News

Marking International Roma Day with the CHAVORE Quest

April 14, 2026
This year, we are marking the day with the launch of the CHAVORE Quest, an interactive, multilingual experience available in five CHAVORE languages. The Quest introduces a new way of supporting children’s mental health, well-being, and inclusion inviting users to explore, reflect, and learn through a more playful and participatory format.

NEWS - Ukraine Rockets away Teacher Training for Quality Education

February 6, 2019
Following a new Ukrainian Law on Education, a pilot project for (re-)certifying teachers has started in January 2019. The goal of the pilot: to make teacher’s certification a solid part of professional development, and to achieve it, extra…

NEWS - A New Partnership for Young Children: ‘Romania Grows with You’

February 1, 2019
A new four-year partnership has been formed to push forth the improvement of Early Childhood Development (ECD) in Romania. The project, called ‘Romania Grows with You’, is a collaboration between the Step by Step Center for Education and…

NEWS - What was your greatest learning? Share it at the ISSA Conference 2019!

January 28, 2019
Nurturing Environments: this year’s conference theme draws attention to the systemic nature of and the shared responsibility we all hold for the environments in which young children live, learn, play and develop. Starting from the home environment…

NEWS - ‘In Kristiansand (Norway) we lift up Individuals, but also the Community as a Whole.’

January 25, 2019
Blessed with the opportunity to speak face to face with so many people from our member organizations at the Annual Council meeting, we took the opportunity to sit down and ask how things are truly going. In the professional atmosphere and on a…

NEWS - Kyrgyzstan shares their insights: Education is a Lifelong Process

January 22, 2019
The Foundation for Education Initiatives Support (FEIS, Kyrgyzstan) works closely with teacher-methodologists from different structures of the educational system in the country. In the past 5 years they've formed a team of like-minded people. They…

INTERVIEW – Leslie Falconer: ‘Peer Learning Activities address Complex Challenges’

January 16, 2019
Blessed with the opportunity to speak face to face with so many people from our member organizations at the Annual Council meeting, we took the opportunity to sit down and ask how things are truly going. In the professional atmosphere and on a…

WE'RE HIRING - ISSA Seeks Program Coordinator REYN

January 11, 2019
ISSA is hiring a Program Coordinator to support the development of the Romani Early Years Network   The International Step by Step Association (ISSA) is a vibrant network that connects professionals and non-profit organizations working in…

ISSA Conference 2019 - We're Calling for Proposals!

January 11, 2019
The ISSA Conference is the key Early Childhood Development conference in Eurasia. It brings together some 450 participants from over 50 countries.We are pleased to launch the Call for Proposals. Interested applicants are invited to fill in the…

NEWS - Un Villagio per Crescere: Battling Educational Poverty

January 10, 2019
Recently, ISSA was joined by the Italian team behind social project Un Villaggio per Crescere (a village to thrive): an initiative aimed at improving parenting skills in population groups at risk. Educational poverty (EP) is a worrying phenomenon in…

ARTICLE - It takes a System to Achieve Quality in Early Childhood Services

January 9, 2019
Dr. Mihaela Ionescu, Program Director at ISSA, wrote an inspiring article on the pivotal role of systems in improving the quality of early childhood services. An extract: 'We are making a deliberate choice to not begin this article by evoking the…

NEWS - ICDI Assessed Child Wellbeing in 5 European Countries

January 7, 2019
Study reflects social and emotional wellbeing of young children in ECEC settings. ICDI assessed the social and emotional well-being of children using the Universal Psychosocial Indicator for Five-Year-Old Boys and Girls (UPSI-5). The team was also…

Seasons Greetings!

December 21, 2018
Dear ISSA Members & Friends, As the holiday season approaches we look back at 2018. It was a busy and inspiring year, full of learnings and great achievements. We thank you for your endless support and the…

WE'RE HIRING - Program Manager REYN

December 20, 2018
ISSA seeks to hire a Program Manager to serve as coordinator for the Romani Early Years Network The International Step by Step Association (ISSA) is a vibrant network that connects professionals and non-profit organizations working in the field of…

NEWS - New Member: Opportunity International, Early Childhood Education on the Move!

December 20, 2018
ISSA's new member Opportunity International is working with over a 1000, mainly low-cost, private schools in countries such as Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Colombia and recently also in India. They work with a network of microfinance…

NEWS - TOY for Inclusion Wins Lifelong Learning Award 2018

December 18, 2018
We are delighted to announce that our project TOY for Inclusion has received the Lifelong Learning Awards 2018 in early December. The prize is annually awarded by the Lifelong Learning Platform to initiatives that set up creative and inclusive…

NEWS - ISSA is a member of the European Commission’s Working Group on ECEC

December 18, 2018
We have been accepted as a member of the European Commission Education and Training 2020 (ET2020) Working Group on Early Childhood Education and Care. The working group is tasked with exploring ways to improve social inclusion and promote the…

NEWS - Keeping Preschoolers safe from Gender Stereotypes in Vietnam

December 11, 2018
A study by the government of Vietnam and the UN showed that more than half of women in Vietnam – 58 percent – had suffered domestic violence at least once in their lifetime, whether physical, sexual or emotional. What is more, the study…

INTERVIEW - Lieve De Bosscher: ‘In Belgium, We need to address the Split System’

November 27, 2018
Blessed with the opportunity to speak face to face with so many people from our member organizations at the Annual Council meeting, we took the opportunity to sit down and ask how things are truly going. In the professional atmosphere and on a…

NEWS - 'Prejudice against Roma can be Overcome,' experts say.

November 21, 2018
An international event held by TOY for Inclusion shared achievements and lessons learned over the past two years. Thanks to the work of local communities and professionals, the TOY for Inclusion Play Hubs became the gateway to kindergarten and…

NEWS - Children Speak out on Children's Day

November 19, 2018
World Children’s Day is celebrated in an effort to promote awareness of children’s wellbeing and rights around the globe. November 20th is the date in 1959 when the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. It is…

NEWS - Malawi ECD Coalition joins forces with ISSA

November 10, 2018
For the first time in ISSA’s near twenty year’s history, we are joined by a coalition that operates from Africa. The Malawian Early Childhood Development Coalition (ECDC), is a joint venture comprised of various partners that all concern themselves…

TRAINING - Special Bonus Session added to Fundraising for Non-Profits

November 6, 2018
Come join ISSA on this wonderful learning opportunity. A two-day training, designed to help associations, networks and other non-profit organizations to become more sustainable by exploring how to successfully raise funds from private sources such…

NEWS - Exchanging Goods and Good Times in Slovakia

October 30, 2018
The Wide Open School is working with seriously disadvantaged people: the Roma community. They live in very poor settlements. At the same time, through their expert work for universities (in cooperation with professional consultancies) they are…

NEWS - Dutch Travellers protest against ‘Extinction Policy’

October 18, 2018
A row concerning the basic 'right to settlement' emerges in the Netherlands. Several Traveller groups, including Roma and Sinti, have occupied vacant trailer lots that were once appointed to their community. So far, 34 former Traveler locations have…