This move puts many of the teachers in a difficult position.. If they don't sign, they will lose their jobs and put themselves at risk of retaliation from Russian forces.. If signed, there is a risk of accusations from the Ukrainian authorities, who view training under the Russian program as a form of collaboration with the enemy, writes The Guardian.

The publication spoke with teachers in Russian-occupied parts of southeastern Ukraine, whose names cannot be disclosed for security reasons.. They said that around mid-June, the newly appointed local authorities told them that they had until July 21 to either sign a document certifying their readiness to teach in the Russian school curriculum or resign, and many of them were threatened with eviction from their homes.

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One teacher living in a village in the occupied territory of the Kharkiv region said: “So far, only teachers of history, geography, language, and elementary grades have been asked to sign the document.”.

“Curricula in mathematics, physics, biology and chemistry in Russia are not propaganda in nature, so they are left alone, at least for now,” he added..

In the literature curriculum, the works of most Ukrainian writers are likely to disappear, while the Russian history curriculum has become more politicized in recent years, especially on the Russian narrative of the Soviet victory in World War II.. There is no place in it for a critical reflection on the repressions of the Soviet period or Russia's imperial past..

Subscribing teachers face enemy-assisted prosecution if occupied territories return to Ukrainian control.

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The Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine considers training according to Russian standards as a form of cooperation, and the Criminal Code of Ukraine was recently amended, providing for punishment of up to three years in prison for “propaganda in educational institutions with the aim of helping the Russian army”.

But many believe that prosecutors should be lenient in some cases..

“We must distinguish very clearly whether a person was forced to work under pressure or even under threat of life, or she voluntarily cooperated, whether there was an initiative to cooperate,” commented Sergey Gorbachev, Educational Ombudsman of Ukraine.

Recall that the Ministry of Internal Affairs outlined the situation with the readiness of school shelters for enemy strikes.