Journal for Christian reflections in the context of social sciences and humanities

Caritas et veritas 2025, 15(2):17-36

Interim Bridges to ‘Them’: The Challenges of Education and Living with Diversity Raised by the Ukrainian Crisis

Jana Karlová1, Lucie Ludvíková2
1 University of Hradec Králové, Faculty of Education, Department of Studies in Culture and Religion, Rokitanského 62, 500 03, Hradec Králové
2 University of Hradec Králové, Faculty of Education, Department of Studies in Culture and Religion, Rokitanského 62, 500 03, Hradec Králové

This qualitative study explores the experience of living with diversity in three lower-grade public elementary school classes in the Czech Republic, focusing on the challenges brought to light by the arrival of immigrants from Ukraine in 2022. Conducted between September 2021 and March 2023, the research is based primarily on semi-structured interviews with educators, complemented by participant observation and document analysis. Drawing on insights from sociocultural anthropology, it examines educators’ understandings of boundaries—particularly the categories of ‘normal’ and ‘foreign’, and the distinctions between ‘us’ and ‘them’. Paradoxically, the integration successes observed in the cases studied appear to arise less from a systemic approach to diversity and more from the relative compatibility and adaptability of certain children and families with existing structures, as well as from the commitment and improvisational efforts of individual educators.

Keywords: challenges, culture, Czech Republic, diversity, foreigner, identity, inclusive education, normality, othering, Ukrainian crisis

Received: June 3, 2025; Revised: October 18, 2025; Accepted: November 10, 2025; Published: January 20, 2026  Show citation

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Karlová, J., & Ludvíková, L. (2025). Interim Bridges to ‘Them’: The Challenges of Education and Living with Diversity Raised by the Ukrainian Crisis. Caritas et veritas, 15(2), 17-36
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