Albanian 
Prishtina, August 18, 2021 – The need to adapt the curricula of formal and vocational education institutions to the needs of the business community was the topic of discussion at the Shifting Curriculums Roundtable, organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo.
Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Technology and Innovation Dukagjin Pupovci said that it is quite understandable that the business community requires that the skills of the workforce be in line with their needs. He said that the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is in the process of drafting a new Education Strategy. He said that the new Kosovo curriculum has started to be fully implemented in all schools in Kosovo since 2017, and focuses on six main competencies: competence of communication and expression, the competence of thinking, the competence of learning, competencies for life, work, and environment, as well as personal and civic competencies. He said that in the process of drafting new legislation, new strategy, but also new curricula, the role of the business community is very important, by inviting business representatives to give their contribution in this regard, their requests and proposals should be reflected in the documents aimed at reforming the education system.
Arianit Fazliu from the company KUTIA, which operates in the information technology sector, said that curricula should be seen as living projects and not as products that are created for a certain time. This way, they would adapt to the rapidly changing needs of businesses and consequently the labor market. He also spoke about the importance of including certain subjects such as coding in the early grades of primary school. Fazliu said that in addition to adopting the right curricula, it is important to adopt the right teaching methodology, but also the right training of teachers.
On the other hand, Jeton Veseli from the company FRONT, which operates in the construction sector, said that a better connection is needed with students of technical professional directions with the construction sector in particular and other sectors in general. Through this, students will have the opportunity to see the practical and technological aspects of the theoretical lessons they receive in schools or vocational training centers. He said the Government should provide fiscal or monetary incentives to companies that would be interested in opening their doors to apprentices or students
Forum participants raised their concerns about the availability of a skilled workforce, the need to change the approach to teaching, but also the role of state institutions for the quality of education.