Page 79 - Compétences plurilingues : perspectives et actions / Plurilingual competencies: perspectives and actions

Academic and Social Contexts of Projects for Ukrainian Refugees

to be provided by Masaryk University, teachers and educators decided to implement new
approaches, different methodologies, and diverse strategies in their courses. Occasionally,
these new strategies included co-teaching and the tandem format, enabling teachers to ef-
fectively collaborate and bene it from their combined strengths and synergies. This was also
the case with the aforementioned course, Development of Communication and Presentation
Skills, because one of its pluses is precisely the fact that the two educators involved come
from different academic ields: one is a philologist specialised in teaching foreign languages,
while the other is a psychologist. Another favourable factor to be mentioned is that while
the language teacher comes from the host country, where these students, who are refugees,
are currently residing, the other educator is herself a Ukrainian war refugee, who works as
a psychologist providing support to students from Ukraine now studying at Masaryk Uni-
versity.

The simultaneous involvement of two different teachers in a new course focusing on com-
munication and presentation skills for Ukrainian war refugees was of considerable impor-
tance given the unique and sensitive nature of the students. In this regard, it was essential
that one of the tutors was specialised in CLIL courses, with a particular emphasis on de-
veloping a variety of skills and competences. This expertise ensured the students received
quality language instruction using plurilingual approaches and equipped them with tools
to improve their communication skills.
It was equally important that the second lecturer was a Ukrainian psychologist who was
herself a war refugee. Thus she brought the invaluable dimension of her own experience
to the course. It is worth noting that this educator was a bene iciary of the help provided
by Masaryk University in the very irst moment, when career opportunities were offered to
those affected by the war in Ukraine (cf. Masaryk Helps Ukraine, 2023).
Given the traumatic experiences the young Ukrainian students had faced, the role of the
Ukrainian educator and psychologist in this course was essential. Although the course was
not primarily designed as a psychological aid, it nevertheless ful illed this function. The
psychological supportive aspect was crucial, even though it was not explicitly stated in the
course objectives, as it facilitated students’ emotional well-being, stress management and
overcoming of dif icult past experiences.
As a result, the course pursued a double goal: to provide students with language and study
skills while offering them the means to manage their emotions, cope with stress, and ad-
dress the psychological consequences of their traumatic experience. This dual focus was
essential for fostering the students’ development and well-being, as it allowed them both
to improve their language skills and communication competences and at the same time to
strengthen their emotional resilience. They had to adapt to new conditions in their host
country and cope with their unfamiliarity with the language and cultural and social environ-
ments. In addition to all this, there are the demands of studying at university and the need
to adapt to new teaching and learning processes. Therefore, the involvement of a Ukrainian
psychologist in a teaching role was essential to ensure the effectiveness of the course and
to address the speci ic needs of the students.

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