Education is shared responsibility: National Conference “Serpneva 2026” to Take Place on 18 August
With the support of its partners, the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine will hold the annual education conference “Serpneva 2026”, which this year will take place under the slogan “Education is shared responsibility”.
The conference will take place on 18 August and will become a national dialogue on why education is shared responsibility. We will discuss how Ukrainian education is changing and the role each person plays in these changes — from the government and communities to teachers, parents, and students themselves.
The conference will bring together school principals, teachers, preschool educators, representatives of central government authorities, local self-government bodies, international and civil society organisations, businesses, as well as everyone contributing to educational change in Ukraine.
Invited speakers will include senior state officials, the Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine and deputy ministers, regional military administrations, and communities, as well as school principals, teachers, international partners, and civil society organisations.
The programme on the main stage will focus on the development of early childhood education, the outcomes of eight years of the New Ukrainian School reform, the launch of Upper secondary education reform, the modernisation of vocational and professional pre-higher education, and the connection between education, the economy, and the labour market.
A particular focus of this year’s Serpneva will be on practical tools to support educators during the new academic year. Alongside the main stage, four practical zones will be available:
Early Childhood Education — a modern educational environment, institutional autonomy, barrier-free education, and new service formats for the kids.
Basic Secondary Education — ready-to-use solutions for the new academic year: tools for teachers within the “Education for Life” framework, reading competence, teaching, learning in wartime and educational losses.
Upper Secondary Education — practical tools for launching upper secondary education: the Model Educational Programme, career guidance, professional development for educators, and the financial autonomy of educational institutions.
Vocational and Professional Pre-Higher Education — partnerships with businesses, updated educational content, modern workshops, and new approaches to career guidance.
A separate part of Serpneva 2026 will be an interactive exhibition zone where participants will be able to follow a students’ journey through every level of education, explore modern learning spaces, complete practical tasks, and learn about updated approaches to organising the educational process.
Serpneva 2026 is a space where a shared vision for the future of Ukrainian education and the new academic year is shaped. After all, education is everyone’s business.
The conference will be streamed online on the official Facebook and YouTube pages of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, subject to the security situation. A recording of the conference will be available on the YouTube channel of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine at the following link.
The conference is organised by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine with the support of the World Bank; UNICEF Ukraine; the Swiss-Ukrainian DECIDE project — “Decentralisation for Improved Democratic Education”, implemented by a consortium comprising the NGO DOCCU and PH Zürich with the support of Switzerland; the “Public-Private Partnership to Improve Vocational Education in Ukraine” project (EdUP), implemented with financial support from the Government of Switzerland and private-sector partners by the Swiss Foundation for Technical Cooperation Swisscontact, with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine; the International Renaissance Foundation; UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; the Lithuanian Central Project Management Agency (CPVA); Finn Church Aid (FCA); and the All-Ukrainian Step by Step Foundation, with funding from War Child Alliance.