The role of education and training in fighting social exclusion: outcomes of the project on social inclusion Lida Kita, European Training Foundation (ETF) 14 June 2010

European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument countries ENP South: Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria, Tunisia and Israel ENP East: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Russia Potential candidate countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo (UNSCR 1244/1999), Montenegro, Serbia Candidate countries: Croatia, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey Other countries from Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

Why social inclusion? To promote inclusive education and training policies and practices in contexts of social and cultural diversity in Western Balkan countries and Turkey The need for cohesive societies based on reconciliation, non- discrimination and equal opportunities High on the policy agenda in the EU and the Western Balkans and Turkey, where the ethnic mix is incredible Despite efforts, people still live in secured enclaves, facing serious difficulties in accessing education, healthcare and employment. What is the ETF project about Sharing experience and opinions between countries and with other EU countries/international organisations Developing capacity in the countries so that they can implement education and training programmes that are inclusive Identifying the needs of the most vulnerable groups in education and training

Project conceptualisation Continues and builds on the IPA SOC work Capitalises and compliments the national and EU developments in social inclusion in E&T Responds to the challenges raised in the national reporting, DG ENL( 2009 progress report), DG EMPL( Social Inclusion and Social Protection 2008 reports) and other donors’ evaluation and monitoring reports It is is country driven( on going discussions through 2007 to 2010) It has gone through a very consultative process(IPA country national teams, DGs, ECDelegations,experts,most active donors etc) Outputs 7 country reports on policies and practices finalised December 2009 Cross-country report (based on the country analyses) identifying common challenges and recommendations by July 2010

ETF analytical activity Analysis into preparation of teachers policies and practices for inclusive education in the Western Balkans undertaken in Identification of key issues and challenges related to the skills and competences required by teachers for inclusive education

General findings Progress in adapting countries’ education and training systems to make them more inclusive Legal frameworks and policy papers value diversity in E&T; implementation still a challenge Progress in improving pre-service and in-service training and development of teachers with donors support

Narrow paradigm of inclusive education Patchwork approach in understanding and practicing inclusive education Focused mostly on special needs and target groups (e.g. Roma, specific ethnic minorities, students with disabilities, etc.) Insufficient involvement of parents and community

Teacher profession and career Low societal esteem and remuneration Reform fatigue Lack of system for CPD of teachers and for recognition the enhancement of their skills Scarce public funding for teacher training

Teacher skills for inclusive education Teacher skills for IE developed as ad hoc and externally-driven activities, without clear home-grown goals and achievement indicators Lack of standards to act as frame of reference for the specific competences for inclusive education Lack of practical guidance to teachers

Teacher skills for inclusive education Lack of confidence to work in diverse settings Wide spectrum of teacher attitudes (+  -) towards students with ‘non-standard’ profiles Shortage of teachers coming from ethnic/linguistic minorities Some subject teachers, esp. in VET, do not have pedagogical qualification

Pre-service teacher education Low status of teaching profession impact quality and potential of student teacher enrolment IE seen as adding new modules to existing academic teacher programmes, not as a cross-curricular principle Lack of sufficient practical training, “reality check” missing

In-service teacher training and CPD Lack of systemic approach Good practices (funded by donors and NGOs) remain “isolated islands” of experience Lack of holistic approach, taking into account not only teachers but overall school teams and management

Recommendations Promote teacher education as a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, problem-oriented study area  Provide for broader teacher competences, incl. interactive and flexible ways of teaching and learning, working with mixed ability and cultural backgrounds  Work together, across institutions, across the country, across the region and Europe

“Good news ” for Albania EU accession as nationally shared policy anchor Overall reform of the education system since 2000, inspired by EU and international practice Young population in Europe: population growth, ethnic diversity Human capital development is a strategic priority sector Substaintional EU and other donor support in HCD helps increase social cohesion and the employability of youth Special attention is given to the strategic value of youth, as both a key challenge and opportunity for progress towards equity and social inclusion

But still much to be done for inclusive education and training Centralised, input-based public funding of schools, insufficiently addressing the needs for better quality of education Not enough student support schemes, transparency still an issue and there is need to better target equity and accessibility issues New concept, promoted in the last years; policy discourse and measures so far targeting primarily poverty Poverty is on the rise as a result of the economic crisis impact Lack of mapping existing “pockets” of poverty Vulnerable groups cover wide spectrum of Albania population: RAE, pensioners, youth, women, people with disabilities and long-term unemployed RAE Extremely low educational attainment with strong gender imbalance Lack of evidence about segregation Lack of properly trained teachers, physical infra-structure barriers, social stigmatisation of children Socio-economic inequalities influence access to and participation in education and training

Enhancing social inclusion Increasing the participation of vulnerable groups in quality E&T and in decent employment Supporting territorial cohesion through developing comprehensive strategies for the different regions Mainstreaming social inclusion

Civil society as a key player-Achievements Civil society has been playing a central role in education, training and employment of marginalised groups in Albania They have emerged as alternative providers of education for economically and culturally disadvantaged groups They are assumed to have pro-poor orientation, flexibility, innovation, cost- effectiveness, and participatory approaches They reach the non-enrolled and dropouts and provide educational opportunities for hard-to-reach groups Wide consensus of the importance of the skilled and confident “third sector” for enabling the involvement of citizens in decision making process Their capacities have been enhanced with support of donors Their improved working relationship with each other and with the governments has increased their influence in reform process

Civil society as a key player-Achievements Taken up diversified roles: from serving as a watchdog to giving input on policy and often providing social services They have begun the process of transformation by participating at all stages of policy cycles: 1.Agenda setting 2.Policy development and policy decision making process 3.Policy implementation 4.Monitoring &Evaluation 5.Policy impact assessment 6.Development of national indicators

Civil society as a key player-Challenges Most of them still struggle to find their own authentic, effective voice in the sector and most of their work is defined by external forces Lack of focus-there is a continuous tendency to reshape themselves to donor priorities The environment in which NGOs and CSOs operate, the challenges they face, are changing very often, demanding new skills and new attitudes This disrups the process of aqcuiring adequate enhanced capacities But whatever the task and whatever the role, their success will depend on increased professionalism a more diverse and sustainable funding base, and a stronger sense of who they are and what they want to achieve

Civil society as a key player-Challenges The government’s vision of civil society is improved but still not well defined, and cooperation so far has been sporadic and too dependent on individuals Government and CSO officials are often invited to each other’s functions, but there is a need for deeper and more institutionalized cooperation Understanding between the two groups has grown with some former government officials joining CSOs and vice versa Government could help by providing funding for capacity building for CSOs and/or outsourcing the provision of some education and training services

Comments for discussions No shortage of new ideas and policy formulation but there is need for more creativity in implementations instruments, measures and approaches Engage communities in a different form of dialogue in which locals not just national elites are empowered Consulting should not mean passive participation of the “elite” or “leaders” of the community or lip service to capacity building of local communities and NGOs There is a need for persistent flaws in a large-scale capacity development and services delivery to the community Transnational cooperation with a special focus on peer learning and mutual learning actions

Comments for discussions CSOs with a solid speciality will be more credible with government than those that take “can do it all” approach Coordination between CSOs gives them strength in numbers, better access to information, more visibility, and more credibility with donors Alliances between CSOs can be structured or unstructured, long-term or short-term and these networks are generally more successful when they are need-driven rather than donor-driven EC- IPA can encourage local groups/NGOs/local municipalities to present joint projects in support of inclusive education and training and above all for the capacity development of officials in all tiers of the education sector governance

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