What in the World Ukraine’s underground schools
Dec 2, 2025
Olga Malchevska, a BBC reporter covering Ukraine, shares her experiences from the frontlines. She discusses the establishment of underground schools in Zaporizhia to protect students from missile threats. Olga reveals how the ongoing war has led to drastic changes in education, including rapid evacuations during air raids and the psychological stress students face. She also highlights controversial curriculum shifts in Russian-occupied territories, emphasizing the resilience and determination of Ukrainian children to continue their education amid adversity.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
A School Beneath A Football Pitch
- Olga Malchevska describes entering an underground school in Zaporizhia that looked like a regular school beneath a football pitch.
- The facility had full classrooms and high-quality equipment, making it hard to believe everything was happening underground.
Learning Under Constant Threat
- Air-raid alerts force teachers and children to reach shelters in under 10 seconds, causing extreme stress and disruption.
- Ukrainian government data reports about 400 educational facilities destroyed and over 3,500 damaged by bombs and drones.
Exam Night During Shelling
- A university student, Karina, recounts waking during massive shelling and still having an exam the next morning.
- She describes studying under shelling, power outages, transport disruptions, and constant fear while trying to complete exams.