Pre-school education can significantly contribute with elimination of educational gaps - differences in developmental opportunities, learning and social integration between children of the majority and children who are because of different factors in a potential threat (in deprivileged position, deprived, marginalized, vulnerable...). A number of studies have confirmed that the pre-school period is extremely important in achieving equal developmental and educational opportunities, since the most effective measures are implemented before entering elementary school. Through deliberate measures, it is possible to ensure better inclusion of vulnerable groups of children (children with special needs, socially / materially deprived groups, children of ethical, linguistic and cultural minority) into organized pre-school education - according to the basis that inclusion contributes to the same starting position of children.
The master's thesis presents and critically reflects the realization of the principle of equal opportunities in the process of children's admission in Slovenian kindergartens. The procedures for the commissioning of pre-school children in kindergartens in four different municipalities, as held in 2017/2018, are described and critically analyzed whether the provisions of the Zakon o vrtcih and the basis of the Bela Knjiga (2011), which relate to ensuring equal opportunities for development / learning and social inclusion of all pre-school children, are being enforced. Critical analysis shows the existing state of realization of the preferential admission of children with special needs and socially endangered children (Zakon o vrtcih , 1996) and evaluates the criteria for enrollment of children from the point of view of realizing the principle of fair equal opportunities.
The results of the study have shown that the analysis of the five criteria for admission to a kindergarten, the criteria of residence in selected kindergartens is a leading criterion , therefore decisive. In the following, the analysis of criteria showed that the criteria for admission to kindergarten includes the following vulnerability criteria: residence (in the case of children of foreigners and single-parent families); permanent residence in the municipality (in the case of single-parent families and children of foreigners); postponed enrollment into elementary school; listing on the waiting list in the previous school year; children from single-parent families; more children from the same family; number of dependents in the family; employment in the family or children of student parents; long-lasting illness in the family, classification on the central waiting list in the previous school year; employment of only one parent, admission of twins / triplets / quadruplets; health problems of the child; the eligibility of parents to the first income class and the disability of one of the parents. Most of the kindergartens in their criteria emphasize employment or unemployment of a parent in a one-parent family, while not mentioning the employment of parents in a two-parent family. From the comparison of the criteria, the highest and the lowest scoring criteria are to be found: the highest scoring criterion is the residence criterion, while the lowest scores are the criteria of vulnerability concerning, for example, number of dependents in the family, already included children from the family, children of high school students /college students, parents' unemployment, disability, etc. Only one of the selected kindergartens highlights the criterion of invalidity.
A Critical Analysis of the statutory provision of the Zakon o vrtcih and the Bela Knjiga has shown that in selected kindergartens priority admission for children with special needs was included. In all the kindergartens included in the survey, in the school year 2017/2018, priority was given either to children with special needs, or to socially endangered children.However, based on the results of the research, it is noted that these cases are few. Very few children with special needs are integrated in kindergartens with already issued decisions on guidance, since in the pre-school period, the kindergarten is the one which successfully identifies certain developmental defects in children. Also, very few socially deprived children are included in the kindergartens; according to the Center for Social Work, in three out of the four kindergartens in the school year 2017/2018 there were only 8. Critical analysis of the interviews has shown that most kindergartens do not specifically inform parents that having socially deprived children means having priority in admission to kindergarten. The results of the survey has also shown that professional workers at the Center for social work are completely autonomous when issuing opinions on the vulnerability of the family (which is the basis for the priority admission).The opinions are issued in accordance with their own judgment, however a they must adhere to the fact that the family has been previously dealt with by the Center for social work.
|
