Three weeks after the beginning of the Russian war of aggression, 1,500 schoolchildren who fled Ukraine are now sitting in their local school classes, according to the APA from the Ministry of Education. There are 800 in Vienna alone. Now they should learn German as quickly as possible.
Wherever possible, separate German remedial classes for the Ukrainian children and young people should first be set up at the schools so that they can follow the regular lessons as quickly as possible. After all, it is a large group of career changers who are new in the middle of the school year and who also need specific offers, according to the justification of the ministry. Unlike other children in German remedial classes, Ukrainian schoolchildren are all literate and often speak English. The pedagogical concepts are currently being prepared.
In Vienna, three additional new-in-Vienna classes at elementary schools and five at AHS locations will be opened for Ukrainian students on Monday, the education department said to the APA. However, learning German will not initially be the focus. After the experiences of the children in the past few weeks, it is first of all important to get them into the system and give them normality. Only later will it be a matter of looking at where the children stand in terms of knowledge, according to a spokesman for the education department. To support the students, Ukrainian teachers with a good knowledge of German are also to be hired. Eight positions are currently being sought.
Polaschek praised “great willingness to help”
In any case, the support from school administrations, teaching staff and classmates for the Ukrainian refugees in the schools is great, said Minister of Education Martin Polaschek (ÖVP) after visiting an elementary school and an AHS in Klosterneuburg (Lower Austria) in a statement to the APA. “It’s nice to see how willing people are to help in Austria.” At the high school that the minister attended on Thursday, a system was set up in which classmates act as buddies to make it easier for young Ukrainians to arrive.
In order to support the refugees on their way into the Austrian school system in as uncomplicated a manner as possible, according to the department, special contact points have been set up at the education departments. In addition, the most important information on the Austrian education system is currently being prepared and translated into Ukrainian and English so that families can find the right points of contact in the system.
Source: Nachrichten
