House of Representatives votes on practical education track and pre‑vocational secondary education.

House of Representatives votes on practical education track and pre‑vocational secondary education.

Last week there was the debate in the House of Representatives about the practical education track and the vmbo. A vote has now taken place on the submitted motions. Many proposals that directly affect the position of students have been adopted.

Position of Ouders & Onderwijs

Ouders & Onderwijs finds it important that the practical education track gets a full place within education and that parents and students experience fewer barriers.

We advocate among other things for:

• Simpler admission, for example by phasing out the declaration of admissibility
• Clear and suitable school advice, including the possibility of a single practical education track advice
• Equal opportunities and perspective for students in the practical education track

We regularly receive signals from parents that the current system is unclear and sometimes even leads to deadlock situations. The adopted motions are a step in the right direction, but it is important that these changes also become noticeable in practice.

Direct funding for the practical education track

The motion to arrange direct funding for the practical education track faster has been adopted. Currently, the financing still runs through partnerships tailored education. This can create barriers when placing students. With direct funding, this should become easier.

Entrance training within practical education track legally regulated

The motion to legally regulate the entrance training within the practical education track faster has also been adopted. This route is already offered by many schools but was not yet properly arranged by law.

More choice in vmbo profiles

The House has agreed to a plan to increase the range of vocational profiles per region. Now, the choice is often dependent on where a student lives.

Travel cost reimbursement for all practical education track upper years students

The motion to make travel cost reimbursement available for all upper year students in the practical education track has been adopted.

Fewer barriers: future of the declaration of admissibility

The House has also agreed with a proposal to work on a phase-out path for the declaration of admissibility. This declaration is still needed to be admitted to the practical education track and often causes extra paperwork and delays.

Technical education and broader vision

Two broader proposals were also adopted:

• Technical education at all vmbo locations
• A national vision on practical and vocational education

These proposals did not pass

A number of motions were rejected, including:

• Stopping with ‘advising for opportunity’
• Automatic transfer of education funding during a school change
• Language education first for newcomers before a definitive school advice