A week of sharing experiences and jointly seeking solutions for educational reforms: from the development of vocational education and a modern career guidance system for children and adolescents, with a focus on blue-collar professions, to the introduction of dual training as an effective approach to training in-demand specialists. Organised by a team from the Zurich University of Teacher Education, the visit aimed to facilitate the exchange of best practices on the implement

Currently, within the framework of DECIDE project, four teams of experts are providing consultation to communities across four macro-regions: since March, the experts have held 263 in-person meetings and 382 online meetings in 567 communities in 22 regions of Ukraine – representing 40% of the communities in the country. As of October 2025, there had been over 300 such consultations, and since then their number has doubled. Almost 13,000 participants – including representative

Since the beginning of April this year, a team of experts – Yurii Orel, Alla Bondar, and Olena Hulenko – has held 10 consultation meetings in Poltava region: in Novoorzhytska, Romodanivska, Velykobahachanska, Hoholivska, Hrebinkivska, Lubenska, Myrhorodska, Shyshatska, Bilotserkivska, and Khorolska communities. ‘We have seen different communities. But there is one thing they all have in common – debates about specialised schools are becoming more practical. Meetings like thes

«Why does the founder's decision to change the educational activities of the lyceum need to be backed up by a licence, and why does it not work without it?» The reform of specialised secondary education raises practical questions for communities: how to act correctly in cases where the educational activities of general secondary schools are terminated (restricted) or expanded, and where the line lies between an administrative decision by the founder and the requirements of li

Luhansk region is one of those most affected by the war. Schools have been destroyed, infrastructure lost, and after months of anxiety and threats, in-person education remains impossible. Over the past six years, DECIDE has worked closely with communities in the region, helping to restore access to quality and safe education, implement reforms, and plan the strategic development of general secondary and vocational education. Valentyna Poltorak, DECIDE Project Manager, noted,

The new Memorandum provides a broad framework for partnership and lays the foundations for long-term, systematic cooperation aimed to comprehensively develop education in communities. The document aims to strengthen the capacity of local self-government in implementing educational reforms, particularly with regard to ensuring the quality of education, developing specialised senior secondary schools, introducing a career guidance system, and fostering local democracy through e

On 16–17 April, a workshop on 'Development of Education in Communities' was held in Zhytomyr. The event was organised within the framework of professional training for heads of education departments in the communities of the region and marked the final stage of a professional development programme, which had been running in a blended format since 30 March, covered 17 topics, and engaged representatives from 66 communities. Key speakers at the event included: Nadiia Kuzmychova

«When does transportation become one of key factors in the accessibility of specialised education?» The reform of specialised secondary education in Ukraine, which is effectively a continuation of the New Ukrainian School (NUS) reform, provides for the creation of a network of lyceums, where students in Grades 10–12 will receive specialised secondary education from September 2027. The legal basis for this reform is primarily set out in the Law of Ukraine ‘On Education’ and th

The competitive selection process for partner communities in Zhytomyr, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Poltava, Sumy, and Chernihiv regions took almost three months. The Selection Committee received 231 applications from communities in the eight partner regions. Following two selection stages, which included the analysis of applications, interviews, expert evaluations and meetings with the leadership teams of the communities, 40 communities were selected to participate in

The workshop ‘Reform of Specialised Senior Secondary Schools: Opportunities and Challenges for Communities’ was held in Zhytomyr on 15 April as the final part of the professional development programme. Forty-four community leaders from Zhytomyr region and their deputies responsible for education attended the event. The implementation of specialised secondary education reform, with a particular focus on the region’s specific characteristics, was discussed with: Nadiia Kuzmycho