Dear Parents
At the moment there are proposals to reform the Secondary School curriculum, and some of the proposed reforms are causing concern amongst the Parents Associations of the European Schools.
The following message outlines the main issues. If after reading them you share the same concerns then you might also want to sign the petition that has been started by the Parents in the Brussels and Luxemburg schools. Note that the deadline is Friday, November 29!! Note that the deadline has been extended until December 5!!
The petition can be found here: http://www.schoolsponsoring.nl/espetition/en/show-petition
If you encounter technical difficulties - you are not the only one. Please try again. In case you do not receive a confirmation, your vote may still be counted.
Barbara Soszynska of the board of the ESF Parents' Association has prepared a summary of the proposed reorganisation of secondary studies.
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The European School secondary studies curriculum (S1 to S7) will be reformed soon mainly for cost-saving reasons. The parents’ associations are concerned about some aspects of this reform and want to have a proper impact assessment done before it is rolled out. The pedagogical high standards of the curriculum and the value of the Baccalaureate must be preserved.
The Brussels and Luxembourg parents’ associations have worked to create a petition to be presented before the 3-5 December Board of Governors Meeting (the decision making body of the European Schools).
We recommend you to read about the reform (see background and links below) and if you share our concerns to sign the petition. The deadline is in less than two weeks, Friday 29th November, so don’t wait too long.
http://www.schoolsponsoring.nl/espetition
The Parents’ Association of the European School Karlsruhe
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1- The Proposal
The reform of the European School secondary studies curriculum (S1 to S7) will take effect from September 2014.The S2 students would be the first to take the BAC under the new system but even older secondary pupils and former students will have disadvantages should a not well thought-out reform damage the reputation of the European Baccalaureate. In other words, the reform concerns you all.
Several of the provisions are particularly worrying:
- the restructuring of S6 and S7 options into "filieres", which are rigidly conceived and may not meet all national university requirements;
- the introduction in S6 and S7 of general sciences and humanities studies, in lieu of more specialised and widely-recognised two-hour options;
- modifications to S4 and S5 mathematics courses;
- the teaching of religion and ethics in L2 starting in S3;
- amendments to the European School mission, which may affect future enrollment past S5.
The documents about the reform can be found here:
A video about the reform can be found below. It is a presentation of the proposed changes by the deputy Secretary General of the European Schools, Mr Marcheggiano given on Monday the 18/11 between 12h45 -14h30.
https://scic.ec.europa.eu/streaming/index.php?es=2&sessionno=b65f2ecd2900ba6ae49a14d9c4b16fb4
Interparents’ reports will keep you updated about the discussions about the reform:
http://www.interparents.eu/report.php
2- Alternative Proposal of Interparents (which regroups all European School parents associations)
A working group of Uccle parent representatives has come up with an alternative proposal, based on close analysis of both costs and student choice over the recent years. The alternative proposal has been supported by Interparents, the umbrella organisation for all European School parents associations.
The alternative Proposal can be found here:
Secondary school studies InterparentsX 2013
3- The Petition
Unfortunately, the alternative proposal and dissenting opinions, including those of teachers and inspectors, have been unduly ignored by decision makers. More worrying, the official proposal looks set to be adopted at the 3-5 December Board of Governors Meeting, despite the lack of an adequate financial and pedagogical impact assessment or a consideration of alternatives.
The Brussels and Luxembourg parents’ associations have worked to create a petition laying out parents’ concerns about the proposed secondary studies reform. The aim of the petition is to urge Member States and the Commission to demand a proper impact assessment at the 3-5 December Board of Governors Meeting.
A proper and impartial assessment would meet the following criteria:
- Must assess the financial and societal/pedagogical impact of the proposed reform as well as its impact on university admissions and mobility to/from Member States ;
- Must take into account the full secondary cycle from s1 to s7 ;
- Must use the Proportionality Principle (“the content and form of the action must be in keeping with the aim pursued”) to consider the current system, the proposed system and alternative proposals; and must consider the necessity for secondary reform in light of alternative cost saving measures already implemented or planned ;
- Must be based on statistically reliable and verifiable data only ;
- Must be monitored by a steering group that includes parent, teacher and student representatives.
The text of the petition can be found here:
http://www.schoolsponsoring.nl/espetition/en/the-petition-letter