When I ask the education coordinator of Ida-Viru County during a meeting in Jõhvi whether the county is ready for the new school year, the response is a confident "yes." However, several schools are still short on teachers.

"We are missing at least five math teachers, and when we talk about support specialists, based on a study we conducted two years ago on the need for them in the county, we estimate we need over 100 more," said Kerda Eiert, coordinator of the Ida-Viru education cluster.

Already at the beginning of the previous academic year, the state began offering salary supplements in Ida-Viru County to motivate local teachers to achieve a C1 level in the Estonian language and to attract teachers from other parts of Estonia to work in Ida-Viru. However, the number of applicants this year has not been as high as last year.

"Now that a year has passed and teachers have been receiving the salary supplement for a year, we see that the interest has significantly waned. It seems that salary increases are a short-term measure. While we can say that money gets things moving, at some point, people stop pursuing it with such enthusiasm," said Eiert.

Of the 30 teachers at Sillamäe High School, ten are from other counties. Although, as a high school, they are not yet required to transition to Estonian-language instruction, the school is contributing to the effort, and for the first time, all subjects are being taught in Estonian. According to Principal Arno Kaseniit, they are also working to create a more Estonian-language environment among the staff.

"This is a big challenge for us because teachers who speak Estonian as their first language are still in the minority. It is also an effort for our teachers who speak Russian or another language at home. Whether we can create Estonian-speaking corridors in our region remains a challenge for all of us," said Kaseniit.

According to the education coordinator, the entire county still has a lot of work to do to create conditions that support teachers. Schools need to be aware of their management culture, local governments must find housing, and they must also offer opportunities for Estonian-language social life for teachers. Currently, there are still some teachers in the Russian-speaking community who are reluctant to believe in the success of the transition.

"Today, there are still teachers who think that this will blow over, that they can continue working as they have been. But changes are difficult, and it takes time for people to adapt. I believe the most concerns are in Narva and Kohtla-Järve, and it is up to those municipalities to figure out how to address them," Eiert said.

One of the teachers starting work in Ida-Viru County for the first time this fall is Telle Talve, a 50-year-old biology teacher. She commutes weekly between her hometown of Tartu and her new job in Sillamäe. Her decision to teach biology in Estonian to Russian-speaking students was driven by a sense of mission and a desire to leave her mark on history. After the first day of school, it became clear that the biggest challenge is the students' varying language skills.

"I knew that if I had 100 students, about 40 of them would be at the B1 level. And that requires a lot of work; they have to put in a lot of effort themselves. But the students are positive; many of them said they will master Estonian in three years. That's our goal," Talve said.

We also asked 10th-grade students how their first day went. Most said it was a bit difficult, but nothing too overwhelming. We inquired about their thoughts on the transition to Estonian-language education.

"I think it's the right decision, but I don't like how abruptly it's being done. It should have been smoother. The transition will be especially difficult in Ida-Viru County because everyone around here is Russian," said Anastassia, a 10th-grade student at Sillamäe High School.

"To ensure that the Estonian language doesn't disappear or die out because, in Tallinn, most people currently speak Russian. Maybe the goal is for more Estonian to be spoken in Estonia. It is probably unpleasant for Estonians that their language isn't spoken here. I am happy to learn in Estonian; it's practical and an opportunity to learn better," said Stepan, who is also in the 10th grade.

The historic decision to gradually transition to Estonian-language education also attracted Danish television to Sillamäe to film a documentary on how to protect oneself from an aggressive neighbor without using weapons.

The Danish correspondent is impressed by the transition to Estonian-language instruction and by the local politicians' reasoning that we must be in the same information space.

"While working in the information space, I am always surprised that there are people living in a completely different reality. People who, for example, watch Russian news channels and fully agree with the reality presented there. It's frightening to me that they can present things I know for certain are false, and yet they are believed," said Matilde Kimer, a Danish correspondent in Ukraine.

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