OSCE helps Kosovo pre-schoolers learn about human rights
Five and six year-olds in Kosovo are starting to learn about human rights and non-discrimination thanks to an OSCE project that aims to help pre-school teachers integrate these topics into the youngsters' curriculum.
Girls playing in an improvised kitchen and boys roaring after toy cars are part of a normal scene in Kosovo's kindergartens, and many people still see nothing wrong with it. "But this is where gender and other stereotypes start developing," says Shahriniso Najmetdinova, Human Rights Adviser with the OSCE Mission in Kosovo.
One of her assignments is to support the work of the Human Rights Unit at Kosovo's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. She explains that until the age of six, children have not fully developed their own behavioural patterns and tend to copy their parents and teachers.
The problem in Kosovo, however, she says, is that pre-school teachers do not receive any kind of human rights training and can therefore easily misguide the children. "We discussed this issue with the Ministry, and they asked us to help," Najmetdinova says.
In late April 2008, the OSCE Mission organized a two-day training course for some 30 pre-school teachers from across Kosovo. The course covered four main topics: basic human rights, children's rights, non-discrimination and gender equality.
"We wanted the teachers to become aware of the core issues that can make a difference when working with children," says Iliriana Islami, a trainer from the Mission.
Focusing on children's rights
"We especially focused on the rights of children, including those with special needs," says Islami. "We stressed that children with limited abilities must be treated equally by society and included in the same schools as other children, which hasn't been the case."
Stereotypes of gender-based roles were also addressed. "We want to foster an understanding among children - at the earliest stages of their education - that duties and responsibilities are the same for everybody, regardless of gender," she says.
Merita Gashi, a teacher from Buzëqeshja ("Smile'") pre-school, found the training very helpful. "We were not totally unaware of what we discussed, but it is always useful to hear more about the issues that shape children's lives," she says.
"There are never enough hints when it comes to using the right way and the best language to teach children what's right and what's wrong."
Changing the routine
Since taking part in the course, Gashi has changed her routine. "Now when girls go to the kitchen to play with cooking ware, we urge the boys to do the same. And we share all the toys - cars for all and dolls for all."
Almost unaware of the fact that they are being taught about gender equality, tolerance and human rights, the kids in Gashi's class seem happy and more eager to play than discuss human rights.
To build on the success of the training's pilot phase, the Mission is now planning a second more advanced course for the same group of teachers in September. But it will go one step further and aim to identify two or three of them who will be coached in order to train the remaining 493 pre-school teachers in Kosovo.
And true to her belief that there can never be enough training for people working with children, Gashi is looking forward to the upcoming course: "With every new school year, there's more knowledge to share."