career guidance community in the VKontakte social network "Light your Star", in which we also cooperate with Belarusian educational institutions.

But my question will be related to my main passion, and this is foreign languages. Now we communicate less with Europe and are increasingly seeking to cooperate with the countries of the East. I know a lot of children who would really like to learn Oriental languages, but, unfortunately, do not have the opportunity.

I would like to know your opinion and put forward a suggestion. Is it possible to make the study of Oriental languages publicly available in schools, for example, in Chinese?

Vladimir Putin: First of all, I want to say this. The interest in Oriental languages is natural, absolutely natural, because we are witnessing the rapid development of this part of the world – Asia. This doesn't mean that everything else should fade out, but it's an obvious fact nonetheless.

Here the girl said that she was interested in international relations. Recently, former French President Nicolas Sarkozy published an article where he talks about the future development of the world. I agree with him in many ways. He says that in the near future, until 2030, Africa will already have 2.5 billion people, and in Europe - only 450 or 430 [million], something like that. And Asia? There are 1.5 billion people in China, 1.5 billion in India, and 300 million in Indonesia. That is, these are objective processes, they are not even related to the current world or foreign policy situation, although it contributes to the realities of today's life, but they are objective processes. And these are very serious things. By the way, we have long been paying special attention to the development of our relations with Asian countries, and I repeat, not even in connection with today's events. We do this naturally, because given the pace of development of Asia and Asian countries, the center of economic and, as is always the case, the center of political life will gradually shift to these regions.

I repeat once again, this is an absolutely objective and unavoidable process. This does not mean that we should forget all other vectors of our interaction. No, of course not. But this is a thing that we can't ignore. And in this regard, of course, learning the languages of those countries with which the volume of our relations is growing is in demand. We have 50 percent of our trade with China there – I won't say how much there is now, I'm afraid to make a mistake – the same trade turnover is growing, also over $ 100 billion. The trade turnover with India has increased significantly-by 2.5 times, in my opinion, by 2.3 times. It is the same with other countries. This, of course, will require the necessary number of specialists who can work in these areas.

The study of Oriental languages is highly demanded. But this is not a quick process, because we need specialists. This requires time, some effort on the part of the state, funds, and so on. But we will do this based on the base that we have inherited from earlier times. Because Oriental studies in the Soviet Union and in Russia have always been at this high level, and this is recognized by all our colleagues working in this field.

So it is correct what you say. We intend to do this, and we will certainly do it.

Dmitry Seraya: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

I wish you every success. You said that you study how many languages?

D. Gray: Seven.

Vladimir Putin: Seven. Which ones? Latin-I see, I don't think you're going to talk to anyone in Latin yet, do you? And what others?

D. Gray: French, English, Spanish, Polish, German, Japanese.

Vladimir Putin: See, out of all these languages, out of the seven languages, only one is Eastern.

D. Seraya: Japanese, yes.

Vladimir Putin: We must work on ourselves.

Dmitry Seraya: Of course, this is in my plans. I promise.

Vladimir Putin: I wish you every success.

Dmitry Seraya: Thank you.

Tatyana Yedysheva: Mr President, given your busy schedule, please give me your final question, or can I ask you something else?

Vladimir Putin: I'll get my bearings now. Please give the girl a microphone.

Maria Gribanova: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Maria Gribanova, I am a student of the 11th grade of the Lyceum of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, hero city of Moscow.

A little bit about me. Previously, I was interested in exact sciences, such as physics, computer science, mathematics and dreamed of becoming an IT specialist. However, in the 10th grade, I became interested in humanities subjects, and I decided to start an in-depth study of these subjects on my own. And as a result, she became a prize-winner of the All-Russian Olympiad of Schoolchildren in law and also many Olympiads in the direction of "jurisprudence" and "law". It turns out that I am a humanitarian and a tech guy in one person.

Vladimir Putin: Excellent.

Maria Gribanova: So far, this has helped me choose the direction that interests me, namely: legal regulation of digital technologies and their introduction into our daily life, including education.

In this regard, I have a question for you. What are Russia's plans to introduce artificial intelligence into educational processes in schools and universities? For example, replacing the teacher function with artificial intelligence. And in this case, how will the process of teaching and, what is important, educating schoolchildren take place? And to what extent do you think artificial intelligence should be allowed to replace humans?

thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: We are not going to open a discussion about what will happen to humanity in the course of the development of artificial intelligence, there are a lot of fears here. Some quite seriously believe that this is a big threat, others believe that all this will inevitably be under the control of a human – artificial intelligence, although it is self-learning. And here some threats may exist.

