Around 40 school principals from urban and rural areas of Armenia attended a conference on 20 November on "Gender-responsive education in schools."

The event focused on making schools more inclusive by:

• training teachers to implement gender-responsive teaching practices;
• promoting equal opportunities in classrooms;
• addressing the role of schools in protecting children and preventing domestic violence.

A central highlight was the online course "Gender-responsive education in schools" developed with the National Centre of Education Development and Innovation of Armenia. This autumn, 50 teachers were trained through the course, who then trained 500 more using a cascade model.

Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sports, Araksia Svajyan, praised the co-operation with the Council of Europe, stating: "We must address gender equality in schools to protect children and help them thrive. Schools have a decisive impact on whether children flourish or have their potential limited by gender stereotypes."

This event and the online course are part of the Council of Europe’s project “Ending violence against women and promoting gender equality in Armenia”.