In Finland, 19-year-old Ainu Feodoroff will take an exam in the Skolt Sámi language
19-year-old upper secondary school student Ainu Feodoroff from Turku will take a matriculation examination in the Skolt Sámi language in Finland this autumn. She will be one of two people registered for the exam, YLE News reports.
Feodoroff has been studying Skolt Sámi since she was nine years old. Since instruction in this language had not previously been provided in Turku, classes were held remotely in the evenings after the school day. The student noted that she had the opportunity to study her language in Turku for eight years.
A rare exam
Skolt Sámi is rarely chosen for matriculation examinations. Last spring, two people took it as a foreign language under the short syllabus, while there had been no such candidates at all in the preceding few years. The highest number of applicants was registered in 2019, when there were 13.
According to the examination board, no applications have been submitted for an examination in Skolt Sámi language and literature as a native language for 12 years. The last time four people took this subject as a native language was in 2014.
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Lack of educational materials
Feodoroff studied the language only remotely. According to her, teachers often changed, and there was a constant shortage of educational materials. When she began upper secondary school, third-grade textbooks were used for lessons.
She is preparing for the exam using old tests, news in Skolt Sámi and children's books. Weekly conversations with her grandmother in Skolt Sámi have become important practice. According to the student, the opportunity to speak this language with her family is the most valuable part of her studies.
Feodoroff also stressed the need for more films, music, television programs and books in Skolt Sámi, particularly for upper secondary school students. She said she is taking the exam for the future of the language and her future children, not for a grade.
