Taiwan’s support helps modernize education in Lviv schools

The Lviv Academic Gymnasium is 240 years old. It was founded in 1784, making it the oldest. Many well-known Ukrainians of different generations, including Yevhen Petrushevych and Roman Shukhevych, studied here. This modern educational institution with a long history has an official alumni community, whose members actively communicate and share their life successes with the younger generation. Recently, the gymnasium students participated in an entrepreneurship and innovation camp as part of the Leave no one behind partnership project and enriched their computer science classroom with a set of new laptops.

“We were taught the basic concepts of business. The gymnasium team proposed an innovative business model for producing modules that could be attached to drones. This would make drones universal and suitable for use in various fields,” recalls gymnasium student Oleksii Kurets.

“In the age of information technology, the Lviv Academic Gymnasium is among the leaders in the quality of education. Together with other Lviv schools and the Lviv Polytechnic University, we are developing a STEM education project and also starting a robotics club. The new laptops will expand our educational opportunities,” said the gymnasium’s principal, Lesia Yukhman.

At the beginning of the school year, on September 4, Lviv Lyceum No. 17 suffered from Russian shelling. The shock wave caused significant damage to the school building. The wall between two classrooms cracked and collapsed.

“We covered all the windows overnight as best we could so that the children could come to school,” recalls the lyceum’s principal, Iryna Luniova.

Since then, 111 windows and almost all the doors have been restored. The educational process continues, students are gaining knowledge, and teachers are finding opportunities to modernize the institution.

Two computer science teachers, Bohdan Revutskyi and Tetiana Taiuzhyn, participated in the first educational program of the "Leave no one behind partnership" and secured 16 laptops, 16 robot kits, a projector, and a screen for the lyceum.

“The knowledge we gained during lectures at the Ukrainian Catholic University is very helpful. This experience is valuable. I saw how experienced teachers teach,” emphasizes Bohdan Revutskyi.

Among the participants of the Ukrainian-Taiwanese project for innovative education and computerization are also teachers who came to Lviv fleeing the war. Olena Hula is originally from Crimea. She quickly learned Ukrainian and has been teaching computer science and physics at the Sheptytskyi Gymnasium for three years. Together with her colleague, Nadiia Kalmuk, they tried their hand at the innovative education project. The teachers passed the competitive selection and spent seven months improving their qualifications at the Ukrainian Catholic University.

“When we found out that the gymnasium would receive a set of modern equipment, we immediately started setting up a new computer science and robotics classroom. It’s a joy that we can show the children more and give them new knowledge. We even have an agreement with teachers from different schools, with whom we studied, to create a teleconference and regularly communicate about our work with robotics,” the teacher noted.

The project coordinator of the "Leave no one behind partnership," Ulyana Pak, summarizes that teachers from 20 schools completed their training at the Ukrainian Catholic University. In a separate direction, high school students studied at entrepreneurship camps. Now, all schools participating in the project receive sets of technical equipment free of charge.

“We have already delivered equipment to schools in the Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv regions. Now we are visiting schools in the city of Lviv with gifts. Project participants from Poltava and Kremenchuk are still waiting for their equipment. We are very grateful that, thanks to Taiwan, we have the opportunity to make such positive changes in education and computerize schools,” shares Ulyana Pak.

The project is implemented by the All-Ukrainian Democratic Forum NGO. The founder of the organization, Member of Parliament Mykola Kniazhytskyi, always emphasizes the importance of innovative knowledge during meetings with students.

“The task of every student is to make themselves strong—through their knowledge and new skills. Stay in Ukraine, create strong communities, businesses, and public organizations. This is what makes a strong state. After all, the state is its people,” emphasizes Mykola Kniazhytskyi. “Taiwan openly helps Ukraine. With the help of our partners, we offer our children the opportunity to be active, we provide computers and robots so that young people can create and develop. Joint projects contribute to our development and democratization.”