[iliaznk]

Well, I was born in 1978 and did experience the last years of the USSR, but I also know from my parents` experiences and from the old text-books, that there was a foreign language taught in Soviet middle/high schools and colleges for decades. Upon some research I've found that a foreign language was introduced as a common subject in to the schooling programmes in 1927 in the USSR. Initially that was German. Even in my school years I know that German, French, Italian and Spanish were still taught in schools, but English was more popular.

It would be surprising if they didn't study foreign languages in schools in the USSR considering that the country was surrounded by "enemies".

[LV-426]

Thanks. And yeah, that's one reason I always thought it was surprising if they didn't teach English, since it was the (primary) language of 'the enemy'. Plus whatever faults the USSR may have had, education seemed to be pretty good.