[Ukraine] Launched “Smart Class,” an online learning support program for Ukrainian refugee children
Peace Winds Japan (PWJ) has launched an online learning program called “Smart Class,” for Ukrainian children who have evacuated to Moldova.
As of the end of May, a total of about 250 Ukrainians had fled to the shelters covered by the Peace Winds class, about 100 of whom are children.
Many of these refugee children are not attending school in Moldova in hopes of returning home to Ukraine as soon as they are able to do so.
Many children are taking online classes of Ukrainian schools on smartphones at the evacuation centers, but sometimes this is difficult due to the nature of the environment which is not conducive to learning.
To help solve this problem, Peace Winds Japan has partnered with a local organization, Phoenix, and the international NGO Smart Aid, and launched the Smart Class project, which provides computers and sets up computer rooms inside the shelters, creating a quiet space for Ukrainian children to study online.
Although schools in Ukraine and Moldova are on summer break until the end of August, Smart Class is available to children as a summer school program. In the future, students will also be able to take classes in English and Romanian, which will likely to be necessary for life outside Ukraine.
Many of the children have commented that they enjoy participating in Smart Class because they do not have the opportunity to use computers at the shelter.
Thank you to our local partners, and we look forward to continuing to maintain close relationships with our Ukrainian beneficiaries to best meet their needs.