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Center for Policy Research

Policy Brief

How Can We Improve Educational Experiences for Refugee Students in Poland?

Iwona B. Franczak and Amy C. Lutz

C.P.R. Policy Brief No. 14

October 2024

Iwona Franczak

Iwona Franczak


Amy Lutz

Amy Lutz


Schools play an important role in safety and stability for refugee students, including the Ukrainian school-age children who fled the war after Russia’s invasion in 2022. This brief summarizes findings from a study that used data from 24 interviews conducted in 2022 with teachers and mothers of Ukrainian refugee children attending elementary schools in Poland to examine the impact of forced migration on academic progress and socio-emotional well-being of refugee students. The authors find war and forced migration disrupt children’s school routines, but that schools can foster positive outcomes by teaching in the children’s native language, using cultural assistants, and practicing newly learned skills during school trips.

CPR Policy Briefs present concise summaries of findings from recent research conducted by CPR affiliates in the areas of crime and the law, economic wellbeing and poverty, education, energy and the environment, families, health, public finance, social welfare, urban and regional economics, and other policy-relevant domains.


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