On 23 and 24 October, the ISSA International Conference “It Takes an Early Childhood Ecosystem for All Young Children to Thrive” takes place. Over 500 professionals from 60 countries, together with experts from institutions and policy makers, discuss the future of children, the link between childhood issues and career development, support for families from vulnerable groups and much more. Organised by the International Step by Step Association (ISSA) and the Trust for Social Achievement.
The first day of the event focused on the biggest threats to children – poverty, unhealthy environment and nutrition, low education and poor health. Our Executive Director Georgi Bogdanov joined the conference programme. The organizers of the forum invited him to share our vision on two issues – can municipalities accelerate the process of democratization of the education system and allow the youngest citizens to participate in this process, and can local authorities have greater freedom to apply democratic approaches and innovations in the education system in our country.
Here are the highlights of our position that we shared during the forum.
How can municipalities accelerate the processes of democratization and pluralization of the education system – let even the youngest citizens participate in the city’s vivid transformations?
The children of Bulgaria should not break bread and only recite poems in front of school authorities and politicians. They must be empowered to the position of an equal participant in the civil discourse. Their voices should be listened to on all matters thatconcern their lives and on all topics that children themselves find important! Unfortunately, the non-adoption of a National Strategy for the Child for the fifth year in a row shows that Bulgaria does not put children’s participation on the agenda even at the level of basic strategic planning. Real participation of children is present mainly in NGO initiatives, such as the Megaphone Youth Program of the NNC and our annual VoiceIt Youth Forum. Although there are child participation structures to some institutions and schools, they are not really empowered to realize children’s participation, are often decorations, or their decisions are not known by the majority of children. The popular opinion still is that if children learn more about their rights, incl. the right to civic engagement, this would put them against their parents and teachers.
We at the National Network for Children believe that the society at large, institutions and professionals working with children must recognize the need for children to express opinions and civil positions on all topics that affect them, and to be consistently and appropriately informed about their rights. Access to public information in child-friendly language about laws – including local legislation and policies – should be provided easily! We need more active dialogue between municipal authorities and children on local solutions. The state, municipalities and schools should create and use digital interactive tools for polling children.
It is essential that institutions, in their attempts to engage and listen to children, do not address only students who are already civically active and are high achievers. Children’s participation should also cover individuals with difficult backgrounds – in residential care, with special needs, minorities, refugees and ones with temporary protection, victims of violence, children with anti-social behavior and at risk of criminalization. Let me give you an example of a good practice from Iceland. There, the children’s ombudsperson (the kind we don’t have in Bulgaria!) holds a big forum every 2 years, where hundreds of children meet the president, the prime minister and the ministers, and in various thematic working groups look for solutions to different issues. The fascinating thing is that the children there are selected by lottery, from the lists of all students – so that the most diverse plenary of children is invited to this forum, including kids who have never participated in any volunteering or advocacyinitiative. This is what we need to introduce in Bulgaria and what the NNC is trying to encourage.
We at the NNC have been advocating for years for a competency model of selection and monitoring of school principals – where candidates for principals champion a program and vision for a defined limited term, defend this program before teachers, parents and students, and have everyone, including the children, vote for them. The other thing we have been advocating for is school (peer-to-peer) mediation. Children should be empowered to find amicable solutions to school conflicts on their own. Through school mediation they can learn to voice their needs and interests, to negotiate, to be active listeners, to empathize, to develop their socio-emotional competencies. All of this is vital for their empowerment as active citizens.
Here are a few more approaches that can play a crucial role in accelerating the democratisation and pluralisation of the education system, by encouraging the active participation of young citizens not only at home but also in other EU countries.
1. Young people can be involved in the development and implementation of policies that promote inclusive education, taking into account the views and visions of children and where this topic belongs in the curriculum. This could include introducing programmes that focus on citizenship education, tolerance and understanding of diversity.
2. Student councils and forums are a great tool for empowering students and are a platform for young people to voice their opinions on local issues and educational matters.
