Regional Conference on History Teaching in Southeast Europe

6-9 December, 2003
Grand Hotel, Pristina, Kosovo

From the 6 th to the 9 th of December 2003 ADRA Denmark Kosovo Operations and the Center for Democracy and Reconciliation in Southeast Europe organised a Regional Conference on History Teaching in Southeast Europe in Pristina.

The purpose of the Conference was threefold:

I. To Present the results research conducted by ADRA on the following:

• To identify critical gaps in education reform, both infrastructure (educator support) and curriculum (subject content).
• To reveal nationalist tendencies inherent in the education system from teacher training to subject content, as well as experience of ethnic conflict.
• To discern voices, perceptions on need, power, and capacity for change at school and community levels.
• To reveal misconceptions transmitted through ignorance of local perceptions of the “other”.
• To reveal misconceptions transmitted through ignorance of Western European perceptions of Southeast Europe.

II. The CDRSEE introduced historians, professionals, teachers, pedagogues, and officials from Kosovo to the regional project: the Southeast European Joint History Project, in the hope of bringing Kosovar education experts into the CDRSEE regional network of scholars.

III. As part of its exit strategy from Kosovo, ADRA Denmark seeks to foster a relationship between regional efforts for reform of history teaching and internal efforts within Kosovo.

Participants in the Conference

Discussions during the coffee break

Visit to a Kula

Participants after the plenary session of the conference

The participants were the following:

ADRA Denmark:

• Bjorn Johansen, Program Manager
• Birgit Philipson, Secondary General
• Antigona Dajakaj, Education Manager
• Holly Hughson, Education Coordinator

CDRSEE:

• Sheila Cannon, Project Manager
• Costas Carras, Rapporteur to the Board of Directors of CDRSEE
• Maria Mylona, Project Coordinator

Georg Eckert Institute:

• Augusta Dimou

EUROCLIO:

• Joke van der Leeuw-Roord, Executive Director of EUROCLIO

Discovery Center for Interactive Learning:

• Karmit Zysman, Director

OSCE BiH:

• Falk Pingel

Kosovo Educator Development Program:

• David Lynn, Project Director
• Milica Kostadinovic, KEDP Project Officer
• Robert Mizzi

University of California at Berkeley:

• Sarah W. Freedman, Professor
• Naomi Levy, Research Assistant

University of Ulster:

• Alan McCully, School of Education

Albania:

• Fatmiroshe Xhemali, History Teacher
• Adrian Papajani

Bulgaria:

• Todor Kavrakov, History Teacher

Croatia:

• Margita Madunic, History Teacher
• Kresimir Alajbeg, History Teacher

Greece:

• Christina Koulouri, Assist. Prof., University of the Peloponesus

FYR of Macedonia:

• Alim Purelku, History Teacher

Kosovo:

• Arber Salihu, Coordinator for History Curriculum, MEST
• Fehmi Rexhep, Political Advisor to the Minister of Education
• Shkelzen Racaj, Institute of Albanology, University of Pristina
• Frasher Demaj, Institute of History
• Ragip Zekolli, Head of General Division, MEST
• Xhafer Ahmeti, Kosova Education CENTER FOR DEMOCRACY
• Mustafe Shahini, Kosovo Teacher
• Ekrem Kadriu, History Professor-Vushtri
• Nexhmi Caniu, History Professor-Podujeve
• Sedat Kryezin, History Professor-Suhareke
• Ilir Hoxha, Director, Kosova Action Network

Serbia and Montenegro:

• Natasa Bogovic, Journalist
• Mirko Popovic, History Student
• Vladimir Petrovic, Belgrade Open School

Slovenia:

• Bozo Repe, Ass. Prof. University of Ljubljana

PROGRAMME

6 December

Arrival and Registration

18:00 Welcome Reception

19:00 Session I - Plenary
Presentation, “Justice, Accountability, and Social Reconstruction in Rwanda and Former Yugoslavia”
Professor Sarah W. Freedman and Naomi Levy
Human Rights Center, University of California at Berkeley

20:30 Dinner

7 December

Breakfast

09:00 Session II - Plenary
The Chance for History in Kosovo
Holly Hughson, Education Coordinator, ADRA Denmark, Kosovo Operations

10:00 Coffee

10:30 Session III – Small Groups
Analysis of ADRA Research
Discussion of Draft Policy Recommendations

13:00 Lunch

14:30 Session IV – Plenary
Presentation on history textbooks revision in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Dr Falk Pingel, Georg-Eckert Institute, Braunschweig,
Director of the Educational Department, OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina

15:30 Coffee

16:00 Session V - Plenary
Euroclio: Working with history teachers in Southeast Europe
Joke van der Leeuw-Roord, Executive Director
Euroclio

17:00 Session VIII – Plenary
Presentation of the Joint History Project by Center for Democracy and Reconciliation for Southeast Europe (CDRSEE)
•  Introduction to the Joint History Project for South East Europe
Mr. Costa Caras, CDRSEE Board Member responsible for Joint History Project
•  Clio in the Balkans, Textbook research results
Associate Professor Christina Koulouri, Democritus University of Thrace, Athens

19:30 Dinner

8 December

Breakfast

09:00 Session VII - Plenary
Perspectives from Kosovo
Mr. Dukagjin Gorani, Director Human Rights Centre, University of Pristina
Ms. Sakibe Jashari, Local Community Officer, Ferizaj/Urosevac
History Curriculum Development in Ministry of Education, Kosovo
Ragip Zekolli, Head of General Education Division

10:30 Coffee

11:00 Session VII – Plenary
Comments from the European Office
Michaela Friberg-Storey
Council of Europe
Karin Volkner

13:00 Lunch

14:30 Session VIII – Plenary
Presentation on history teaching in a society emerging from conflict – the case of Northern Ireland
Mr. Alan McCully
School of Education, University of Ulster

16:00 Session III – Small Groups
Report from small groups

19:30 Dinner

9 December

09:00 Visit to Gracanica Monastery

13:00 Lunch and Departure