Guidelines for educational integration policies: what did MPs, Rеgional Inspectorates of Education and NGOs discuss and decide?

Necessary changes in the Law on preschool and school education, in the Ordinance on financing, the introduction of the profession of “educational mediators”, the need for a systematic project to change the attitudes of parents and many other issues were discussed by deputies from the Commission for Education and Science, representatives of all RIE, MES and Amalipe Center. This happened at a national meeting held in Veliko Tarnovo on November 13 and 14. It was organized by Amalipe and KON.

Heads of 26 RIE and representatives of 2 others, people’s representatives Krasimir Valchev (Chairman of KON), Mario Rangelov, Neli Dimitrova, Valentina Dimova, Dr. Georgi Nyagolov, adviser in the political office of Minister Tsokov, Dr. Lalo Kamenov, Director of the Center for Educational Integration of Children and Students from Ethnic Minorities (TSOIDUEM) at the Ministry of Education and Culture participated in the meeting. In addition to the organizers from the Amalipe Center, the civil sector was also represented by Ognyan Isaev from the TSA.

The Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Education and Science, Krasimir Valchev, presented the upcoming changes in the law. They are already being prepared and discussed with the main stakeholders – municipalities, trade unions and employer unions in education, professional associations, NGOs. The changes will not be fundamental and affect the philosophy of the law, but will relate to important elements of the legal educational framework, Valchev pointed out. Thus, for example, the creation of a quality standard is being discussed, which would not favor the evaluations from DZI and HEIs, but the development achieved by each school and kindergartens. It will also give a chance to reorient the curricula and the entire educational process towards the formation of skills rather than the literal learning of knowledge.

Language integration will be regulated through changes in the law. It will focus on the learning of the Bulgarian language by children whose families speak another language – migrants, ethnic minorities, Bulgarians returning from abroad, etc. The idea is for the children to learn the literary Bulgarian language at an accelerated pace in order to be effective in the learning process. This should happen in the kindergartens, but if it has not happened, already in the 1st grade, there should be enhanced training in the Bulgarian language on an individual basis, and the child will enter the other classes as well. Thus, it will not lose 1 year, but will catch up on language gaps, Valchev explained.

The law will promote educational desegregation. It is a fact that dozens of segregated schools operate in the big cities, where only Roma children are educated. “Secondary segregation” takes place in many other schools and elementary schools – Bulgarian parents withdraw their children and in a few years the schools become “Roma”. (A study by the Amalipe Center indicates that 120 secondary schools can be designated as segregated and 62 others as schools at risk of secondary segregation. In addition, 78 vocational high schools are segregated and 83 others at risk of secondary segregation). The law will require all municipalities with segregated urban schools to pursue an active desegregation policy. First-grade enrollment in segregated urban schools and dual-shift schools will be limited.

Important discussions were also held regarding the Financing Ordinance. Participants welcomed the provision of a special resource for the appointment of educational mediators: it was made available as early as July 1 in those schools and kindergartenss that had mediators as of June 30, 2023. From January 1, 2024, a resource for the appointment of educational mediators, social workers and teacher assistants will be provided to all schools and kindergartens with a concentration of vulnerable groups. How many numbers the state will finance in each particular educational institution will depend on the number of children/students in it and in the vulnerability group (group 1-5). See more information HERE

The participants united around the idea that paragraph 8 of Article 52 a, which requires funds for working with vulnerable groups to be spent by December 31 of the respective year, should be deleted. This is a new paragraph that will result in a loss of education funds and should be dropped as soon as possible, the participants agreed. Krasimir Valchev and the other people’s representatives from KON will raise the issue with the Minister of Education and the Prime Minister. Doctor Georgi Nyagolov, adviser in the political cabinet of Minister Tsokov, also undertook to familiarize the minister with this problem.
Other issues around which the participants united were related to the need to introduce the profession of “educational mediator” and the need for a project under the Education Program to change the attitudes of parents. The question of the effectiveness of the suspension of child allowances for a whole year in case of 5 unexcused absences was also discussed. Most participants shared that this punishment resulted in an additional disincentive for parents to send their children to school. 5 unexcused absences are allowed in one day and when this results in child benefit being suspended for a whole year, most parents lose motivation to look after their children’s attendance. According to many who spoke, the previous form of punishment (suspension of child benefits for 1 month) led to higher attendance because the deadline for “correcting the error” was considerably closer.
During the meeting, the possibilities for appointing educational mediators through the Financing Ordinance and the “Success for You” project were also discussed. See more information HERE
The program “Every student will be an excellent student” was also presented, which the Amalipe Center implemented in partnership with nearly 300 schools from all over the country and with the support of the Trust for a Social Alternative. The participants discussed the more effective involvement of schools and how the program could lead not only to the reduction of school dropout, but also to the improvement of the results of HEIs and DZI. See here