Education in times of crisis (*see note1)

Dr. Karina Bagration: University Lecturer in Ukraine: Dean of the Swiss Institute of Cultural Diplomacy.

Drs. Huib Wursten: Culture specialist. Author and public speaker

 

 

Abstract: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine displaces millions of people, mostly women and children, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (*2). More than two-thirds of children in Ukraine have been displaced from their homes since the start of the conflict, leading to significant interruptions to regular schooling.                                                                           

Some figures: 1,777 schools and other educational facilities were damaged by the war, while 194 had been destroyed altogether. One hundred sixty-four thousand students are internally displaced. Education organization Osvitoria (*3)) estimates the conflict impacts approximately 5.7 million school-age children in Ukraine. It comes after two years of Covid. In addition, Ukraine’s refugee numbers are estimated to be more than 6 million.

Keywords: Ukraine, Education during War, Postwar Education, Online communication, National Culture, Mental Images, Human rights.

Amid conflict, education continues. 

Political insecurity in Ukraine has extended the disruptions to education due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, schools in the country have moved back online.

When the war started, schools shut for two weeks. When lessons did restart in March, they were (and continue to be) primarily online.

During the closure, Ukrainian educators set to create distance resources to help students continue learning. It started with webinars and TV lessons for kids. These lessons were even watched from bomb shelters.

During the Covid pandemic, Osvitoria launched Ukrainian School Online, a digital learning platform based on the national curriculum for students in grades 5-11. It provided video lessons, online tests, and revision materials.

Now, the organization is trying to ensure that the children who have left the country, and those who remain, don’t miss out on education because of war. It has developed its online school further, enabling teachers to use the platform to deliver live classes. This is important to allow students to continue connecting with their classmates and teachers, wherever they may be. 

Since the beginning of the war, over 500,000 Ukrainian children from 122 countries have accessed the platform.

While many of the children who have fled Ukraine have joined local schools in their host countries, some continue to attend Ukrainian School Online, where they can learn more about the Ukrainian language and the history and culture of their country.

“Even students from occupied territories continue to learn online with the Ukrainian curriculum, with Ukrainian students, Ukrainian language,” said Sydoruk. (*4)

Students who are due to graduate from high school this year can use the platform to prepare for their final exams – although these will look somewhat different this year. 

In July, they are expected to take a simplified online exam composed of math and Ukrainian language and history questions. 

But, Sydoruk emphasizes that education, particularly now, is about more than just passing exams.

“Education is not just about knowledge. It’s also about the daily routine that helps you to survive emotionally,” she said, explaining that Osvitoria’s updated mission is to deliver quality education and help children preserve their Ukrainian identity, no matter where they are.

The interruptions to education can have long-term consequences for children’s development which, if not urgently addressed, could take years to recover. This is especially problematic for younger children, who may miss the opportunity to develop foundational skills. 

Eric A. Hanushek Ludger Woessmann (*5) found that three months of missed education could reduce children’s average testing scores by up to 11%  (*5)

This is made worse for children from Ukraine who are also dealing with the added stress and emotional struggle of becoming refugees and the trauma of witnessing violence. In addition, there are fears that there will be a surge in mental health needs as the small reassurance from online lessons stops. 

Furthermore, the longer a child is excluded from the education system, the less likely they are to return, potentially damaging their development, opportunities, and future earning potential if not managed properly.

One of the key concerns of refugee families in other countries is access to quality education for their children.

Children need to be integrated into the schools of host countries, which often involves learning the local language of instruction. 

At the same time, pupils might want to continue following (parts of) the Ukrainian curriculum by connecting to online classes. 

Many host countries are making substantial efforts to integrate child refugees displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine into national education systems. Still, further measures are required to facilitate enrolment and provide high-quality education adapted to the circumstances.

There is a need to integrate Ukrainian children into national school systems in the host countries and to plan for the longer term. Experiences from past refugee crises have shown that parallel participation in different national education systems can negatively affect integration, language acquisition and certification.

This means that the integration into local schools must start as soon as possible with special assistance as necessary, such as dedicated language and psychosocial support (*6)

Children can use online educational resources such as the all-UkrainianOnline School Platform(https://lms.e-school.net.ua) to continue participating in Ukrainian online learning. Created in December 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the platform provides resources for distant and hybrid learning in 18 main school subjects. So far, it has 350,000 users from 146 countries.

Online learning and the importance of face-to-face interaction

While online learning can allow learners to continue to follow the Ukrainian curriculum, Ukrainian authorities acknowledge the importance of face-to-face learning. They encourage parents to enroll their children at local schools and participate in host countries’ social life while maintaining a link with the Ukrainian education system.

