Interview 6. Empires End Badly. Nataliia Dobrianska
Teacher Nataliia Dobrianska tells us how to draw historical parallels while making camouflage nets and varenyky (Ukrainian dumplings) for the military.
With the outbreak of the war with russia, the lives of Ukrainian teachers and educators have changed not only in eastern Ukraine, where they are forced to work in the most difficult conditions. Teachers living in western Ukraine also face many challenges, including teaching students who are scattered all over the world, and helping their communities. Nataliia Dobrianska, a history and law teacher and consultant at the Center for Professional Development of Educators in Lviv, tells her story.
Nataliia points to history and the skills this discipline can provide: “You have to learn history in order not to repeat mistakes and understand what’s been stolen and what belongs to you.. You’ll also be able to expose the stupidity of an opponent who doesn’t know history,”- says the teacher. Nataliia reminds us that empires always end, and fall, and we will win.
Leave or stay
It would have been easy for me to leave Ukraine on the first day of the war. My son was still 17 then, and I didn’t need to seek asylum, because my family was waiting for me. My relatives live 200 km away from the border, in Europe. They prepared lodgings, bought food and spent a week trying to persuade me to evacuate. I didn’t go, and I don’t regret it. Here I continue to fulfil myself. I wouldn’t have been able to do it there. Now, I know for sure that I’m resilient. I didn’t give up and found the strength, the resources, the ability to move on and to lead.
The magic push
My inspiration came from my children who moved into my house. I was spending all my time reading the news. I caught myself sitting and hovering for hours in any corner where there was an outlet. If it weren’t for the kids, I probably wouldn’t have come out of there, turning into a zombie.
My children, though adults, were constantly reminding me of their needs and then I realized that I was responsible for this whole team I was living with, and I switched my attention from the phone to the kids. Then, while walking the dog, they became interested in the topic of war. We were walking and I was telling them something interesting – first to my daughters, then my son and son-in-law joined us. They told me to stop watching the news all day. Nothing will change from nervous scrolling through social media or news sites, and I’ll just drive myself into a dead end. My children gave me a “magic push” which made me realize that I was needed elsewhere and could fulfil myself in a different way.
Historical parallels
I have been teaching the topic of World War II at school for 22 years. Until February 24, we used to analyze it in general; there was nothing to compare those events to. It happened so that just a week before the war, we started talking about the background of World War II, and I turned to the books – Secret Diplomacy and History of Diplomacy, where I found information about German and Soviet diplomacy. I found a lot of parallels and similarities between World War II and the current war. So I kept repeating – this has already happened. There is nothing new happening now, except new weapons.
Of course, we remember how World War II ended, and, logically, it will be the same this time. It is just that the price of responsibility, as well as the consequences, will be different, and not only for those directly involved and participating in the war. There will be a global reassessment of relations between countries and security, as there was after World Wars I and II.
A former student once wrote to me. She’s a 30-year-old doctor. She reminded me, as I had told her in class, that empires go through certain phases of development and then fall apart, so she is waiting for that. After reading this, I cried, but at the same time, I was pleased that an adult could remember such details from school. If she wrote that to me, I’m in the right place and do my job well.
Unfortunately, we weren’t lucky enough to have such a neighbour. We’ve had barbarians in different eras but let’s remember – barbarians have always ended badly.
Lessons between air raid alerts
I remember on February 24, we were planning a day of distance learning. I had my second class on the schedule, and I was hoping to get some sleep. I woke up because a man was saying something and he wouldn’t stop talking. I didn’t realize who was muttering in my room. It turned out that it was an air raid alert, reporting that the war had begun.
The kids started texting that they couldn’t attend the lesson, but I was surprised because a dozen pupils were waiting for me on Zoom. We talked. They probably needed something to calm them down, or it was a desire to get back on track.
Nowadays, the learning process has become better. At the school where I teach, since September, we have worked out algorithms that are comfortable and useful for everyone. For one week, we had the first three lessons in Zoom, and the next 3-4 in the classroom, and in reverse order for the next week. Now, these algorithms have proven to be very good. Actually, I don’t have many changes, given the process I have in place. The only thing that has changed is that not 70%, but 50% of my tenth graders join our Zoom meetings. They are mostly the same kids. There are students who go to local schools in Europe as well. For one girl in Germany, I have a special mission – I record and send her lessons because she is interested in studying with us, along with language learning and other activities.
The difficulty is that because of the air raids, we must end the lesson and run to the basement, but in two months it’s only happened twice, and at the end of class. We are lucky.
I have tenth graders, a class of appreciative listeners, but some pupils don’t want to work. They are having a hard time with homework, but they have started to work more actively in class and are taking on practical assignments. The topic we have is a relevant one – World War II. Now, they understand the general picture, how the events of 1939-1945 took place. I’ve also been trying to explore new programs and resources that can be used in learning. I am looking for online tools where kids can be more active. Nowadays, kids don’t like to talk – that’s no secret to anyone – but I’m looking for opportunities to hear their opinions through different resources.
