The interview of the Ukrainian refugees' Finnish teacher Henna Aikio

Name: Henna Aikio

Position and organization: Finnish teacher, Oulu Adult High School

Could you please tell us (to the extent possible): the number of schools receiving Ukrainian refugees in your city and in which level of education; and the number of students welcomed in your city, your school and your class.

There are 21 young people in my class. There are currently 20 adult Ukrainians in the adult group and approximately 8 in the new group. So, in the adult high school there are about 50 in total.

How did it happen? What was the reaction of your school when the first Ukrainian refugees arrived in your city? Is there any special requirement for them to be enrolled?

Adult high school has been teaching Finnish as a second language and students with a refugee background since the early 2000s, so the situation was not new and special in that way. I know that the first groups started quite quickly last spring. This fall, new students have been accepted as applications come in. The newest group started at the beginning of October. 

Are the students well integrated in your school? Did the language barrier and their experience escaping home affect their integration? Is there any psychosocial support provided to the refugee students?

Oulu adult high school has a school curator and a psychologist. I have not directed my own students to their services yet because many are residents of the reception center and get the services they need through that. We have established our own groups for Ukrainians, so the language barrier is mostly only between students and teachers, not so much between students. It seems that some young people have difficulty getting motivated to study - understandably so.

What type of pedagogy did you use with the refugee students and how do you evaluate it? What practice and experience could you share? Could you provide examples of good practice that you are aware of (maybe from other schools)?

This fall, I have considered my main principle with young people to be that I would like them to have a safe and comfortable time at school. We play a lot of different language games as a counterbalance to studying the textbook (e.g. Wordwall, Blooket, Bingobaker) and I try to favor functional methods anyway.

How do Ukrainian students stay connected to their country and culture? What approach have you adopted to support them, to help them maintain links with their culture and language? 

At least in my class Ukrainian is spoken daily and I never forbid its use. From time to time I ask what a word is in Ukrainian, or if there is a similar phenomenon in the structure of the language in Ukrainian than in Finnish.

Has your school recruited Ukrainian teacher? If so, how is the experience working with them?

No, it hasn’t.

Any information about accommodation, home offered or sponsored by Finnish families? – (free response)

No information.

Could you recall anything said by your refugee students that you want to share with us?

I remember an example from the early autumn grouping day, which we organized together with the Oulu City youth services and the congregation. The students painted together, the topic was free. As a result of the collaboration, a really nice painting of national symbols in Ukrainian colors was created. It was moving to watch how homesickness and certainly otherwise difficult feelings were channeled into a beautiful art work by joyfully making it together.

Henna Aikio

Oulu Adult High School

Class teacher, Finnish language and literature, Finnish as a second language

Preparatory Education for Degree Education 3, Homeroom Teacher

Despite the enormous fear and worry, the Ukrainian students focus on the positive and protect their Finnish friends from the distress of the war

Anna (15) and Olena (21) came to Finland one month after Russia’s attack in Ukraine in February 2022. For a couple of weeks, they were enormously stressed out and shocked about the situation in their home country. At the same time, they recall that they were extremely relieved they were welcomed to such a peaceful and secure country as Finland. Accompanied by their family members, they settled down at the Reception Center in Oulu and enrolled in Preparatory Education for Degree Education at the Oulu Adult High School. There they are now studying Finnish, Swedish, Geography and Math, and hope to make the most of this time to educate themselves in the best possible way and then later return for the rebuilding of their home country.

Brave and determined Ukrainian students Olena and Anna visited Laanila High School on Tuesday. Concern for their homeland is immense. However, by focusing on their own studies, they can later participate in the reconstruction of their home country in the best possible way. Warm thanks from both of them to Finland, which has offered them a good and safe place to live and study.

After seven months, with their regular daily schedules, the Finnish way of life has started rolling. It helps them to adapt, keep calm and find a purpose for their life. Anna says that by now they have almost got used to hearing about the war and the attacks in the Ukrainian cities. However, both girls admit that the horrible feeling of being greatly distressed and shocked returned the other day when Russia suddenly dropped 83 missiles on civilian targets in Ukraine, killed many people, drove thousands of them back into their shelters and knocked out electricity. Communication with their father, uncle and friends in Ukraine has been challenging after that.

The Ukrainian language sounds similar to Slovak and Polish. Nowadays Anna and Olena refuse to speak Russian with their family and friends even though it has been their first language since childhood. Now, along with their family members, they prefer and insist on always speaking Ukrainian to each other. The use of Ukrainian gives them a stronger feeling of defending their cultural heritage and their beloved home country.

Along with the Ukrainian refugees, the reception center in Oulu accommodates a few Russian refugees, too. Anna and Olena prefer not to have anything to do with them. They can’t really trust any of them and they try to avoid having contacts with them as much as possible. In this situation, they say, it is essential not to care about them at all.

For the Finnish students and teachers Olena says they shouldn’t worry about the war in Ukraine too much as it’s not good for your health. Ukraine will go on fighting and they themselves will surely worry, but they are confident that with the help of the Western world Ukraine will win the war, sooner or later.