But if we return to your question about artificial intelligence in education, the first thing I want to say is that we are certainly following this path and will continue to do so. But I agree with those experts who believe that today, at least today, it is necessary to treat it as a tool to help teachers and teachers. Direct contact with the student, between the student and the teacher, is unlikely to be replaced by artificial intelligence, at least today. I say this very carefully, because there are so many different approaches and points of view. Some believe that it can, artificial intelligence can then, including because it already has such features that are inherent only in a living being, such as compassion. But there may be certain threats here. But today, in the broadest sense of the word and for wide application, of course, artificial intelligence should be an additional tool in the hands of a teacher. And today, in my opinion, nothing can replace a teacher, especially from the point of view of the educational process, as we have just said, and in this sense I fully agree with you.

Maria Gribanova: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: But we have many very interesting destinations. In my opinion, Sber and Sberbank are developing very promising areas of training and working with students in higher education institutions, including using artificial intelligence tools.

Maria Gribanova: Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: You're a lawyer, aren't you?"

Maria Gribanova: Yes, I am engaged in law and jurisprudence, and I plan to connect my life with it in the future.

Vladimir Putin: Do you study Latin as a girl [Daria Seraya]?

Maria Gribanova: Yes, I am studying it.

Vladimir Putin: Dura lex, sed lex.

Tatyana Edysheva: Maria Lebedeva, Altai Krai, wants to enroll in a medical university.

Maria Lebedeva: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Maria Lebedeva. I'm from the city of Biysk, Altai Krai. I study at the Biysk Lyceum in the 10th grade on physical education.

Now my professional interests are in nanotechnology. In July of this year, I was in the Sirius educational Center for the "Big Challenges" shift in this area. Teachers and speakers are just incredibly inspiring to develop in nanotechnology.

If we talk about this area, it is now incredibly promising in the defense industry, medicine and microelectronics. I would like more students to be interested in this field, but since nanotechnology is a science at the intersection of physics, chemistry and biology, not all schools have interdisciplinary subjects.

In this regard, I have a suggestion. Do you think it is possible to introduce this subject as an elective, or as an elective subject, or, perhaps, as a section in the course of chemistry and physics in grades 10-11 of physics and mathematics and chemistry and biology?

Vladimir Putin: You can. We must always be very careful about this, about new subjects, but in any case, we can introduce them as additional training in some specialized schools. It is absolutely necessary to do this, because, you are absolutely right, this is one of those areas for which the future, of course.

You have identified several areas of nanotechnology use, and there are more of them. They are everywhere ‒ it's not just defense, although in defense it goes without saying. To make it clear to those who have not dealt with this issue: today we have aircraft - an airplane, for example. You can make an aircraft using nanotechnology the size of a fly, and it will perform almost the same functions ‒ that's what nanotechnology is. These are new materials, one of the directions of the revolution in all spheres of our life.

Nanotechnologies are, in my opinion, billionth particles from a meter? Now people are already thinking that we should gradually use these nanoparticles as trillionth particles of a meter. I'm afraid to sound ridiculous, but nevertheless: apparently, the microcosm is as infinite and boundless as space, and this is impressive.

Here, of course, there are huge, simply enormous opportunities for the development of any field of activity and for the country as a whole. We only met with the Prime Minister [Mikhail Mishustin] late last night and talked about this. Therefore, we will do our best to develop this area of activity, including in the educational process.

T. Edysheva: Grigory Vasiliev, Nizhny Novgorod region.

G. Vasiliev: Good afternoon, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Grigory Vasiliev, I'm from Nizhny Novgorod. I study at school No. 800 and am engaged in creative work. I play musical instruments (xylophone, snare drum, piano), go to the theater studio and write poetry.

My friends in various cities of Russia, who also write poetry and prose, are ready to share their creativity with people, with the people. Despite this, at this stage of development, we face the following problem: there are very few sites where poets and writers from all over the country can share their experience, creativity, read poetry and listen in different cities. There are not enough trainers and masters who can explain in their lectures how to write poetry correctly and how to practice writing. There is also a lack of information support from the state.

Vladimir Putin: But there is an Internet connection. Isn't there enough content there, too?

G. Vasiliev: It's all clear, but it's a little different. I had an idea: what if we create a club of young authors, where poets and writers in various cities of Russia can share their work on platforms, communicate, talk, discuss and learn something new? Do you think it is possible to implement my idea with the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation?

Vladimir Putin: Let's try it. (To S. Kiriyenko) Sergey Vladilenovich, let's try it. I will talk to the Minister of Culture [Olga Lyubimova] and the Administration [of the President]. It seemed to me that we have such a live communication, and the information environment is absolutely open, and this is enough. But if you feel that this is not enough, then I think we should try to organize this idea. Although, in my opinion (I don't remember exactly what and where now), we have a specific platform in Crimea, where young people gather and communicate on a regular basis.

