The International Scientific Seminar “A safe educational environment in an unstable condition” was jointly organized by the Uniwersytet Ignatianum w Krakowie (UIK), the Borys Grinchenko Kyiv Metropolitan University and the Association for the Fostering of Intercultural Education (SWEM). It was held on June 16-18 2025 as an online meeting on the Webex platform.
The scientific meeting focused on issues related to building safe educational environments, safe relationships, social-emotional learning, safe teaching, positive school climate, mental health, moral values and collaborative spaces of educational entities. During the discussion, participants stressed the need for open dialogue, providing emotional support, strengthening positive motivation and taking care of the psychological wellbeing of all educational entities.
Effective learning and teaching requires providing (as much as possible) stable conditions for education, taking care of the mental health of participants and the development of individual competence potential. The issue of creating a friendly space for cooperation based on mutual trust, kindness, openness and respect must be emphasized. The relationship between individuals, social support and taking care to build positive ties on educational and professional grounds is one of the elements that prepare an individual to cope with difficult situations. Physical, relational and emotional security is the key to success on personal, school and professional grounds.
The International Scientific Seminar was moderated by Dr. Maria Marta Urlińska (UIK). During this meeting, UIK presented four scientific papers discussing the Let’s Care project and specific issues surrounding the partnership between schools, families and the community; the role of the school climate in building a sense of safety; ways to empower the school entities and designing a safe educational environment. The papers presented by UIK were:
- “School climate as the place and space of a safe school. How to create a good school?” by Dr hab. Ryszarda Cierzniewska;
- “Students have a voice – participatory photography as a research method” by Dr hab. Maria Marta Urlińska and Dr. Magdalena Urlińska-Berens;
- “Let’s Care. Designing a safe educational environment” by Dr hab. Anna Błasiak and Dr Ewa Dybowska;
- “Let’s Care Cafes – making sense of conversation and solving problems together” by Dr hab. Maria Marta Urlińska, and Dr Magdalena Urlińska-Berens.
