THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 10, 1995 TAG: 9502080204
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JANELLE LA BOUVE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
RUSSIAN TEACHER Georgina Nevzorova, who is making her second visit to the United States, has made a discovery.
``We are all alike,'' she said.
Nevzorova arrived in Chesapeake Jan. 9 to teach an intensive six-week course on Russian culture at Tidewater Community College.
``Individuals may be different, but we're alike,'' she said. ``The more we get together and the more we understand each other, the less likely we are to be enemies.
``People who are in the same society, who are teachers like I am, I feel absolutely at home with them,'' she said. ``I understand everything. Even the routine. We appreciate the same things in culture and in relationships. We even read the same books.
``I think again and again . . . what fools we were to think that we were enemies,'' she said. ``It turned out that, when we come to know each other, there were no grounds to be afraid of each other.''
But Nevzorova, who teaches English as a second language at Baltic State Technical University in St. Petersburg, where she is chairman of the foreign language department, recalls times during the Cold War when scary films about Americans caused her to have nightmares.
Nevzorova, who holds a doctorate in linguistics, noted that there is a wide disparity in salaries between the two nations. In Russia, taxi drivers can earn 10 times more than teachers in higher education, she said.
To supplement their incomes, Nevzorova and other professors from the university moonlight four nights a week. They teach at private schools. The pay is better than at state-supported institutions and the government cannot interfere in the curriculum, she said.
``This makes it possible for our teachers to survive, literally,'' she said, adding that the standard of living in Russia is quite low. ``Some teachers also translate for business people. Foreign languages, especially English, are very popular in Russia.''
American Christians, whom Nevzorova met in St. Petersburg, raised funds for her trip to this country.
While she's in Chesapeake, Nevzorova wants to share as much of her native culture as possible. She displays Russian artifacts during her semiweekly class, which alternates between the Chesapeake and Virginia Beach campuses of TCC, and explains their origins and meaning to her students.
On a recent Wednesday morning, she spoke to a special session for guests and the student body. Russian music was playing as the group filled the small auditorium at TCC's Chesapeake campus. Her presentation was titled, ``Russia: Land of the Firebird.''
On a display table, black woolen scarves with bold rose designs formed a backdrop for intricately painted lacquered boxes, comical puffy-faced dolls used to cover teapots, nesting dolls, painted trays, jewelry and a T-shirt with Hard Rock printed in Russian across the front.
Nevzorova was not perturbed when the microphone repeatedly malfunctioned. ``I teach rocket scientists,'' she quipped.
A slide presentation of the sights of St. Petersburg took up most of the 50-minute session. When the picture of a small, domed building beside a pool came on the screen, she asked the group: ``What do you think that is?''
Chuckles filled the room as she explained that it was Catherine the Great's bathhouse.
In 1993 and again 1994, Nevzorova was host to TCC faculty member Joe Antinarella during visits to St. Petersburg. While in Russia, he taught classes in American culture, writing and conversational English to graduate and undergraduate students at Baltic State Technical University.
Now he has an opportunity to return her hospitality.
``The students love her and love the class,'' Antinarella said. ``People have come to me and said how the class has changed their outlook. Some say it's the best class they've taken.''
Each of her 35 students is referred to in class by Russian names, such as Ekatereni, Tatyana or Nina, he said. They have learned to write their names in Cyrillic, the Russian form of the Greek alphabet.
``Taking this class has been one of the most wonderful things I've done in a long time,'' said Celia Wolfe, a Suffolk teacher. ``To have a Russian with her facility for our language sharing the Russian culture has been wonderful. She has brought music, ballet, literature and history to class.
``As any good teacher would, she has whetted everyone's appetite to delve more deeply into learning about this fascinating country, its history and current events than we would ever have done,'' she said. ``She has been able to encourage us to learn the language without being intimidated or afraid.
``She is witty, lots of fun and very intelligent,'' she said. ``She has given us a lot of things to think about, particularly in light of current economic, social and political events in Russia right now. I wish the course could go on for weeks and weeks.''
Nevzorova will continue to promote open communication between her country and the United States.
``I hope we will never be separated from the rest of the world again,'' said Nevzorova, who will return to Russia Feb. 20. ``It would be a real tragedy for the people. The Russian people are really open people rather than isolated.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by STEVE EARLEY
Georgina Nevzorova is teaching a six-week course on Russian culture
at TCC.
by CNB