Reader's view: Duluth schools could learn from Russian counterparts

On March 1 I assisted as a volunteer interpreter for the visit by a delegation from the city government of Petrozavodsk, Duluth’s sister city. At an evening reception I asked one of the delegation members — Sergey Soloviev, the head of the culture and education department in Pertozavodsk city government — about class size in Petrozavodsk middle schools and high schools.

“No more than 30 students,” he answered, “and only up to 15 in the foreign-language (German or English) classes.”

Considering that my son, an eighth-grader at Ordean East, has well over 40 students in his German class as well as in his science, health and history classes, maybe it would make sense for our School Board and school district 709 leadership to visit Petrozavodsk and learn a couple things from Soloviev and other Russian counterparts. I’d surely be glad to lend a hand with translation.

Michael A. Waxman

Duluth

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