Will the war in Ukraine be a pivotal moment for refugee education in Europe?

In just two months following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, over 4.9 million people fled their country in what has become the fastest exodus globally since World War II (UNHCR, 2022a). In numbers alone, this refugee crisis dwarfs the almost 2.5 million refugees, mainly from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, who entered Europe in 2015–2016 during the so-called ‘European refugee crisis’ (Eurostat, 2017). Those fleeing the devastation of their homeland join the world’s estimated 84 million forcibly displaced people (UNHCR, 2022b) who leave behind everything to face an ‘unknowable future’ (Dryden-Peterson, 2017). Lives which just a few months earlier had seemed so ordinary and predictable are now held in suspension for an unknown length of time as refugees face the uncertainty of a future which could include an eventual return to their home country or a life in exile in one or more countries. Much of their decision-making will be guided by where they have friends or families, the linguistic, cultural and financial resources they can draw upon and the warmth of the welcome provided by the strangers on whom they now depend.