Hey! Teachers!
Film Screening and Roundtable Discussion in the Exhibition “Fearless”
The characters in the documentary Hey! Teachers! are young teachers. At the beginning of the school year, they arrive at a rural Russian school to teach literature and geography, but quickly come up against a wall when they try to approach teaching in a more modern way and treat the students as partners.
The issues raised in the film may sound familiar to us. The Hungarian education system has been struggling with serious problems for many years; the shameful salaries of teachers and education workers, the overload of teachers and students, the shortage of teachers, the centralized system that ties teachers' hands and takes away their autonomy in education, have now brought the system to the brink of collapse.
In February this year, following the teachers' strike, the Government issued a decree restricting teachers' right to strike, which was followed by a weeks-long civil disobedience movement across the country, with thousands of teachers joining in. What processes have led teachers across the country to take up civil disobedience, even at the risk of losing their jobs? What would it take to have a functioning education system that encourages students to think, and equips them with critical analytical skills, while providing a livable environment for all participants in education, from students to teachers, from teaching assistants to special education teachers?
We will discuss the systemic problems of the Hungarian education system, the possible solutions, the teachers' strike and civil disobedience with our guests on 23 March, following the film’s screening,
Participants:
Péter Radó, education researcher (CEU Democracy Institute)
A representative of the Democratic Trade Union of Teachers (PDSZ)
Anna Sarolta Bencze and Szonja Fehér, students, organizers of the "Let's Sit Out for Our Teachers! Solidarity with the teachers' strike” event
Viktor Tóth, teacher at the Szent László High School in Kőbánya
Moderator: Eszter Neuberger (444)
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The program is free of charge, but registration is required.
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Hey! Teachers!
Russia, 2020, documentary, 90mins
in Russian, with English and Hungarian subtitles
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Two fresh graduates from a university of pedagogy in Moscow move to a small Russian town to teach in a high school. They experiment with new, more interactive and collaborative ways of teaching, and challenge established conventions and hierarchies. They speak with their students about feminism, human rights and Russian politics. Despite the gradual, positive response from the children, the teachers soon discover that nationalism, sexism and homophobia stand in their way in this conservative school environment.
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Film Info
Director: Yulia Vishnevets
Producer: Eugenia Vengerova
Writers: Yulia Vishnevets, Olga Badina
Cinematography: Konstantin Salomatin, Darya Senicheva, Yulia Lantsova
Production info: OkaReka
Distribution info: Antipode Sales & Distribution Evgeniya Chulkova festivals@antipode-sales.biz
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Director:
Yulia Vishnevets is a Moscow based filmmaker and journalist, with a passion for exploring society through documentary storytelling. She is a staff film director of Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty in Moscow. Her interests range from social exclusion to identities, conflicts and how people are affected by their environment. Her first full-length documentary film, A House on the Edge (2016), depicting both sides of the conflict in Ukraine, had a number of screenings in Russia, Germany and USA, including the prominent Artdocfest festival in Moscow, and was recently purchased for Currenttime.tv channel.
The program is in Hungarian (the film will be screened with Hungarian and English subtitles).
The program is part of the fearless program series organized by Blinken OSA and Freeszfe Association.