The State Service for Quality Education of Ukraine, in cooperation with the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language, as part of a joint project to support participants in the educational process in improving their knowledge of the Ukrainian language in 2025, conducted the third cycle of monitoring to ensure the functioning of the state language in the educational process in general secondary education institutions.
According to information from the Eastern Interregional Department of the State Service for Quality Education, approximately 1,700 respondents from Donetsk and Luhansk regions participated in the study, including teachers, students, and parents of schoolchildren.
Amidst large-scale armed aggression, the monitoring recorded a strengthening of the position of the state language and a steady positive trend in its use among participants in the educational process in the eastern regions of the country. Thus, the educational environment remains the dominant space for the use of the Ukrainian language.
Both regions are characterized by an almost complete change in the place of residence of participants in the educational process due to active hostilities. In particular, 99% of students, 97% of parents, and 100% of teachers from the Luhansk region have changed their permanent place of residence.
The vast majority of parents surveyed confirm that the educational process takes place exclusively in Ukrainian. According to students and parents, teachers in Luhansk region use only Ukrainian to provide teaching materials and homework assignments. Compared to last year, the use of Ukrainian among teachers in Donetsk region increased by 42%, and among parents by 14%. The proportion of teachers who use only Ukrainian at work has increased from 79% to 88%, and this data is confirmed by the responses of schoolchildren.
"The survey results also show that teachers and students actively use the state language not only during lessons, but also in informal communication – during breaks and when interacting with students," emphasizes Svitlana Volyanska, head of the Eastern Interregional Department of the State Service for Quality Education. "The trend toward a decrease in the use of the aggressor's language by students and their parents in everyday life remains positive for the eastern region. This is due to the support of schoolchildren in their family circle and indicates a close connection between the culture of children and parents."
In terms of proficiency in the Ukrainian language, both regions have seen an increase in the number of schoolchildren who rate their proficiency in Ukrainian as fluent: Luhansk region: 56% (an increase of 11%), Donetsk region: 49% (a significant increase compared to 5% in 2024).
Language in the media space requires special attention and is of great importance for the functioning of the Ukrainian language in the eastern macro-region. Despite the fact that most schoolchildren prefer content over language, the habit of consuming content on the Internet in two languages remains relevant.
The key challenge for both areas remains bilingualism in informal communication: outside of school hours, among friends and classmates. Parents of students and students themselves have identified a number of effective ways to improve their knowledge of the Ukrainian language: courses, mobile apps for language learning, communication with native speakers, reading books, articles, and periodicals.
The results of the 2025 monitoring study show a clear positive trend in the speech behavior of participants in the educational process in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as the readiness of society to establish the state language in all spheres of life.
According to information from the Eastern Interregional Department of the State Service for Quality Education