Learning and Teaching in Ukraine:  A Student’s and Teacher’s Thoughts

Tracy M. Mannon & Elena Profatilova

During the 2022-2024 academic years, Tracy taught university students at Kharkiv Humanitarian Pedagogical Academy as a Virtual English Language Educator with English Language Programs, a program of the U.S. Department of State. In this article, she and Helen (Elena), one of her students and an English language educator herself, share the program's impact on them.

Helen’s Thoughts

Attending English classes with Tracy helped me in many ways. The classes improved my English proficiency as a university student and helped me overcome my fear of expressing myself in English. They also helped me get acquainted with American culture and history. Thanks to the courses, I learned about new methodologies and teaching strategies that I can use with my own English learners. All lessons followed the communicative approach. The materials were authentic and adapted to the students’ English levels and teaching backgrounds. I was surprised by the number of communicative activities and the numerous ways students interacted with each other. I often wondered how difficult it was to prepare the lessons.

The ongoing war has greatly affected me. In Ukraine, teaching and learning are challenging due to the war and the lack of reliable electricity and internet. There are charging stations for teachers to power their devices, but they are too expensive for some of us. Most schools in the eastern part of Ukraine conduct classes online. Teachers and students risk their lives by working in shelters or at home. Not all buildings are strong enough to protect teachers and learners. They may die at any time. 

On April 15, 2022, my family had to leave Kharkiv, which is nineteen miles from the Russian border, because of the violent attacks. We took a train to Lviv. From there, we traveled to Svaliava (Zakarpatska oblast). As internal refugees, we have stayed in municipal places such as kindergartens and dormitories. Now, my family and I live in Svaliava in a local dormitory without heating or a stable electricity supply. I use a mobile phone and a tablet to teach English to my students. I am given electricity according to a fixed schedule. As for my own learning, I try my best to improve my English every day.

Tracy’s Thoughts

I have a story to tell, too, but I am a small background figure who had the privilege to work with superheroes - students and educators alike - in Kharkiv. Helen is right in noting that I spent a great deal of time preparing lessons. The world was crumbling around the students, and I wanted to give them my best. On day one, the students made it clear they wanted a “normal class.” I made it my mission to do so. 

I built a safe, welcoming, and comfortable environment where everyone felt at ease, ready to learn and have fun. You may wonder how anyone could have fun during a war. Well, we did! Fun was integral to a trauma-informed classroom built on social-emotional practices. We were all quite good at compartmentalizing, keeping the topic of war out of the classroom. We warmed up with fun icebreakers, participated in movement and brain breaks, practiced short mindfulness activities, used an online coloring activity to destress, wrote additional verses to Tim McGraw’s “Humble and Kind,” played digital hangman (a favorite), all while learning about different methodologies used in American language classrooms, the importance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, literature of the Beat Generation, and numerous other topics. 

To a casual observer, one might think ours was a virtual classroom like any other. That is, until the students started disappearing from and reappearing (if they were lucky) on the screen due to internet issues. Or until a chat message flickered on the screen, telling me a student had to take cover in a local shelter because the sirens were blaring. Or the day a normally upbeat student came to class with swollen eyes, crying about a friend whose family was killed (except for the younger brother) while attending a funeral. When she shared this, I, too, got teary. Killing grieving attendees at a funeral is pure evil. I suggested that she take the time she needed and come back to join us when she was ready. She did, and class continued, though it was not easy. Sadly, the students told me they had grown used to events like these. Here were young adults during the prime of their lives - a time to grow, explore, and question - and death and destruction were now normal. Nonetheless, during our time together, we did our best to put that part of their lives aside.

And yet, like Helen, the students never complained. They were resilient, strong, and positive despite the brutal realities of the war. We, the American virtual educators, were in awe of these spirited young people and the university faculty we worked with. We felt guilty if we complained about anything, quickly learning that we really did not have much to complain about. When we lost electricity in my home for eight hours one day, the whiny Tracy was gone. I thought of my students, opened the front door so the sun could come through the screen door, covered my dogs and myself with blankets, and read until the sun went down. When our well went dry, I poured bottled water into a tiny Dixie cup and took a “shower.” Granted, I did not do it cheerfully, but I did it, thinking of what my students experienced daily. We virtual educators also felt a twinge of guilt every time we clicked to end our Zoom sessions. We knew that we would be safe in our own homes, but that our students would not. 

There is no shortage of pain and suffering in this world. It reaches far beyond Ukraine. We need look no further than our own neighborhoods to see terrified parents afraid of being dragged away by ICE. As teachers, we offer understanding, hope, and kindness to our students and their families. I made sure my Ukrainian students could reach out to me anytime. Some preferred to speak with me one-on-one, outside of class, about their lives. Those were some of the most meaningful conversations I had. During my second year, I turned synchronous lessons into asynchronous ones as well so that those dedicated students who could not attend class could still learn the material and demonstrate their understanding. It added many hours to my prep time, but I wanted to do everything I could to support my students’ learning and mental health. We educators must practice self-care lest we burn ourselves out and get swallowed up by our worries and fears. It is imperative to practice a healthy activity that helps us calm our bodies and tame the thoughts in our heads, whether that is therapy, yoga, meditation, listening to music, or taking a walk in nature with our dogs, my own personal calming activity.

I would like to thank Helen for sharing her thoughts. Helen is one of those students that teachers always remember. She never missed a class unless there was no electricity or internet. She engaged enthusiastically in all classroom activities, asked questions freely, did her best on all her work, and thanked me sincerely at the end of each class. I have confidence that the students will work hard to rebuild their country, using their English skills to communicate with international organizations and companies that support a sovereign and prosperous Ukraine. I have remained in touch with many of the students and educators I worked with. It is simply not possible to walk away from Ukraine and leave it and its courageous people behind. It was a challenging and rewarding teaching experience that I will keep close to my heart forever. 

I will close with a well-known Ukrainian expression, Slava Ukraini! (Should you be curious about it, you can read more here.)

Author bios:

Tracy M. Mannon received her M.A. in Applied Linguistics/TESL from UCLA. She has taught English to kindergarteners through graduate students in the U.S., China, and Switzerland, including 22 years with Fairfax County Public Schools, outside Washington, D.C. From 2022 to 2024, she worked as a Virtual English Language Educator with Ukrainian university students in Kharkiv through English Language Programs, a program of the U.S. Department of State. She may be reached at tracy9396@gmail.com.

Elena (Helen) Profatilova graduated from Kharkiv Humanitarian Pedagogical University in 2022. Her specialization is English Language and Literature. Elena has a Master's in Education and currently teaches English online to Ukrainian students. She may be reached at helenprofatilova94@gmail.com.