Chapter 24: A Glimpse into Russian History, Culture, and Language

Maxim was first exposed to English when his family moved to the United States and he was enrolled in fourth grade in a school near his new home. Now a seventh grader, he does quite well in school (especially in mathematics), earning B’s and occasionally A’s. To maintain his mother tongue, the family speaks Russian at home, and Maxim often visits his grandparents in Russia. The family’s library has books in both languages. Maxim’s teachers describe him as “responsible and bright,” always eager to volunteer answers, but at times a bit too zealously. The teachers wonder, though, if Maxim truly likes the school and his American teachers, as he rarely smiles at them. The teachers also wonder why Maxim often looks either lost or disinterested (or both) when asked to brainstorm ideas or to work on an assignment in a group. When consulting with the school’s ESL specialist during a team meeting, the teachers learned that in Russia, smiling has a slightly different meaning than in the U.S., and that students who have been initiated to schooling within the Russian educational system may place lesser value on—or simply be less familiar with—brainstorming sessions and group work.