EDUCATION FOR DIVIDED CITIZENS

This research is part of a larger project titled “Separate Education- Separate Citizens?” which was carried out in eight countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia and Tajikistan. The research was coordinated by the Network of Education Policy Centers (NEPC) based in Croatia, while research activities in Kosovo were conducted by the Kosovo Education Center. The research began with two focus group interviews, one consisting of Albanian students, the other of Serbian students. Then, a survey of 597 students and 94 teachers from schools with Albanian language and Serbian-language teaching was conducted. Based on the analysis, these recommendations were given:

1. Kosovo institutions must respect all the special rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the Law to help integrate the Serbian community into the education system in Kosovo, using incentive measures where appropriate.
2. Without prejudice to the right of the Serbian community to exploit the plans and programs of the Republic of Serbia, as long as they are not contrary to the principles of peaceful coexistence and coexistence, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology should provide the possibility of formalizing these contents, including them in Kosovo’s Serbian-language curriculum and curriculum. Children and young people of all communities should be offered the opportunity to learn more about the perspectives of other communities. This can be achieved through a multi-perspective approach to history teaching, where children, in addition to interpreting historical events from a national perspective, can also learn about the perspectives of other communities in relation to the same events.
3. Learning the language of the environment on an optional basis is another instrument for building understanding among young people of different ethnic communities, as well as organizing joint learning and external activities.