WARC Inaugurates Russian Language Tutoring with Hiring of Malika Mahmudova

September 25, 2019

#WARC

Sophomore Malika Mahmudova joined AUCA’s Writing and Academic Resource Center this fall, becoming the center’s first-even Russian language tutor. She joins Kyrgyz tutor Aiym Aidaralieva as part of a move to expand the WARC’s linguistic offerings this year.

            Booking a Russian tutoring session can be done by logging into the WARC online portal using your AUCA account details.

            A native of Dushanbe, Malika was brought up speaking both Russian and Tajik with her family. For Malika, one of the main attractions for people to learn Russian is the literature. Reading Crime and Punishment in English for her SYS class this year, she says, brought home to her what was lost between the translation and the original. “There is dialect, there are words that cannot be translated into English,” she explains, “so when you are reading in Russian the text has more feeling and color.”

            A sociology major, Malika says she is particularly interested in social divisions such as gender. An interest in service unites both her studies and her tutoring at the WARC. Her sister-in-law, who graduated from AUCA with a degree in economics, suggested that Malika look into sociology “because she knew that I am always trying to help, and working with community would be useful for me.” In addition to providing her with an avenue for helping others, Malika says she hopes that her position at the WARC will build her communication skills while also providing her with insight into the particular difficulties that foreigners have when learning Russian.

            Malika is passionate about languages: in addition to Russian, Tajik, and English, she is currently taking French at AUCA and is considering studying Arabic after learning that her great-great-grandmother was originally from the Middle East. 

            Before applying to be a tutor, Malika says she would often help foreign friends with their Russian skills. During her first lesson as a WARC tutor, she was tasked with explaining the use of pleonasm in spoken Russian. With students coming to her from France, Afghanistan, and many places in between, Malika’s help will no doubt play an important role for many foreign students as they adjust to their new home in Bishkek.

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