The first-of-its kind elective got underway in Paide on Monday, when students from the two regions were randomly drawn into pairs. Language buddies will practice speaking Estonian together at least once a week before wrapping up with a final seminar in Narva in March.

During their visit, Narva students praised the Paide State High School building and the opportunity to practice their Estonian.

One teen, Elis Markova, said she enjoyed the experience.

"It's really cool, and I really like this kind of high school," she said.
 
Fellow student Jekaterina Bašinskaja added that "of course" she wants to learn the language, because she lives in Estonia and should be able to speak it.

Her new language buddy Valeriia Melnychenko, a student at Koeru High School originally from Ukraine, said Russian is her first language.

"We can use a mix of Estonian and Russian when we talk," Melnychenko said.

Paide high schooler Rasmus Kraak said that although his language buddy speaks little Estonian, they can still understand a bit and still communicate.

True to their age group, the pairs will mainly stay in touch through social media, with scheduled meetings and video calls when needed, said Koeru student Sten-Marten Raal.

A buddy for every Ida-Viru high schooler

Three schools in Järva County and three schools in Narva are taking part in the elective, contributing five students each. Every group has an assigned teacher mentor, who will monitor students' progress and help out when needed.

The program was launched by Järva Municipality, which hopes the friendships formed along the way will continue beyond the end of the elective itself.

Its longer-term ambition is to expand the initiative across the country.

"Maybe in five years, the program will grow enough that every high schooler in Ida-Viru County learning Estonian has a language buddy somewhere else in Estonia," said Järva Municipality's education and youth work specialist Piret Sapp.

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