After nearly three years of battles, the bill for pre-school and school education finally became complete. There are both good ideas and debatable texts. From the 2013-2014 school year students will receive new curricula and study plans. The key role of kindergarten in education is planned to be regulated and the following schooling process will be segmented in four stages, each of which will end in exams. Parents will participate actively in the management of schools and students will have the right to vote.
The most serious of the project’s pluses is that the state commits itself to support financially education in private schools and kindergartens from next year. After all parents are taxpayers, they really should be treated as equals, regardless of what type of school their children attend to. According to the Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Krasimir Valchev for this purpose an additional sum of BGN10 million will be required.
Private schools will not be obliged to reduce their fees, but will be able to demand money from parents only for the cost of the pupil’s education that remains uncovers by state subsidies as well as for the additional extras they offer. In addition, they will not receive funds under national training programmes that are designed to assist public schools. The subsidy for the former will pass through the respective municipalities. It is the municipalities, according to the new project, that will be the new big player in the educational system. It is envisaged that special schools such as those in sciences, mathematics, and technical schools will go to the supervision of the municipalities and their assets will become municipal property. The state will retain supervision only on the special education schools of arts and sports, as well as those abroad.
