Programme title: New Education Law in Ukraine: An Analysis of Language and Education Policy
Year: 2017–2018
Brief description: The new Ukrainian Education Law, adopted on 5 September 2017 and signed by the President of Ukraine on 25 September, generated considerable public debate. Politicians, education professionals, journalists, and members of the public expressed their views on the issue. Article 7 of the new Education Law regulates the language of education, and its entry into force significantly reduced the rights of national minorities in Ukraine, including the Hungarian minority. The adopted law was deemed unconstitutional[1] and was considered to violate several international legal instruments ratified by Ukraine. Researchers at the Hodinka Centre, most notably István Csernicskó, who headed the Centre at the time, published numerous articles and recommendations interpreting and analysing both the draft legislation and the adopted law, including its implications for language rights.
The Centre’s research interest in this subject was not new. “For nearly two decades, researchers at the Antal Hodinka Research Centre for Linguistics have studied Hungarian language use in Transcarpathia, including the issue of language education, using internationally established methodologies of scientific research. Numerous scholarly books and publications have been produced by researchers at the Centre in Hungarian, English, Russian, Slovak, and, of course, Ukrainian. We have presented the findings of our research at more than one hundred academic conferences in many countries around the world, as well as in Ukraine (in Kyiv, Lviv, Uzhhorod, Khust, etc.). Based on our research findings, as early as 1996—more than twenty years ago—we drew the attention of the relevant authorities in Kyiv and Uzhhorod (ministers, ministry officials, educational administrators, politicians, civil servants, etc.) to the fact that the methods prescribed by the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science made it impossible for children attending Hungarian-medium schools to achieve a high level of proficiency in Ukrainian. Throughout more than a quarter of a century of its existence, the Ukrainian state had failed to create the conditions necessary for students to acquire the state language effectively at school.
Nevertheless, for years, Ukraine’s leading politicians had sought to eliminate education in minority languages rather than reforming the teaching of the state language. On the pretext that Transcarpathian Hungarians were unable to learn Ukrainian, they hypocritically adopted a policy under which, after completing grades 1–4, children would gradually have to switch to education in Ukrainian.”[2]
Research organiser/supporter: Antal Hodinka Research Centre for Linguistics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences Domus Programme
Publications:
Miért nem jó az új ukrajnai oktatási törvény a kárpátaljai magyaroknak? https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/miert-nem-jo-az-uj-ukrajnai-oktatasi-torveny-karpataljai-magyaroknak/;
Van mit veszítenünk: Porosenko aláírta az oktatási törvényt: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/van-mit-veszitenunk-porosenko-alairta-az-oktatasi-torvenyt/
Az európai nyelvi sokszínűség napja és az ukrajnai egynyelvűség: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/az-europai-nyelvi-sokszinuseg-napja-es-az-ukrajnai-egynyelvuseg/;
Egy eldöntendő kérdés: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/egy-eldontendo-kerdes/;
Publikálták az új ukrán oktatási törvény szövegét: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/publikaltak-az-uj-ukran-oktatasi-torveny-szoveget/;
TÖBB-E A 2, MINT A 6? Avagy: jogszűkítő-e az új ukrán oktatási törvény 7. cikkelye?: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/tobb-e-2-mint-6-avagy-jogszukito-e-az-uj-ukran-oktatasi-torveny-7-cikkelye/
Alkotmányos-e az új oktatási törvény 7. cikkelye?: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/alkotmanyos-e-az-uj-oktatasi-torveny-7-cikkelye/;
Tényleg nem tudunk ukránul? https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/tenyleg-nem-tudunk-ukranul/
150 éve létező jogokat von vissza az új ukrán oktatási törvény: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/150-eve-letezo-jogokat-von-vissza-az-uj-ukran-oktatasi-torveny/
Az új ukrán oktatási törvény szövege magyarul: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/az-uj-ukran-oktatasi-torveny-szovege-magyarul/
Elterelő hadművelet vagy óvatos visszavonulás? https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/elterelo-hadmuvelet-vagy-ovatos-visszavonulas/
Melyik a rosszabb? Még mindig az oktatási törvény 7. cikkelyéről: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/melyik-rosszabb-meg-mindig-az-oktatasi-torveny-7-cikkelyerol/
Nemzetközi precedens: jogunk van az anyanyelvi oktatáshoz: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/nemzetkozi-precedens-jogunk-van-az-anyanyelvi-oktatashoz/
Még mindig az oktatási törvény a téma: találkozó Ukrajna külügyminiszterével: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/meg-mindig-az-oktatasi-torveny-tema-talalkozo-ukrajna-kulugyminiszterevel/
A Velencei Bizottság hivatalos véleménye és a kijevi reakció: https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/velencei-bizottsag-hivatalos-velemenye-es-kijevi-reakcio/
[1] https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/alkotmanyos-e-az-uj-oktatasi-torveny-7-cikkelye/
[2] https://hodinkaintezet.uz.ua/miert-nem-jo-az-uj-ukrajnai-oktatasi-torveny-karpataljai-magyaroknak/;