3. Collaborate with nonprofits, universities, and civic activists to create educational programs that emphasize civic engagement. These partnerships can include workshops, seminars and forums on democracy and social responsibility.
4. Community service projects can be initiated that encourage volunteerism, community service, and that encourage students to become involved in local issues. This hands-on approach helps them understand the needs of their community and the impact of their contributions.
5. Students may be given the opportunity to participate in the spending of designated school budgets. Involving them in financial decision-making can teach them responsible stewardship.
6. Regular forums, meetings and discussions with local authorities will give young people a voice on community issues. Such dialogues can strengthen the sense of belonging, promote civic responsibility and increase young citizens’ trust in institutions.
7. New thefologies can be used to create digital platforms for engagement, where young citizens can discuss, collaborate and propose ideas for their city. Online forums or apps can facilitate discussions on local governance and education reform.
8. There is a critical need for civic education to be part of the curriculum, with an emphasis on democratic values, civic participation and social responsibility.
9. Cultural and artistic initiatives that allow students to express their views through art and culture should be supported. Events that highlight youth perspectives can promote pluralism and raise awareness of various societal issues.
10. Feedback mechanisms – channels through which students and parents can give feedback on educational policies and practices – should also be provided. Regular surveys, suggestion boxes and focus groups are all approaches that can ensure that their voices are heard and taken into account.
How can local authorities be allowed more freedom to implement democratic approaches and innovations in the Bulgarian system of (preschool) education?
Our preschool education system is so unsatisfactory and backward that we from the National Network for Children and Eurochild are suing the Bulgarian state before the European Committee of Social Rights to the Council of Europe.
We can hardly talk about democratic approaches and innovations when each year in Sofia around 10 000 children are completely left out of the nursery, kindergarten and compulsory pre-school admission system. This lack of places in kindergartens is a giant unresolved issue. But it is not the only one. There are still insufficient services for early childhood education and care (ECEC), and no uniform standards for tracking and measuring their quality.
The introduction of a National Quality Framework for such services has not been implemented. Many services fail to cover the most critical age for early intervention, namely 0 to 3, and there are significant local and ethnic disparities in the provision and access to ECEC services. According to data from the National Statistical Institute, the proportion of children aged 3 and below enrolled in ECEC services in Bulgaria was 17.9% in 2022. This percentage is much lower than the EU target of 45% and has remained relatively stable for the past five years nationwide, reaching 23.1% in municipalities with the highest coverage, such as Gabrovo, while it is only 8.5-9% in cities like Sliven and Pazardzhik!
State and local authorities must recognize and support alternative forms of child care! By this, we refer to private initiatives and enterprises that parents organize to fill up the existing gaps in early childhood education and care services. These can be, for example, parental cooperatives and children’s centers. Not only are there no concrete measures that support such private enterprises, but the existing ones are practically stopped by authorities. Unfortunately, these issues of the system of early childhood education and care are further exacerbated by the short-term policy horizon of successive governments over the past three years. Our political crisis has worsened the situation drastically. We need a stable government that places a focus on supporting cross-sector services for parents and children.
The ISSA 2024 Conference “It Takes an Early Childhood Ecosystem for All Young Children to Thrive” in Sofia this year is realized in partnership with the For Our Children Foundation and the Foundation for Children at Risk around the World, as well as with the support of the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, the Ministry of Health, and Sofia Municipality.
This is the sixteenth ISSA conference and the first to be held in a Balkan country. This year’s forum marks 25 years since the first such event, as well as the 30th anniversary of the organisation.
ISSA’s international membership comprises over 90 non-profit organisations from almost every continent, mainly Europe and Asia. ISSA supports the development of quality, equitable and integrated services for children, parents and professionals. The network aims to raise awareness of the importance of early childhood development (ECD) and of investing in qualified staff and advocates for competent ECD systems for all children, especially those from vulnerable groups. Member organizations of the National Network for Children are part of ISSA. These are the For Our Children Foundation, the Foundation for Children at Risk Worldwide, and the Trust for Social Acievements (TSA).