Adaptation of the content of civic education in schools under martial law and in the context of post-war reconstruction in Ukraine

The article explores the transformation of the content of the Civic Education course in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war. It highlights the relevance of adapting civic education in schools during the full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine and in view of the post-war recovery process. The study argues that the war has significantly altered the functions and focus of civic education, strengthening its role as a tool for shaping national unity, legal awareness, psychological resilience, critical thinking, and active civic engagement. The theoretical and methodological basis of the research includes principles of peace pedagogy, conflict-sensitive education (as promoted by UNESCO and the Council of Europe), and the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC). The RFCDC model promotes democratic values, empathy, intercultural understanding, and resilience in crisis situations. The article emphasizes the growing importance of the RFCDC in wartime, as it offers a comprehensive approach to rethinking the content of civic education. The main challenges for contemporary schools are identified: students’ psychological trauma, the need for a new ethics of teaching, and the inclusion of relevant topics such as safety, media literacy, human rights, and civic participation. The article proposes a substantive update of the civic education course along five key directions: national identity, human rights in wartime, psycho-emotional resilience, media literacy, and civic engagement in reconstruction. An adapted curriculum for the 10th grade is presented, taking into account the realities of the wartime context.