Štefan Porubský

Country: Slovakia 
Job title: Senior Expert for Education Programs  
Organization: Wide Open School Slovakia n.o.   
Sector: Early Childhood Education  
Years of experience in his role: 46 years

In this interview, Štefan Porubský, Senior Expert for Education Programs in Wide Open School Slovakia n.o., talks about his experience from the in-person Embracing Diversity training of trainers hosted by the International Step by Step Association (ISSA) under the Early Childhood Workforce Initiative. Aimed at preparing professionals to tackle issues of exclusion and discrimination in early childhood environments, this training highlighted the relevance of professional development in Slovakia to understand the needs of vulnerable groups and develop skills to foster inclusive environments.  

Štefan shares what motivated him to join the training and how timely it is for professionals to better support the integration of refugee children and their families who were forced to flee from the war in Ukraine.     

Do you already use this training in your work? How? Can you share an example to illustrate its relevance?  
Our organization has long sought to include children from marginalized Roma communities into the educational process in kindergartens and primary schools. In previous years, we implemented a series of trainings for teachers of kindergartens and primary schools in Slovakia, who use the Step by Step program and have children with diverse family backgrounds in their classrooms. We also organized trainings that help teachers problem solve and overcome their individual prejudices toward the children and their families, particularly those who need their support the most. 

Two areas resonated from the training, namely understanding the needs related to minorities and vulnerable groups as well as using empathy and communication as tools to build caring relationships. 

In the past, I worked as a professor at the Faculty of Education at the Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica where they prepare teachers for kindergarten and primary school. Since 2020, we have included the Education for diversity course in our multicultural education courses, covering topics like the development of strong, positive self and group/social identities; community building; acknowledging, respecting, and affirming all children's and their families' cultures, languages, and experiences; as well as nurturing multiple social identities. We feel that they are important for future teachers. My faculty colleagues continue to use these elements in the course. 

Why did you attend this training? What motivated you to join?  
The positive feedback from participants and university students were a signal that the need to address this topic is still relevant in Slovakia. Nowadays, we have a new challenge in front of us, which is the integration of refugee children from Ukraine into our society and educational system. These were the two major motivating factors for me to attend the Embracing Diversity training, which enriched my knowledge and experience in this field.   

What are your next plans for utilizing the knowledge you gained from this training? How do you think it can benefit others in your workplace or fellow practitioners?  
Soon, we are going to organize the Embracing Diversity training in cooperation with UNICEF for schools with pupils from Ukraine. Our intention is to provide teachers with new perspectives on how to create adequate school environments for these pupils, so they feel welcomed by their classmates and teachers. Furthermore, we hope this helps children enrich their school communities, fully integrate into their new school environment, and retain a sense of belonging.  

If you could send a message to every practitioner in the ECD field about the importance of diversity and inclusion, what would it be?  
The support of human, linguistic and cultural diversity is a constant challenge for all those entrusted with the care of children and younger generations. Diversity is not only a characteristic of our humanity, but also a key principle of our evolutionary success. Evolution hasn't stopped, history hasn't ended, so our efforts toward embracing diversity can't stop either.

You can learn more about Wide Open School Slovakia n.o.’s work on their website.