Right to be heard in tailored education is extended.

Right to be heard in tailored education is extended.

The right to be heard means you can give your opinion on decisions that concern you. The House of Representatives voted last week on a new law to expand the right to be heard in education: the law strengthening the position of parents and students in Tailored Education. This law will give parents and students more say and rights within Tailored Education. But this is only a small step in the right direction.

Expansion of the right to be heard useful for few students 

On April 18, the House of Representatives already debated the bill. In this first bill, the right to be heard is only for students with a Development perspective plan. But, students with a Development perspective plan are only a small minority of all students with extra support needs. Of all students, 8.2% receive extra support, of which only 0.9% in primary education have a Development perspective plan. In secondary education, this is only 1.7%. The right to be heard would therefore change little for most students without adjustments. Ouders & Onderwijs already wrote a recommendation about this in 2022 a recommendation.

Right to be heard only with Development perspective plan 

That is why members of parliament Lisa Westerveld (GroenLinks/PvdA) and Ilana Rooderkerk (D66) proposed to expand the right to be heard. Westerveld’s proposal advocates letting all students have a say about the basic support. Rooderkerk’s proposal means that all students, with or without a Development perspective plan, can talk about the basic support and the extra support they receive. Many parties worried about the feasibility. In the end, Westerveld’s proposal was accepted, but Rooderkerk’s was not. This means that schools must give students the chance to share their opinion about the basic support and the school’s support offer. Unfortunately, individual students do not get the right to be heard on their extra support when they do not have a Development perspective plan.

Ouders & Onderwijs, LAKS and Parents Association Balance gave in this letter that the proposals are feasible and that students and parents would be greatly helped by them.

Accepted motions 

Several motions were also accepted. The minister must make agreements with Partnership Tailored Education about processing the experiences of students and parents when setting up, developing, and evaluating parent and youth support points. The government will also look at funding options for tailored training, such as Assistant Green or Facility, so students who finish Special secondary education can continue to develop.

Also agreements with support points 

In addition, it was discussed during the debate that the government must map how parent and youth support points can make the transition from primary education to secondary education easier for students with support needs. Agreements will also be made with Partnership Tailored Education about how these support points can remain independent.