Many host countries have already taken steps to integrate Ukrainian refugees into their school systems. Most EU countries have set up or are currently developing dedicated support websites in Ukrainian with information on their national education systems

Obstacles to child enrolment in education

Experience shows there are some obstacles to enrolment children in local schools:

-language barriers

-possible misconceptions concerning enrolment and the documentation needed to access schools

-a lack of opportunities to follow the Ukrainian curriculum 

-the desire to return to Ukraine as soon as possible

Recommended measures promoting the integration of child refugees in national education systems

-reliable and trustworthy information about their school systems is readily available

-psychosocial support is offered to children and families

-school enrolment is promoted through different channels 

-Ukrainian communities are actively engaged with

In certain cases, combining local and Ukrainian curricula and promoting multilingual, flexible learning might be possible.

“That’s what we believe in. What our Ukrainian students have in their heads and hearts will define the country that we will have in 30 years.

Culture clusters and education (*7 and *8)

 

The educational systems in the host countries for Ukrainian refugee children should be aware of the different assumptions around the educational process in their own culture compared to Ukraine.

In an earlier paper on culture and education (*7), we summarized the consequences per culture dimension.

Implications of Power Distance on Teaching/Learning
Low	High
Student-centered. Premium on initiative	Teacher centered. Premium on order
Teacher expects student to initiate communication	Student expects teacher to initiate communication
Teacher expects students to find own paths	Student expects teacher to outline paths
Students allowed to contradict & criticize	Teacher never contradicted nor criticized
Effectiveness of learning is a function the amount of two-way communication	Effectiveness of learning is a function of the excellence of teachers

Implications of Collectivism vs. Individualism on Teaching/Learning
Collectivist	Individualist
Students only speak up when called on by the teacher	Students speak up in response to general invitation by the teacher
Individuals only speak up in small groups	Individuals will speak up in large groups
Formal harmony in learning situations should be always maintained	Confrontation and challenge in learning situations can be brought into the open
Neither teacher nor student should ever be made to lose face	“Face consciousness” is weak
Teachers expected to give preferential treatment to some, e.g. based on ethnic affiliation or recommendation	Teachers expected to be strictly impartial

Masculinity vs. Femininity (MAS)

Implications of Femininity vs. Masculinity on Teaching/Learning
Feminine	Masculine
Teachers use average students as norm	Teachers use best students as norm
System rewards students’ social adaptation	System rewards academic performance
Student’s failure in school a relatively minor accident	Student’s failure in school a severe blow to student self-image
students try to behave modestly	students try to make themselves visible
Students choose subjects out of interest	Students choose subjects for career reasons

  

Implications of Uncertainty Avoidance on Teaching/Learning
Low	High
Students comfortable in un-structured learning situations: Broad assignments No timetables	Students comfortable in structured learning situations:             Precise instructions             Detailed assignments             Strict timetables
Teachers allowed to say “I don’t know”	Teachers expected to have all the answers
Good teachers use plain language	Good teachers use academic language
Students rewarded for innovative approaches	Students rewarded for accuracy
Teachers view intellectual disagreement as stimulating	Teachers view intellectual disagreement as personal disloyalty

Wursten (*8) developed a systematic approach comparing counties with similar scores for the 4 dimensions. He identifies 7 clusters. The countries inside a cluster have a similar “picture” in their about how to look at society. These pictures are called Mental Images.

Regarding something so fundamental as education the mental Images show following characteristics:

 

 

Comparison of educational approach Ukraine and some host countries.

The most important differences are made red

 

Ukraine is part of the Pyramid system

Pyramid

– Teacher-centered educatio  -Students expect initiative from the teacher – Students expect the teacher to outline paths  – “Face” consciousness is high  – Students work hard to succeed in the next exam  – Students speak up only in small groups – Effectiveness of learning is related to the excellence of the teacher – Students only speak up in class when personally asked by the teacher  – Confrontation avoided in the classroom – Strong emotional need for structure

Comparison with some host countries. 

Contest   (USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zeland)

– Student-centered education               – Teacher expects students to take initiative  – Teacher expects students to find their own paths – Students are allowed to contradict the teacher   – Effectiveness of learning related to the amount of two-way communication           – Students feel comfortable in unstructured learning situations.   – Teachers are allowed to say, “I don’t know.” – A good teacher uses plain language – Students are rewarded for innovative approaches to problem-solving – Teachers interpret intellectual disagreement as a stimulating exercise

Network  (Scandinavian countries and The Netherlands)

– Student-centered education                           – Teacher expects students to take initiative  – Teacher expects students to find their own paths – Students are allowed to contradict the teacher         – Effectiveness of learning related to the amount of two-way communication           – Students feel comfortable in unstructured learning situations.   – Teachers are allowed to say, “I don’t know.”           – A good teacher uses plain language – Students are rewarded for innovative approaches to problem-solving – Teachers interpret intellectual disagreement as a stimulating exercise

