The countdown for the first South East Europe (SEE) Academy begins!

SEE Summer Academy Programme

A diverse group of 33 participants has been nominated, including teachers and their school heads from primary as well as secondary schools, representatives from NGOs and from parents’ council. Participants are joining in teams from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Kosovo(1).

The training offered by the Bureau for Educational Services, Montenegro, the Council of Europe (CoE) and the European Wergeland Centre (EWC), aims to strengthen participants capacity to implement and promote principles and practices of human rights education (HRE) and citizenship education (EDC) in their schools and local communities.

The Academy starts with an 8-day training course in Cetinje, during which participants analyse their school and community situation, and reflect on their own practice, taking into account the principles of EDC/ HRE. Based on this analysis, each team will develop an action plan to implement upon return, with concrete activities and projects to foster EDC/ HRE. A follow-up phase from September to December will be offered to facilitate discussions, questions and sharing of experiences. It takes place on a customized online platform provided by the EWC.

The training progamme is prepared and run by an experienced team of trainers. Part of the 2012 team are Ms Olena Styslavska (head trainer, Poland), Ms Radmilla Radic (Serbia), Mr Ted Huddleston (UK), and Ms Pascale Mompoint-Gaillard (France). The programme includes sessions on:

• EDC/ HRE teaching and learning activities

• How to create climate of trust, openness and mutual respect?

• Democratic school governance

• A whole school approach to EDC/ HRE – What is it about?

• Individual learning plans and team action plans

The SEE Summer Academy is a joint initiative between the Ministry of Education, Montenegro; Bureau for Educational Services, Montenegro; the CoE and the EWC.

It translates CoE’s policy into practice by offering training in line with the CoE Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education and based on CoE manuals to education professionals and community representatives from South East Europe.

(1) All reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, in this text shall be understood in full compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.