The kids have become more serious. The downside is that I don’t see them in person; there is no personal contact, but they have started to ask more questions. But, they are not questions of 16-year-old kids. They think about more complicated things, like what’s going to happen next. We emphasize that we’re going to be fine and that we’ll win.
I didn’t realize who was muttering in my room. It turned out that it was an air raid alert reporting that the war had begun.
Blankets in five minutes
I live in a small village community near Lviv. At the beginning of the war, we immediately set up a powerful chat room in Viber. So I knew what was going on and where to go to provide help. In the first two days, we had people fleeing from the war – women and children from Bucha, Zhytomyr and Kyiv. Our school is still a shelter for several families. As soon as we were asked about blankets, for example, in 5 minutes there were enough for everyone. Everything was assembled very quickly.
Trucks with humanitarian aid arrived; they had to be unloaded, sorted, loaded again and sent to Lviv. Everyone – young and old – came to the school’s huge gym. Everything was organized quickly and qualitatively; literally, in a couple of hours, all the boxes were packed and signed. I had never seen such a collective community spirit before.
Hundreds of varenyky
When the call was made in the community to make camouflage nets and prepare food for the front, I left the house with my children and went to help. I had never made nets in my life but I learned quickly.
The next day, I went to the school cafeteria. I kneaded so much dough! My hands were very sore because kneading dough non-stop for varenyky is not an easy job. Every decent Galician housewife knows this, so nobody wanted to do this work. When I agreed, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and I actually got a lot of pleasure out of it.. I was glad that even though I was relatively safe, I could do something useful. It’s a common thing to do, but I’m very glad I could help
.
We made a lot of varenyky and after some time, I had the reputation of an experienced “dough kneader”. I couldn’t spoil that reputation; I had to attend, pull up my sleeves, and start kneading. Now I know that I can do it on a large scale. I’m sure I’ll knead for all the participants in at least one EdCamp!
Educational Front
During the war, educational institutions in western Ukraine welcome displaced students from the eastern and southern regions, where hostilities are taking place. In particular, in Lviv region, there are 24,900 students from internally displaced families, according to the Department of Education of the Lviv Regional State Administration. In addition, educational institutions have become shelters for many families, and teachers help them with their needs.
To help teachers in Ukraine continue working, the EdCamp Ukraine community has launched a crowdfunding campaign – raising funds for computer equipment and Internet access for teachers who have lost pedagogical equipment in the war. It also plans to use the funds to provide psychological support to teachers and organize conferences to share pedagogical experiences in times of war. Foreign colleagues can join the campaign on the GoFundMe platform, and Ukrainians on the EdCamp Ukraine page by adding the comment My War. Lessons to the payment.
Protecting educators
As soon as the war is over, we will be holding our EdCamp (un)conference. I would like to dedicate it to the teacher as a person in need of legal and psychological help. Everything will be built around the teacher and their school environment. We want to give useful examples – how to deal with burnout, how to switch and do things for yourself, etc. Our teacher is a human being who works for the school all the time, who is constantly being pulled by authorities and administrations, and can very rarely defend themselves. Legal levers of protection in Ukraine are imperfect, unspoken and often unfamiliar. That’s why we need to acquaint teachers with tools they can protect themselves with.
When the map of air alerts begins to glow red, I think back to my acquaintances in those regions, and it turns out that I have good friends and great buddies – my people – in every region.
Which EdCamp I would choose
I want to go to Kharkiv. I promised a good friend that I would go to Horkoho Park and ride the roller coaster. For the last two years, I’ve been telling everyone how beautiful Kharkiv is. When I first went there in winter, there was snow everywhere; it was cold, and the city seemed grey. The next time I came, it was summer and I just fell in love with Kharkiv. It’s hard to surprise me, but I felt very comfortable in Horkoho Park. We were there with a group of adult teachers and went for rides; we had a great time.
Really, you want to go everywhere. When the air alert map starts glowing red, I think of my acquaintances in those regions, and it turns out I have good friends, my people, in every area. I have a dream from 2015 – Donetsk and Luhansk – where I have never been. I want to feel this again – when your feet are humming, your head is spinning, and you want to be everywhere.
Map of thoughts
With educators in other countries, I would like to share my experience of how to endure such stressful situations. How to teach when a rocket falls into the neighbourhood, even if there is only one child waiting in Zoom. I would share my experience about stress resiliency. I see a lot of my colleagues who can’t handle themselves. I’ve mostly learned to control my emotions; I think a lot of people could benefit from that.
I would talk about how to draw a map of thoughts. I’m guided by Tony Busen’s book, The Opinion Map. Once, I drew myself a plan for the week and it motivated me to move forward. I used ten colours, each day had a different colour, and each branch was drawn differently. I would share recipes on how you can help yourself in the face of hardship. How to focus, let go of everything and force yourself to do something you haven’t done before. If everyone shared such unsophisticated recipes, we would feel better about ourselves and discover new things.
Text – Halyna Kovalchuk.
The interview series My War. The Lessons was prepared with financial support from the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation – a project of the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of EdCamp Ukraine and the Foundation.