G. Vasiliev: You still need to get to the Crimea.

Vladimir Putin: I agree.

By the way, Sergey Vladilenovich, maybe we can make and develop this platform from there, both informatively and using modern technologies, and maybe use mentors from there throughout the country? Try to expand your work from this site.

Sergey Kiriyenko: Mr President, we will definitely do it. Tavrida already has 72 residences in the regions ‒ just such sites from Tavrida in the regions of Russia, in almost all of them.

Vladimir Putin: So it's not enough yet.

Sergey Kiriyenko: Yes, I realized that it's not enough.

Vladimir Putin: Or maybe they do exist, but somehow they don't really show themselves.

Sergey Kiriyenko: So it can also be.

Vladimir Putin: Do you write poetry?

G. Vasiliev: Yes.

Vladimir Putin: Can you read us something?

G. Vasiliev: Right now?

Vladimir Putin: It's a bit of a joke.

G. Vasiliev: Right tut? Okay, just a second.

Vladimir Putin: Nothing? If it's not very comfortable, then don't.

G. Vasiliev: No,no, why not? I'm all for it.

Let's say a poem about the Motherland.

"The fog lit up with a white dawn,

In that came my grace,

Quiet steppe timid silence,

I like to watch the spring.

Fish are quietly splashing in the lake,

A nightingale sings faintly,

I see the fragrance of nature,

I hear the rustling of various animals.

This place is called utopia

For the Slavic kind of soul.

Quiet steppe timid silence

I hear echoes in the clear silence.

In the place where all the people settled

And their hearts have been rejoicing ever since,

And Bojan glorifies legends,

How Perun created the heavens.

And they will exclaim: "Glory to the race!"

For a hundred miles you will hear the voice of,

How they raise a glass to the heavens while praising Russia."

Vladimir Putin: Well done. What's your name?

G. Vasiliev: Grigory.

Vladimir Putin: Grisha, great! Congratulations!

G. Vasiliev: Thank you.

(Applause.)

Tatyana Yedysheva: At our "Children's Mentoring School" shift, the poetry evening was one of the warmest events. As we understood, we have a lot of children who are in love with creativity. Zinyat Hajiyeva is in love with biology. Can I pass her the microphone?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, you can, but I promised the girl-you have to keep your promise.

T. Edysheva: Kristina Kulya, Luhansk People's Republic.

Kirill Kulya: Good afternoon, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon.

Konstantin Kulya: My name is Kristina Kulya, I am 16 years old, I am from the Luhansk People's Republic, Krasnodon. I study at the Luhansk Economic and Legal Lyceum named after the heroes of the "Young Guard".

I am the winner of the All-Russian competition "School League of Lecturers" - respectively, [I am] a lecturer of the Russian Society "Knowledge", an activist of the military-patriotic movement "Yunarmiya "and the Russian movement of Children and Youth "Movement of the first".

Regarding the development of the region, I would like to note that the changes are really felt by every resident of the republic, and the opportunities that are now opening up for the younger generation are enormous. Thank you very much for this.

My question is related to the development of Russian-Chinese relations. You mentioned that they are currently actively developing. For their further perspective development, it is important that our generation has a certain amount of knowledge about the partner country.

Can you tell me if it is possible to implement a project like university shifts and exchange programs, where students from China could get acquainted with our great multinational country, culture, and higher educational institutions? Accordingly, Russian schoolchildren would thus gain tremendous experience and strengthen their knowledge base about China. The same program would be not only useful, but also interesting for African countries.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, of course. Of course, this can and should be done, we are doing it and will continue to develop this work. This is cooperation in the field of humanitarian relations. We have already had years of youth, years of culture, and so on. And I think this is very important, because it creates such an informal connection between countries, directly between people. And this is important in view of what we have already said here, that the development of our economic relations, scientific and technical, in the field of space, in the field of energy-this development requires more and more specialists. And experts won't come out of nowhere if there is no interest in the partner country, so this is very important. We have done it, are doing it, and will definitely do it again.

Soon enough, we will have events, a meeting with the President of the People's Republic of China, who calls me his friend, and I am happy to call him my friend, because he is a person who does a lot and personally contributes to the development of Russian-Chinese relations and ties, and in various areas. And we will definitely discuss with him what else can be done in this area – in the direction of developing humanitarian contacts.

Kirill Kulya: Thank you very much.

