📋 Tender Overview
Senator Ebensperger and Senators Sanhueza and Kast supported the motion that will allow having a preschool education assistant in the classroom when classes do not exceed 15 students. Considering the growing prevalence of minors with Specific Language Disorders (SLI), the members of the committee unanimously approved the project that regulates the operation of special language schools. The idea is to allow more girls and boys to be in the care of an expert educator in the subject. The motion authored by Senator Luz Ebensperger and Senator Gustavo Sanhueza aims to update the regulatory standards on the ratio of children per educator and technician in these establishments; expand coverage and access to early care for these minors; and reinforce the quality of pedagogical and directive management by requiring professionals specialized in differential education. PROJECT Today, special language schools fulfill a specific mission: to serve boys and girls with specific language disorders, promoting their communicative, cognitive and socio-emotional development, in order to ensure adequate insertion in their subsequent school career. According to the motion, currently, Decrees No. 315 and No. 241 of the Ministry of Education regulate the ratio of children per educator and technician. However, these provisions do not sufficiently consider the reality of special language schools. This situation generates rigidities that can restrict childrens access to the early attention they require. In this way, the project proposes to expand the number of kindergartens served by each kindergarten teacher and nursery education technician in the special language schools: The Special Language schools may have a nursery education technician for up to 15 children (...) The Special Language schools may hire directors who have a professional degree in pedagogy in differential education granted by a State Normal School, University or Professional Institute of Higher Education or officially recognized by the State. ENROLLMENT In the session of November 5 when the norm was voted on, representatives of the Guild Association of Supporters of Special Language Schools (ASEEL A.G) spoke, who explained that there are currently 1,300 language schools, which children from 3 to 5 years old have access to. Thus, they indicated that 22% of preschool enrollment has some language disorder, hence the importance of their work. Likewise, the leaders explained that the courses of these establishments cannot exceed 15 students, being supported by the titular educator plus a classroom assistant. From there they advocated approving the project given the urgency of the school calendar, ensuring that enrollment processes are closing. When casting his vote, Senator Felipe Kast congratulated the Associations request because the two things they propose make sense: that they are not required to have one more assistant if the classes have 16 children, for example; and that the director of the language school is also a differential educator and not just a nursery school as she is now. For her part, Senator Luz Ebensperger gave her approval to the proposal, clarifying that this comes to solve problems that were overwhelming language schools (...) This does not exclude preschool educators from management, but also includes special education educators. In the session, the legislator also announced that the Executive promised to introduce a special subsidy for special and language schools. Today they are paid based on attendance, but many times the absences are not few given the health conditions of the students, he noted. The president of the Commission, Senator Gustavo Sanhueza, stated that it is contradictory that this is resolved in a law, instead of by decree. We are advancing something that will give peace of mind to the officials of these schools.
