2020
Quality of Dutch childcare continues to improve
The quality of childcare in the Netherlands is good. Childcare organizations have focused on quality improvement and professionalization in recent years. As a result, our country can now compete with guide countries such as Denmark and Finland, according to research commissioned by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment.
The University of Utrecht and research agency Sardes annually measure the quality of four types of childcare: day care, toddler care, out-of-school care and childminder care. The measurements of the past three years (2017-2019) have been combined, creating a good picture of the level of childcare. In addition, an analysis has been made of the quality of childcare over the past twenty-five years and the researchers are making an international comparison.
Top position The research shows that the quality of childcare has continued to improve in recent years. The greatest increase in quality occurs in aspects related to emotional quality, such as the atmosphere in the group and the sensitivity of pedagogical employees. The Netherlands now even occupies a top international position, the researchers say. Our country scores well on overall quality and has relatively few differences in quality between the groups. The level is comparable to or higher than in countries such as Denmark, Finland, Norway, England and Australia. State Secretary Van Ark (SZW) is pleased with the quality improvement that the childcare sector has made:
State Secretary Tamara van Ark: "Childcare is extremely important for the development of young children. And pedagogical employees make a difference every day by offering safe, high-quality care. The sector is growing and has become more professional, the research clearly shows. childcare is faced with staff shortages. Many new people are needed to continue to offer the high quality. I therefore wholeheartedly support the campaign launched by the sector to recruit new employees."
Out-of-school care A number of points for attention also emerge from the report. For example, the researchers believe that out-of-school care as a leisure activity can still gain in quality. The emphasis is now mainly on offering sports and games and less on creative activities or music. Van Ark will examine how the range can be made wider and more attractive, especially for children aged 10 to 12 years. At around this age, the use of out-of-school care decreases sharply. Greater differences in quality can be seen in childminder care. Further research is needed to provide more insight into childminder care.
2019
Minister Slob expands preschool education
There will be more and better pre-school education (voorschoolse educatie) for toddlers at risk of educational disadvantage. The number of hours will be increased from ten to sixteen hours per week. From now on, pedagogical policy officers with at least a higher education degree (HBO) will also be deployed to help toddler leaders with tips, explanations and examples. The Council of Ministers has approved a proposal on this from Minister Slob for Primary and Secondary Education and Media.
Minister Slob: "Some young children grow up in an unfavorable home situation and do not yet speak Dutch well, for example. We want these children to be able to make a good start at primary school. You have to do that at a young age to prevent them from falling behind. "
The cabinet has earmarked 170 million euros for the structural expansion of preschool education. Preventing and combating educational disadvantage increases the chances of children and society benefits. It promotes a well-educated workforce and has positive effects on health, crime and unemployment.
Preschool education is offered at daycare for children aged 2.5 to 4 years. Pedagogical staff read to the toddlers, practice with words and numbers, and teach them to play together. As a result, toddlers become more proficient in language, they gain a larger vocabulary, and they can concentrate better.
There are approximately 4,500 childcare centers in the Netherlands where preschool education is provided. Municipalities ensure that the number of these preschool education programmes are sufficient . The increase in the number of hours per week will take effect from August 2020, so that municipalities and children's centers can adapt and recruit employees.
Positive assessment of the quality of Dutch childcare
News item | 02/25/2019 | 12:15
Safe and high-quality childcare is of great social importance. It enables parents to combine work and care and contributes to the development of children. The National Quality Monitor for Childcare,"Landelijke Kwaliteitsmonitor Kinderopvang" (LKK) shows that the quality of Dutch childcare is adequate to good. Childcare is also performing satisfactorily from an international perspective. State Secretary Van Ark of Social Affairs and Employment presented the monitor to the House of Representatives today.
The annual LKK monitor, which has been compiled for the second time, shows that Dutch childcare has a solid foundation and that children are in good hands with professionals who work in childcare. As in the first measurement, the results show that the average emotional quality (including the atmosphere in the group, sensitivity of employees and supervision of children's behavior) is sufficient to good. Employees ensure a safe pedagogical climate. This means that children are kind to each other and that older children help younger children. The average educational quality (including support for language development and knowledge of the world) is lower. The work experience of employees, childminders and managers is predominantly positive. However, the range of professionalization activities, such as courses and coaching, can be improved.
According to the researchers, the child-professional ratio, the group composition, professionalization, an inclusive climate and HBO-educated people in the team are the most important predictors of the quality of care. It also applies that horizontal groups, where children sit with peers, score better for babies and toddlers on average than vertical groups with children of different ages.
State Secretary Tamara van Ark: "I am pleased that the results once again provide a positive picture of the quality of childcare. I think this is a great compliment to all employees who are committed to its quality every day. At the same time, this research provides valuable information that can help the sector in further targeted improvement of childcare."
The monitor includes comparisons with, among others, Germany, Switzerland, Portugal, the United States and Belgium (Flanders). Childcare in the Netherlands scores better than these countries on both emotional and educational quality. Our country can also compete with Finland on emotional quality, but scores lower on educational quality. Compared to Danish childcare, the roles have been reversed: the Netherlands has a somewhat lower emotional quality, but performs considerably better on the educational aspect.
The National Quality Monitor for Childcare assesses the quality of daycare, toddler care, out-of-school care and childminder care on the basis of random samples. A total of 323,000 children go to daycare or toddler care, 368,000 children go to out-of-school care and 114,000 children go to childminders' care.
2018
No more tests for toddlers
News item 06-07-2018 | 15:45
Preschoolers no longer have to make school tests. The Council of Ministers agreed on the proposal of Minister Slob of Primary and Secondary Education and Media. According to the government, it does not fit with the development of pre-school children to measure their development by using school tests. Preschoolers develop in a playful way and in leaps and bounds. A test on paper at school does not do justice to this.
Development in leaps and bounds
Preschoolers learn something new every day: coloring, drawing, motor skills, but also making social contact and making friends. It is important for teachers to be able to follow that development. But many teachers were not satisfied with the school tests from a pupil tracking system (a system that many schools use to track the progress of students). The tests are too much a snapshot and can therefore give a distorted picture.
Tests eliminated
The nursery tests were already not mandatory, but are now completely removed from the pupil tracking systems. At the same time, a school or teacher does have leeway for teachers to follow the development of preschoolers in a different way. For example, teachers can use the observations, conversations or games to see how their pre-school children are doing. Schools and teachers are free to decide for themselves how they want to do this.
The collected information can be placed in the pupil tracking system, without the child having to take a test for it. Based on the data, the teacher can decide, for example, whether a toddler needs extra help or if a toddler can go to third grade.
The expectation is that the nursery tests will no longer be included in the pupil tracking system from 2021 onwards. The adjustment is an elaboration of an agreement from the coalition agreement.