Conference Agenda
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04 SES 07 B: Inclusive Education in Times of Crisis
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04. Inclusive Education
Paper Transforming Uncertainty into Stability: Radical Hope, Capabilities and the Reconfiguration of Teachers’ Pedagogical Practices Amidst War in Ukraine 1: Kryvyi Rih State Pedagogical University, Ukraine; 2: Örebro University, Sweden; 3: Bogdan Khmelnitsky Melitopol State Pedagogical University, Ukraine Presenting Author:Since the onset of the full-scale war in 2022, the education system in Ukraine has undergone a profound transformation. Schools have been operating under conditions of chronic uncertainty, marked by continuous shifts between online, offline, and shelter-based (underground) modes of instruction. Previous studies highlight the multidimensional challenges faced by education during the war. Velykodna (2023) demonstrates that primary schools in Kryvyi Rih experienced extreme pressure due to the rapid reorganisation of timetables, the transition to distance learning, and the provision of crisis support to students and families. At the same time, teachers’ psycho-emotional resilience and the level of institutional support emerged as key determinants of educational continuity. Chepak and Klymenko (2022) extend this perspective by identifying systemic risks - organisational, staffing, and economic - that intensify children’s socio-emotional needs and restrict access to quality education in secondary schooling. Generally, for all school systems, digital inequality has further exacerbated educational vulnerability. According to Ovcharuk et al. (2023), pandemic-related restrictions combined with wartime disruptions significantly deepened disparities in access to online learning: more than 54,000 teachers identified unstable internet connectivity, insufficient ICT resources, and low levels of digital competence as critical barriers. Similarly, Budnyk and Sajdak-Burska (2023) argue that pre-service teachers in Ukraine and Poland remain insufficiently prepared to support children in crisis contexts, particularly in terms of psycho-emotional stress, communication, and motivation in war and post-war conditions. This study examines how schooling in Ukraine has been reconfigured under conditions of full-scale war, conceptualising education as a social institution operating within a prolonged emergency rather than a temporary disruption. The research examines how school education in Ukraine adapts to the conditions of full-scale war, with a particular focus on children’s real cognitive, social, and emotional capabilities. By focusing on teachers working with internally displaced children, the study aims to contribute to international debates on education in emergencies, digital inequality, and psycho-emotional distress in conflict-affected contexts. The study is guided by the following research questions:
The theoretical framework of this study integrates the concept of radical hope with the capability approach. Radical hope (Lear, 2006) provides a lens through which education can be understood as a resource for restoring agency and collective subjectivity in contexts of mass trauma and institutional disruptions. The capability approach (Nussbaum, 2011) offers an ethical and analytical framework for evaluating education beyond formal access, focusing instead on children’s real opportunities to achieve valued ways of being and doing. In armed conflict settings, education systems may continue to function nominally, yet war profoundly constrains students’ ability to convert available resources into meaningful learning and development.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used Guided by the outlined theoretical perspectives, this study adopted a qualitative design to capture teachers’ narratives of schooling under wartime conditions. Data were generated in 2025 through semi-structured interviews (Bryman et al., 2022) with school staff from Kryvyi Rih and Zaporizhzhia, two cities close to the frontline. The sample included one principal, 18 teachers, two teacher assistants, two psychologists, three speech therapists, and two occupational therapists. Participants were recruited through a combination of targeted and accessible channels, including information letters distributed via municipal school corporate email networks, social media announcements targeting private schools and international NGOs involved in schooling and tutoring, and direct invitations facilitated by the Department for Children and Youth Affairs of Kryvyi Rih. This multi-channel strategy supported the inclusion of participants with diverse professional roles and institutional backgrounds. Interviews were conducted in Ukrainian, either face-to-face or online, and lasted between 40 minutes and one hour. The interview guide was structured around four interconnected domains: (1) an introduction clarifying the project aims, ethical framework, and focus on students; (2) demographic information capturing participants’ educational and professional backgrounds; (3) students’ needs, addressing academic, psychosocial, and social adjustment challenges; and (4) professionals’ realities, examining teacher competencies, training needs, school collaboration, and engagement with parents. This structure enabled the integration of teachers’ lived experiences of teaching across online, offline, and shelter-based settings with their observations of children’s behaviour, educational progress, and social participation. The semi-structured format combined a predefined thematic framework with methodological flexibility, allowing participants to introduce unanticipated issues and personal interpretations. