The Ministry of Education specified that in all the Romanian language education institutions in Moldova, Russian is studied as a mandatory subject in the fist-fifth grade. However, there are eight theoretical lyceums with special status that work based on the program of the francophone bilingual classes and the parents of these institutions asked that the students shouldn’t be overloaded. Thus, the Russian language there is an optional subject, IPN reports.

The Ministry said the special status of the bilingual classes regulates the number of hours allotted for the profound studying of a foreign language. Thus, besides studying in the Romanian language, the students of these institutions also study the exact sciences (math, physics, chemistry and biology) in the French language. Four hours a week are allotted to the bilingual classes of the fifth grade for the first foreign language, unlike the ordinary classes, where only two hours a week are allotted.

At the request of the parents of the students from the eight pre-university education institutions with bilingual classes, in order to avoid overloading, the Ministry of Education made an order by which the Russian language was excluded from the list of mandatory subjects, specifying that the fifth graders are allowed to choose the second foreign language.

The Ministry of Education monitors the implementation of the framework education plan in all the general education institutions and there were no objections on the part of the nominated institutions so far.