Russia Expands Military Training in Schools, Teaching Children Skills for Future Warfare
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Russian students returning to school this September will face a noticeably more military-focused version of their safety and civics education.
The Russian Ministry of Education has proposed restructuring the existing “Fundamentals of Security and Defense of the Motherland” course, known as OBZR, into two compulsory educational components: Life Safety and Initial Military Training. The changes are scheduled to take effect on September 1, 2026, for students moving into eighth grade and those entering 10th grade during the 2026–27 academic year.
The development is part of a wider transformation of Russian youth education since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Military preparedness, patriotism, national security and exposure to military-related activities have increasingly appeared in schools and state-backed youth programs.
The change is particularly significant because Russia is also introducing training connected to newer forms of warfare, including drones and technology-based simulations.
What Happened?
Russia has been gradually increasing the military component of school education for several years. The latest reform takes that process further by giving initial military training a clearly defined place within the national curriculum.
In July, Russia's Education Ministry said the existing modular structure of OBZR would be replaced with two unified compulsory courses. The ministry said the initial military training course would prepare students to understand national security, civil defense and military service while developing practical safety skills.
The proposed curriculum includes:
- Basic principles of national security
- Civil defense and emergency procedures
- Evacuation procedures
- Use of individual and collective protective equipment
- Military regulations and discipline
- Basic drill movements
- Preparation for military service
- First aid
- Counterterrorism and anti-extremism awareness
- Practical exercises and simulations
The official curriculum also includes lessons about Russia's armed forces and military equipment. The proposed program for eighth-grade students, for example, includes a lesson on major examples of Russian weapons and military equipment.
The government has also been moving toward greater use of practical training, including trainer systems and virtual models.
Key Details
Several developments explain why the new curriculum has attracted international attention.
1. Military preparation becomes more prominent
Russia's Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov said in June that the share of basic military preparation within OBZR would rise from about 20% to 50%. The ministry said the military component would include training exercises and instruction involving drones.
2. The changes begin with older school students
The July ministry announcement specifies that the new structure is intended to apply from September 1, 2026, to students entering eighth and 10th grades. It is therefore important not to describe the reform as identical military training for every Russian child.
3. Drone technology is entering education
Russia has increasingly incorporated unmanned aerial systems into education and youth programs. Reporting in March 2026 said drone assembly and operation had been formally added to lessons under the country's security-and-defense curriculum.
This reflects a broader shift in modern warfare, where inexpensive drones have become important for surveillance, reconnaissance and attacks.
4. Military-patriotic activities extend beyond ordinary classes
Russia also operates state-supported youth programs and military-patriotic activities outside the standard curriculum. One prominent example is Zarnitsa 2.0, a revival of Soviet-era military games in which children can participate in simulated military roles and activities.
Background
The current reforms did not appear suddenly.
Russia introduced the OBZR subject in 2023 by incorporating basic military preparation into school safety education. The curriculum subsequently expanded to include military-related subjects.
The government has simultaneously promoted broader patriotic education. A Russian government plan approved in October 2025 included measures to develop pre-conscription training in educational organizations and to involve participants in the war in Ukraine in teaching and military-patriotic activities. The plan covers 2025–2030.
Russia has also invested in training related to unmanned aviation. In October 2025, the Russian government announced 1 billion rubles in additional funding for professional education and training in the development, production and operation of unmanned aircraft systems, with the stated goal of training at least 5,800 people.
These developments show that the country's approach is broader than teaching traditional military skills. It also involves developing familiarity with technologies that have become increasingly important on modern battlefields.
What Officials and Organizations Said
The Russian Education Ministry presents the reform primarily as a practical safety and preparedness initiative.
Education Minister Sergey Kravtsov said the goal was to make OBZR more practical and help students know how to respond in difficult situations. The ministry describes initial military training as preparation for defending the state and for future military service.
The official curriculum also emphasizes everyday safety, emergency response and first aid rather than exclusively combat-related instruction. This distinction matters because the Russian government's stated justification is broader than simply preparing children to become soldiers.
