Azerbaijan association is operating successfully in Izhevsk, the capital city of the Russia Federation Udmurtia Republic. According to Eurasia Diary, children learn their native language and culture in the association.
“Dostluq” anUdmurtia Azerbaijan Public Center Association has been operating since January, 2016. Over two years in their activity, ethnic-cultural association became a source of inspiration for children and parents who aspire to master their own national traditions and unique culture.
It is not a coincidence that the association attributes the name of Bayram Humbatov who founded the Azerbaijan Public Center. It intends to revive the honor of the public figure who had a tragic death, and it is part of a notion to pass an idea to other generations. The foundation of the association was contributed to by the head of Azerbaijan national-ethnic association, they have realized the importance of ethno-cultural education and assisting teachers to initiate trainings.
“Our diaspora pays attention to the education of children, because they are our future. They should get familiar with their roots, traditions and cultures, as we do” – said Zulfukhar Mirzayev, the chairman of “Dostluq” Udmurtia Azerbaijan Public Center.
Lessons about ethnic-cultural knowledge are not the same as usual lessons. Pupils are going to dance classes each Saturday and every Sunday they have “a trip” to an ethnic cultural world where they master their native language, are familiarized with blend of traditions and substantial periods of history of Azerbaijan people.
Dance teacher Allahverdi Allahverdiyev says that his lessons are the master class on the national Azerbaijani dances. The children learn the beautiful couple's dance “Nazeleme”, which is performed by boys to attract girls’attention, and the holiday dance “Yalli”.
Our interlocutor is not a professional choreographer, however to teach children is his desire. The young man learned the sophisticated elements and at the same time he mastered the beautiful art of dance. With the establishment of the Azerbaijani Association in Izhevsk, he decided to share his experience and to provide a way for the teens to learn the national dances. This is probably the brightest reflection of traditions and customs of the people.
A significant part of any art is to prove oneself in a creative way. The children of association have this specialty. They perform regularly on the stage of the city competitions and regional events held by the Ministry of National Policy.
The students of the association take part in important social events – create a joyful mood in the orphanages, and make the children of low-income families happy.
The Dance teacher mentioned students from different nations join courses and they have cultural exchanges. This diversity is the symbol of real friendship.
The Republic day in Azerbaijan.
Spring Festival-Nowruz
Pupils learn culture, language and history from books addressed for Russian speakers, because majority of them do not have writing skills in their mother tongue although they are able to speak in it.
According to their teacher Shahla Mahmudova, they pay attention to learning language skills. Pupils learn the alphabet, read poems and take part in different competitions. Different games are being included in the studying process in order to make lessons more dynamic, pupils also play well-known games in Azerbaijani.
The consequence of these meetings appears in a short time – pupils commence speaking much better in mother tongue.
“Children’s own opinion is more important to us, we always ask “ What would you like to learn ?”-Shahla says, they like preparing for festivals. Their eyes are sparkling showing how much they love communicating.
According to the teacher, parents take an active role in children’s educational life, help them to sew their costumes, learn poems and explain unfamiliar words.
“We teach difficult subjects to children in an easy way, but by the helpof interesting samples for them. I ask questions in order to make them familiar with works of Gara Garayev: Have you ever been to metro in Baku? Which music is being played when train reaches next station? They answer “Yes” and at this time I tell them, this composition is taken from one of Gara Garayev’s ballets” – says Shahla Mahmudova.
Mastering is not a new field for our interviewer. She is a teacher of Azerbaijani language and literature, however working with children is a new thing for her. Shahla uses methods based on the materials for students, who are studying Azerbaijani as a foreign language in her lessons. In addition, she also participates in seminars on sharing experiences with teachers of other associations.
At the end of the conversation, the chairman of the Azerbaijan Social Center, Zulfugar Mirzayev mentioned that the school has great plans for the future. The chairman thinks that ethno-cultural association should be a starting pointfor the children’s future achievements.
"We love children and we understand the importance of delivering human values to the people at this age, in this period. We have to educate them from their childhood, for them to join the society and not having a bad impact on them. They should respect all cultures and traditions, however they should not forget their own. We can go forward only in this way, to create a close relationship , and we are happy to have such school. It has a great meaning to us - it correlates us with each other”.
