PASSEND ONDERWIJS Better solutions for children with special needs. Complex operation with different outcome for the regional parts of the country (some regions get more money, some less money) Accepting that in different regions children can have different rights to educational support. 1
SHORT HISTORIC OVERVIEW OF THE DUTCH SCHOOL SYSTEM FOR SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS 1998 LOM and MLK become SBO for children with learning difficulties. Around 2000 with the WEC all schools for special needs other then learning difficulties are brought together in clusters. Cluster 1: for children with visual problems Cluster 2: for children with speaking or hearing problems Cluster 3: for children with a physical or mental handicap Cluster 4: for children with a behavioural problems Each cluster with its own commissie van indicatiestelling (CvI) working according to national criteria. 2003 Introduction of LGF (rugzakfinanciering). This meant that there was a choice in staying on your own school with money for extra support, or move to a cluster school. HOW DOES SE START WHEN CHILDREN HAVE, OR STARTING TO HAVE A PROBLEM UNDER THE WEC Start a file, show the limitations and their impact on the learning process of the child. Can't you cope with the problem, try to get an indication from the PCL of CvI by matching the problem with nationally agreed criteria. Make a choice for a rugzakje or moving the child to a cluster school 2
WHAT WENT WRONG? Labelling children did not solve the problem. Schools often used the system to get rid of the problem. Finding the right school for the child s problem was the duty of the parents. Most parents had and still have no idea of the educational map of their region. Procedures to get a ticket for special support are very complicated and cost a lot of time. Cluster schools do not always focus enough on the learning skills of the children in the didactic areas. Too many children loose their chance on an independent career or lifestyle. A lot of problems are even for the cluster schools too heavy. The distance between school and other parties that can help ( Jeugdzorg), is quite large. The ideal situation to establish everywhere one plan for one child was never achieved. Transporting the children to a cluster school is a very expensive logistic operation and not always pleasant for the child. And last but not least the growth of the cluster schools became too expensive for the government. ON A NATIONAL SCALE THIS LEAD TO A ENORMOUS GROWTH OF ESPECIALLY CLUSTER 3 AND 4 20000 Leerlingen in het VSO 18000 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 cluster 1 cluster 2 cluster 3 cluster 4 4000 2000 0 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Bron: Stateline CBS 3
LET US DO IT BETTER. With Passend Onderwijs we focus on: Educating teachers in regular schools to handle problems better. Solutions for the remaining problems should be developed in the region where the child lives. No national indication criteria any more. Children should be helped as close as possible to place where they live, this is much better for their social cohesion. The intention of every school must be to educate for the labour market. A diploma or certificate offers more opportunities. How to do so? WE FOCUS ON THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUES OF THE NEW LAW. 1. Zorgplicht/ Duty of the school boards 2. Ondersteuningsprofiel/ support profile 3. Ontwikkelingsperspektief/ Educational/development perspective 4
PASSEND ONDERWIJS: WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN? School boards become responsible for zorgplicht. That means. 1. When registered on a school the school board will have the duty to offer the child the education and support the child needs. 2. Schools are no longer allowed to refuse a child that wants to register. So parent don t have to shop anymore. (* for exceptions see: aanmeldingsprocedure ) 3. If the board cannot offer the right kind of support, it has to make agreements with other school boards. 2. HOW TO KNOW WHERE TO GO? Every school has to describe its support/ondersteuningsprofiel. Every school describes which support they can give, how they organise it, how well their staff is educated and so on. This description must be published in the schoolguide and on their website, so that parents know in advance if their child will fit in or not. Remark: Even when a school can t provide the right support, parents can report their child to the school. School is than, required by law, obliged to find the right school for the child. Naturally in consolation with the parents. 5