T. Edysheva: Maxim Borsuk, Sevastopol.

Mikhail Borsuk: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Maxim, I'm from the sunny hero city of Sevastopol. And my main focus is IT technologies, everything related to them, from information security, all sorts of Telegram bots and machine learning. But this is not my initiative.

As many guys have already mentioned, popularizing education – and specifically knowledge-is a very, very important thing. After all, you yourself mentioned that there should be no favorite and unloved items, all items should be good, useful and loved.

(To A. Varlashova.)Vladimir Putin: Tell me here."

Mikhail Borsuk: Yes, Alyona. Since school theaters are being created everywhere in schools, it would be very cool if a separate section of the so-called scientific stand-up was created there.

What's it? This is when a person who stands on the stage and a person who sits in the audience communicate on equal terms. This is about the fact that complex things are explained in simple language and with humor. Have you ever heard science stand-up?

Vladimir Putin: Ever hear that?

M. Borsuk: Scientific stand-up?

Vladimir Putin: Yes, in my opinion, this is developing in our country. In my opinion, such work is also being carried out within the framework of the Znanie society.

Mikhail Borsuk: It's just that I personally develop it in Sevastopol on the basis of quantoriums and the Mikast organization. And it would be very good if this was implemented in schools, because then students will be able to instill love for other students[ to science], then "soft" skills are developed, that is, communication with the audience, public speeches, talking to the audience, you know? It is very important.

Vladimir Putin: I understand and support you. I understand and support you. And in general, teachers in many schools use this method of teaching. I've already said this at a previous event, especially when high school students interact with toddlers. For some and for others it is very important. It is important for high school students, because they feel almost like adults, and the degree of their responsibility for children increases. And this is important for kids, because they are children, older children, but still children, and children often have more trust in high school students than even in teachers. This is an extremely important thing, very interesting, and the shape is good. I will definitely advise the Minister of Education to implement your proposals more widely.

Mikhail Borsuk: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Please.

T. Edysheva: Zinyat Gadzhieva, Moscow region.

З.Gadzhiyeva: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

Vladimir Putin: Hello!

З.Gadzhiyeva: My name is Zinyat. I'm 17 years old. I'm from the Moscow Region. This year I entered the 11th grade of Odintsovo Lyceum No. 10.

The topic of culture and language was mentioned a couple of times today. I can't help but agree with you on how important it is to preserve and transmit all of this. I think that the best way to do this is in the literature. It shows best of all how the people lived, and now people try to somehow describe in their manuscripts how people live now.

You know, this summer I read Dostoevsky's book "Notes from the Dead House", and this is the moment I remember there. I won't say it verbatim, but Dostoevsky described the Russian people's distrust of medicine. Here is what he wrote: if a commoner falls ill with the most serious illness, then he will rather go to a healer to be treated with common medicine than go to a doctor, and even more so will not go to the hospital. On the one hand, I found it funny. On the other hand, this distrust is still there.

The problem is that Dostoevsky lived in the 19th century, and since then science and medicine have made great progress. Pavlov won the Nobel Prize in Physiology, Mechnikov won the Nobel Prize in Immunology.

Relatively recently, in 2020, Russian scientists discovered the first vaccine against the coronavirus Sputnik V. I think this is a very worthy event. To be honest, I was a little surprised when a certain number of people were skeptical about this vaccine. I understand that this distrust is caused by a lack of knowledge. And here's what I have to offer you. As my colleagues have already mentioned, 2023 has been declared the Year of the Teacher and Mentor, but for some reason mentoring usually means teaching from older to younger people. I think you have already guessed that I fundamentally disagree with this position. I believe that today's young people can also teach adults something. Therefore, I propose to launch educational projects for adults, where they would be taught aspects of biology and medicine.

My question is as follows. How do you feel about the phrase: it's easier to turn mountains than to convince an adult?

Vladimir Putin: First of all, it's a good idea.

You know, when we started computer literacy training programs, quite a large number of older people took part in these programs, and they were taught and taught by quite young people. So this is not a forgotten case in general.

We have young people working with older people, and quite old people, representatives of the older generation do not hesitate to resort to the help of young people-the main thing is that they are specialists. This is the first one.

Second. It seems to me that the proposal is good, and we need to implement it. Do you have any specifics, what would you suggest, how to organize all this? I want to hear the rest of your idea.

З.Gadzhiyeva: I had some thoughts about the fact that at the initial stages, of course, there are unlikely to be people who will work without wages and somehow educate adults. So far, I thought that it would be a volunteer organization that would help adults.

