PROFESSIONAL RESILIENCE OF EDUCATORS IN UKRAINIAN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS DURING THE WAR: PATHWAYS FOR SUPPORT AND DEVELOPMENT
Authors: Tashkinova Oksana , Ponomaryova Ludmila 
Published: December 2024

This article explores the profound impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on Ukraine’s higher education system, with a particular focus on educators and their ability to maintain effectiveness in an environment marked by continuous stress and uncertainty. The war has created unprecedented challenges for educators, not only disrupting the traditional educational process but also affecting their psycho-emotional state. Educators are now required to navigate a complex and rapidly changing landscape where the physical and psychological effects of war are ever-present, making resilience a critical factor for their professional survival and success. The article delves into the psycho-emotional well-being of educators, examining the stresses they face in wartime, including the trauma associated with the conflict, the uncertainty of the future, and the pressure to maintain academic standards under duress. A significant portion of the article is dedicated to the analysis of how educators can build professional resilience through targeted professional development programs. These programs are designed to support educators by enhancing their teaching skills, maintaining their psycho-emotional equilibrium, and helping them to adapt the educational process to the extreme conditions of war. In particular, the article presents an original professional development program titled «Resilient Teaching During the War: Course Design, Time Management, and Techniques to Improve Psychological Well-being». This program was developed specifically for educators in Ukraine’s higher education institutions and was piloted from April to June 2024. The program focuses on equipping educators with practical tools for managing stress, adjusting their teaching methods to wartime realities, and maintaining a sense of stability in the classroom despite the external chaos caused by the war.The key outcomes of this program reveal that participation in the training sessions significantly improved educators’ capacity to adapt the educational process to the rapidly evolving conditions of war. Educators who underwent the training demonstrated an increased ability to handle stress, manage their time effectively, and apply new, innovative teaching strategies that are better suited to the challenges posed by the war. Moreover, the training contributed to an overall improvement in the psycho-emotional well-being of participants, which in turn positively influenced their professional performance and their interactions with students. This underscores the importance of providing educators with psycho-emotional support and resources to cope with the extreme pressures of teaching during a military conflict.In conclusion, the research emphasizes that professional development programs tailored to the needs of educators in war-torn regions are essential for fostering both professional and personal resilience. Such programs should prioritize not only the development of teaching skills but also offer robust support systems for managing stress and trauma. Furthermore, they should provide educators with innovative pedagogical methods that are flexible enough to be adapted to the changing demands of teaching in a conflict zone. The article argues that investing in the resilience and well-being of educators is not only crucial for maintaining the quality of education during the war but also for ensuring the long-term recovery and stability of Ukraine’s higher education system in the post-war period.