mick's leadership blog

Today is Student’s Day in Russia (Saint Tatiana’s Day, the patroness of students).

Examinations in Russia’s higher schools start at the beginning of the year and last until January 24. So the 25th. tends to be a happy day, as students across the country celebrate. They’ll join friends at college, drink with lecturers, sing songs and generally enjoy life.

Traditionally, Moscow State University is the centre of the festivities, as the 25th. is also the birthday of the University – the largest, oldest and most prestigious college in the country, and one of the world’s top seats of learning.

International Student’s Day is November 17th, although very few countries make a big deal of it (and even fewer have it as a holiday).

I always find it interesting (and a bit depressing) that countries which are “developing” take education much more seriously than we in the West, who seem to take it for granted. Everyone seems to just assume that education and university life is there for all – yet few stop and think about its real value, or even more see it as something to be celebrated.

We see this first hand in our work with primary education in Cambodia, where students, parents and grandparents view education as an essential route to growth and prosperity, and treat it very seriously as a result. I guess it’s only when you don’t have access to something that you truly appreciate it.

There is a movement of student organizations to make something more of the 17th via the UN. But unless we all think education is more than something to be taken for granted, I doubt it will get off the ground.

Pity.

Wish I was in Moscow today to see students celebrating education on St Tatiana’s Day.

Here’s a little more on the day from the Ruslanguage web site

“Despise the frost and the snow, January is a month full of joyful evens in Russia. After New Year, Christmas and the Orthodox New Year (according to the Julian Calendar), there is still another day that many are awaiting for: January 25th, Татьянин День (Tatiana’s Day) or Students Day.

It might seem strange to associate a roman catholic saint and martyr from the 3rd century with a happy and noisy feast with drunk students strolling around the city. AsА.П. Чехов (Chekhov) wrote in 1885 about Tatiana’s Day:

“В этом году выпили всё, кроме Москва-реки, и то благодаря тому, что замёрзла…” (This year everything was drunk, except the water from the Moscow river, and only because it was frozen.)

Actually, the reason is very simple. On January 25th (Gregorian calendar) 1755,императрица Елизавета (Empress Elizabeth of Russia) signed a decree for the establishment of the 1st Russian university, under the care of Иван Шувалов (Ivan Shuvalov). First minister of Education in Russia, Shuvalov was a very well educated man who wanted all Russians to have a better education. The decree was signed on the name day of his mother, Tatiana, to whom he said:“дарю тебе университет” (“I give you a university”) as a present.

So that day became the official University day, which was called in those days, День Московского университета (the Day of the Moscow University). At first, it was only celebrated in Moscow with a brief ceremony in the building of the University followed by noisy and well washed down parties all over the city.

Later on, in 1791, Храм мученицы Татианы при МГУ (the Church of Saint Tatiana) was built on the old campus. The Russian Orthodox Church declared Saint Tatiana saints of all students and Tatiana’s Day became celebrated as День российского студенчества (Russian students Day).

Today, nothing has changed. After months of hard learning, revising and exams, students take the most they can from that day of freedom. Night clubs and restaurants are organising special parties. So if you want to know what a real student feast is, make sure to be in Russia on Tatiana’s Day.”