"The transition to Estonian-language education all over Estonia is certain, and there will be no grace periods," Ingar Dubolazov, the Ministry of Education's head of the transition to Estonian-language education, told ERR Wednesday. "Narva is moving along with the rest of Estonia toward Estonian-language education on the same schedule and under the same conditions."

Aleksei Jevgrafov (Center), chair of Narva City Council's ruling coalition group "Narva," said Tuesday that as the northeastern border city is struggling to find eligible teachers, the city council is set to discuss next Thursday the possibility of asking the Estonian government to postpone schools' transition to Estonian-language education by a year.

In his written statement, the Education Ministry representative emphasized the importance of the quality of management, which must encourage teachers' participation in Estonian language studies and continued training, and highlighted the fact that the principals and directors of educational institutions must likewise be proficient in Estonian.

"The working environment at schools and kindergartens must be supportive, and this is where directors have the great responsibility of also setting an example with their good Estonian language proficiency and supporting their teachers in the process," Dubolazov said. "The local government also has to play its part in this process and ensure qualified and Estonian-speaking directors for educational institutions who, in turn, are supported in the implementation of these policy goals."

According to the transition chief, in order to implement the reform, it will be necessary to increase the volume of Estonian-language studies at all education levels as well as ensure the availability of educational staff with the necessary Estonian language proficiency.

"Currently there are 175 educators actively involved in language training in Narva," he highlighted. "With the support of the University of Tartu Narva College, we're also offering various training courses to support teachers in preparing for the transition to Estonian-language education."

The ministry official noted that 26 Narva teachers are currently completing class teacher retraining at Narva College with funding from the Ministry of Education and Research, who began the program last September and, upon its completion in June, will be employed as first and fourth grade teachers starting this fall.

"A second group will begin their studies in the same program this fall," he added.

Dubolazov said that when the Riigikogu wrote the transition to Estonian-language education into law, it included the possibility to make exceptions just in case, but this same legislation includes no grounds whatsoever for automatically allowing an extension.

The committee being established by the government, he continued, is likewise of the position that extensions will only be possible for students studying under a couple of specific alternative curricula, including for special educational needs.

The ministry representative noted that the transition to Estonian-language education has been in the works for 30 years already, with the aim of offering all children, regardless of native language, the opportunity to acquire a quality education, to forge equal opportunities on the job market as well as to increase social cohesion.

It has been evident in recent years that the number of students with a native language other than Estonian in Estonian-language schools is growing, confirming that the transition aligns with parents' preferences, Dubolazov said, adding that the latest public opinion survey likewise revealed that 75 percent of Estonian residents believe that the transition is necessary.

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