Dear friends,
As we gather here to discuss safety of children, we cannot forget that our most important collective effort needs be stopping the terrorist aggression against Ukraine. We witness almost every day the war crimes when Russia is bombing schools, playgrounds and hospitals. We cannot rest until the children deported to Russia are returned to the families.
Our next task is building a future where such aggression is impossible. I believe that the key is in education that builds empathy and emotional resilience. Therefore, I will focus today on psychological safety in education.
In Estonia, with its excellent results in education, we have noticed that the outcomes on being happy at school are more modest. Mental health issues among young people are on the rise and we recognise it as the biggest challenge for our society.
We take it seriously to give our children a safe learning environment because this supports everything else. A brain that is anxious or stressed, is not capable of learning new things.
We have strong initiatives that reduce bullying. We strive to give better access to psychological help. Our start-up companies, for example Triumf Health and Clanbeat, have developed new technological tools that also support mental well-being of young people.
We explore the potential of mindfulness in reducing stress and anxiety. The programme Vaikuseminutid has trained many classes to hold a minute of silence. This simple thing will help students to relax and gain focus before starting the important work of learning.
Teachers – and more importantly, parents – are being trained to be able to notice mental health issues and provide support. We cannot rely on single initiatives but need to have a systematic approach, with a number of evidence-based programmes.
All these help to develop psycho-social skills: managing emotions and understanding ourselves and other people better. These are part of the new leadership skills.
We also want to offer all of this to the Ukrainian students in Estonia. There are over 9000 Ukrainian students who attend school in Estonia. Our policy has been to make them part of the local community from day one. The sense of support and belonging will make them feel safe. This way they also have access to all the benefits that our own children have, including informal education which I consider very important. Playing football or playing music together helps to cope with trauma.
Naturally, there are also more specific initiatives. Already on September 1, 2022 two new schools for war refugees opened their doors in Tallinn. We have set up a Ukrainian-language school psychologist helpline, supported children and youth camps where Ukrainian children can build up connection to their peers from Estonia.
The children we educate today are the future of Ukraine – we know they are eager to go back home and rebuild their country, and we fully respect and do our best to support that. We also want to reduce stress of students and parents by assuring that their studies are recognised when they return.
Let me also confirm that Estonia is dedicated to support the re-building of the education system in Ukraine, we have already started to do so in Zhytomyr region, and we are ready to contribute with our experiences of education reforms.
But let us now hear directly from one of the students who came to Estonia. Heorhii is from Kyiv and is currently studying in Tartu University.
Thank you!
