To support the effort to support thousands of children and parents, for children to study in existing, approved structures and not to overturn the plans as they have been drawn up, the Association of Private Preschool Education of Cyprus (SIPEK) calls on the State, welcoming the recall of the Amending Law which "mandated" as children over the age of four should be required to attend public kindergartens.
In a statement, SIPEK states that what has been taking place in the last period of time in relation to the extension of compulsory pre-primary education from the age of four has resulted in “causing great confusion and disturbance among the thousands of parents whose children attend private schools and kindergartens».
SIPEK "welcomes" the citation of the “Primary and Secondary Education (Compulsory and Provision of Free Education) Amendment Law of 2022”, “which mandated that children over the age of four should attend public kindergartens, depriving parents of the right to choose the private center or kindergarten they want and which can better serve the needs of the children and the parents themselves (quality of education, extended opening hours, etc.)».
“In no democratic state and at no level of education is the law prohibiting the attendance of children, or even some of them, in private schools,” he says, adding that it is “questionable”. why some MPs have voted for the relevant "regressive" legislation and wonders "what is the purpose of this act, beyond the heap of problems it creates".
The contribution of private nurseries, childcare centers and kindergartens to preschool education since 1976, it is stated, "was of great importance since public preschool education in Cyprus was literally non-existent".
It is noted that private nurseries and kindergartens offer "high quality services" which are constantly being upgraded as well as extended opening hours, especially during the holiday periods. It also states that, in order to enable the reintegration, especially of mothers, into the labor market, services such as feeding, transportation, after-school care and education are offered, and optional English learning activities, gymnastics, music and dance classes, speech therapy and a host of other programs “aimed at in the correct and all-round development of children”.
It is also mentioned that the establishment and operation of private centers and kindergartens is governed by a particularly strict and demanding legislative and regulatory framework “from which public kindergartens are exempted”. .
The possible application of the "totally unconstitutional" Law passed by the Parliament, it is added, "will create serious practical problems" to parents who will not be able to secure a place for their children in public kindergartens, to parents who, due to the nature of their work, are in immediate need of the provision of preschool care and education services in extended hours, as well as to non-Greek-speaking parents who wish, like their children they study in stations and kindergartens in which the language of communication is different (e.g. English, French, Russian, etc.).
«In addition, it will cost the State millions of euros, which the tax-paying citizen is called upon to pay, in a particularly difficult period for the economy, which the State can allocate to support the vulnerable groups of our fellow citizens as well as for development purposes”, says SIPEK.
Any implementation of the legislation, it is stated, will mean the closure of the classes in which the aforementioned solar groups of children attend and at the same time the dismissal due to redundancy of the staff employed in them since they will no longer have an object of work.
It is noted that the State managed to secure a significant European subsidy of approximately 12 million euros, through which the support of thousands of children and parents is achieved for children to attend existing, approved structures.
SIPEK calls on the State to support this effort and not to overturn the plans as they have been drawn up, but also the Parliamentary parties "to rise to the occasion and not to cancel this important initiative aimed at the benefit of preschool children".
< p> Finally, SIPEK invites parents to regularly enroll their children in the private center/kindergarten they attend or have chosen to attend for the 2023-2024 school year in order to secure their place.
Source: KYPE