I think why is this important at all? Because, in addition to the fact that people will be enlightened, secondly, it is also an extension and distance from cognitive old age. Still, it is good if the brain develops in old age. It is also the development of some social spheres.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, of course, it's a noble cause. Research shows that people who engage in creative activities live longer. The life expectancy of people who are engaged in creativity is slightly longer than that of everyone else, and experts believe that this is due to brain activity. The brain turns on all other systems of the body, revives them, makes them work. So this is very important.

How difficult it is to convince, re-educate or give some new values to an adult is more difficult than moving mountains – in part, this is true. Why? Because the activity of brain neurons gradually fades with age, and the number of neural connections decreases if this is not done constantly. And if the number of neural connections decreases, and the established standards-knowledge, behavior based on these neural connections of the brain-are established, then it is very difficult to change them, this is true. In order to change something, you need some vivid impressions and convincing in the highest sense of the word.

But nothing is impossible. The idea itself is very noble and correct. We will try to implement it.

З.Gadzhiyeva: Thank you.

Tatyana Yedysheva: Mr President, can I comment on Zinyat's words? May I?"

Vladimir Putin: Yes, please.

T. Edysheva: I would like to say that the Russian Society Znanie has a large pool of lecturers who provide free education to residents of different ages in our country.

Vladimir Putin: We need to develop it more widely and more glybzhe, and everything will be fine. Yes, so the writers say? Is that the right way to say it? Great.

Tatyana Edysheva: Maria Andreeva, Rostov region, by the way, is a space explorer.

Maria Andreeva: Hello, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Maria Andreeva, I am from the city of Rostov-on-Don, I study at the Classical Lyceum No. 1 in the 9th grade.

I have been engaged in satellite construction for three years. Recently, the first Don satellite was launched, which I developed together with my team.

Now I'm developing it together with MIEM [Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics] The University of Economics and its lyceum is the first sputnik in Russia, where a data center using blockchain will be installed.

I am a mentor for children in the space sector, conduct and develop my own lessons on the topic of space, various scientific competitions – where to start and how to join there.

I have a small suggestion and request for you. The suggestion is that there is now a wonderful project called "Space Classes", but they may not be open everywhere.

Vladimir Putin: I think there are more than a hundred of them already.

Maria Andreeva: Yes, they do, but they won't be able to open them in small towns and cities that don't have Roscosmos enterprises or space institutes.

I think it would be important to create a project that is aimed precisely at children who, unfortunately, cannot study in these "Space Classes".

My idea is to organize such a small program for children at Roscosmos enterprises in different cities of Russia, where they can come, get acquainted with the history of space, find out what is available, find out what is scientific and educational, and be told where to start, what competitions to participate in. I think this is a very important project.

I have a small request to make. When I teach children lessons, I bring my first satellite, from which my space history began. When I take it out of the box, the children's eyes start to burn, and to look at the children's burning eyes is just happiness for me. I tell the guys that if they touch this satellite and make their most important dream, it will definitely come true.

As a mentor, I also make a dream, and my dream was to meet you, it came true today. I would like to ask you to leave a signature on my companion in honor of this, as a sign that all dreams should come true.

Vladimir Putin: Good. When we're done, I'll definitely do it. Ok?

Maria Andreeva: Yes, of course.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

It's a good idea. I have already promised that I will talk to the leadership of Roscosmos, and such a platform, perhaps even in those cities where there are no Roscosmos enterprises, will simply be made wider for the whole country. The idea itself is very good.

Good luck to you. Good luck.

Maria Andreeva: Thank you.

T. Edysheva: Valeria Loskutova, Voronezh Region.

V. Loskutova: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Valeria Loskutova. I'm from the city of Voronezh.

Each of us, all the guys here are winners of the All-Russian project "Children's Mentoring School". We first became participants in the change of the "Territory of meanings" "Teach", which takes place right here in the"Senezh". Lecturers from various fields came to us and gave us master classes. But I want to point out that we also taught each other a lot. For example, Yaroslav [Shastin] gave us a training session, Timofey, who, unfortunately, fell ill today and is not with us, told us about financial literacy, and Alina [Novoselova] gave us a master class on origami. Each of us is already ready to be a mentor for the guys.

On September 4, we will already arrive in our cities, go to school and conduct a lesson "Talking about important things"for the children.

I would like to ask you a question: Vladimir Vladimirovich, please tell me what is the most important idea we should share with the children at this lesson on September 4? Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: To love Russia.

V. Loskutova: Excellent advice. Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: But we need to be creative about this. The way Grisha [Vasiliev] came up, the way he knows how to do it. You can look at it from a historical point of view, from the challenges that the country faces, from our history, from our traditions, from the family, from the future of our Fatherland – all this together from different angles. It is necessary to present this topic beautifully, interestingly, so that the children's eyes burn and that you yourself enjoy it. And that's great.

