Growing Up in the North Caucasus ─ Society, Family, Religion and Education

This book explore the lives of the young generation of the North Caucasus, those who were born during or after the dissolution of the USSR and who grew up in an environment of violent conflicts and transformation in society. The authors move away from and to challenge the "traditional" presentation of life in the North Caucasus region as predominantly a locus of violence since the dissolution of the USSR. Thier approach is rather to present the life of people in the region through the lens of the young generation and stories told by teachers about their pupils who are growing up there, and while the legacy of conflict plays a role in many children’s lives in the region, it is by no means the only or overriding factor in their upbringing.

Thus as well as exploring how conflict has influenced upbringing in the region, the book also considers other important factors such as the role played by the revival of religion and traditional cultural values and customs in the post-Soviet period, the growing influence of religious education, the impact of social and economic upheaval, and the shifting balance between school and parents in shaping children’s upbringing. The book also has a particular focus on "children at risk" in the region, i.e. it considers which groups of children are particularly vulnerable in the various republics to the stresses of a rapidly changing social and educational order.

Irina Molodikova, Central European University, Hungary

Alan Watt, Central European University, Hungary