As part of its accredited Erasmus+ mobility activities, Institute Burja from Rimske Toplice, Slovenia, hosted Aleksandra Jovankin, an expert from Serbia, from 16 to 19 October 2026. The main purpose of her visit was to transfer professional knowledge, innovative methodologies and good practices to the educators, professional staff and management of Burja, and to integrate these approaches into existing and future non-formal adult education programmes.

Aleksandra Jovankin represents the partner organisation Imam ideju Association from Kraljevo, Serbia, with which Burja has successfully cooperated for many years on international educational and cultural activities. As a pedagogue and therapist, she has extensive experience in implementing Erasmus+ projects, particularly in secondary education. For more than a decade, she has actively collaborated with non-governmental organisations in Serbia, focusing on inclusive education, the prevention of discrimination, active citizenship and the promotion of human rights. She advocates European values and Serbia’s pro-European orientation, emphasising the importance of education and international cooperation in building a democratic, tolerant and supportive society.

The three-day professional programme, Working Methods in Intercultural Dialogue, was designed as practical training for the educators and management of Burja. Its central premise was that high-quality intercultural education is not merely about understanding different cultures, but above all about educators’ ability to create an inclusive, safe and supportive learning environment in which every individual can participate on an equal footing, express their views and develop their potential.

A significant part of the training focused on understanding the distinction between equality and equity. Through practical examples, we explored why treating everyone in the same way does not necessarily ensure equal opportunities for participation and learning. Particular attention was paid to adapting educational approaches to adults with fewer opportunities, members of different cultural communities (ethnic minorities), and individuals facing social, economic or health-related barriers.

We explored methodologies for identifying and preventing racism, discrimination, stereotypes and prejudice. Through case studies, reflective exercises, facilitated dialogue and simulations of intercultural situations, we examined how stereotypes emerge, how they influence relationships between individuals and groups, and how appropriate pedagogical approaches can gradually help overcome them. Another important starting point was the distinction between intention and impact, recognising that even well-intentioned communication can lead to feelings of exclusion or misunderstanding.

A separate thematic session focused on developing empathy, compassion, active listening and tolerance of uncertainty. These competences are particularly important when working with culturally diverse groups of adults, where different life experiences, values, identities and expectations intersect. Participants also examined the importance of educators’ critical self-reflection, recognising their own unconscious biases, and ensuring consistency between the values an organisation promotes and its actual practices.

The added value of the expert visit lay in acquiring knowledge and systematically transferring the methodology into Burja’s everyday educational practice. Reflection sessions therefore focused on jointly exploring how the presented methods could be adapted to the characteristics of our target groups and integrated into the existing adult education curriculum.

The educators and management of Burja received training in independently planning and facilitating workshops based on experiential learning, group work, role-playing, collaborative tasks, analysis of real-life situations and guided reflection. Particular attention was given to designing activities that promote mutual respect, remove barriers to participation and enable the active inclusion of all participants.

The final part of the visit focused on developing practical guidelines for improving Burja’s educational content. Priority areas include the development of workshops on intercultural dialogue, discrimination prevention and active citizenship for people with fewer opportunities.

We will apply the acquired methods in future workshops and group mobility activities for adult learners within the Erasmus+ programme. The new methodological knowledge will contribute to more structured preparation of participants for mobility activities, higher-quality intercultural learning experiences and more effective assessment of acquired competences.

Knowledge transfer is also important for the organisational development of Institute Burja. The training provided a foundation for further improving pedagogical approaches, creating inclusive learning environments and systematically integrating the principles of equality, equity and non-discrimination into the planning, implementation and evaluation of educational programmes.

The expert visit represents another step in the development of Institute Burja as an organisation that views international mobility primarily as an opportunity for long-term professional growth and continuous improvement in the quality of its work. The acquired knowledge and good practices are intended to be gradually integrated into the organisation’s wider activities and to strengthen the competences of everyone involved in adult education.

Cooperation with the Imam ideju Association from Kraljevo confirms the importance of long-term international partnerships that enable mutual learning, the exchange of professional experience and the development of new educational approaches. Such partnerships contribute to creating an open, inclusive and supportive European educational environment in which cultural diversity is recognised as an important source of learning and mutual enrichment.