In the frames of the project Career guidance and counselling for vulnerable groups in Serbia, ECMI Senior Research Associate Dr. Andreea Carstocea, Dr. Ljubica Dorđević-Vidojković  and ECMI Project Assistant Polina Sulima contributed to the brochure TALENTE ENTDECKEN & FÖRDERN (“Discovering and Supporting Talents”) published by the German Corporation for International Cooperation GmbH (GIZ), the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Land Schleswig-Holstein.

The aim of the project is to support the ongoing educational reform in Serbia by inspiring their stakeholders with best practices of the educational sector in Schleswig Holstein. The project focusses on career guidance of vulnerable pupils.

Schleswig-Holstein is known for its successful integration policy regarding minorities. Among other Sinti and Roma are recognized minorities, possessing the rights guaranteed by the constitution. In the previous years, Schleswig-Holstein implemented projects to support job orientation and counselling of young people, especially of disadvantaged groups. Minorities in Schleswig-Holstein benefit from these programmes.

The brochure gives important background information and practical examples of the daily work of job coaches in Schleswig-Holstein. Readers learn more about necessary qualifications of the coaches and about the common pedogeological understanding. They also get to know more about implemented counselling methods and about the cooperation of involved educational institutions in Schleswig-Holstein.

Dr. Andreea Carstocea, Dr. Ljubica Dorđević-Vidojković and Polina Sulima contributed with a detailed analysis on disadvantaged groups and the connected difficulties its members face in their (school) career. They put special emphasis on Roma and Sinti in this context and made suggestions on how vulnerable groups can be better supported in the educational system.

The project started with a fact-finding trip to Belgrade earlier this year, in the course of which the ECMI experts were asked to identify the main challenges confronting pupils of Roma background in accessing and participating in the dual education system, as well as their transitioning to employment once they have graduated. They were also asked to outline tentative solutions to each of the challenges they identified.

Author: KS

Download the brochure here (German)

Download the brochure here (Serbian)

Source: ECMI InfoChannel @ European Centre for Minority Issues.