As part of a project supported by the Swedish Institute, Cedos analysts Tetiana Zheryobkina and Viktoria Odusanwo undertook a study visit to Stockholm (Sweden) from 18 to 20 April.

During the visit, the Cedos team met with colleagues from Södertörn University. They discussed future cooperation and exchanged experiences for the future joint study on gender equality and inclusion in Ukrainian schools.

These opportunities for face-to-face meetings with partners from other countries are extremely valuable. We discussed at length the approaches to teacher training in Ukraine and Sweden: the challenges posed by heavy workloads and low salaries for teachers are similar in both countries. However, in Sweden the programmes are more modern — for example, topics such as gender and gender equality are not taught as a separate subject or topic, but are seamlessly woven into various disciplines, which helps to present and absorb them more effectively. Meanwhile, it was important for our colleagues to hear about the experiences of Ukrainian teachers, who are currently working under extreme stress due to Russia’s full-scale invasion and are forced to juggle many new roles.

Victoria Odusanwo, Cedos analyst, project manager

A separate meeting was held with the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education (RFSU), where participants discussed practices relating to sexuality education and the challenges in this field.

This trip forms part of a larger project. Together with its Swedish partners, Cedos is developing a methodology to assess the competence of Ukrainian teachers in matters of gender-sensitive and inclusive education.

The preparatory phase will result in an analytical document. In it, the researchers will jointly summarise the first phase of the work, present a framework for future methodology, and provide a detailed plan for the research itself.

The trip took place as part of the project ‘Strengthening the capacity of educators to ensure gender equality and social inclusion in Ukrainian schools’, with the support of the Swedish Institute — an organisation that fosters cooperation between Swedish and Ukrainian organisations, particularly initiatives and projects that contribute to Ukraine’s reconstruction and European integration.