Examples of intercultural education from the Western Balkans

1. Examples of intercultural education from the Western Balkans The Institutional Foundations for Dialogue and Respect Informal conference of European Ministers of Education Oslo, June 5-6, 2008 Tünde Kovač-Cerović

2. Overview • Address 3 issues pertinent to intercultural education in the Western Balkans: • Equitable enrolment • Quality of education • Levels of intervention • Use the case of Roma education as a common but difficult one (www.romaeducationfund.org) • Use successful examples of currently running program types which I saw, evaluated • Lessons learned, Questions suggested to address

3. Ethnic composition in the Western Balkans – Roma in all countries In all countries minorities from neighboring countries + Roma

4. Multi-language instructionin all countries (e.g. Vojvodina): Instruction in basic education provided in 6 languages (data 2007) Minority language instruction mostly in 2 language schools Optional language and culture courses offered in 6 languages (Hungarian, Slovak, Romanian, Ruthenian, Croat and Romanes)

5. Specific situation of Roma in all countries affects their education chances • Poverty constraints: • invisible costs of schooling not affordable for Roma families • lack of parental literacy to support education • parental unemployment • Admin constraints: • schools not in vicinity of • Roma settlements • transportation not • provided • lack of identity/ • registration papers • Social & cultural constraints: • language barriers • fear of discrimination in schools • lack of prerequisite skills

6. Issue 1: Intercultural education and living together How to overcome effects of territorial segregation on education chances?

7. Roma face patterns of multiple barriers

8. Example 1: Facilitating enrolment of Roma children • Macedonia,local Roma NGO • Community work: • house to house data collection • parent informing and motivation • providing school equipment to children • Work with media: • reducing stereotypes, positive framing • Work with schools: • sharing database • ensuring placement of children in integrated classes • Similar project in Bosnia, Tuzla Canton and in many other places

9. Example 2: Preventing discrimination and segregation of Roma children • Serbia, Human rights Roma NGO • NGO: • Monitoring discrimination & segregation • Training inspectors • Preventing placement to special schools (new type of testing, Roma person present) • NGO in cooperation with MoE: • Rulebook for inspectors • Negotiating school desegregation plans • International replication considered

10. Lessons learned • Distribution of housing is hindering the education of Roma • Additional support and community work needed • There are cases when territorial distribution would best be ignored and deliberately overcome for social outcomes to happen (Roma settlements in Medjimurje, Croatia, Roma settlement Konik in Montenegro, Sutto Orizari in Macedonia, etc.) • Open questions: • Free choice of schools or neighborhood schooling? • What size of unit? How school catchment areas are/should be organised?

11. Issue 2: Quality of intercultural education • Intercultural education challenges dominant discourse on education quality • Innovative actions & new concepts required

12. Key issue: Finding connections between input and process variables which maximize social outcomes and reduce group differences in performance input process outcomes social Affirmative action: Enrolment Equipment Teachers performance disagregated performance

13. Example 3: Scholarship and mentoring program for secondary education Macedonia, int’l NGO Small stipends (all 1st year Roma students, after 2nd year merit based) Mentoring for all Roma students Dynamic monitoring of attendance and success, “freezing” scholarships in case of low indicators Evaluation: success rate, participation rate parent motivation cooperation at school level Model replicated in other countries: Romania, Serbia (Vojvodina, NIP)

14. Example 4: Roma parents in school boards Serbia, local NGO + community + municipality + regional school authorities Community: ensures election of Roma parents for school representation School: involvement of Roma parents in parent councils school development plan includes their input Municipality: involvement of parents in school boards School authority: endorsement Guidebook disseminating practice to other school authorities NGO: preparing Roma parents for the new roles (training, coaching) Non-Roma parents request similar training

15. Example 5: Teacher training and Roma assistants in schools • Bosnia, pilot, teacher training NGO • Intense preparation of schools: • Training teachers in child centered methodology - changing teachers’ expectations • Equipping schools • Hiring assistants • Community work and work with parents • School improvement, monitoring outcomes • New activities of school: second chance & adult education

