ANOTHER CYCLE OF TRAINING “ON THE PUBLIC LEARNING PATH” FOR EXPERT ASSOCIATES AND HEADS OF PROFESSIONAL COUNCIL FOR CLASSROOM TEACHING FROM ALL PUBLIC PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THE TERRITORY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA HAS BEEN COMPLETED

Within the project of the Ministry of Education, Inclusive preschool education and care, which is supported by a loan from the World Bank, in cooperation with the UNICEF Office in Belgrade, which is engaged as an implementation partner, a program is being developed and implemented to support the strengthening of capacities for the implementation of the new Foundations of Preschool Education Program, which includes combined training, mentoring support and horizontal learning for employees in preschool institutions, as well as professional counseling of educational advisors and inspectors, but also online training for professional associates and teachers from primary schools. The project is planned to include 1,300 professional associates from primary schools, but the rational allocation of funds has enabled the training to be carried out for 3,000 participants so that by the end of the Project, it will include professional associates (pedagogues and psychologists) and heads of professional councils from all public elementary schools in the territory of the Republic of Serbia.

The online training “On the common path of learning” was developed in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, the Institute for the Improvement of Education and Training, and UNICEF. The training is free of charge and accredited by the decision of the minister as training of public interest, and it takes place on the platform for conducting public interest training – ZUOVEdu. The organizer of the training is the Institute for the Improvement of Education.

The aim of the online training “On a common path of learning” is to empower professional associates and teachers in primary schools to strengthen the partnership between the two levels of the education system (preschool and primary school) through understanding the changes in preschool education (introduction of the new Foundations of PVO program, Years of Ascent), stronger connection and recognition of common values ​​in building support for children and families during the transition from kindergarten to school. The strategy for the development of education in the Republic of Serbia until 2030 implies the further development of the PVO system to meet the needs of children and families as support for the well-being and overall development of children through, among other things, achieving smooth transitions, i.e. ensuring the continuity of experiences of children and families in the educational context and developing relationships with other parts of the education system (schools), the community (institutions of culture, health, social protection), local self-government and the wider social community.

The specific objectives of the training are:

1. Empowering professional associates and teachers in primary schools to support children and families during the transition period from preschool to primary school and developing a partnership relationship with the family.
2. Informing professional associates in primary schools about the concept, starting points, and key concepts of the basis of the PVO ” Years of Ascent” program.
3. Motivating professional associates in primary schools to promote the school as a place of research and learning for children of preschool and school age.

After completing the training, participants receive a certificate for 24 hours of professional development

The authors of the training are Dr. Vesna Colic, professor of vocational studies at the College of Vocational Studies for Teacher Education in Novi Sad, trainer and mentor for the implementation of the “Years of Ascent” PVO Basics program, Dr. Sanja Blagdanic, full professor at the Faculty of Teacher Education, University of Belgrade, and Katarina Djuric, graduate psychologist ‒ professional associate at the Cukarica Preschool in Belgrade, trainer and mentor for the implementation of the Foundations of the PVO “Years of Ascent” program.

The first cycle of the training for 866 participants from the ranks of professional associates from elementary schools and heads of expert councils for classroom teaching was successfully implemented in December 2022 with an average training grade of 3.56. Another training cycle with 1017 participants was successfully completed on March 13th. By the end of May, it is planned for another 1,000 participants to be included in the training.

We expect that the training will further empower practitioners from primary schools to plan high-quality joint activities in cooperation with teams of preschool institutions and enable smooth transitions from one level of education to another for children and families.