Life in the eyes of a Ukrainian child: “My only wish is for my father to return from war”

Teach for Ukraine, World Vision’s local partner, conducted Diagnostic and Proficiency Assessments (DAPAs) that evaluated Ukrainian children’s literacy and numeracy skills individually to avoid and uncover learning gaps.  

The ongoing war has compromised access to quality education for around 71% of Ukrainian children aged 3-17. Moreover, nearly two-thirds of the country’s children are internally displaced, as are 43,000 Ukrainian teachers. 

“It’s difficult to keep the learning process equal,” shares Liudmyla Roman, teacher from Lviv Oblast. “I begin to notice various gaps” she says. 

The assessment covered children aged 6-9 in four regions, including Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, and Kharkiv. The findings indicate that the top test scores were observed in Lviv and Dnipro, whereas the lowest scores were documented in the Zaporizhzhia region. 

“The evaluation will provide an excellent chance to determine how capable our children are and to address any gaps that may exist in a timely manner,” explains Roman, one of the teachers from Teach for Ukraine who will be part of the assessment.   

The evaluation will provide an excellent chance to determine how capable our children are and to address any gaps that may exist in a timely manner.

Disrupted education  

On a frigid December Monday morning in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine, little Eva, 9, is awakened by the shrill alarm clock ringing at 6:30 a.m.  

She carries through her typical morning routine, even though the previous nearly two years have not been about routine at all, but rather about the unexpected, turmoil, and fear, a lot of fear for the coming day.  

She rushes into the kitchen, after donning a few layers of warm clothing that had been meticulously laid on the dark brown chair since last evening. She puffs up the sandwich her mother prepared and pulls out her backpack, stuffed with textbooks, notes, and a colourful pen case.  

On the way to school, Eva is accompanied by her 16-year-old older brother, who attends the same lyceum. The cold seeps deeper into the bones with each step, as snow lies beneath the heavy boots. 

Eva finds her seat in the dimly lit classroom, where worn-out tables and chairs are set up in four rows. As the teacher walks into the class, the children’s hushed whispers reverberate against the peeling white walls.  

The Ukrainian language lesson had just been going for about 25 minutes when a sharp air-alarm pierces the air. Desks are abandoned in a hurried but organized procession.  

Children are led along tight hallways by the low flicker of emergency lights to the shelter’s cold, concrete embrace. 

“In the last year, I don’t remember a week without at least one class being disrupted,” explains Eva. Like most of the Ukrainian children in the country, she has been exposed to hybrid learning since the war began in February 2022. 

Due to the significant risk of bombings and explosions in the area, many of the classes were held online. However, there were certain drawbacks to online education. 

“When there is a persistent shortage of energy and internet connection, it is extremely difficult to attend online lessons,” shares Iryna, Eva’s mother. Teachers and children face several daily power outages, having limited access to online schooling.  

“The early years of elementary school are critical to a child’s education and future brain development,” explains Roman, the teacher from Lviv Oblast.  

“My greatest challenge is to provide common knowledge to every child I teach in an equitable manner, because not everyone has equal resources,” continues Roman. Some of the students may not have access to proper devices, while others may have more blackouts than others, resulting in missed classes. 

“We don’t have a computer; therefore, my two children must access the online classes via phone,” says Eva’s mother.  

As time slows down, Eva and her colleagues spend more than two hours between the dark grey walls of the basement. The teacher strives to hold their attention and gets them through the lessons from the previous days. Other groups of children sit within the same square perimeter. It is difficult to focus.  

That is the reality Ukrainian children face every week, but they keep going with their education. They keep hoping. They keep dreaming about a Ukraine free of air raid sirens and bombs. “I want to be an astrologist, but my greatest wish is for my father to return from war,” concludes nine-year-old Eva.  

To date, World Vision has reached more than 481,000 Ukrainian children inside the country, supporting them with education, mental health, protection, food security, and basic needs services.  

Story and photos by Acting Communications Manager Laurentia Jora