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Ethics Committee of the Methodological Council of Kryvyi Rih State Pedagogical University (January 2025, No. 6). Participants received full information about the study and their right to withdraw at any time; both written and verbal informed consent were obtained. Interviews were conducted in a supportive setting, with psychosocial assistance available if needed, and interviewers were trained to respond sensitively to signs of distress. All data were anonymised during transcription and securely stored on encrypted university servers. To mitigate power asymmetries between researchers and participants, the voluntary nature of participation was emphasised, and evaluative language was deliberately avoided. Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings The study indicates that school staff transform the educational environment into a space of future-oriented stability by establishing predictable routines and innovative pedagogical practices. By developing security routines in general class management for transition classes to shelters, school staff reduce trauma and create a sense of normalcy despite external chaos for children with special educational needs. Radical hope is manifested through the collective professional growth of staff; teachers actively support one another using digital skills - such as software for visualisation material and AI-generated music in learning languages - shifting the institutional focus from mere survival to creative evolution. The educational environment significantly influences the capabilities of students with special educational needs and displaced backgrounds: (1) Enhancing factors include the philosophy of inclusive classes: all children in such settings tend to be more tolerant of diverse stress-related behavioural reactions. This inclusivity fosters a culture of mutual peer support that benefits all students during air raids. (2) Limiting factors are critical barriers that remain, primarily the internal constraints of psychological distress. For many students, the fear of bombardment creates a mental block that limits their capability to focus or engage, even when physical infrastructure is provided. Additionally, technical gaps like inconsistent internet and the lack of private spaces for psychological support in shelters restrict the full participation of the most vulnerable students. Ultimately, the research demonstrates that while the war threatens educational continuity, the deliberate adaptation of the school environment partially restores and expands students' capabilities through a resilient, hope-driven pedagogical framework. The limitations of this study include its regional focus and its focus on the first years of the war. Nevertheless, the findings are promising and point towards future research directions, including how the initial radical hope observed in teachers evolves into long-term systemic change or, conversely, leads to professional burnout as the conflict persists. References Bryman, Alan, Edward Bell, Jennifer Reck, and Jessica Fields. 2022. Social research methods. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. Budnyk, Oksana, and Agnieszka Sajdak-Burska. 2023. “Pedagogical Support for Ukrainian War-Affected Children: Future Teachers’ Readiness to Work in Crisis. Comparative Analysis of Research Results in Ukraine and Poland.” Journal of Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University 10 (3): 16–31. https://doi.org/10.15330/jpnu.10.3.16-31. Chepak, Viktoriia, and Olha Klymenko. 2022. “Ukrainian Education in the Conditions of War: Challenges and Risks.” In EDULEARN22 Proceedings, 2646–56. Valencia: IATED. https://doi.org/10.21125/edulearn.2022.0678. Lear, Jonathan. 2006. Radical hope: Ethics in the face of cultural devastation. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Nussbaum, Martha C. 2011. Creating Capabilities: The Human Development Approach. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Ovcharuk, Oksana, Iryna Ivaniuk, and Maryna Leshchenko. 2023. “Impact of School Lockdown on Access to Online Instruction during the War in Ukraine.” European Journal of Education 58 (4): 561–74. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.12589. Velykodna, Mariayna, Nataliia Mishaka, Zoya Miroshnyk, and Vlad Deputatov. 2023. “Primary Education in Wartime: How the Russian Invasion Affected Ukrainian Teachers and the Educational Process in Kryvyi Rih.” Revista Romaneasca pentru Educatie Multidimensionala 15 (1): 285–309. https://doi.org/10.18662/rrem/15.1/697. 04. Inclusive Education
