On 16 October, Sara Nicole Baxley, Lecturer at RIT Kosovo (AUK) and Gender Expert with the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN), presented KWN’s recent policy paper “Integrating Gender-transformative Approaches in Early Education Curricula and Pedagogy” at the conference “Gender Equality and Institutions” organised by the Faculty of Economy, University of Pristina.

In her presentation, Baxley highlighted how investing in early childhood education can foster gender equality and inclusion from the very beginning, as these formative years play a critical role in shaping identities, norms and opportunities. She emphasised the importance of gender-transformative curricula that go beyond merely avoiding the reinforcement of inequalities to actively challenging them and reshaping social norms and roles. Additionally, the increased availability and affordability of early education services would enable women’s equal participation in political, economic and social areas of life.

Baxley shared insights from a gender-transformative assessment tool and called for stronger institutional accountability and interinstitutional collaboration, while also highlighting the importance of teacher training. Provided with opportunities to reflect on their own gender biases, habits and interactions with children, teachers can become “agents of equality” in their everyday work.

Aside from the role of institutions in advancing gender equality, the conference also covered women’s economic empowerment and related policies, as well as gender equality and representation.

“The conference showcased a wide range of presentations, from academic research to reports on CSO interventions, spanning diverse European contexts and multiple sectors. This breadth of perspectives fosters a systems-based approach to tackling gender inequality, demonstrating that meaningful change requires collaboration across disciplines and borders. Together, we can turn knowledge into action and build institutions that truly uphold gender equality,” says Baxley.

Key recommendations from KWN’s policy paper “Integrating Gender-transformative Approaches in Early Education Curricula and Pedagogy” include:

• Striving for legislation that make Early Childhood Education (ECE) accessible and affordable for lower income earning families and those with children with diverse learning needs.
• Increasing funding for ECE, building and expanding facilities and conditions to increase the number of diverse girls and boys enrolled in ECE.
• Implementing awareness-raising campaigns on the benefits of ECE.
• Reviewing and ensuring curricula are gender transformative and consider gender biases.
• Including in the curriculum framework specific pedagogical practices teachers are expected to use in the classroom to ensure they apply gender-responsive approaches in their delivery of curricula.
• Using GRB to allocate specific budgets in legislation and policies for gender-transformative teacher training.

You can read the full paper here.

This research is part of KWN’s ongoing efforts to advance Gender Transformative Education, supported by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) and co-financed by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).