V. Loskutova: Thank you very much.

T. Edysheva: Andrey Mikhashula.

Alexander Mikhashula: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Andrey Mikhashula, I am from the city of Pushkin, Moscow region, I am 14 years old.

This year I entered the gymnasium named after Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov in the 9th grade. I am interested in sports, journalism, and Russian language and law Olympiads. And just like you once did, I dream of going to law school.

I have the following question. Russia is a country of opportunities, and now a huge number of competitions aimed at the development of children are being implemented, including "Big Change". I also participate in it. Today Senezh completes the "Act" shift as part of the Territory of Meanings Youth Forum. And I have this question: what competencies and qualities should a person have in order to get a job as a civil servant and, possibly, be the President of Russia? Because we are now creating the future and " Russia is a land of opportunities "is our slogan, and this is what the Children's Mentoring School and our forum" Territory of Meanings "are focused on. Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: You know, I will say, maybe, general, trivial things, but without them nowhere. Look, you mentioned the civil service. This is a service, this is a service. Serving who? To people, to your country. If there is no inner need to help a person, then you do not need to go to a medical university, because if you do not want to work with a patient, then it is better not to touch it, it is better to do some research, and so on. It is the same here: if there is an inner need to help people, to help your country, district, village, town, city-if there is a burning desire… Ask Grisha [Vasiliev] if he wants to write poetry, doesn't he? Well, I want to. It's the same here: if you want to serve people, go and do it; if you don't want to, you'd better do something else. But if you have such a need, an inner need, a burning feeling, then you have to go and do it.

And there are a lot of details related to self-development in this field, a noble field, and there are difficulties, of course. They are all surmountable if there is such an inner feeling-to serve people.

A. Mikhashula: And for me, this question was very important, because I am really ready to go help people. It seems to me that this is one of the most important goals and the meaning of all people's lives.

Thank you for your reply.

Vladimir Putin: Even more so. Then with this attitude, it is quite possible to do this.

T. Edysheva: Thank you. We have a multiple winner of All-Russian and international Olympiads Ivan Mikhailov.

Igor Mikhailov: Good afternoon!

My name is Ivan Mikhailov, I am a student of the Letovo school in Moscow. I am the winner of the final stage of the All-Russian Olympiad of Schoolchildren in History and geography, as well as a two-time gold medalist of the European Geographical Olympiad.

In recent months, I have also been happy to be a teacher at the online school "Bunt 14". We prepare students for Olympiads in geography, history, and art. In our, without exaggeration, difficult and difficult time, the country faces great challenges. Total not listed: this is both the sovereignty and security of the country.

But I would like to ask a question about the challenge that I think is probably the most important for me – the centralization of the country.

It is known that every decade, every year, many people from small towns and villages move to big cities, to megacities-first of all, to Moscow and St. Petersburg. The agglomeration of Moscow is growing every year, and now, according to various estimates, it exceeds 20 million, and in the 30-40s [of the XXI century] it will exceed 30-40 million. The share and importance of large cities is increasing, while small ones are decreasing.

Do you think this is a threat to the country, or, on the contrary, is it a natural, normal process? And what should we do about it-not interfere or, on the contrary, somehow fight and harmonize settlement in the country?

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: This is called "spatial development issues".

There are a lot of questions here. Strange as it may seem to you, we and the country's leadership are having disputes on this issue: what is more important – to pay more attention to the development of large centers or to support the development of the country as a whole? I think that the truth is always, and in this case, as always, somewhere in the middle.

World practice today shows that the greatest results are achieved in those countries where large agglomerations are developing, and they are the centers of development. But everything is good in moderation, because the development of even large agglomerations should be harmonious. There, along with the scientific and industrial sphere, it is necessary to develop the social sphere. These are schools, preschool institutions, hospitals, clinics, educational institutions, and so on. If there are any distortions, immediately there are acute, intractable problems, including transport.

Take a look at what's happening in Moscow right now. Yes, probably not all transport problems have been solved yet, but they are still being solved much better than in many large urban agglomerations of the world. This can be 100 percent said, do not go to the grandmother, that's for sure. But this requires a very attentive attitude to this matter.

For our country, with its vast territory and relatively small population for such a territory, it is very important that certain regions are not depopulated, so that there is no depopulation of these territories. And to do this, you need to do several things. First, it is sufficient to develop these territories evenly. These are issues of territorial development. There are also jobs here – interesting, modern, with good incomes for people. This is the development of the same education, medicine, and so on.

