Steering documents

The main act regulating preschool education and care for children from the age of 3 years is the Preschool and School Education Act. It provides all the basic provisions of the preschool and school education system.

Moreover, Ordinance 5 of 3 June 2016 on preschool education, issued by the Minister for Education and Science, determines the state educational standard for preschool education. It specifies the educational areas in which preschool education is carried out as well as their objectives, content and learning outcomes for different age groups. According to this by-law, each kindergarten and primary school has to draw up its own programme system, which is adopted by a decision of the pedagogical council. The programme system includes:

• approaches and forms of pedagogical interaction;
• distribution of the forms of pedagogical interaction;
• thematic distribution for each age group;
• mechanism of interaction between the participants in preschool education.

The state, municipal and private kindergartens, as well as the primary schools that provide early childhood education and care (ECEC), can apply innovative and specific educational programmes. Through the innovative and specific educational programmes in pedagogical situations, additional competencies are acquired (in addition to the main educational directions: Bulgarian language and literature, mathematics, the surrounding world, arts, music, design and technology, physical culture). The additional competencies are determined in the programme system by educational directions and age groups.

Ordinance 6 of 11 August 2016 on the acquisition of the Bulgarian literary language, issued by the Minister for Education and Science, determines the state educational standard for the acquisition of the Bulgarian literary language in the system of preschool and school education.

Ordinance 13 of 21 September 2016 on civic, health, environmental and intercultural education, issued by the Minister for Education and Science, sets out the nature and objectives of the requirements for learning outcomes in schools, kindergartens and support centres for personal development. It provides institutional policies to support these types of education.

Areas of learning and development

According to the , preschool education for children from the age of 3 years aims to ensure:

• intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual, moral and physical development and support of each child in accordance with their age, needs, abilities and interests;
• preservation and affirmation of the Bulgarian national identity;
• early detection of the talents and abilities of each child and promotion of their development and realisation;
• overall development of the child’s personality and acquisition of a set of competencies – knowledge, skills and attitudes – necessary for the child’s successful transition to school education, development of sustainable attitudes and motivation for lifelong learning;
• development of tolerance and respect for the identity of every citizen.

The competencies that the child is to acquire are defined in terms of expected results of the upbringing, education and socialisation of children for each age group in the following educational areas: Bulgarian language and literature, mathematics, the surrounding world, fine arts, music, design and technology, and physical culture.

The pedagogical situation is the basic form of pedagogical interaction.

Minimum pedagogical situation per week (number of hours guaranteed in centre-based provision)

Pedagogical approaches

The main form of pedagogical interaction is the pedagogical situation, which takes place mainly in the form of games. Pedagogical situations are organised only during school hours from 15 September to 31 May. Pedagogical situations are distributed across the educational areas on a weekly basis, according to age group, by the teachers of the specific group before the beginning of the school year, with approval from the director of the kindergarten. The duration and the minimum and maximum numbers of pedagogical situations are determined by  for preschool education, which also contains guidelines for teachers for each educational field.

Kindergartens use textbooks and aids approved by the Ministry of Education and Science, as well as various audiovisual and didactic materials appropriate for the age group. In addition to textbooks, various auxiliary materials are used in children’s education – pencils, felt-tip pens, watercolour paints, plasticine, glue, coloured paper, crayons, various types of educational toys and audiovisual equipment (e.g. interactive whiteboards).

In the additional classes for applied art, items made of clay, wool, cardboard and other materials are made. Various play facilities have been built in the grounds of the kindergartens. Kindergartens and schools provide outdoor games for children of all ages for at least 2 hours per day for whole-day sessions and at least 1 hour per day for half-day sessions whenever weather conditions allow.

Each kindergarten and primary school must issue rules of procedure, which determine:

• the organisation of the day and activities;
• how textbooks are chosen;
• the rights and obligations of the participants in the educational process;
• the activities organised outside of the kindergarten or town;
• cooperation and interaction between parents and the kindergarten or school;
• the content of the children’s portfolio;
• the conditions and the order for receiving support from the pedagogical specialists for the families of the children enrolled in an independent organisation.

The kindergarten develops and applies a model for working with families and children regarding the period of adaptation from the family environment to the kindergarten, which is an integral part of the regulations for the activities of kindergartens. The model must include the short-term presence of the parents in the kindergarten. The duration of the parents’ presence, as well as the activities in which they can participate, are determined in advance at individual meetings between teachers and parents.

Assessment

The assessment of education in early childhood from the age of 3 years (and under some circumstances from the age of 2 years) is regulated by the requirements of Ordinance 5 of 3 June 2016 on preschool education, issued by the Minister for Education and Science, which has been in force since 1 August 2016.

Competency assessment looks at the expected results of the upbringing, education and socialisation of children for each age group in the relevant educational areas. Monitoring of the child’s achievements in each educational area is carried out by the teachers of the respective group at the beginning and at the end of the school time during the school year. Children’s achievements are assessed through observation by the teacher, through the products of children’s creativity and through games. Assessment of achievement should stimulate and show the positive aspects of the child. This process must be well reasoned to support the child in their understanding of development, learning and initiative. Assessment should always promote the qualities and abilities of the child. Tracking the achievements of children in each age group is carried out by teachers according to the rhythmic and balanced distribution of content in educational areas. Follow-up to assessment includes setting goals for achieving individual competencies as part of the expected preschool learning outcomes. Over the course of preschool education, the child’s achievements are reflected in their portfolio.

Transition to primary school

Over the course of preschool education, the child’s achievements are reflected in their portfolio. The content of children’s portfolios is determined by the regulations for the activities of the kindergarten or school. At the end of preschool education, in order to ensure continued interaction between parents and educational institutions, the child’s portfolio, reflecting their achievements, is transferred from the kindergarten to the school.

In the 14 days before the end of the preschool stage, the teacher of the group establishes the school-readiness of the children who will enter the first grade of primary education in the next school year. The assessment takes into account the child’s physical, cognitive, linguistic, social and emotional development. The kindergarten (or the primary school providing ECEC) issues a certificate for compulsory preschool education for the children from the preparatory age groups at the end of preschool education. The certificate may make recommendations to encourage and motivate the child to participate in additional activities and/or to provide the child with additional support for personal development. When a child’s health prevents admission to the first grade, the beginning of school education may be postponed by 1 school year. In this case, the certificate makes recommendations for the provision of additional support for personal development for the child.