“The Values that Unite Us” is the topic of the first lesson of the 2025–2026 school year in the Republic of Moldova, held in all public and private educational institutions. The teaching resources for this lesson were developed with the support of the Council of Europe, within the framework of the project “Education for Democracy in the Republic of Moldova” (Phase II).

Head of the General Education Policy Department of the Ministry of Education and Research, Corina Lungu, stated that the first lesson of the current school year provided all children and adolescents with opportunities and tools to know themselves and others through a reflective process on their diverse life experiences. “For each educational level, we have developed, with the support of the Council of Europe, a set of lesson plans that address sensitive issues such as safety, belonging, authenticity, autonomy, freedom of expression, etc.,” said Corina Lungu.

In parallel with the development of these teaching resources, the Council of Europe organised a series of preparatory online training workshops for teachers, attended by around 2,500 teachers and school managers.

A teacher at the “Lucian Blaga” Theoretical High School in Chișinău and one of the authors of the lesson plans, Petru Golban, stated that teachers, through their interaction with students, conveyed to them that they are seen, heard, and that their values are respected. “The Values that Unite Us” reflects the benevolent behaviors, attitudes, and thoughts of every child, adolescent, and adult in the institution, and together they create an inclusive, friendly, and safe environment. Students learn to live together, to appreciate human uniqueness and diversity, to cooperate, to communicate non-violently in order to prevent conflicts and solve problems,” said Petru Golban.

The lessons were interactive and included case studies and group activities designed to encourage diversity of opinion and students’ critical thinking. Throughout the lessons, students reflected on fundamental values promoted by the Council of Europe – solidarity, diversity, democracy, and human rights – and on how these values can be promoted and applied in school environment.

This is the second consecutive year that the Council of Europe has supported the Ministry of Education and Research in organising the first lesson of the year. While in 2024–2025 the theme was “Together for Peace”, this year the focus is on solidarity and mutual respect through the lesson “The Values that Unite Us.”

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The Council of Europe project “Education for democracy in the Republic of Moldova" is implemented within the Council of Europe Action Plans for the Republic of Moldova 2021-2024 and 2025-2028. The Swiss Confederation is one of the donor countries to the Action Plan and the key donor in the field of education for democracy. The project is carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic of Moldova and in partnership with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the United Nations Population Fund in the Republic of Moldova and the Zurich University of Teacher Education within the programme "Moldova: Promoting Active Civic Involvement" for the years 2023-2026.