The ondersteuningsprofiel contains: Description of the Basic support (things you must find in every school of the new partnership) 1. How they prevent or handle light curative interventions (as on the domains of dyslexia of social security an so on) 2. The structure of their support 3. How they plan their education and individual support, etc. 4. How they cope with the indicators of the Dutch Inspection. The ondersteuningprofiel also contains a description of the Extra support ( this support can be different in every school.) Extra expertise in, our linked to the school Additional facilities (methods, equipment, special groups, etc.) Extra staff (in class, hours of support, extra expertise) Facilities in the school building. Partners with who they work together. 6
3. ONTWIKKELINGSPERSPEKTIEF EDUCATIONAL-DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVE 90 % of the children will never need extra support. And follow the regular program. 5 % will need some kind of light support and still follow the regular program or after a short time follow the regular program. 5% will need intensive extra support and can t follow the regular program or the regular program is not suitable For every child that structurally cannot follow the regular program, for any reason, a devolvement perspective has to be agreed on with parents. A development perspective is not what school will be doing as in IEP s, but what they intent to achieve after a certain amount of time. This must be measurable and accounted for. Educational-development plan has to contain: A description of the overall line of development A description of the development line within the main didactic area s of education. Phasing education in time/years. How long will it take. What will the child s level be at the and of this school period. What will the next school be, so what do we aim at. 7
A NEW KIND OF ORGANIZATION IS NEEDED. The old partnership WSNS will end. Regions will be reorganized( become larger) and all schools in the new regions are obliged to participate, including the former cluster schools. The new partnerships will be new legal entities with their own legal duties. * The position of the international (Dutch) schools esp. the position of the Lighthouse has yet to be studied or even.agreed on? WHAT ARE THE DUTIES OF THE NEW PARTNERSHIPS.(1) 1. Collecting the support profile s of the schools in their region and decide if together they are enough support to guarantee each child a place for a continuing line of development. 2. Decide on what level of basic support every school in the region must provide. 3. Decide on agreements about the allocation of resources for additional support and services to schools. ( arrangements) 4. Decide on the access criteria to be admitted to a special school. 5. Decide on the policy en criteria of leaving a special school 8
WHAT ARE THE DUTIES OF THE NEW PARTNERSHIPS.(2) 6. Checking if the money schools got for extra support, is spent on the issues they agreed on and if they getting results. (checking on the development perspectives). 7. Making sure that parents are getting the right information. 8. Being responsible that the money the region gets for extra support, is allocated according to the agreement that where made with the special schools. 8. Consulting and negotiating with the municipalities about the region s educational plan and the support they need from organizations the municipalities are responsible for.(jeugdzorg, awbz, and so on) A NEW REALITY IN THE FUTURE: EACH CHILD ON THE BEST PLACE, GETTING THE BEST SUPPORT.? 1. The parents report their child to the school of their choice. 2. The school determines (after consultation with the parents, but sometimes without approval of parents) if the appropriate education can be provided. 3. If yes, no problem and the child is admitted. 4. yes... but, the school in consultation with parents determines the development perspective and determines the additional support. ( If parent don t agree there is a procedure for complains.) Still the child is admitted to the school of choice when that school can provide the support needed. 5. Is the answer no, the school has to find the best solution within its own board or in another board of the partnership, or in another partnership. 6. Should the answer be a special school or a school within another partnership, then the partnership of the region the child lives in, determines whether this is permitted. The postal zip code determines to which partnership a child belongs. * See: Aanmeldingsprocedure 9
WHEN DOES IT ALL START? November 2013 The new partnerships have established a new legal entity. 1 may 2014 The new partnership have a regional support plan that is agreed on by the municipalities that form the region. 1 august 2014. The law Passend Onderwijs comes into force. School boards have to perform their zorgplicht. INFORMATIVE (DUTCH) SITES VNG: Vereniging van Nederlandse Gemeenten Steunpunt Passend Onderwijs http://www.vng.nl/onderwerpenindex/onderwijs/passendonderwijs/passend-onderwijs-beleid-wet-en-regelgeving http://www.steunpuntpassendonderwijs.nl/passend-onderwijs/rechten-enplichten/rechten-en-plichten-van-de-school/schorsing-en-verwijdering/ 10