Machine  (Germany, Austria, Hungary, German speking Swtzerland)

– Student centered education                                        – Teacher expects students to take initiative – Teacher expects students to find their own paths – Students allowed to contradict teacher – Effectiveness of learning related to amount of two-way communication                                           – Students feel comfortable in structured learning situations.   – Teachers are experts and not supposed to say “I don’t know”            – A good teacher uses academic language – Students are rewarded for structural approaches to problem solving – Teachers interpret intellectual disagreement as a stimulating exercise

Solar System (Belgium, France, Italy North, Poland)

-Teacher-centered education -Students expect initiative from the teacher -Students expect the teacher to outline paths -Direct communication style is the norm -Students works are motivated by a sense of honor – Students speak up, preferably in small groups – Effectiveness of learning is related to the excellence of the teacher -Students tend to speak up in class when directly asked by the teacher -Confrontation can be used in the classroom -Strong emotional need for structure

Family (China, Singapore, India)

– Teacher-centered education  -Students expect initiative from the teacher – Students expect the teacher to outline paths – “Face” consciousness is high – Students work hard to succeed in the next exam – Students speak up only in small groups – Effectiveness of learning is related to the excellence of the teacher – Students only speak up in class when personally asked by the teacher – Confrontation avoided in the classroom – No strong emotional need for structure

Online learning and culturally defined competencies.

One of the consequences of the cultural analysis is that the main problem in adapting to refugee children lies in the differences between the teacher-centered approach in Ukraine and the student-centered approach in the Contest, Network, and Well-Oiled Machine.

This is even more challenging in an environment defined by online learning. In addition, many of the competencies required for online learning are new for Ukrainian students.

Following is an analysis based on my experiences with online learning. (*9) Many of these observations are also based on the reality of the Covid period.

Most issues are connected to self-learning. The student needs to find their own way.

Issues:

–Motivation. Self-motivation: set goals, do the planning, develop a network with co-students

–accountability. Nobody is looking over your shoulders. Self-monitoring

– time management. Doing independent planning for online preparation, exercises, etc. Reflection on how to avoid distractions

– persistence. Overcome motivational problems

– be proactive. Try to find solutions for difficulties yourself—self-pacing, self-reliable.

– communication skills. Reading, writing, and friendly tone in communication

– overcome feelings of loneliness. Develop a network yourself

– sudden transitions. Ask for help if in trouble.

– technical skills. Media literacy development

For teachers:

– train your technical skills

– be prepared to cope with limited materials for online education

– plan for monitoring discipline. Develop a plan for “coping with cheating.”

–develop a plan for keeping students engaged. Plan Q&A sessions on practical issues.

Develop a system for monitoring progress and assessments. Presentations, tests.

– try a variety of teaching styles

–design a way to give personalized feedback and guidance

–learning management is an important skill. Plan for self-paced education

Notes:

 

1. This paper is the stepping stone for a more extensive research project by the authors into the consequences of the war in Ukraine. We plan to publish the results at a later moment in a Scopus accredited Journal

 

2. UNICEF: MORE THAN HALF OF UKRAINE’S CHILDREN DISPLACED AFTER ONE MONTH OF WAR- ONGOING VIOLENCE ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAS CREATED A CHILD RIGHTS CRISIS THAT COULD LAST FOR GENERATIONS. 24 March 2022 https://www.unicef.org.uk/press-releases/more-than-half-of-ukraines-children-displaced-after-one-month-of-war-unicef/
3. Osvitoria is an NGO that develops education in Ukraine. During the war, our mission now is to restore the education process and access to quality education for more than 7 million of Ukraine’s children.

4. Anna Sydoruk, The refugee focused on safeguarding Ukraine’s future by educating its children in exile in 124 countries around the world – from a village near Bishop’s Stortford. Bishop’s Stortford By Sinead Corr Published:  30 May 2022 

5. Eric A. Hanushek Ludger Woessmann September 20205.OECD https://www.oecd.org/education/The-economic-impacts-of-coronavirus-covid-19-learning-losses.pdf) The Economic Impacts of Learning Losses.

6.https://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/en/pub/latest/news/mental-health-refugee-pupils.htm  Supporting the mental health and well-being of refugee pupils through connection and continuity

7. Wursten Huib (1981) Radio and television in de open-school proef. Uitgever : Stichting Proefprojecten Open-School, Zeist

8. 8. Wursten Huib, Jacobs Carel (2013)The impact of culture on education Wursten Huib. The 7 Mental Images of National Culture Leading and managing in a globalized word (2019) ISBN-10: 1687633347 ISBN-13: 978-1687633347