Aneta Slowik

The project analyzes the educational needs, challenges, and lived experience of Ukrainian refugee children that have moved to the Loiret department in France. After the Russian invasion we have been witnessing a huge wave of Ukrainian refugees, most of which women and children. This is a completely new situation for Ukrainians themselves and for the European Union as well. The EU was not prepared for this wave and initial help was given by NGOs and individuals. 

The project will study the situation of Ukrainian refugee children relying on the research methods of biographical narrative analysis and participant observation. The plan is to visit 25 primary schools in the Loiret department, where narrative interviews will be conducted with Ukrainian children aged 6-12, teachers, school heads, and parents. Conducting narrative-biographical interviews provides an effective avenue to grasping and investigating people’s biographical experience. This method deals with the problem how individuals construct subjective meanings and senses of their biographical experiences, including professional experiences. 
I have defined my specific objectives as providing answers to the following questions: How do Ukrainian refugee children describe their migration experience within their family and school environment, in their neighborhoods, and to their peers? How do they adapt and integrate in their schools, neighborhoods, and to the local conditions? Who helps them in this process? What hinders them in this process? What role do teachers, parents, and peers play in this process?

The research project will produce recommendations for practitioners, researchers, teachers, head teachers, and school supervisors from the Loiret department working with Ukrainian refugee children.  It will be carried out at ÉRCAÉ EA 7493 at University of Orléans under the supervision of Prof. Philippe Bourdier and in collaboration with Dr. Véronique Francis.