However, independent observers and international organizations have interpreted the wider trend differently.
A 2025 UN human-rights report examining children in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories documented military activities in schools, including weapons-related instruction and military-patriotic organizations. The report said such militarized education could expose children to war propaganda and contribute to preparing young people for military service.
That report concerns occupied Ukrainian territories specifically and should not automatically be treated as evidence that every Russian school operates in exactly the same way.
Why This Matters
The most important change is not simply that Russian children are learning about military subjects. It is how deeply military preparedness is becoming integrated into education and youth development.
Modern warfare increasingly depends on technology, communications, drones, electronic systems, logistics and rapid information processing. Traditional military preparation focused heavily on physical skills and weapons. Russia's newer approach increasingly reflects this technological reality.
Drone education is particularly significant.
The war in Ukraine has demonstrated how drones can transform battlefield surveillance and strike capabilities. Introducing drone-related skills into education can therefore serve two purposes: teaching technological literacy and potentially developing a future pool of workers and military personnel familiar with unmanned systems.
There is also a wider social dimension.
When military themes become routine parts of school life, children encounter concepts such as national security, military service, defense and patriotism at an earlier age. Supporters may view this as civic preparedness. Critics see it as evidence of increasing militarization of education.
Both the curriculum and the broader political context are important when assessing the change.
What Happens Next?
The immediate next step is the beginning of Russia's 2026–27 school year on September 1.
The Education Ministry's proposed changes are intended to apply to students entering eighth and 10th grades. The new structure will divide OBZR into Life Safety and Initial Military Training, with practical activities and military-preparation content forming an important part of the latter.
The longer-term impact remains uncertain.
It is not yet possible to say how much hands-on military training every student will receive, because implementation can depend on schools, teachers, available facilities and regional programs.
What is clear is that Russia is continuing to build a national education environment in which military preparedness, patriotic education and modern defense technologies occupy a larger role than they did before the country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is Russia really teaching military training in schools?
Yes. Russia already has military-preparation content within its school safety and defense curriculum, and the Education Ministry plans a more clearly defined Initial Military Training course from September 2026 for relevant eighth- and 10th-grade students.
2. What will Russian students learn in the new military course?
The proposed curriculum includes military service preparation, national security, civil defense, evacuation procedures, military discipline, basic drill, first aid and other security-related skills. It also covers Russia's armed forces and military equipment.
3. Are Russian children being taught to use drones?
Drone-related education has been expanding in Russia. The country's school curriculum has incorporated drone assembly and operation, while other youth programs also use drone-related training and competitions.
4. Which students will receive the new course?
The Education Ministry's July 2026 plan says the new structure will take effect from September 1, 2026, for students moving into eighth grade and students entering 10th grade in the 2026–27 academic year.
5. Is every Russian school becoming a military school?
No. The reform does not turn ordinary schools into military academies. The new material is being incorporated into the national school curriculum, alongside conventional education and life-safety subjects.
6. Why is Russia expanding military education?
The Russian government describes the policy as improving safety, national-security awareness and readiness for military service. The timing also reflects the country's broader emphasis on patriotic education and defense preparedness during the ongoing war in Ukraine.
7. What does “wars of the future” mean in this context?
The phrase refers largely to the growing importance of technologies such as drones, digital systems, communications and other technology-intensive capabilities in modern warfare. Russia's education system is increasingly exposing students to some of these technologies and concepts.
8. Does this mean Russian children will be sent to fight?
No such conclusion can be drawn from the school curriculum itself. The new courses are designed to provide military and safety preparation, but school-based training does not itself mean that children are being deployed into combat. Russia's compulsory military service applies to eligible adults, not schoolchildren.
Source note: The article is based primarily on Russia’s Education Ministry and government documents, supplemented by reporting from Bloomberg, Meduza, The Moscow Times and the UN for context and independent assessment. The distinction between official government objectives and outside interpretations has been maintained throughout.