Peculiarities of students’ academic activity in extreme conditions: Findings of a pilot study

This article presented the findings of a study on students’ academic activity in extreme conditions caused by the prolonged war in Ukraine, which has intensified exposure to stress factors. The study aimed to highlight the results of a pilot investigation into the psychological characteristics of students’ academic activity in such conditions to develop recommendations for optimising the learning process. Data collection was conducted using a specially designed questionnaire, with questions focusing on the nature of students’ academic engagement and their perceptions of their own academic performance. The findings indicated that students were capable of maintaining a high rate of learning, demonstrating diligence in completing tasks, sustaining intrinsic motivation for study, and effectively regulating their actions in stress-inducing conditions. Additionally, challenges encountered in extreme learning conditions were examined, with the most frequently reported difficulties including a sense of tension and burden in the learning process, superficial knowledge acquisition, rapid forgetting of learned material, slow processing of academic information, and a lack of systematic approach in academic activities. It has been established that the assessment of students’ academic performance largely depended on the characteristics of their academic activity. High and average grades were mostly associated with positive or mixed academic characteristics, whereas low grades were more frequently accompanied by negative ones. An analysis of the obtained data, along with similar studies, has enabled the identification of potential factors influencing students’ academic performance under such conditions. The findings of this study may be utilised to develop effective emergency learning plans, enhance the flexibility of the educational process, implement measures to support students’ psychological well-being, and establish a systematic monitoring framework for their welfare during wartime and post-war conditions, as well as in response to other extreme circumstances