16. Lessons learned: • Not easy: Action on input, process and outcome level needed • Focus on outcome (both closing the performance gap and on social outcomes) requires changes at input and process level - integration of Roma in mainstream schools • Dilemmas of policy makers: what comes first - quality or integration

17. high quality segregated integrated low quality

18. Issue 3: Multiple levels of intervention - school or policy

19. Example 6: Advancing education for Roma studies 2006/07www.romaeducationfund.org For: Bulgaria Czech Republic Hungary Macedonia Romania Serbia Slovakia Croatia BIH and Montenegro forthcoming Provides: A lot of data on the education and Roma in each country Basis for monitoring progress Basis for comparative analysis Inventory of policies currently used in the countries with regard of education of Roma

20. Old policies: Cumulated systemic barriers– felt at school level

21. New policies: Chance for school level success

22. Typical traps in education policies concerning Roma: The “minority cultural rights” trap Assimilating into other minority policies The “poverty” trap Ignoring discrimination, providing assistance The “vulnerable group” trap Not recognizing resiliency, compensating for handicap instead of building on strengths The “inclusion” trap Fusion with special needs children The “school-based-approach” trap Creating Roma-magnet schools The “parent involvement” trap Expanding the role of school above realistic limits The “quality education” trap Ignoring integration

23. Multiple levels of actions required Framework, guidance, funds Curriculum, textbooks, teachers, evaluation Finances, management National level School network Maintenance Municipal/regional level School level Where the action is

24. Example 7: Roma education initiative Montenegro, national program + school action National framework: Co-funding Data collection Monitoring Legitimity School action: Roma assistants Roma mediators connecting school and parents Teacher training Similar program in Croatia

25. Example 8: Preschool program Serbia, national only - history of failure New design: community + municipality + preschool institution + Professional support institution Roma coordinators: parent motivation Teacher sensitization and coaching Data/-base Key factors of success: preschool institutional capacity cooperation of teachers, teacher model municipal committment

26. Lessons learned • If levels disconnected: Commitment without system (school level) or system without commitment (national level) • If levels connected: Not easy: living with tensions, unconfortable for all parties • Needed at policy level: • Closer link between national and school policies • Closer link between research and schools • Closer connection of “Roma policies” to “education policies” • Clearer focus on equity in designing new education reform policies • Special look at the schools

27. Why is the school where the action is:

28. Place of humaninteraction: • Teacher/student • Student/student • Teacher/teacher • Teacher/parent • Parent/parent Place of intimate social experience: • Learning • Deep understanding • Respect • Place of development of the Self-concept: • Self-regulation • Self-efficacy • Self-esteem • Self-description/attribution Place of creativity and innovation • All depend on the • quality of IA in school

29. Research shows that quality of interaction matters (a small reminder): • Place of important barriers/enhancements: Hierarchy of motives • Students’ memories Expectations of teachers function as self-fulfilling prophecies: • Capacity development (Rosenthal & Jacobson) • Motivation (Pelletier & Vallerand) Academic self-expectation (Wigfield)

30. Schools need a conducive and rich context Research Education Developmental priorities

31. …and strong connections Research International instruments Education Develop ment Education system solutions in other countries

32. Conclusions Multitude of success stories in all countries, at a variety of levels • Multicultural context is needed for intercultural education to happen, but it is not enough • Quality of intercultural education calls for new mechanisms and revisiting basic concepts • Novel ties between national, local and school policies and actions need to be fostered • Missing link: teacher and school leadership initial education for intercultural education But: • Be aware of “policy traps” • Be aware of, and change teachers’ expectations • Be aware of time: Delay in overcoming barriers increases the gap between Roma and non-Roma

33. 2025 SCHOOL Personal benefits Social benefits regulated teachers textbooks curriculum Equitable & Interculturally sensitive financing management assessment evaluation Research participatory Development Policies efficient accountable

34. Thank you!

35. Examples of intercultural education from the Western Balkans The Institutional Foundations for Dialogue and Respect Informal conference of European Ministers of Education Oslo, June 5-6, 2008 Tünde Kovač-Cerović