Education is critical for the development of Cambodia. Moving forward with a strong educational system that prioritizes critical thinking, research and technology is key. CONTESSA provides an opportunity to connect six universities from around the world—Austria, Germany, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka – all with the common goal of improving the quality of teacher training and thus, the quality of students. Additionally, it’s a chance to incorporate new technology and e-learning into the Cambodian context, opening up the door to new ways of learning. Lastly, it focuses on building the capacity of teacher trainers, ensuring a better, higher quality educational experience from the top down.

CONTESSA will not only impact those who teach, but it will also make a significant contribution across various spheres in the field of education:

Contessa project members visited school in Cambodia. ©contessa

  • European Sphere: The orientation towards European standards of teaching will connect Cambodia to international standards in their teacher training, which will help promote the flow of knowledge and ideas across borders in the future.
  • National Sphere: The National Institute of Education and the Ministry of Education in Cambodia will acquire a comprehensive pedagogic distance-learning program for current in service teachers who lack the appropriate training background or want to develop themselves further.
  • Cambodian Universities: New courses will be offered to supplement the existing teacher education programs at universities with formats and methods allowing for capacity building in view of the achievement of contemporary teaching skills.
  • Cambodian Further Education Sector: A completely laid out Train-the-Trainer program will be offered in order to improve the teaching competencies of teacher educators, a basic requirement for a qualitative teacher education.
  • Local and Regional Spheres: The improvement of the teaching competencies of teachers will result in a better learning situation for the students and will seek to improve the overall standard of education throughout Cambodia.

Presentation event in Cambodia. ©contessa

At a presentation event in Cambodia in July 2019, Mr. George Edgar, the Ambassador of the European Union to the Kingdom of Cambodia, had this to say about the project:

Mr. George Edgar

Ambassador of the European Union to the Kingdom of Cambodia

"I’m delighted to see this cooperation move forward between Austria, Germany and Cambodia over the next several years. The Delegation of the European Union in Cambodia will continue to work closely with all members of the government, academic community and civil society to find ways to improve the education sector and further develop the capacity of teachers and students. The EU is committed to strengthening the education system of Cambodia, and this project is evidence of that."