Ukrainian children for the first time in school

They expect a hundred students on the West Coast, but this morning it was not a surprise at the Sint-Bernadus College in Nieuwpoort. Anastasia and Vladislava are the only new students from Ukraine in the OKAN class, the reception class for non-native speakers.

In the college in Nieuwpoort there are today a total of 5 students from Ukraine, in the college of Veurne there are seven. They have been working here with OKAN classes for eight years, and have a lot of experience, not only in the field of education. Saskia Delanghe, coordinator Sint-Bernarduscollege Nieuwpoort: “Some have already been through a lot. We notice that they benefit a lot from each other. That is the most important thing in the first place.”

The advantage is that the students from Ukraine speak English. Finding enough teachers is a challenge.