‘No Safe Classroom’: Ukrainian Children Begin New School Year Underground Amid Russian Strikes
Children in Ukraine have returned to school, some of them to underground shelters, as Russian attacks have been stepped up. Children in Ukraine have resumed school, some of them in underground shelters instead of classrooms, amid stepped-up Russian attacks.
In Kyiv, the Ukrainian Global School has moved classes into its basement because of frequent air raid alerts. The deal would enable kids to stay in school without having to leave classes for shelter multiple times, school officials said.
The situation is a testament to the impact of the conflict on children’s development and education. For many Ukrainian pupils, the war has been a reality for most or all of their school years, and they have had limited experience of a stable, uninterrupted childhood education.
In total, 60 air raid alerts were issued in Kyiv between midnight Thursday and midday Tuesday, with the duration of each alert lasting for about 47 hours. At least 53 people were killed and over 100 injured in Kyiv and its environs during the period, according to local authorities.
The disruption has also led to displacement and lower school enrolment. UNICEF estimates that over 1.8 million Ukrainian children are currently living outside Ukraine and many others have been displaced within the country.
According to Ukraine’s Education Ministry, some 243,398 first-graders started school this year, compared with some 400,000 in 2021, prior to Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Violence, displacement and disrupted routines can have a negative impact on children’s sense of safety, emotional wellbeing and learning ability from a child development perspective. Schools are thus not only a place of learning, but also a place where children can continue to have a routine, relationships and social development in the face of conflict.
