---
title: "Taras Shevchenko's Works Included in Lithuania's School Curriculum: What Students Will Learn"
description: "The Lithuanian Ministry of Education has included Taras Shevchenko's works in the literature school curriculum to strengthen cultural ties."
date: 2026-10-06T07:40:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/taras-shevchenkos-works-included-in-lithuanias-school-curriculum
tags: [taras-shevchenko, lithuania, education, ukraine, literature]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Taras Shevchenko's Works Included in Lithuania's School Curriculum: What Students Will Learn

![Portrait of Taras Shevchenko and books in the context of Lithuania's school curriculum](https://xab.info/media/2026/10/06/proizvedeniya-tarasa-shevchenko-v-shkolnoy-programme-litvy/proizvedeniya-tarasa-shevchenko-v-shkolnoy-programme-litvy-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- Taras Shevchenko's works are included in the general Lithuanian language and literature curriculum.
- Starting September 1, 2027, Shevchenko will be a mandatory author for eleventh-graders.
- The list includes the poem 'Zapovit' and the epistle 'To My Dead, Living...'.
- The decision aims to strengthen ties between Lithuania and Ukraine and integrate children.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Sports of Lithuania has made a milestone decision to update the general curriculum for the Lithuanian language and literature by including works by the prominent Ukrainian poet, writer, and artist Taras Shevchenko.  Now, Lithuanian schoolchildren will be able to gain a deeper understanding of the Ukrainian classic's heritage by studying it alongside national literature.

### Implementation Stages and Mandatory Study

Already in the current 2026 academic year, Taras Shevchenko's works are recommended for study by eighth-grade students as well as third-year gymnasium pupils taking the general course in the Lithuanian language and literature. The scale of integration will expand: starting September 1, 2027, studying the works of the Ukrainian author will become mandatory for all eleventh-graders who choose the advanced course of the subject.

### Which Works Were Included in the Curriculum

The official recommended list includes the famous poem "Zapovit" and the profound philosophical epistle "To My Dead, Living, and Yet Unborn Compatriots in Ukraine and Not in Ukraine, My Friendly Epistle".  In addition, the teaching methodology allows teachers, while covering topics related to the Romanticism era, to independently expand the list and choose other works by the Ukrainian classic at their discretion.

### Cultural Context and Historical Ties

The Lithuanian ministry emphasized that this step is aimed at strengthening multifaceted cultural ties between Lithuania and Ukraine, as well as at the effective integration of Ukrainian children studying in local schools. Minister of Education Raminta Popovienė highlighted the deep historical significance of Shevchenko's figure, reminding that the poet lived in Vilnius for several years, comprehended the basics of art there, and left a prominent mark on the city's cultural memory.

### Contradictory Data

During the coverage of the educational reform in the media, some discrepancies arose regarding the exact deadlines for the mandatory introduction of subjects and the status of the authors. While official sources from the Lithuanian Ministry of Education clearly distinguish the recommendation stage of 2026 and the mandatory course starting September 1, 2027, for the advanced program, some news agencies initially interpreted the initiative as an immediate replacement of Russian authors with Ukrainian ones across all classes without a transition period. Additionally, in Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius's August initiatives, the issue of excluding Russian writers Mikhail Lomonosov and Gavrila Derzhavin from the programs was simultaneously considered, sparking discussions about the fate of classical heritage in modern Baltic school curricula.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Произведения Тараса Шевченко включили в школьную программу Литвы: что будут учить ученики](https://wave.rbc.ua/ukr/culture/tvori-tarasa-shevchenka-vklyuchili-shkilnoyi-1791271565.html) - Официальные детали интеграции произведений Шевченко в литовские школы
- [Ломоносова заменят Шевченко: в Литве хотят убрать российского писателя из школьной программы](https://focus.ua/culture/763273-lomonosova-zamenyat-shevchenko-v-litve-hotyat-ubrat-rossiyskogo-pisatelya-iz-shkolnoy-programmy) - Контекст замены российских авторов и инициатив премьер-министра

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: What works by Taras Shevchenko will be studied in Lithuanian schools?
**A:** The list includes the poem 'Zapovit' and the epistle 'To My Dead, Living, and Yet Unborn Compatriots...', and teachers can also choose other works.

### Q: When will studying Shevchenko's works become mandatory?
**A:** Studying Shevchenko's works will become mandatory starting September 1, 2027, for eleventh-graders taking the advanced course.