Ukrainian refugee children are preparing for exams in Latvia / Article

Currently, 1,842 Ukrainian children of preschool and school age are studying in Latvia. 16 students from Ukraine applied for the secondary school graduation exams in all of Latvia, while 76 students from Ukraine applied for the 9th grade graduation exams. Some of the ninth-graders met in schools in Liepāja chose to take the exams in their native language, others in Latvian.

Anastasija, a student of Liepāja’s Rietumkrasta secondary school: “I will take mathematics in Ukrainian, because Latvian is difficult to take. Ukrainian is easier, because it is my native language.”

Jaroslava, student of Liepāja’s Rietumkrasta Secondary School: “Mathematics in Ukrainian. I will take Latvian language and mathematics.”

Romāns, student of Liepāja’s Rietumkrasta High School: “I chose Latvian because the terms I learned in Latvian I may not know in Ukrainian.”

Anna, student of Raina Secondary School in Liepāja: “The Latvian language will be Latvian and the English language will be Latvian-English. This is because I am in Latvia and I study at a Latvian language school, I speak Latvian at school and the entire learning process is in Latvian.”

Ukrainian students graduating from primary and secondary school have language skills concessions. They can take mathematics in Ukrainian.

Inga Ekuze, the acting head of the Liepāja Education Board, explained that there is another relief available – Ukrainian children can apply for an extension of the time for completing the work, and they also do their written work in a separate room.

Meanwhile, the issue of the legitimacy of educational documents issued in Latvia in Ukraine is still not resolved.

The Ministry of Education and Science emphasized that it also depends on the attitude of the Ukrainian education system towards this issue.

“It will also be arranged, and we also have a political bloc in the plan, which needs to be discussed together with the Ukrainian embassy,” explained Kristīne Niedre-Lathere, deputy state secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

From the next school year, all refugee children from Ukraine will probably have to study in the Latvian education system as well. To provide education for all Ukrainian refugee children, more than 2.3 million euros will be needed from September to December, and more than 4.3 million next year.

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