Responsibility of Teachers
Unhealthy Climate in the Gymnasium
Gymnasium No. 5 in Bryansk has previously had problems with bullying among students:
"There was already such a precedent in this gymnasium – just last year, an excellent student transferred from it to another school because her peers were making her life miserable. It is unknown whether the teachers were aware of this situation." As noted in the publication, "the microclimate in the educational institution was unhealthy."
Even earlier, there was a very similar case when one gymnasium student initiated the bullying of a classmate. But then the conflict was resolved thanks to the decisive actions of the victim's father. This is what he told the media:
"When my daughter couldn't take it anymore and complained to me, I advised her directly: 'Just punch her in the face. And do it publicly. And I'll deal with it later. I knew I would really deal with it. Because I knew who we were talking about – the daughter of an officer holding a high position in law enforcement."
https://bryansk.bezformata.com/listnews/mordu-uchitelya-bryanskoy-gimnazii/125062977/
It turns out that the previous cases of bullying did not teach the pedagogues of the "prestigious" gymnasium anything. And they still haven't figured out how to behave in such situations.
And this is despite the fact that there are many methods for combating bullying on the Internet, including those developed by Russian specialists. And perhaps these methodological guidelines are more consistent with the peculiarities of the mentality of children in a small Russian city.
Now let's consider the actions or inactions of individual teachers.
Galina Sautkina
She was the director of the gymnasium at the time of the tragedy. However, about six months later, she moved to another educational institution, becoming a mathematics teacher, i.e., a demotion. It is unknown how voluntary her departure was. Nevertheless, she did not lose heart, actively organizes trips for children on excursions to other cities, and heads the "Wise Owl" club.
To be fair, it should be noted that Sautkina is described as a strong mathematician, an energetic and active person. She has certain merits as a teacher.
However, under her leadership, no one truly addressed the problems of bullying among students, although there were warning signs. And the tragedy of December 7, 2023, came as a surprise to everyone. However, no one is dealing with these problems in the gymnasium even now.
Lyudmila Zhireshonkova
The class teacher of the 8A class, the class where Alina studied.
Unlike Sautkina, she got away with the tragedy; no one blamed her for anything. And she was not punished in any way. Although namely Zhireshonkova, and not Sautkina, who should have been aware of all the problems of the children in the class and solved them in a timely manner.
And it is to her that most of the questions should be directed:
1. It is striking that Lyudmila Zhireshonkova persistently called what happened a conflict, not bullying. Including after the tragedy. For example:
“According to the class teacher, last spring Alina and a classmate (the instigator of the bullying) had a conflict: the teachers talked to the girls and their parents, and, according to the teacher, the quarrel was quickly forgotten.”
https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2023/12/12/ty-tupaia-kak-taburetka
Anyone, even someone far removed from pedagogical sciences, can go to Google and spend at least 15 minutes finding enough material explaining the difference between the concepts of conflict and bullying.
And according to the testimonies of everyone who saw what was happening at the Alina’s class, it was indeed bullying with a clear distribution of roles: instigator, accomplices, etc. See more details in the "Bullying of classmates" section.
It turns out that a teacher with extensive experience, working in a prestigious gymnasium, did not understand the difference between conflict and bullying? Or did she pretend not to understand?
2. The quarrel was not forgotten, as Lyudmila Zhireshonkova claimed. The instigator continued to turn the children against Alina. There is ample evidence of this, see the "Bullying of classmates" section. The last straw for Alina were the words "You can't do anything to us anyway, you are defenseless." This meant that no one would be able to protect her, including the class teacher. It turns out that the experienced teacher did not see what was happening in the classroom, or she simply didn't care.
3. Alina was an outcast in the group since elementary school. Everyone saw this, especially the class teacher. And the longer a child remains an outcast, the more damage is done to their psyche. This is a well-known truth. See "General information about the tragedy; Psychologist's opinion."
Why did none of the teachers or psychologists talk to Alina's parents and suggest that they transfer her to another school or to individual tutoring?
Instead, Zhireshonkova continued to talk to the girl's parents about the need for socialization. But if Alina was unable to integrate into the children's group during the previous seven years, it was obvious that she would never fit in.
The quiet, withdrawn girl did not at all fit the harsh style of behavior (aggro in youth slang) of the children in the prestigious gymnasium, who were focused on competition and achieving success in life at any cost.
4. In the last few days, according to the teacher, Alina was more dead than alive.
“The same class teacher told Novaya Gazeta Europe that Alina didn't make friends with anyone and was very quiet, and in the last two days she was more dead than alive.”
https://novayagazeta.eu/articles/2023/12/12/ty-tupaia-kak-taburetka
It turns out that the class teacher, who is described in the gymnasium as a "wonderful person," simply observed the girl's condition from the sidelines for the last few days? This clearly follows from her own words.
