The study considers the developments in teacher education (TE) in South-Eastern Europe (SEE) as part of overall reforms in higher education, many of which are also shared by other European countries implementing the Bologna process reforms (e.g. changes in programme structures, competence-oriented curricular changes and new ways of thinking about accountability). At the same time, one of the basic functions of TE is to prepare the teaching workforce for education systems that in SEE countries have experienced major changes since the early 1990s, and that continue to change. The importance of teachers and their education is increasingly recognised for building competences for knowledge-based societies, for making education systems and processes more inclusive, for preparing future citizens to participate in democracies, and others (Pantić, Wubbels & Mainhard, 2011). This implies the need to develop TE in which academic, school-based and community-based knowledge come together in new ways of teacher preparation that can better serve the demands upon future teachers.

However, researchers often point out that initial TE is slow in adapting to meet the changing needs of 21st century teachers. Some authors attribute this lagging behind, at least partly, to the marginalised position of TE within higher education developments (Vizek Vidović, 2009; Zgaga 2003). Moreover, post-socialist contexts and traditions of TE provide limited opportunities for reform initiatives to be realised. The aim of this study is to take stock of the issues identified in the region, and to suggest ways for moving forward policy and research agendas.

The analytical framework is developed considering the internationally voiced demands on teachers in the changing contexts of education (Darling-Hammond, 2006; Hargreaves & Fullan, 1992). Particularly, the implications of teaching for and beyond the Knowledge Society (Hargreaves, 2003) are considered, such as working and learning in collegial teams, forging relationships with parents and communities, etc. Fullan’s (1993) theory of change applied to studies of education reforms in SEE (Anchan, Fullan & Polyzoi, 2003) is used to analyse the mismatch between these new requirements upon teachers and the inherited TE traditions in the region. Implementing educational change is far from a technical matter and has to take into account the enormously complex interaction of various forces in the change process. Anchan et al. (2003) use Fullan’s Triple I model (Initiation, Implementation, Institutionalisation) to describe the processes of educational change in post-socialist contexts in which major structural reforms occurred with insufficient attention to implementation capacities, and without concomitant changes in infrastructure. They proposed a framework for studying educational transformation that includes (Anchan et al., 2003, p. 114):

• development of structures that support change;
• coordination/planning across all levels;
• articulating a vision and developing it in practice across all stakeholders;
• establishing pressure and support strategies for developing capacity and monitoring results.

The present study reviews TE reforms in SEE region in light of these aspects of educational transformation (structure, coordination, vision and quality assurance) with a view towards identifying the issues critical for preparing teachers for inclusive educational practices in contexts of diversity.

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