The project aims to facilitate an evidence-based reform in teacher professional development to reflect values-based education and promote inclusive education, equality, non-discrimination, and civic competences in all levels of education, improving the training of teachers and continuous professional development in order to impact the long-term quality of the education system while in parallel strengthening the link between education, research and innovation. The project aims to enhance teachers’ competencies to reflect and advance value-based education (including Education for Democratic Citizenship and Inclusive Education) in their classrooms, in the education curriculum, planning and implementation. The project is of national scope targeting national policies, as well as improving teacher education at the major teacher education institutions.

Competences for democratic culture cannot just be taught theoretically; they need to be practiced. Democratic citizenship relies on putting theory into practice: it combines knowledge and understanding with the ability and will to act. These competences must therefore be developed through education practice, as well as through theoretical learning. This is why the project is designed as such to include school-based interventions as well. Education institutions and systems should promote a culture of democracy through whole-school approaches. Through direct school intervention, the project intends to empower school leaders, teachers and other education personnel to transmit shared values and to deal with diversity inside and outside the classroom, support and guide teachers and school leaders with innovative pedagogical approaches and methods and support more democratic learning environments to allow learners to experience democracy and democratic school culture. This includes implementing practices and activities which aim, by equipping learners with knowledge, skills and understanding and molding their attitudes and behavior, to empower them to exercise and defend their democratic rights and responsibilities in society, to value diversity and to play an active part in democratic life, with a view to the promotion and protection of democracy.

With these facts in mind, the proposed project aims at the following specific objectives:

Policy level interventions

• Develop a national teacher education policy to reflect value-based education, principles of democratic citizenship and inclusive education
• Develop a national framework of teacher competencies for inclusive education and a roadmap with the MESTI on the development of an inclusive school climate and inclusive classrooms
• Develop reference framework for incorporating value-based education in national teacher standards for TE programs
• Design and launch implementation of a roadmap on responsible citizenship competence development in the school system education

Teacher education program interventions

• Reforming at least 6 TE Programs to reflect value-based education and increase student-teacher competencies in equity education and inclusive education (in working with children from diverse backgrounds, children from marginalized communities, children with diverse learning needs, and children with different developmental delays and disorders).
• Reform at least 20 courses in pre-service TE programs in UP and UPZ to mainstream value-based education and development of responsible citizenship competence into the curriculum and reflect skills and competence building on working with children with learning difficulties and children from marginalized communities
• Re-define pre-service teacher education pedagogical practice (at least 14 courses) to support increased student participation in school community volunteer activities that foster development of democratic competencies

Capacity building interventions

• Design and deliver a teacher educator capacity building programme for teaching equity and values to at least 40 educators from all teacher education institutions in Kosovo (5 public universities)
• Design and deliver a sustainable in-service teacher development program for teaching equity, values, and diversity and building responsible citizenship competence for at least 300 teachers
• Develop and deliver capacity building program for at least 100 in-service teachers and 50 school directors on building democratic school culture and inclusive learning environment
• Design and accredit an E- training program for transferring values, teaching diversity and building responsible citizenship competence and create open learning resources for teaching equity, diversity, democratic citizenship and responsible citizenship

School-based interventions

• Support in-service and pre-service teachers to produce innovative teaching and learning materials for children with diverse needs and learning styles
• Implement direct interventions in schools in developing democratic and inclusive school climate and culture through student-led mini-projects on value-based education in at least 20 pilot schools
• Carry-out participatory school development planning in at least 20 pilot schools to promote democratic school culture
• Develop a framework for self-evaluation of school progress towards development of responsible citizenship competence and implement the framework in practice.