[size=55:3sffu17d]novinite 22 July 2010

Public Preschool Education Becomes Mandatory in Bulgaria

Nearly half of all children in Bulgaria do not speak Bulgarian as a native language, the Member of the Parliament from the ruling GERB party, Irena Sokolova, says.

Sokolova reported the information during the parliamentary debate dedicated to the proposal to make preschool education in Bulgaria mandatory as a way to reduce school drop outs in upper grades.

The proposal was passed by the MPs. The majority from the Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) party, along with Education Minister, Sergey Ignatov, are planning to have special sections in each school for the youngest students with play, rest and feeding areas, without access to classrooms for older children.

The municipalities will have 2 years to make arrangements, instead of the previously planned 12 months. The allowance per child will be increased from BNG 1 400 to BGN 1 626 per year and parents will be asked to only pay up to BGN 1.50 per day for lunch, Ignatov says.

The opposition protested against the steep fines of BGN 200 to BGN 2 500 the Education Ministry wants to impose on parents who refuse to send their children to public preschool classes. Ignatov further proposes that the above said parents are mandated to do community service hours instead of paying fines

Aliosman Imamov, from the opposition ethnic Turkish party Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) pointed out data from the National Statistic Institute shows that 26% of Bulgarian children do not attend kindergarten not because parents do not want them to, but over shortage of such facilities.

Thanks for info

Nearly half of all children in Bulgaria do not speak Bulgarian as a native language Really so what language do they speak??

Oddy

possibly romany, which has its own distinction, a language of its own, i have a gipsy friend and the language is so different to bulgarian language, maybe thats the reason for the lack of bulgarian young speaking bulgarian, who knows as there are no figures to assess the numbers.

Right, never thought of that. I suppose Turkish/Bulgarian is another race too. Would have thought that English would be the main language now they joined the EU

Oddy

[size=55:23bhgebd]novinite 26 July 2010

Bulgarian Parents Against Obligatory Pre-School

Bulgarian non-government parental organizations (NPO) have announced they are against the amendments to the Education Act because, which will oblige children to start pre-school at the age of 5.

The amendments, adopted on first reading on July 21, envision obligatory pre-school for children at the age of 5 and a tenfold increase of the fines for parents who keep their children at home.

According to the parents, the changes are “discriminative” to those who want to raise their children by themselves and are in contradiction with the European convention for human rights and with the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The open letter, which parents have sent to different state institutions, states that the too early age, in which children separate from their parents, can have a negative effect on their psychological development.

According to the parents, this is increased by the lack of closely situated pre-schools with canteens and a place for an afternoon nap in some regions.

The letter also states that the expected integration of more Roma kids in the education system will probably fail because of the specifics of the communities they live in.

The parents have also accused of populism the Education Minister, Sergey Ignatov, because, in their words, he has deluded the society that the Education Act needed changes.

The NPOs believe that the EU does not apply any pressure for such amendments. They have also stated that the full-time education will burden the state budget without having provided finance for next year.

The parents have suspected financial interests in the “rushed”, in their words, voting of the amendments.

Bulgarian MPs Adopt Obligatory Preschool Education



The Bulgarian Members of the Parliament have adopted at second reading amendments to the Education Act, which envision an obligatory pre-school education for 5-year-olds.

Parents will be able to decide where to enroll their children - in daycare centers or at schools. Both will be free of charge.

The amendments envision that children should begin pre-school education two years before they start first grade, but not before turning 5 years of age.

The MPs did not support the proposal of Lyutvi Mestan from the ethnic Turkish party DPS, who insisted that 5-year-olds receive priority enrollment over 6-year-olds.

In August, a postponement of the amendments has been considered because of the incapability of the municipalities to provide the required conditions for the implementation of pre-school education.

On Thursday, the MPs decided to grant a period of two years, in which to allow the municipalities to provide the needed conditions.

They also agreed on implementing higher sanctions for parents who do not enroll their children in school or kindergarten. From now on, the fines will range from BGN 100 to BGN 1000, instead of the existing BGN 20 to BGN 100. If a second violation occurs, the fine will be increased from BGN 250 to BGN 2500.

I wonder what would happen in the UK if it were insisted on that English was the main language. In some areas is not as we know.

At least its a move forward in the right direction and lets hope they do fine the parents and don't become a soft nation like the uk

[size=55:17gmv8ta]novinite

Bulgaria Mulls Integrating More Roma Kids to 'White' Schools

Bulgaria's Education Ministry considers introducing an obligatory minimal percentage of Roma children for each school in the country.

The measure, which will cost EUR 20 M from EU funds, aims at further integrating the Roma minority into the Bulgarian education system. A total of 200 000 of the country's school drop-outs are Roma, the Trud daily points out.

The Bulgarian Education Ministry also plans organizing special courses in which Roma parents will be informed of the advantages of letting their children join "
mixed"
schools.

However, the new measure is not expected to be implemented easily, as most Roma parents insist on sending their children to nearby schools - inside the ghettos they live in. Furthermore, Roma kids are frequently not welcomed to "
normal"
schools, since many principals are afraid may prevent Bulgarian parents from enrolling their children in them.

In 2010, 24 first-graders left a school in the Bulgarian town of Pazardzhik after their parents were told there would be Roma children in their class.