There is one more circumstance that will allow us to develop the country in a harmonious way – this is the connectivity of territories purely through transport. If we are currently implementing a high-speed railway project, as an example, then it will be possible to get from Moscow to St. Petersburg in two hours, two hours and five minutes. Can you imagine? Then people who live somewhere in the middle of this path will feel completely different. From Moscow, an hour will be somewhere to Tver or to Veliky Novgorod from St. Petersburg. An hour is even faster than getting to your workplace in Moscow. Everything will look completely different. It's the same if we go east, go south, go to Nizhny Novgorod, go further to the Urals and beyond the Urals. That's a different story altogether. This is a big, difficult task, but necessary for any country, including ours with its vast territory. We will definitely go and move along these paths.

Igor Mikhailov: Thank you very much.

But you also said that improving transport accessibility between Moscow and St. Petersburg will somehow change the territories between them. But at one time, it was the construction of the railway between Moscow and St. Petersburg that led to the depopulation of the Tver, Pskov and Novgorod regions. These are probably the regions with the fastest-shrinking population in Russia.

Can't the construction of HSR or similar roads further accelerate and worsen these processes?

Vladimir Putin: I think not. I think it will be exactly the opposite. Now, to get from one point in Moscow to another, sometimes you have to spend three hours. And there from Tver to Moscow will be an hour. If you live in normal, good environmental conditions, have a small house on the river bank and work in Moscow –after all, it's only an hour to get there - is it attractive or not? For the vast majority of people, it is attractive. Therefore, it seems to me that this will benefit the connectivity of the country and the solution of the problem that you mentioned.

Igor Mikhailov: Thank you very much.

Tatyana Edysheva: Daria Kolekina from the Ryazan Region has been holding out her hand for a long time. Can I give her the floor, too?"

Dmitry Kolekina: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Daria Kolekina, I am from the city of Novomichurinsk, Ryazan region.

I am an activist of the "Movement of the First", I am fond of Olympiads, I am engaged in folk dances. This year I'm moving to the 11th grade. I'm going for the gold medal, but you know, I like humanities more. I still try to work on the technical ones, but I understand that one thing is still easier. I recently found out that the bill on the introduction of the silver medal is being actively considered, and I don't have a question for you, but rather a thank you on behalf of all students for the introduction of the silver medal.

Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: I would like to thank the Minister of Education. I'll give him your thanks.

Dmitry Kolekina: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Vladimirovich, I have such a childhood dream, a cherished wish: can I give your handshake to my parents?

Vladimir Putin: With pleasure. What do your parents do?

Dmitry Kolekina: My mother works in the city administration, and my father works at the Ryazan GRES.

Vladimir Putin: See what a serious business your parents are doing. And despite the fact that they are probably busy at work, they have paid due attention to your upbringing and education. I bow low to them and express my most sincere gratitude.

Dmitry Kolekina: Thank you very much.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

T. Edysheva: Yvette Makoeva, Kabardino-Balkar Republic.

Irina Makoeva: Good afternoon, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

My name is Yvette Makoeva, and I represent the 5th school in Chegem, Kabardino-Balkar Republic.

I am an activist of the Russian movement of children and youth "Movement of the first", chairman of the student self-government, "Student of the Year-2023" of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic, a volunteer, and each of us recently became a lecturer of the Russian Society " Knowledge "and a winner of the All-Russian competition"Children's Mentoring School".

It is a great honor for me to be in this room today, in this class, and to have the opportunity to ask you a question.

As you said earlier, questions of training and mentoring are always an appeal to the future. In your opinion, will mentoring take its rightful place in the lives of children and young people in the future and consolidate its position in various fields?

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Of course. We've talked about this many times.

It is very important that both adults and young people are involved in mentoring. We've just been talking about it here. I'm very happy to hear that. This is a live transfer of your experience and knowledge to those people who trust you and who you like, and you want to transfer this knowledge to other people. This is a very important mutual process that will strengthen our society. We will definitely work on this.

Irina Makoeva: Thank you very much.

T. Edysheva: Gleb Egorenkov, Novosibirsk region.

G. Egorenkov: Good afternoon, Vladimir Vladimirovich!

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon!

G. Egorenkov: I am Gleb Egorenkov, I was born and live in the city of Novosibirsk, I am 14 years old. I study at lyceum No. 22 "Hope of Siberia". I am interested in such sciences as chemistry and biology. I participate in various Olympiads related to these disciplines. I also study and am interested in such a section of biology as genetics.

I would also like to agree with you, with Maria, that it is very important to introduce some elective subjects in the educational program, such as nanotechnology, for example, genetics.

