The arrival of refugee families in Lithuania following the 2022 war in Ukraine exposed structural gaps within the country’s early childhood education system, particularly in relation to teacher preparation and professional support. Preschool teachers, positioned at the frontline of educational integration, encountered children with refugee backgrounds who often lacked proficiency in the Lithuanian language, came from diverse cultural and religious contexts, and had experienced interrupted or limited prior education. In the absence of state-prepared pedagogical frameworks or targeted guidance, teachers relied heavily on self-directed learning, improvisation, and personal initiative, which frequently resulted in professional loneliness and increased emotional and professional strain. This study examines preschool teachers’ experiences of accepting and educating refugee children in early childhood education institutions in Lithuania. Employing a qualitative research design, thematic analysis was conducted based on in-depth semi-structured interviews with 10 preschool teachers from across Lithuania who were directly working with refugee children. Participants were recruited using a snowball sampling strategy. The findings reveal persistent challenges, including language barriers, cultural misunderstandings, limited access to professional support, and insufficient preparation for working in multicultural and refugee contexts. Teachers independently sought educational resources and adapted existing curricula to ensure children’s participation and inclusion. Despite these efforts, refugee children remained at risk of slower educational progress and social isolation. This study provides one of the first empirical insights into early childhood teachers’ experiences in Lithuania following the post-2022 refugee influx and extends international discussions on refugee education by foregrounding early childhood settings, which remain comparatively underexplored.

Authors:
Simona Lunina, Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania
Vaida Jurgile, Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania

About the Presenter(s)
Simona Lunina, CEO of an international early childhood education centres Bumblebees Kindergarten in Helsinki, Finland.

See this presentation on the full schedule – On Demand Schedule

Bookmark