A university in Ireland announced lectures about Ukraine: one of the lecturers raised suspicions among Ukrainians
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The Irish university Trinity College Dublin announced free lectures on the language and history of Ukraine, timed to coincide with the anniversary of the full-scale war. On March 23, the lecture “Language in Ukraine” was to be taught by Svitlana Ilyina. The university’s website states that she is a teacher of the Russian language at the Faculty of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies. Ukrainians in social networks were outraged by such a choice of a teacher. Political scientist Galina Gerasim assumed that the lecturer is Russian and does not speak Ukrainian. Other users criticized the university, and in the comments noted the Embassy of Ukraine in Ireland. “Ukrainian Pravda. Life” investigated the incident. Trinity College Dublin. Photo: Stephen Bergin/unsplash What happened? In early February, Trinity College Dublin announced a series of lectures called “Understanding Ukraine” aimed at the college community and the public. “On the eve of the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (February 24), Trinity College Dublin is launching a series of free public lectures aimed at introducing the complex history and rich cultural heritage of Ukraine,” the institution’s website says. The course consists of 7 lectures: “Ukraine and its history”, “History and culture in Ukraine in the 19th century”, “Jewish heritage of Ukraine”, “Ukraine in the Soviet Union”, “Ukrainian culture in the 20th century”, “Language in Ukraine” , “Historical heritage and Ukraine in the post-Soviet world”. The first lecture was held on February 9, and the last one should be held on March 30. The initiative was organized by Trinity’s Department of Russian and Slavic Studies in partnership with the University’s Historical Society and the East European Society. On March 23, Svitlana Ilyina will give a speech lecture. There is not much information about her online, but the university’s website states that she holds a BA with Honors in Philology and an MA in Education from Trinity College Dublin. She also teaches Russian in the after-school education system and English for speakers of other languages. Read also: “Return home and die there”: a Russian and a Belarusian attacked Ukrainian students in Switzerland “UP. Life” asked the university why they chose such a teaching staff and whether there are people of Ukrainian origin among the lecturers. “This series of lectures was organized by Trinity teachers together with two student societies – the University Historical Society and the East European Society. Initially, the lectures were intended for senior students, so it was decided to involve Trinity teachers as much as possible,” Trinity replied. Lecturer Svitlana Ilyina is Irish, but she grew up and was educated in the west of Ukraine. According to the higher education representative, she is fluent in both Ukrainian and Russian languages. “She is well-versed in language issues in Ukraine. Her research interests are language acquisition and linguistic identity. She is currently teaching English to newly arrived Ukrainians in Ireland through the Ukrainian language,” the university said. The institution also noted that the biography of Svitlana Ilyina on the website is incomplete. “Svitlana is an Irish citizen who grew up in Ukraine, where she received her primary education in the field of language teaching. She is fluent in Ukrainian and Russian and lectures on Ukrainian identity and Soviet Ukraine for one of the main modules of the department: “Introduction to Central and Eastern Studies of Europe”, Trinity College Dublin adds. Read also: The Italians shot a film about the “love” between a Russian soldier and a Ukrainian: online outraged Svitlana Ilyina confirmed on her Facebook page that she is of Ukrainian origin, speaks Ukrainian fluently and is a philologist “She has never promoted pro-Russian narratives, is not a public figure or an active user of social networks. The spelling of the name is based on the birth certificate issued in Soviet times,” the post says. In Ireland, Svitlana teaches English and Russian, translates from Ukrainian and into Ukrainian, and has experience teaching Ukrainian as a foreign language. “She has helped a large number of students, in particular from Ukraine, in preparation for the state exam and further admission to higher educational institutions in Ireland. He currently works with a large number of Ukrainians, helping them learn English, and receives favorable reviews. She got a position at the university last year after successfully passing the competition. In twenty years of work, I have not received complaints about unprofessionalism,” the lecturer adds. Svitlana believes that the “misunderstanding” arose due to a lack of information in the media space. “It’s a shame. I propose to stop all couch disputes and direct efforts to help Ukraine and Ukrainians, spreading the use of the Ukrainian language, as well as knowledge about the culture and history of our country. The fact that a person from Ukraine, with a Ukrainian diploma and knowledge of the Ukrainian language will give a lecture for the Irish should be approved by the community,” the teacher added. Also read: “Why aren’t you at the front?”: DTEU teacher refused to lead a couple in Ukrainian
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