Paper Predicting Post-Earthquake Inclusive Education in Rural Areas 1: Dicle University, Türkiye; 2: Kırklareli University, Türkiye; 3: Not affiliated with an institution. Presenting Author:On February 6, 2023, at 04:17 a.m., an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 occurred in Turkiye’s province of Kahramanmaras, with its epicenter in the Pazarcik district. On the same day, at 13:24, another earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 struck, with its epicenter in the Elbistan district of Kahramanmaras. These earthquakes, which affected 11 provinces, impacted many social institutions, including education. It can be anticipated that the impacts of disasters on education affect individuals at different levels and in different ways. This situation brings to the fore the issue of “good education for all after disasters,” or in other words, “post-disaster inclusive education,” even though individuals are affected by disasters to varying degrees. Inclusivity refers to ensuring everyone’s access to and full participation in educational environments and subsequently engaging them in an appropriate and high-quality educational process that addresses their needs (Butakor et al., 2020; Shaeffer, 2019; Stubbs, 2008). This concept is also related to how communities respond to change and diversity (Armstrong, 2008). Considering that disasters alter educational environments and, in particular, students’ needs, post-disaster inclusive education becomes even more important. Studies in this area indicate that, in the context of inclusivity in post-disaster educational processes, girls in terms of gender, refugees/those under temporary protection in terms of citizenship status, and individuals living in poverty in terms of socioeconomic status become disadvantaged groups (Basnet, 2020; Hermida, 2011; Lai et al., 2019; Nguyen & Minh Pham, 2018; Yavuz & Mizrak, 2016). As these groups may become highly marginalized during such processes, there is a need for more research and data to better understand how their post-disaster resilience can be enhanced most effectively (Hoffmann & Blecha, 2020). Moreover, when factors such as limitations regarding girls’ education (Çaliskan, 2007), constraints on refugees’ access to logistical resources (Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies, 2014), and higher poverty rates in rural areas compared to urban areas (Yasar & Tasar, 2019) are taken into account, it can be argued that examining post-earthquake inclusive education processes in rural areas is particularly necessary. In the present study, we aimed to identify the variables that predict post-earthquake inclusive education in rural areas, considering earthquakes as a type of disaster. In this context, we consider schools’ post-earthquake disaster management skills to be one of the positive predictors of post-disaster inclusive education in rural areas, as these skills can facilitate access to education in emergencies (Sinclair, 2002). Another positive predictor is expected to be the Socio-Economic Development Index (SEDI) of the districts to which rural areas are administratively affiliated, because inclusivity requires engagement with broader social and economic conditions of society (Barton, 1997). Given that knowing students is crucial for inclusive education (Çelik, 2022) and that inclusive education requires a long-term process (Ainscow, 2005), we also anticipate that the continuity of administrative staff and teachers before and after the earthquake will emerge as positive predictors in this study. We hypothesize that the level of disruption to classes after the earthquake will negatively predict post-disaster inclusive education in rural areas, because students’ presence at school is highly important for their inclusion in many respects, particularly academic achievement (Halinen & Järvinen, 2008). Finally, we assume that distance from the nearest earthquake epicenter may positively explain inclusive education in rural areas, as it can influence the level of destruction caused by the earthquake. In other words, we expect that inclusive education efforts will increase as the distance from the nearest earthquake epicenter increases, because less destruction is likely to occur farther from the epicenter, thereby enabling inclusive education practices to be implemented more easily. Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used In this study, we employed a correlational survey design. Rural schools located in the provinces of Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaras, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Şanliurfa that were affected by the February 6 earthquakes constituted the population of the study. We used cluster sampling to determine the schools to be included in the research. Accordingly, we included a total of 965 schools from these regions in the study. To collect the data, we developed the Post-Earthquake Inclusive Education Scale (PEIES) and the Post-Earthquake Disaster Management Scale (PEDMS). According to the results of the Exploratory Factor Analysis, both the PEIES and the PEDMS are single-factor scales, explaining 83% and 81% of the total variance, respectively. The results of the Confirmatory Factor Analysis showed that the goodness-of-fit indices were at acceptable and excellent levels. We calculated Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients as .97 for both scales. All these findings indicate that the measurements obtained using these scales are valid and reliable (Buyukozturk, 2012). In addition to the PEIES and the PEDMS, we prepared a School Information Form (SIF). SIF contained questions regarding administrative staff continuity, teacher continuity, and the level of disruption to lessons. We obtained the SEDIs from data provided by the Republic of Turkiye Ministry of Industry and Technology and determined the distances of the villages to the nearest earthquake epicenter using the OpenRouteService Application Programming Interface. We analyzed the data using multiple linear regression analysis. Within the scope of the assumptions of this analysis (Pallant, 2007), we achieved an adequate sample size. We examined outliers in each variable using boxplots and removed cases containing these values from the dataset. Because the correlations among the predictor variables were at most .257 (< .70), multicollinearity did not pose a problem. Since the skewness and kurtosis coefficients of all variables ranged between −1.5 and +1.5, the data exhibited a normal distribution. In addition, the scatter plot showed values remaining between −3 and +3 and forming an approximate rectangular shape, indicating that the assumption of multivariate normality in terms of residuals was met. The normal P–P plot formed a diagonal line, indicating that the assumption of linearity was satisfied. This study was supported by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye (TUBITAK) under the 1001 – Scientific and Technological Research Projects Support Program, within the scope of the “Special Call for Universities in the Earthquake Region – BINBIRCABA.” Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or Findings According to the results obtained from the study, post-earthquake disaster management, the Socio-Economic Development Index (SEDI), continuity of administrative staff, continuity of teachers, the level of disruption to classes, and distance from the nearest earthquake epicenter collectively explained 86.8% of the variance in post-earthquake inclusive education. The resulting model was statistically significant. However, the SEDI and the level of disruption to classes did not significantly predict post-earthquake inclusive education. Post-earthquake disaster management, continuity of administrative staff, and continuity of teachers emerged as positive and significant predictors. In contrast, distance from the nearest earthquake epicenter was a negative and significant predictor. Within this model, post-earthquake disaster management was the strongest predictor among all variables (β = .93). We interpret these findings to suggest that schools capable of demonstrating post-earthquake disaster management skills, even under highly adverse conditions, are able to create a foundation for an inclusive educational environment for their students in the post-earthquake period. References Ainscow, M. (2005). Understanding the development of inclusive education system. Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, 7(3), 5-20. http://repositorio.ual.es/bitstream/handle/10835/746/Art_7_109_eng.pdf?sequence=1 Armstrong, F. (2008). Inclusive education. In G. Richards, and F. Armstrong, (Eds). Key issues for teaching assistants: Working in diverse and inclusive classrooms. Routledge. Basnet, B. K. (2020). Earthquake and its impacts on education: Aftermath Nepal quake 2015. The European Educational Researcher, 3(3), 101-118. https://doi.org/10.31757/euer.332 Butakor, P. K., Ampadu, E., & Suleiman, S. J. (2020). Analysis of Ghanaian teachers’ attitudes toward inclusive education. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 24:11, 1237-1252, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2018.1512661 Buyukozturk, Ş. (2012). Sosyal bilimler icin veri analizi el kitabi. Pegem Akademi. Çelik, Ç. (2022). Recognizing and misrecognizing: inclusive education, schools, and ethnicity. Journal of Sociological Research, 25(2), 146-168. https://doi.org/10.18490/sosars.1111340 Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies. (2014). Suriye’ye komsu ulkelerde Suriyeli multecilerin durumu: Bulgular, sonuclar ve oneriler. http://www.madde14.org/images/e/e5/OrsamSuriyeKomsu2014.pdf Halinen, I., & Järvinen, R. (2008). Towards inclusive education: the case of Finland. Prospects, 38(1), 77-97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-008-9061-2 Hermida, P. ( 2011). The long-term effect of natural disasters: health and education in Guatemala after the 1976 earthquake. Fifth Annual PopPov Conference on Population, Reproductive Health, and Economic Development. https://ssrn.com/abstract=1845910 Hoffmann, R., & Blecha, D. (2020). Education and disaster vulnerability in Southeast Asia: Evidence and policy implications. Sustainability, 12(4), 1401. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12041401 Lai, B. S., Esnard, A. M., Wyczalkowski, C., Savage, R., & Shah, H. (2019). Trajectories of school recovery after a natural disaster: Risk and protective factors. Risk, hazards & crisis in public policy, 10(1), 32-51. https://doi.org/10.1002/rhc3.12158 Nguyen, C. V., & Minh Pham, N. (2018). The impact of natural disasters on children's education: Comparative evidence from Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam. Review of Development Economics, 22(4), 1561-1589. https://doi.org/10.1111/rode.12406 Pallant, J. (2007). SPSS survival manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS for windows third edition. Berkshire: Open University Press. Shaeffer, S. (2019). Inclusive education: A prerequisite for equity and social justice. Asia Pacific Education Review, 20(2), 181-192. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-019-09598-w Sinclair, M. (2002). Planning education in and after emergencies https://www.iiep.unesco.org/en/publication/planning-education-and-after-emergencies Stubbs, S. (2008). Inclusive education. Where there are few resources. Oslo, The Atlas Alliance Publ. https://www.academia.edu/download/37729926/Stubbs_2008_IE_few_resources_.pdf Yasar, S., & Tasar, M. O. (2019). Conceptual framework of poverty and the impacts of anti-poverty policies in Turkey. The Journal of Social Economic Research, 19(38), 118-144. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/844678 Yavuz, O., & Mizrak, S. (2016). Education of school-age children in emergencies: The case of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Goc Dergisi, 3(2), 175-199. https://doi.org/10.33182/gd.v3i2.578 | ||