Sannikov's son explained why he studied in Montenegro: In Warsaw, the situation with chauvinism seemed unsettling

Montenegro's capital, Podgorica. Photo: pelago.com

I'm from Belarus. My parents emigrated even before the war with Ukraine, and I stayed there with my grandparents, hoping to finish school. But... freedoms were diminishing, and in 2022, almost all private schools closed – these so-called bastions of free thought, including the one I attended. Only a few private schools close to the authorities remained, plus state schools with a huge amount of propaganda. This was the last straw, and my parents started looking for options for me to continue my education abroad.

Initially, it was planned for me to attend school in Warsaw, where they lived. But there, the situation with chauvinism seemed unsettling to us. So we found a school in Montenegro, oriented towards Russian-speaking emigrants, primarily those who fled repression.

For example, in my class of 35 people, 30 are those who left for political reasons.

From the first to the ninth grade, the school had a mix of Russian and Montenegrin programs, and from the tenth grade, the International Baccalaureate (IB) began. This is a very rigorous two-year program, essentially at the intersection of school and university. I had just finished nine grades in Belarus, and we decided to try the IB program.

To enter, I needed to pass exams in mathematics and English. Since all instruction is in English, the language level must be B1-B2, and the exam itself consists of reading, listening, and an interview. Generally, on one hand, the exams are quite challenging; on the other hand, if they see your eagerness, they might accept you even with low scores. That happened with one boy; he failed the listening part, but they told him if he improved it over the summer, they would take him.

This school differed from all Belarusian schools I knew in almost every way.

Instead of lessons, there are pairs of classes, and you create your own schedule. All subjects are grouped: mathematics, languages, arts – six groups in total, and you choose one mandatory subject from each. For each, you need to write substantial papers, like academic ones. At the same time, the approach is completely different from what I was used to in Belarus. For example, in literature, we were used to being taught to present a thesis and support it with a quote from the text. In the IB program, conversely, they teach you to take a quote and derive a thesis from it. This requires a deeper level of analysis and is closer to a university format.

And generally, the entire approach is like at a university. Here, no one chases after you or reminds you of deadlines for submitting work; if you mess something up, it's your problem.

This entire rigorous program was overlaid with the Balkan flair and the "polako" culture (from the Serbian word "polako," literally "slowly." – Ed. note) with its relaxed environment. After Belarusian school, it was very unusual that there was no tension in either studies or communication. Everyone generally doesn't worry but lives life. Because of this, it was very difficult for me to fit in at first.

It's quite difficult to study seriously when it's +30 degrees in September and everyone around is relaxed. However, such an atmosphere also reduced stress levels.

The school had an emigrant environment, where everyone seemed to share similar fates, but at the same time, it was a diverse cocktail. Some were from Novosibirsk, some from Moscow, there were people from Sochi, several from Minsk. It all felt strange.

And although the boys and girls were good, for the first six months of my studies, I barely communicated with anyone. I am shy by nature, find it hard to connect with people, plus the stress of moving. So for several months, my whole life was just home – school – home.

But our program stipulated that we not only study but also participate in volunteer and creative projects; this service was called CAS – creativity, activity, service. And whether you like it or not, you had to accumulate 50 hours each of creative activities, active ones, and volunteer ones. So, first, I participated in the play "Alice in Wonderland." Then, with a Belarusian friend, we decided to organize a concert of Belarusian music, gathering songs from the 19th century to the present day. We played musical instruments and sang ourselves, and invited other children too. Some of them learned a little Belarusian thanks to their participation in the concert.

Many people came, and everyone positively received our idea. We raised a decent sum from the concert, which we donated to Belarusian political prisoners.

And I finally managed to overcome the barrier – cultural, linguistic – and make friends.

Currently, I am a first-year student at Charles University in Prague, studying social sciences – philosophy, sociology. As far as I know, all my classmates enrolled in European universities. I can say for myself that it wasn't difficult: after our Montenegrin gymnasium, university seems like an easy stroll.

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