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Back to Ukraine: History, Culture and Identities

Learner Reviews & Feedback for Ukraine: History, Culture and Identities by University of Washington

4.7
stars
250 ratings

About the Course

Explore the history, culture and society of the people of Ukraine from the Middle Ages to the present in this introductory course developed by the Ukrainian Institute, educational studio EdEra, and the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and offered on Coursera in cooperation with the University of Washington.   The culture and identities of Ukrainian people have existed in this region for more than a thousand years. Like most Eastern European countries, Ukraine is a rather young country — it declared its independence in 1991. Since then, it managed to survive three revolutions struggling for the protection of democratic values ​​and human rights; radically changed the vector of international politics; and advanced significantly in the development of arts and culture.  Learn about the events and processes that took place before independence was declared and see what historical and cultural heritage was preserved by the Ukrainian people when it entered the 21st century in this program taught by researchers, experts in history and political science, and professors from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.  Dr. Natalia Shlikhta, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of History, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy Dr. Maksym Yakovlev, Head of the Department of International Relations, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, Director of the School for Policy Analysis Dr. Tetiana Grygorieva, Associate Professor of the Department of History, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy Dr. Vadym Aristov, Senior lecturer of the Department of History, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy Dr. Kateryna Dysa, Associate Professor of the Department of History, National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy...

Top reviews

EW

Feb 22, 2023

A fascinating look at the history of the country we now know as Ukraine. It really puts into perspective why they continue the fight for their freedom against the Russians.

DH

Oct 15, 2024

It was fascinating to learn some of the history of the Ukraine, especially in light of the ongoing invasion by Russia which is so often on the news.

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1 - 25 of 64 Reviews for Ukraine: History, Culture and Identities

By Gary D

Feb 1, 2023

The course was too short, unfortunately some of the speakers were very difficult to understand. I would like to have a more in-depth history study, also studying Ukrainian art, music and culture in general and how it differentiates from Russian.

By Iryna

Jun 30, 2023

Dear authors of the course!

From the bottom of my heart I would like to thank you for such a wonderful opportunity to review and rethink the history of Ukraine. I started and finished the course in 2 days.

However, I would like to express my opinion about obtaining a certificate. As you know, not only Ukrainians, but also foreign citizens may be interested in this course (for example, foreign students). And if we had the opportunity to receive a certificate, it would once again prove Ukraine's intentions to become a member of the European Union, our interest in the history of our country and knowledge of a foreign language.

With respect to all of you

Iryna

P.S If it it needed to pay for the certificate, I will do it.

By Olivia

Jun 15, 2023

I have always had an interest in European history. After reading about what was going on in Ukraine, I wanted to educate myself about the country and its history to better understand the events that have shaped Ukraine. Fortunately, this course accomplishes that!

The lectures are super interesting, informative and short enough to keep your attention span. The quizzes are straightforward, and you are actually tested on the material in the lecture - so no surprises there. The professors make the lectures so compelling that you want to rewatch them.

The reason I am giving the class four stars is because I feel that they could have gone deeper into the historical aspects. I felt that the lectures only scratched the surface. I would love to see a follow up class that covers these concepts a bit more in depth.

Overall, I would recommend this class for the reasons listed above and because the student does walk away with a better understanding of Ukraine.

By Jean C

Feb 5, 2023

I was thrilled when I found out about this course through the Facebook page of the Ukrainian Institute, of which a relative of mine, Volodymyr Sheiko is the director. ,Although my ancestry is 50 % Ukrainian I did not know a great deal about the history, as my mother (first generation American) had a desire to become Anglicized after she became an adult.

This course gave me a basic understanding of the history of Ukraine and has instilled in me a desire to pursue more reading in depth with the fine and thorough bibilography. The lectures were excellent and I was pleased that I could return and re-read the text, timeline and glossary. I appreciated being able to view the fine professors who had great enthusiasm for this subject matter.

Thank you!

By Patricia H

Jan 22, 2023

This course was incredibly well done. The instructors were quite good although I did struggle to understand them sometimes. The course work, notes, further reading is most beneficial and the the video images helped to understand the literature. I am most appreciative of all the lesson work that all the instructors and support staff did to bring this course to the Coursera knowledge base. Thank you.

