In February 2018, the Commission presented the new Western Balkans Strategy, confirming the European future of the region as a geostrategic investment in a stable, strong and united Europe based on common values. This was confirmed at the Zagreb Summit in May this year.

If all children are to reach their full potential in life, all children must have an equal chance of receiving a good quality education. The critical importance of education for the prospects and prosperity of individuals, communities and entire nations has been recognised in the global Education 2030 Agenda under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with SDG 4 demanding inclusive and equitable quality education for all. That goal cannot be met, however, without addressing uneven progress on education. Too often, the most marginalised children are left behind, including girls, ethnic and linguistic minorities, immigrants and refugees, children with disabilities, and those from low-income families or living in remote areas.

The Western Balkans region has clear aspirations to improve its economic competitiveness and increase the wealth of its citizens. Achieving these aspirations will position it for further integration into Europe, as outlined by the European Commission’s Strategy for the Western Balkans. A highly skilled population is integral to creating the dynamic, productive economies that the region desires. This makes developing high quality and equitable education systems, as recognised by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Agenda, critical to the future success of the Western Balkans.

The Western Balkans region (defined by the European Union as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia and Serbia) is undergoing a period of rapid economic transition. Despite achieving considerable progress, however, the region is struggling to attain the same level of development as many of its neighbours, with per-capita gross domestic product being lower and youth unemployment rates being higher than most countries in Central and Eastern Europe. A knowledgeable and skilled population is an indispensable component to the dynamic economies and inclusive, cohesive societies that the Western Balkans aspire to build, which makes education reform a central pillar of regional development efforts.

The turn of the new millennium marked a period of stability and economic progress in Eastern Europe, with many countries from the area experiencing record growth and joining the European Union (EU). However, the six economies of the Western Balkans The European Union defines the Western Balkans as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, the Republic of North Macedonia and Serbia (European Union, 2019[13]).*All references to Kosovo, whether the territory, institutions or population, in this text are without prejudice to positions on status and shall be understood in full compliance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244/99 and the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on Kosovo’s declaration of independence. (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Serbia) have struggled to achieve the same level of social and economic development as many neighbouring countries. Notably, the region’s average per-capita gross domestic product (GDP) remains much lower than that of Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) The OECD considers CEEC to be composed of Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia. For this paper, results that represent the CEEC average are calculated without data from Albania to avoid overlap with results that represent the Western Balkans average. and unemployment rates, especially among youth, are very high in many parts of the Western Balkans (Table 1.2). Economies in the region have introduced reforms to improve their competitiveness and strengthen governance, motivated in part by the eventual goal of EU membership.

Schools are at the heart of education systems. How they deliver teaching and learning opportunities can contribute to the achievement of not only educational goals, but also broader development goals, such as participatory citizenship, social cohesion and economic competitiveness. Western Balkan economies have enacted important school-level policies to improve the excellence and equity of schooling. These efforts include the introduction of modern, competence-based curricula, the development of comprehensive school evaluation systems, and a shift towards more needs-based resourcing of schools.

Research has repeatedly suggested that, in terms of educational inputs, the quality of teaching is one of the most important factors in improving student outcomes (Hanushek, 2011[1]; Hattie, 2009[2]; Rivkin, Hanushek and Kain, 2005[3]). As a result, economies around the world, including those in the Western Balkans, have increasingly introduced policies that aim to improve the quality of teaching. Regional teaching reforms are wide reaching and varied, but broadly emphasise the need to use more modern teaching practices that have been shown to support learning for all students. To help achieve this goal, all economies in the region have created modern teacher standards that spell out expectations for teachers. These standards help inform initial teacher education, certification, appraisal and professional development by aligning institutions and practices around a new, shared vision of teaching.