Ensuring teaching and learning continues in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine has resulted in significant damage in the education sector, putting the right to education of the 5.7 million school-aged children at stake. 

UNESCO has joined hands with the MESU and partners since the beginning of the war to support the Ukrainian education community in responding to the main challenges, including damaged educational infrastructure, access to devices for distance education, deteriorated mental health and well-being of education actors, need for capacity building and professional development by teachers, as well as the lack of harmonized and relevant data and infrastructure for education governance, including for those outside of Ukraine.

UNESCO’s strategy in supporting the Ukrainian education community focuses on two-pronged, mutually supportive approach: providing comprehensive recovery assistance to meet immediate needs, and at the same time strengthening the resilience of education system for emergency response and recovery.

Specifically, UNESCO’s education support to Ukraine has four priorities:

• Ensuring the continuity of learning and teaching with necessary hardware, software, education materials and platforms. This priority addresses the immediate needs to continue education in a hybrid or online format in the context of war.
• Enhancing capacity and professional development for education actors. This priority supports teachers, school psychologists, education administrators, parents, and caregivers with trainings to respond to the urgent challenges posed by the war, while also strengthening skills and resilience for them as the frontline of education response. 
• Supporting comprehensive rehabilitation of education infrastructure to provide safe and inclusive educational spaces. This priority aims to restore a safe in-person education environment for learners and teachers with rehabilitated infrastructure, as well as facilities and services that foster inclusivity in education in the long term.
• Supporting national education systems to respond to urgent needs and address long-term development goals. This priority supports the Ministries of Education in Ukraine as well as refugee hosting countries with evidence-based and data-informed education planning, management, and learning, as well as the development of transformative policies and recommendations, leading towards sustainability and resilience in the education system and the wider Ukrainian society.