I am so sad for Ukraine right now (Jan 2023) as the Russian continue to do destruction. This course has given me insight into the history of Ukraine leading up to this invasion. I know now that Ukraine has a long history of strife and I understand the Ukrainian peoples fierce nationality and sobeit. Long life Ukraine. Peace for Ukraine

By Ландвитович А

Feb 3, 2023

During this course I renewed my knowledge of Ukrainian history, discovered similarities between historical processes of Ukraine and Western Europe and learned about life of cultural minorities in Ukraine. But first of all, it is a nice course to get acquainted with Ukrainian history. Thank you for such great work!

By Anton B

Jan 30, 2023

Fantastic short course and I offer everyone who at least has a bit of interest in Ukraine to pass it. Glory to Ukraine.

By Elissa W

Feb 23, 2023

A fascinating look at the history of the country we now know as Ukraine. It really puts into perspective why they continue the fight for their freedom against the Russians.

By Catherine M

Jan 19, 2023

An interesting and concise overview of Ukrainian history

By Beatriz m d

Sep 8, 2024

It is an excellent course,but I found it very short.

By Н.В. Б

Feb 13, 2023

Це дуже цікавий курс! Рекомендую!

By Kateryna O

Aug 11, 2024

I have enjoyed the course immensely and was proud to have actually learnt a lot of the facts presented in this course at my Ukrainian school. It was great to have different historians lecture on different topics. The visualized key notes, paintings, stamps, photographs and videos were a brilliant addition to the lectures, helping to memorize names, dates, names of treaties etc. better. However, it would be beneficial for the audience to have the speakers train the pronunciation of certain words prior to recording the lectures, as their mispronunciation made me, a fluent English speaker, struggle for a couple of seconds to guess some of the words used by the speakers, such as decades, increase, process, crusader, disciple, legislature, codices, this vs. these, discourse etc. It can be difficult to follow the videos, especially if one decides to not activate the subtitles. If you are interested in ever recording a new course on Ukrainian history / language / art / literature, I would be glad to be of help and coach the speakers on the pronunciation of those English words that are rarely used or the pronunciation of which is an exception to the rule and thus cannot be guessed correctly. I could equally proofread the transcripts and pdf files to avoid typos or mistakes potentially causing confusion, e.g. "the ancient city of Cherson (instead of Chersones) on the Crimean peninsula". Thank you for making the course accessible to everyone interested in Ukraine. The work you have put into this course is greatly appreciated.

By Scott H

Feb 19, 2023

Wow, I'd gladly pay for this course as my interest being peaked persisted to the final question. The concise, unbiased information received is nearly inconceivable and that is no joke. As a history geopolitical history fan, how much I learned each step of the way was truly incredible.

<3 SLAVA UKRAINI HEROYAM SLAVA

By Leandro D M

Jun 23, 2024

Reality Hello Very good. Qualifies to learn more about Ukrainian and Eurasian history and philosophy-science-history and parts of Europe in ethnic, political-cultural-economic content and interaction with war and society, sense of civilization and democracy, freedom and development. Thanks

By Lisa G M

Jan 31, 2023

very interesting and educational! thank you for having subtitles, as sometimes the instructors' accents were a challenge for me to follow. The information they shared was very useful, and I'm glad to know more about the background of Ukraine now.

By G B

Aug 13, 2024

This was an excellent brief introductory course for those who have very limited knowledge of Ukraine's history. It touches on culture, religion, subjugation, and military episodes. Looking forward to building on this knowledge.

By Robin P

Sep 18, 2023

I liked this course because it was a quick course that hit the wavetops of Ukrainian history. This is not an in-depth course. It is a course that describes the past 1000 years in that part of the world.

By David H

Oct 16, 2024

It was fascinating to learn some of the history of the Ukraine, especially in light of the ongoing invasion by Russia which is so often on the news.

By Соф'я П

Feb 5, 2023

An informative course, especially for those who want to start studying the history of their native land.

Looking forward to more detailed courses.

By Frederick D R

Jul 15, 2023

This course was very well done and thought provoking. I am glad I signed up for it and learned much more about Ukraine's great history.

By Michael D

Jul 3, 2023

Very interesting course and I certainly learned some things. It might be possible to follow it up with something more in depth

By Kimberly A K

Mar 4, 2023

I found it fascinating. I learned that the issues and animosity between Russia and Ukraine goes back centuries.

By Olena M

Jul 27, 2023

Very interesting and useful information about my Ukraine. Thanks to authors of the course.

By Наталія

Jun 4, 2023

Цікавий курс, особливо викладення відомих історих фактів англійською мовою

By iryna.bentsalo@gmail.com

Jan 9, 2024

I am happy to participate on such a great course of dignity and truth