BUU, Alm.del - 2020-21 - Bilag 123: Orientering om svar på brev fra FN's Menneskerettighedsråd om lov om obligatorisk læringstilbud, fra børne- og undervisningsministeren

Børne- og Undervisningsudvalget 2020-21
BUU Alm.del Bilag 123
Offentligt

Børne- og

Undervisningsministeriet

Kontor for Dagtilbud

Frederiksholms Kanal 25

1220 København K

Tlf. nr.: 32 92 50 00

E-mail: [email protected]

www.uvm.dk

CVR nr.: 20453044

5. Please provide detailed information justifying the establish-

ment of different mandatory education standards for minority

children of non-Danish origin than children of Danish origin.

Furthermore, please provide detailed information to explain

how punishment

for parents’ non-compliance

with these

standards do not result in racial discrimination.

In Denmark, it is the belief that all children should be given equal oppor-

tunities to do well in school and later on, in life. Research shows that so-

cial vulnerability affects the child early: Already at the age of three, large

gaps

–

corresponding to up to two years

– exist between children’s social,

linguistic, and early mathematical competencies. Early, targeted

measures towards better language development of children is of vital im-

portance to close this gap. At the same time, research shows that early in-

terventions to strengthen children’s cognitive, social and personal com-

petences are more cost-effective compared to interventions later in life at

school or job training. Government statistics show that children from

vulnerable housing areas lack behind the national average when it comes

to grades in primary school and attending youth education. Moreover,

statistics point to the fact that about half of bilingual children do not hold

the appropriate Danish competencies when they start school. Children in

vulnerable housing areas have a greater risk of not developing age appro-

priate Danish language competencies compared to children living outside

these areas. Children in vulnerable housing areas receive lower math and

Danish grades in their 9th and 10th GPA compared to the national aver-

age. That counts for children with both a Western and Non-Western her-

itage (Source: Statistics Denmark, 2018).

Vulnerable housing areas are defined by a set of objective criteria,

amongst other things the average level of employment and wealth, the

average level of education, the crime rate, etc. Origin is not included in

this set of objective criteria.

The mandatory learning program must be organized in accordance with

the requirements that apply to ordinary early childhood education and

care (ECEC) schemes. Among other things, this means that the spoken

2. marts 2021

Sags nr.:21/00044

BUU, Alm.del - 2020-21 - Bilag 123: Orientering om svar på brev fra FN's Menneskerettighedsråd om lov om obligatorisk læringstilbud, fra børne- og undervisningsministeren

language must be Danish, and the intervention shall be organized in ac-

cordance with the pedagogical curriculum. The staff in the chosen ECECs

are to ensure that the children in the mandatory learning program do not

feel ‘left out’ or in other ways feel outside of the children’s community.

In that context, it should be emphasized that the establishment of man-

datory learning programs of 25 hours per week for 1-year-olds in vulner-

able housing areas, who are not already in ECEC, does not set different

mandatory education standards for minority children of non-Danish

origin than children of Danish origin.

A recent report conducted by the Danish Evaluation Institute for the

Ministry for Children and Education monitors the municipalities’ imple-

mentation of the law on mandatory learning programs. The report shows

that municipalities mainly have chosen the mandatory learning program

to be placed in ECECs that 1) are close to the family’s house of residence,

2) have employed staff that are used to working actively with linguistic

development of children, 3) are able to convert the 25 hours into a full-

time place in the ECEC. The report shows that the staff have not experi-

enced it as a difficulty to integrate the children on equal grounds with the

rest of the children in the ECEC.

If parents choose not to enroll their children in the mandatory learning

program, they can choose to conduct the efforts at home. That will re-

quire, however, that the parents are able to provide for their children’s

linguistic development in Danish etc. In case the parents neither enroll

their child in the learning program nor have the ability to support their

children’s Danish language skills and development in their own home,

the municipal authorities shall decide to stop the child benefit. The re-

port shows that 34 children have attended or are attending mandatory

learnings programs during the period of data collection, which was be-

tween 1/10 2019-30/8 2020. The length of the mandatory programs var-

ied between 14 days and 9 months. The report indicates that the families

choose to convert the mandatory learning program into an ordinary place

in the ECEC in most cases. The municipalities conducted outreach efforts

towards the families, informing them of the mandatory program and the

benefits of enrolling their children in ECEC, in 778 cases. In 97 cases, it

was allowed for families to conduct the mandatory learning programs at

home. In 15 cases, the municipal authorities have decided to stop the

child benefit. In November 2018, 965 1-year olds lived in vulnerable

housing areas. 76% of these were in ECEC. In 2019, this number was 939

children, corresponding to 80% in ECEC.

The Ministry for Children and Education found that municipalities have

intensified their efforts to reach out to families in vulnerable housing ar-

eas, informing the families of the benefits of enrolling their children in

ECEC as regards language stimulation, socio-emotional development and

well-being of the children. The intensified outreach effort has meant that

a large number of families have decided to enroll their children in ECEC

from the day they turn 1 year instead of choosing the mandatory learning

programs.

BUU, Alm.del - 2020-21 - Bilag 123: Orientering om svar på brev fra FN's Menneskerettighedsråd om lov om obligatorisk læringstilbud, fra børne- og undervisningsministeren

When drafting the Act on mandatory learning program, it was carefully

considered whether the establishment of mandatory learning program

for 1-year-olds living in a vulnerable housing area would be compatible

with the obligations set out in relevant international conventions, includ-

ing the European Convention of Human Rights. It was the assessment of

the Danish Government that the establishment is in conformity with Ar-

ticle 14 (Prohibition of discrimination) in combination with Article 1 in

Protocol no. 1 (Protection of property) in the European Convention on

Human Rights. It was the assessment that the establishment is justified

in the legitimate purpose of ensuring

children’s linguistic development,

their formation, and their readiness to learn, and that the means do not

go further than necessary in order to pursue the aimed purpose.