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Description
The aim of the project is a safe and inclusive school environment for LGBT+ students in Estonia. With the support of the project, study materials will be created and seminars will be organized for education professionals. In addition, an awareness raising campaign will be conducted that will help people better understand LGBT+ youth.
As a result of the project, education professionals will be better aware of LGBT+ related topics, understand why it is necessary to include these topics in educational work, and better prepared to discuss these topics in school and in public; organizations and institutions in the field of education will be informed on the topics of LGBT+ and LGBT+ youth and the cooperation between different institutions and organizations will improve; general awareness on LGBT+ topics will increase in society; the competence of the staff of the Estonian LGBT Association as trainers will increase and cooperation with stakeholder organizations and institutions will increase. Final beneficiaries of the project are LGBT+ youth whose school environment is more inclusive and safer.
The project will be carried out in partnership with Kiusamisvaba Kool Foundation, the Estonian National Youth Council and the Estonian School Student Councils. Project partners provide input in developing study materials and training programs.
Summary of project results
The first Estonian LGBT+ student school environment survey, conducted in 2018, showed that the school environment is violent for LGBT+ students. Thus, the aim of the project was to make Estonian schools more inclusive and safer for LGBT+ students.
Since making the school environment safer and more inclusive is a long-term journey, the primary goal of the project was to build bridges between different institutions and specialists to continue working in this field.
Additionally, the aim was to empower teachers and other education sector staff through training and materials. It was also crucial that LGBT+ youth currently attending school receive a clear signal and other specialists in the field that LGBT+ issues are very important in schools and that the well-being of these students is just as important as that of any other student.
Summary of Key Activities
Empowering LGBT+ Youth
Five training sessions/workshops were conducted for young people. In addition, an awareness campaign took place to help youth find support and show them their concerns are acknowledged.
Educating Educational Professionals
Five training sessions for teachers, youth workers, coaches, school psychologists, and other professionals took place along with an awareness campaign for educators to help them notice and seek information on LGBT+ issues. Eight lesson plans on how to talk about LGBT+ topics at school were created and shared with specialists and added to the organization’s website. Several teachers who attended training requested a traveling exhibition for their schools.
Informing Educational Institutions and Strengthening Collaboration
Collaboration with educational institutions was strengthened through six roundtable discussions. The project worked with the national student organizations, such as KIVA, and held training on The Ministry of Education (HTM) was informed about the traveling exhibition highlighting LGBT+ youth issues in schools. There was also an agreement with HTM to provide training for school leaders in the spring or fall of 2022. The final event was streamed online, with the details shared with 90 professionals in the field. Training materials, exhibition details, and lesson plans were distributed widely.
Raising Public Awareness (Parents, Youth, Society)
The campaign, which included media appearances, played a role in improving understanding of LGBT+ issues. The traveling exhibition was created to showcase LGBT+ youth experiences in schools and was made available for public events and institutions.
Enhancing the Competence of the Estonian LGBT Association
The Estonian LGBT Association''s competence as trainers grew significantly through regular meetings with educational experts to enhance training effectiveness. Six roundtable discussions were held with project partners, and the project team established a strong working relationship with HTM. Initial discussions about training and the traveling exhibition were initiated, and the project also benefitted from collaboration with teachers who helped develop the training materials.
The project successfully strengthened support for LGBT+ youth, educated educators, built institutional collaboration, increased public awareness, and enhanced the expertise of the Estonian LGBT Association.
The success of the project can be measured through tangible outcomes such as collaboration, educational materials, training sessions, meetings, and the creation of new contacts. Additionally, the impact can be indirectly measured through a planned school environment survey set for 2022, with the results expected to be shared in the fall of the same year.
A clear indication of the project''s success is that after the training sessions, the organization has been requested to provide new training courses—currently, negotiations are underway for four additional sessions. This is significant because, in the past, such high demand for follow-up training was not observed. Furthermore, many individuals involved in the project have expressed interest in continuing collaboration in various activities moving forward.