Education Under Russian Occupation: A Key Battleground in Ukraine

Education has emerged as a critical battleground in the ongoing war in Ukraine, with Russian occupation authorities systematically targeting schools and universities in occupied territories. Since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, educational institutions have been primary targets, not just for administrative control but as a means to consolidate a new political order, legitimize the occupation, and advance the Russification of the local population.

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Schools and universities have become one of the primary targets of Russian occupation authorities in the territories under their control.

Teachers and education professionals who lived under occupation shared harrowing accounts of how Russian authorities sought to reshape the educational landscape. The objective extended beyond restoring a semblance of normality; it aimed at influencing the formation of political and national identities, particularly among children and adolescents who are more vulnerable. This strategy involved mandating the singing of the Russian national anthem, participating in ceremonies with Russian flags, watching speeches by Vladimir Putin, and attending lectures by military personnel. Military-patriotic activities were also introduced for young people.

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Their objective was not merely to restore an appearance of administrative normality. Control over education would help consolidate the new political order, legitimize the occupation, and promote the Russification of the local population.

Simultaneously, the Ukrainian language was significantly reduced or entirely removed from school curricula, alongside subjects related to Ukrainian history and culture. In their place, students were taught narratives aligned with the Kremlin's official propaganda. This systematic suppression of Ukrainian identity and the imposition of Russian narratives raise serious concerns about cultural genocide, a concept defined as a coordinated plan to destroy a group as such, as articulated by Raphael Lemkin.

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In schools controlled by Russia, Ukrainian children were required to regularly sing the Russian national anthem, participate in ceremonies featuring Russian flags, watch speeches by Vladimir Putin, and attend lectures delivered by military personnel.

The research, conducted with assistance from Resilient Ukraine and published in an Oxford University Press journal, highlights the profound impact of these policies. Documented by organizations like the Centre of Civil Education "Almenda," these transformations reveal a deliberate effort to erase Ukrainian identity and replace it with a Russian one, turning educational institutions into instruments of ideological control and cultural subjugation.

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Amid the atrocities of the Second World War, Raphael Lemkin, who coined the term genocide, defined it as a coordinated plan of actions aimed at the destruction of a group as such.