In general, I will probably express the opinion of all the guys here that the conversation and meeting with you was very informative, exciting and interesting. I believe that the meeting would not have been completely completed if we hadn't all taken a photo together.

Vladimir Putin: We will definitely do it. I understand that this is not directly related to genetics, but it will bring together our team that has emerged here, and we will definitely consolidate our relations in a documentary way – we will take photos for future generations.

thank you very much.

Have you won somewhere before?

G. Yegorenkov: Yes, I am taking part in the National Technological Olympiad, I won the "Technology for the Environment" profile last year, and now I am actively participating in the senior track in such profiles as agrobiotechnology and modern food engineering, and I am going to win.

Vladimir Putin: We wish you every success. Sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, all the best.

G. Yegorenkov: Thank you.

T. Edysheva: Polina Shutova, Trans-Baikal Territory.

P. Shutova: Hello!

My name is Polina Shutova, I am from the Trans-Baikal Territory, the city of Chita. Moved to the 10th grade.

I am engaged in various creative activities, but in general, my path is more focused on developing mobile applications using virtual and augmented reality technology.

One of the last apps I created was Geography of Russia VR, in which I selected three regions of the Russian Federation: the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the Trans-Baikal Territory, and the Pskov Region. In them, I presented information about some of the attractions and made 3D models of them for more understandable study, since most people can not just visit these places, and for further study of these attractions.

The question is as follows. Do you think it is advisable to introduce this technology into the educational process? This can simplify the work of teachers and also get children interested in learning almost any subject.

Thank you.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, everything can be done, and it is certainly useful. But as for kids – augmented reality and so on, all this should comply with the so-called SanPiNs, and specialists, child psychologists should accurately and clearly tell us where the boundaries of the application of these technologies are. But in general, why not? We need to use everything that is good for the educational process.

It is impossible not to use what is the achievements of humanity. But carefully, of course, to act according to the well-known medical principle – do no harm. It's impossible to keep it in a locked drawer somewhere. But it should be done carefully, taking into account the consequences, including sanitary and medical ones, especially for small children. That's all.

You are welcome. I ask you to.

Alexander Zhuk: Hello, Mr President!

My name is Alesya Zhuk, I am 14 years old, I am from the hero city of Volgograd. I am engaged in social activities, participate in volunteer and educational events, am fond of literature and history, write research papers and take part in Olympiads in these subjects.

I am an active participant in the "No Statute of Limitations" movement, which includes several areas: research projects, search projects, work on organizing and restoring museum space, and an essay contest. My mentor, a teacher of Russian language and literature, instilled in me a love of writing and, most importantly, supported my chosen direction. We pay special attention to research activities and the essay contest. Our works always focus on stories about the children of Stalingrad and their heroic fates.

Now cinema is a very important and integral part of culture, because watching movies, a person can also learn. Therefore, I would like to suggest that the best works of the "No Statute of Limitations" contest should be used as a basis for short film scripts and come out with a proposal to show these films in schools as part of extracurricular activities in the format of a film lesson, followed by a discussion of what was viewed. A good movie can give a lot to translate the right meanings. What do you think about this?

Vladimir Putin: I think we need to support you, and I don't doubt it for a second.

First of all, thank you for being engaged in such an important task and such an important direction that does not allow us to forget the tragic and heroic pages of the history of our people and our country.

Secondly, it is impossible that it just lies on the shelf and is the property of a narrow circle of those who do it. This should be the property of the whole country. Your results need to be popularized, exactly absolutely. I will ask my colleagues to definitely do this.

Alexey Zhuk: Thank you very much for this.

Vladimir Putin: Thank you.

Finishing up?

I would like to thank you all for today's meeting, thank you for your interesting questions and useful discussion. This is also very useful for me, because it is exactly the same feedback that you have probably heard about many times.

In other words, it gives me the opportunity to understand what you are interested in, from which side of the problem you are concerned, and, accordingly, both I and my colleagues can get their bearings in what we are doing, whether we are doing it right, whether we are going in the right direction, first of all, of course, in the field of education. In general, I think that we are doing quite well together.

I would like to congratulate you once again on the beginning of the school year. You are interesting, very talented people. You have already achieved a lot, although you are only taking the first steps in the field to which you have decided to devote yourself. These steps are undoubtedly successful.

I wish you to step up your efforts on this path, and I wish you good luck, happiness and prosperity.

I congratulate you on the beginning of the school year.

An amazing performance by all concerned. Hopefully everyone learned something. Mentoring and tutoring are fulfilling yet demanding, and within the USA almost nonexistent. I highly suggest viewing the many photos of this event just to see who these kids are.

Here’s one of the 41.

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