Back to School in Ukraine: Lessons in Freedom Amid War
Preschool children play in dark due to power shortages.
While Norwegian children return to safe and familiar classrooms, many of their Ukrainian peers start the school year in bomb shelters.
As Ukraine marks Independence Day on 24 August, the struggle for freedom is being lived and taught daily in schools and kindergartens across the country.
In wartime, education has become an act of resilience - and quiet defiance.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, nearly 3,800 schools and preschools have been damaged or destroyed. For many children, a normal classroom is now a distant memory. Lessons continue regardless - sometimes by candlelight, often underground.
– Our school has 1,500 students divided into 40 classes, but the shelter can only hold half, says Antonina Kharchenko, a principal in Chernihiv, north of Kyiv.
– We teach in shifts, morning and evening. The bomb shelter has toilets and some basic comfort, but when the sirens sound, 750 children squeeze in, sometimes for hours. Then we go back to class - until the next alarm, says Kharchenko to The European Wergeland Centre (EWC).
Across Ukraine, schools now function not only as places of learning but also as community hubs and emergency shelters. Independence Day, once mainly a celebration, is today a reminder of what is at stake.
A shelter in Irpin, Ukraine.
– Supporting education in wartime is a way of supporting the values we share - freedom, citizenship, and belief in a better future, says Jorun Nossum, head of the Nansen Programme at Norad.
Kindergartens as Safe Havens
For the youngest, preschools provide both safety and stability. Natalia, a veteran preschool teacher from Lysychansk, now works with children across Ukraine via digital platforms.
– The biggest challenge is making sure every child feels safe and happy, she explains, especially as many mothers care for their children alone while fathers serve at the front.
Her work is part of Schools for Democracy, a programme developed by the European Wergeland Centre in cooperation with Ukrainian authorities and supported by Norway through the Nansen Programme. It trains teachers to help children cope with grief, stress, and trauma—and equips educators themselves with tools to carry on despite their own hardships.
So far the programme has reached:
- 140,000 teachers and preschool staff through online training
- 300 schools across Ukraine
- More than 50 kindergartens
The Nansen Programme for Ukraine
The Nansen Programme is Norway’s long-term support package for Ukraine, covering both civilian and military aid. With a budget of NOK 205 billion for 2023–2030—recently extended by NOK 50 billion—it is designed to help Ukraine defend its people and territory, maintain essential services, and lay the foundation for a safe, free, and democratic future.
More Than School
In a country at war, the first day of school is more than a routine milestone—it is a statement of courage, humanity, and hope. With support from Norway and the Nansen Programme, Ukrainian classrooms and kindergartens are becoming spaces where freedom is not only taught, but lived.
This web article is based on text from one of Norad’s partner organisations. Read the web articles from the European Wergeland Centre:
- Meeting the Urgent Needs of Ukrainian Schools - The European Wergeland Centre
- The Ukrainian Success Story Continues - The European Wergeland Centre
- UKRAINE: Let Us Talk About Kindergarten - The European Wergeland Centre
Read more stories about the results from Ukraine.