What’s on Ukraine’s new school syllabus

For the first time since Russia’s invasion, schools in Ukraine are starting to re-open. For many parents, including my own, this presents a dilemma. Is it safe for pupils to return? My brother is seven and has spent the past year doing ‘remote learning’, which is hard enough in countries at peace, let alone those fighting an invasion. A return to school would be good for his education, but then again, might there be the danger of Russian air strikes? Parents at my brother’s school have been asked to vote on whether they would prefer pupils to continue with online learning, or return, with all the risks involved.

It’s estimated that at least 3,000 of Ukraine’s 12,800 schools will reopen their doors. Many do not have proper bomb shelters, which are a necessity for a country digging in for a long war. Given that air warnings sometimes last for hours, pupils need desks and toilets underground if they are to carry on studying. Most schools have had to fit bomb shelters at their own expense and in some cases parents have been asked to chip in with the funding.

The curriculum has also been overhauled. Ukraine believes it is fighting for its soul as well as its borders, and the education of children is seen as a major line of defence. As a result, children are to be given military and medical training during their new ‘Defence of the Fatherland’ classes. Pupils will learn about repression and resistance, as well as the ‘handling of explosive and unfamiliar objects’.

All history, geography and literature lessons have been updated. The history curriculum now includes ‘new historiographic developments’ with a special module on the history of the invasion. Geography will focus on the countries involved in the war: those who helped Ukraine, but also those who supported Vladimir Putin.