Educating Ukrainian refugee children, as war enters its second year
Above: Ukrainian refugee students participate in learning activities at Baile Olanesti school in Romania. The school is too small to absorb a large number of new students, so the community has allowed the AHP project to use its premises in the afternoon for Ukrainian children, after Romanian children have finished their classes. Photo: World Vision
Since the start of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Europe has seen the largest displacement of people since the Second World War. According to UNHCR, over 7.8 million refugees from Ukraine have been recorded across Europe, predominantly women and children.
While some Ukrainian refugees have since returned home, many, especially with children, continue seeking refuge abroad. Attacks on Ukrainian cities have intensified, damage to energy infrastructure causes widespread blackouts and disruption of heating and water, and thousands of schools across the country have been damaged or destroyed since the start of the war.
Through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership response in Ukraine, Romania and Moldova, supported by the Australian Government, World Vision and its partners have been helping Ukrainian children to continue their education, despite the ongoing uncertainty a year into the conflict.
In Romania, service hubs called ‘Happy Bubbles’ provide formal and non-formal education to children, including psychosocial support, and connect their parents to services.
In Bucharest, the Happy Bubble was established in July 2022 with AHP support. The centre provides assistance to early childhood and school age children, and also engages with Romanian children to support community integration.
Ukrainian children in Romania and Moldova can attend local schools, but capacity limits and language barriers mean many children are continuing to study online through Ukrainian schools. The AHP project has supported Romanian language classes for refugees and equipped Happy Bubbles with tablets, allowing children to join online classes and do their homework.
Above: Danil, 13, and Nikita, 11, in a break from online classes at the Bucharest Happy Bubble. Their classes are often disrupted by air raid warnings. Photo: World Vision
Above: Ira, 5, at the Bucharest Happy Bubble. Her family was displaced from the Mykolaiv region in Ukraine. Photo: World Vision
For Danil, 13, and Nikita, 11, apart from being able to study online thanks to the equipment at the Bucharest centre, they’ve also been learning Romanian and participating in social activities. Last summer, they were able to attend a camp organised with World Vision and funded by AHP and other partners.
Younger children such as Ira, 5, enjoy activities like painting and crafts.
In Baile Olanesti, the local Romanian school does not have enough capacity to absorb new students from Ukraine, so the AHP project uses its premises for activities in the afternoons, when Romanian children have finished their classes. Assistance from the local community along with the AHP-supported project has allowed the refugee community to regain a sense of normality, while supporting children to learn new skills, develop, and simply be children again.
World Vision and its partners have also been engaging Ukrainian refugees as teachers.
Hanna, from Kyiv, is one of the educators at the school in Baile Olanesti. She fled Ukraine with her teenage son, but still worries about her husband and elderly mother, who are left behind. Working to support refugee children gives Hanna strength and joy, and she is using her skills as a singing teacher to engage the children in music and art.
Above: Educator Hanna sings the Ukrainian national anthem at the entrance to Baile Olanesti school. The project has hired 37 teachers, mostly Ukrainians from the refugee community. Photo: World Vision
Above: In Baile Olanesti, 258 Ukrainian children benefit from the AHP project after-school classes. Activities range from help with homework from online classes to cooking classes — here children learned to make traditional Ukrainian dumplings called varenyky. Photo: World Vision
Above: Ukrainian students undertaking learning activities in the classroom at Baile Olanesti. Photo: World Vision
For some students, attending Romanian schools has been the best option, and World Vision has provided support for students to integrate into the local education system. 15-year old Sasha (see video below) now feels on track for her future, even if the war continues.
In Moldova, World Vision partner AVE Copii has also established child friendly spaces, offering mostly non-formal education and child protection services to Ukrainian refugees and Moldovan children from disadvantaged families. A number of the centres also have Ukrainian refugees working as educators, and each centre organises different daily activities. Psychosocial support is also integrated into activities.
World Vision and partners have also recently established six daycare centres in the Ukraine under the response, to support families looking to work while providing access to early childhood education.