And it didn't occur to her to do anything at all (call the parents, send her for an additional conversation with a psychologist, simply ask "what happened"). Although she knew that the girl was unusually withdrawn and had a conflict with an aggressive classmate. That is, she was a troubled child.
It is unlikely that Ms. Zhireshonkova will ever honestly answer all these questions. And even if she wants to do so, she will probably not be allowed to. The Bryansk authorities have obtained non-disclosure agreements from all participants in the events.
Ofelia Mkrtchyan
The biology teacher who was teaching the class where the shooting took place. She had a good relationship with Alina, calling her an excellent student. During the tragedy, she tried to persuade her to stop the shooting. Apparently, unsuccessfully.
Some media outlets reported that Ofelia shielded the children with her body, tried to physically prevent the shooting, and was wounded. However, with all due respect to Ofelia Mkrtchyan, we must state that no evidence of this has been found, see the section "General information about the tragedy; The inconsistency of the heroic version".
After the tragedy, Ofelia Mkrtchyan left the gymnasium along with a group of young, promising teachers. What she is currently doing is unknown.
Kristina Sheveleva
After Sautkina, the gymnasium was headed by a new director, Kristina Sheveleva, a former elementary school teacher. She was hardly any better than her predecessor, rather the opposite.
As a teacher, she didn't distinguish herself much, but she did come to the attention of the media as a participant in election fraud in favor of the ruling party in Russia, United Russia (see the publication below).
In 2021, Sheveleva worked as part of one of the polling stations. At that time, Russia still held at least some relatively fair elections, and the ruling party might not have won them.
This polling station, according to independent observers, simply fabricated 60 percent of the votes in favor of the “United Russia” party. Criminal cases were initiated for falsifying the election results.
https://peresmotr.org/project/bryansk-schoolshooting-fraudsters
It is interesting to note that the video recordings from the security cameras at this polling station have disappeared, see the article above. In the case of the shooting at Gymnasium No. 5, the video recordings from the school's cameras also went missing. At least, they were not shown to anyone. And this, apparently, is not a random coincidence. It's the same style of falsification and concealment of the truth.
It is likely that Kristina Sheveleva was appointed to the comfortable position of director of the prestigious gymnasium instead of Sautkina precisely for such dubious services rendered to the ruling party in Russia, “United Russia”, and not at all to improve the atmosphere at the school.
To Forget Like a Nightmare
At Gymnasium No. 5 in Bryansk, under the new principal, everything possible was done to completely erase the memory of the tragedy that occurred. The classroom where the shooting took place was renovated. There is no memorial, not even a small one, in memory of those who died in the gymnasium.
And if Alina Afanaskina, from their point of view, is a Columbine-style shooter who attacked the educational institution, then Masha Nesmachnaya, according to the same version, should be considered an innocent victim of terror. But, as far as we know, there are no memorial plaques dedicated to her in the gymnasium either. They forgot about everyone.
On the anniversaries of the shooting, no mourning messages appeared on the gymnasium's website; only publications about the current life of the educational institution were posted. With smiling faces of teachers and children.
It should be noted that in most similar cases after school shootings (in Kazan or Kerch, for example), memorials were erected and mourning events are held every anniversary. Those interested can find information about this on the Internet. The Bryansk tragedy is a rare exception in this case, when any memory of it was erased in the educational institution where it occurred.
This suggests that the cause of the tragedy is well known to everyone and extremely unpleasant. They don't want to remember it, as if it were something shameful.
Parent-teacher meetings in schools of the Bryansk region
According to information received from several independent sources, immediately after the shooting on December 7, parent-teacher meetings were held in several schools in the Bryansk region, where the cause of the incident was openly stated, namely, bullying of classmates. Parents were explained that the main thing is to prevent bullying.
It is possible that such meetings were held in all schools of the Bryansk region. Since this information was not published in official sources, we do not have precise information on this matter.
Consequences of Teacher Inaction
Now, many students in Alina's class are probably happy that they managed to avoid any punishment. And even get to go to Artek (a children's camp). And they thank their teachers for "understanding" the situation. "Well, we were just making fun of a strange girl." What is there to regret? We'll forget everything and continue to move forward in life with happy faces.
However, sooner or later the children will grow up, and perhaps some of them will come to their former teachers and say: "Why didn't you stop us then? You weren't children like us, but adults. And you even had teaching diplomas. Didn't you see where everything was going? Now, because of you, we will have to carry this terrible burden for the rest of our lives. And no psychologists will be able to make us forget everything like a nightmare."