Strengths of Education of the Roma in Slovakia
Strengths of Education of the Roma in Slovakia
- Number of signed pupils: in Slovak education system the level of signing of children reaches almost 100%. Each child is registered for mandatory school education and its registration is monitored by the self-administration and office of social services. Based on school attendance of the pupil the parents are entitled to social and children benefits.
- Scholarships and free meals: part of the social reform in the years 2003/2004 was the introduction of subsidies for school meals and scholarships for children from families taking social benefits at primary and secondary schools.
- Teacher assistant: addendum to the Decree No. 408/2002 (1631/2002-secretary) Ministry of education introduced the profession of teacher assistant. In cooperation with the teacher the teacher assistant is becoming the point of contact for Roma children and at the same time serves as a positive role model. In the school year 2005/06 kindergartens and primary schools employed 973 Roma teacher assistants, which were financed by the Ministry of Education.
- Normative system of financing per pupil: decentralization of power and new financing per pupil through norm increased competition among schools. Since there are no exact measurements, it is probable that this measure increased interest of ordinary schools in keeping Roma pupils.
- Zero classes: the pilot project „zero classes“ began in the school year 1992/93, while the „zero year“ works as a preparation of Roma children for attending school. The preparation class is focused on helping the children to adapt when moving from domestic environment to a completely institutionally different environment. The goal is to create space for acceleration of personal development of each child, while it helps the adaptation to a multicultural environment.
- Scholarships for support of Roma students with their studies at secondary schools: Office of representative for Roma questions secures financing for support of registration of Roma pupils for secondary schools. Resources are used to make things easier for the gifted, however socially disadvantaged Roma students with their studies at secondary schools (Roma Education Fund, 2007).
References
- ROMA EDUCATION FUND. 2007. Návrh na zlepšenie vzdelávania Rómov na Slovensku; Hodnotenie krajiny a strategické zameranie Rómskeho vzdelávacieho fondu. Roma Education Fund. 2007. ISBN: 978-963-9832-05-3