LEGAL PROTECTION OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS DURING MARTIAL LAW IN A PRESCHOOL EDUCATION INSTITUTION

Abstract

The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the legal protection of children with special educational needs (SEN) in preschool education institutions (PEIs) under martial law in Ukraine. It examines the specific features of the regulatory and legal framework ensuring the child’s right to education during a period of armed aggression, taking into account the provisions of the Constitution of Ukraine, the Law of Ukraine «On Education», the Law of Ukraine «On Preschool Education», the Law of Ukraine «On Child Protection». The key state guarantees aimed at ensuring the accessibility, safety, and continuity of the educational process for children with SEN under the restrictions caused by martial law are identified. Despite the existence of numerous scholarly studies on inclusive education and general issues of legal regulation of educational activities during wartime, the problem of comprehensive legal protection of children with SEN in preschool education institutions remains insufficiently systematized. For this reason, the article identifies and analyzes the specific features of legal regulation and the mechanisms for ensuring the rights of persons with special educational needs during martial law in preschool education institutions, as well as outlines problematic aspects and prospects for improving the regulatory framework. The necessity of improving regulatory and legal mechanisms for protecting the rights of children with special educational needs during martial law, strengthening interagency cooperation, and developing adaptive models for organizing the educational process in PEIs in view of security challenges is substantiated. The research findings may be used in further law-making activities, educational governance practice, and the organization of an inclusive environment in preschool education institutions.