In recent years, Russian schools have ceased to be solely educational institutions and have become an important channel for spreading state ideology. Through “patriotic” campaigns, propaganda lessons, meetings with participants in the war, and militarized games, children are daily exposed to loyalty to the state, militaristic values, and an “official” picture of the world.
To document these processes not as isolated incidents but systematically, the «Ne Norma» project created the Archive of Russian School Propaganda and Indoctrination — the largest open database of what Russia’s state schools publish on social media.
What We Have Collected
Our team identified and verified the official VK social media pages of more than 87% of Russia’s schools. We then extracted posts from these communities from the moment they were created up to the present day.
As of April 26, 2026, the Archive contains 69,744,551 posts from 30,111 schools. We continue to expand and update it.
Why It Matters
Schools shape not only knowledge, but also ideas about the world, what is normal, power, violence, what is acceptable and unacceptable. When the state turns education into a channel of political influence, it affects millions of children.
The consequences of such a policy go far beyond the classroom. It shapes how a new generation perceives war, human rights, the state, freedom, critical thinking, and their own role in society. That is why it is important not only to criticize individual cases, but to understand the system as a whole — how it is structured and how it functions.
School social media pages are a mirror of the education system. Through them, school administrations regularly publish reports on school life, official events, educational initiatives, mandatory programs, and campaigns imposed from above. Thanks to the Archive, it is possible to see which themes are promoted in schools, which practices become normalized, and how the state agenda is introduced into the educational environment.
📌 How did school rhetoric change after the start of the full-scale war?
📌 How and to what extent are militaristic practices being introduced into schools?
📌 How do regions differ in the intensity of propaganda?
📌 Which themes appear simultaneously across the country?
What once looked like scattered news stories can now be seen as a single coordinated process.
Who the Archive Is Useful For
This tool can be used by people in many different fields.
Journalists can use it to find stories, case studies, and evidence for hypotheses.
Researchers can analyze trends, large-scale dynamics, and changes in the school environment.
Parents, activists, and human rights defenders can gain insight into what is happening in specific schools and regions.
These are only some of the possible ways the data can be used.
Already Published Research
Archive data has already formed the basis of publications in independent media:
Verstka — Children’s Sewing Battalions: How Schoolchildren Are Forced to Work for the Army
Serditaya Chuvashia — Research on military propaganda in schools of Chuvashia
Cooperation
If you are a journalist, researcher, or working on a project related to education, propaganda, or children’s rights, and you lack analytical tools — fill out the form and tell us about your task and the data you need. We will do our best to help and would be glad to cooperate.
