OSCE Office helps integrate human rights education into Tajikistan’s schools
A three-day training course on human rights education for 20 teacher trainers from Dushanbe, Sughd, Khatlon, and Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Provinces, organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan in co-operation with the Teachers’ Training Institute of the Ministry of Education, concluded on 25 May 2013 in Dushanbe.
The training supports the implementation of the State Programme on Human Rights Education, 2013-2020, a policy developed by an interagency working group with OSCE support with the aim of streamlining human rights education into existing curricula and professional training programmes for educators, civil servants, law enforcement and military personnel. The effort is driven by the Interagency Commission on Human Rights Education, chaired by the Human Rights Ombudsman.
“The State Programme on Human Rights Education has far-reaching implications for strengthening a culture of learning across educational institutions, professions and age groups”, said Anna Crowley, Rule of Law and Acting Human Rights Officer of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.
This course, delivered by a team of experts from the formal education system and civil society organizations, focused on interactive and student-centred teaching methods for secondary schools.
“Schools provide fertile ground for instilling the values and skills necessary for effective participation in democratic society. Human rights education not only raises awareness about individual rights and principles, but also promotes a culture of respect and tolerance in classrooms themselves,” said Irina Shastnovitch, an expert on human rights methodology at the State Institute on Adult Education.
The Office, in partnership with the Teachers’ Training Institute, will continue to support human rights educators throughout the year with a series of trainings and seminars. Already this year, the Office supported the first strategic planning session of the Interagency Commission, which consists of twelve representatives of professional training institutes attached to the Ministries of Interior, Defence, Labour and Social Protection, Health, the Border Service, the State Committee on National Security, the Civil Service, the General Prosecutor’s Office and the Judiciary. In April, the Office supported the training of 18 educators to use a manual developed by experts and education authorities in support of the secondary school human rights curriculum.