The equal educational opportunities (GOK) policy has been developed particularly for disadvantaged children/young people (both native and from ethnic minorities). In both mainstream and special education, from 2002 to 2012 it ensured extra support and also guaranteed these pupils the right to enrol in the school of their choice. Since 1 September 2012, the GOK and GOK+ teaching periods for mainstream elementary education have been integrated in the new staff allocation system in mainstream elementary education as SES teaching periods (based on socio-economic status); this is as a result of the staff allocation decree of 6 July 2012 [see 2.7-2.1]. The prioritisation scheme for GOK pupils' registration has also been integrated in the new registration system for elementary and secondary education [see 2.2-2]. In special education and secondary education, the GOK scheme has been retained.
To facilitate Dutch language skills and the integration of non-Dutch speaking newly arrived migrants in mainstream education, schools can be granted supplementary teaching periods/extra teacher hours and an extra operational allowance, so that they can organise OKATN/OKAN, reception education for non-Dutch speaking newly arrived migrants.
In view of the varied language skills of many pupils in Dutch-language schools in Brussels, and elementary schools located in the peripheral and language boundary municipalities and those adjoining them, these schools are granted suitable facilities and extra support. Since 1 September 2012, these teaching periods for maintream elementary education have been integrated in the new staff allocation system in mainstream elementary education (staff allocation decree of 6 July 2012) [see 2.7-2.1].
Definition of target group(s)
SES framework and operating allowance in mainstream primary education
Pupil characteristics play an important role in the basic framework in mainstream primary education, more specifically through the calculation of the SES teaching periods. The SES teaching periods are teaching periods allocated on the basis of the socio-economic status of pupils. This socio-economic status is captured by pupil characteristics, i.e. mother's education, receipt of school allowance and pupil's home language. Based on these 3 indicators and the 4th indicator, the neighbourhood where the pupil lives, additional SES working resources are also allocated to schools.
The SES lesson times and SES operating funds can only be used in the context of an equal education opportunities policy. The equal education opportunities policy is conducted in conjunction with the special needs policy, and has a special focus to the optimal learning and development opportunities of pupils corresponding to pupil characteristics. In order to realize these optimal learning and development opportunities, the SES lesson times generated by these pupils should also be used for these pupils.
The way in which the school works towards the optimal learning and development opportunities of all its pupils through its equal education opportunities policy is included in the school work plan, as is the case for the special needs policy.
The external evaluation of the school's equal education opportunities policy, including the use of the SES teaching periods, is carried out as part of the regular school audit.
Except for new schools, the inspectorate of education evaluates the equal education opportunities policy during each inspection. During the school assessment, the education inspectorate checks whether the school respects the educational regulations concerning the GOK policy and whether it meets the quality expectations concerning the GOK policy included in the reference framework for educational quality. The outcome of the school screening may have an impact on the allocated teaching time.
GOK support in special-needs primary education
Schools in special needs primary education can receive additional support (additional teaching periods or extra hours/teacher) on an annual basis under the equal education opportunities policy.
Additional teaching periods equal educational opportunities type 1 and type 3 in special needs primary education
Schools for special needs primary education that offer type 1 and/or type 3 (see chapter 12.1 for the typology) and that have a relatively high number of target group pupils are granted additional teaching periods each year for pursuing an equal education opportunities policy. In order to so, the school must meet the following conditions:
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on the first school day of February of the previous or preceding school year have at least 40% non-internal pupils of type 1 and/or type 3 who meet the first equal opportunities indicator
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generate at least six teaching periods. A school that does not achieve these six teaching hours does not receive additional teaching hours.
The equal opportunities indicators are:
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educational level of the mother i.e. the mother does not hold a diploma of higher secondary education, a certificate of the second year of the third stage of vocational secondary education or an equivalent certificate;
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the language spoken by the pupil in the family is not Dutch: the language spoken by the pupil with father, mother, brothers or sisters is not Dutch. That language is not Dutch if the pupil in the family does not speak Dutch with anyone or in a family with three family members (not counting the pupil) with at most one family member. Different siblings are always considered as one family member.
The second indicator can only play a role if the pupil concerned meets the first indicator. A pupil who only meets the indicator "language spoken by the pupil in the family is not Dutch" does not qualify for reaching the 40% limit nor for additional support.
Compliance with the indicators "educational level of mother" and "language" is done on the basis of a written declaration on honour, dated and signed by a person exercising parental authority or who has the underage pupil under legal or de facto custody.
Taking into account the total number of supplementary teaching periods available, the weighting of equal opportunity indicators and the weighting of pupils, the number of supplementary teaching periods is calculated for each school.
Use of the additional teaching periods equal education opportunities policy
The additional teaching periods equal education opportunities policy can only be used within the framework of an equal education opportunities policy.
Schools must conduct their equal education opportunities policy in accordance with the quality expectations as included in the reference framework for educational quality. The school staff provides appropriate guidance to each learner with a view to equal education opportunities. To this end, the school defines its own targets as well as indicators and a timeframe to achieve these targets to be achieved. The school includes these elements in the school work plan, where the GOK policy must be made explicit.
Control of use
The quality control by the education inspectorate on the school's equal education opportunities policy and the use of the additional teaching periods take place as part of the regular school audits starting from the 2021-2022 school year.
During the school screening, the education inspectorate checks whether the school respects the educational regulations on GOK policy and meets the quality expectations on GOK policy (included in the reference framework on educational quality). The outcome of the school screening may have an impact on the additional teaching time allocated.
GOK framework in mainstream and special needs secondary education
To qualify for extra hours of GOK teaching, a school in mainstream secondary education must have a minimum number of regular pupils who meet at least one of the equal opportunities indicators (i.e. GOK pupils).
The target group in mainstream secondary education includes regular pupils from the first, second and third stages of full-time mainstream secondary education and from the structural component of ethnic minority newcomers who, tick one or more GOK indicators.
The pupils must meet at least one of the following equal opportunities indicators:
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the parents belong to the migrant population (inland skipper (bargees), fairground or circus operators or artists, or caravan dwellers);
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educational level of the mother: the mother does not hold a diploma secondary education, a certificate from the 2nd year of the 3rd stage of vocational secondary education or an equivalent certificate;
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the pupil has a special needs home: temporarily or permanently accommodated outside the family home by a family or person, a facility or social service, or is an unaccompanied foreign minor);
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the family received at least one selective participation allowance pupil (i.e. education allowance), determined on the basis of the situation before 15 June of the calendar year preceding the calendar year in which the school year starts for which the funds are granted.
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home language: the language spoken by the pupil in the family, which is the language the pupil speaks with father, mother, brothers or sisters, is not Dutch. That language is not Dutch if the pupil in the family does not speak Dutch with anyone or in a family with three family members (not counting the pupil) with at most one family member. Different siblings are always considered one family member.
The target group in special needs secondary education comprises regular pupils in type basic provision (type 1) or type 3 (see 12.1 for the typology) who tick one or more GOK indicators, and who do not make use of the module ‘stay in a multifunctional center’ within the not directly accessible provision and are not enrolled in a special needs education boarding schools.
To qualify for extra hours of GOK teacher, a school must have at least 40% regular pupils in type basic provision (type 1) and/or 3 who meet the GOK indicator "educational level mother" and who are not in boarding school.
Pupils in special needs secondary education (type basic provision (type 1) and/or 3) must meet at least one of the following equal opportunities indicators:
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educational level of the mother: the mother does not hold a secondary education diploma, a certificate of the 2nd year of the 3rd stage of vocational secondary education or an equivalent certificate;
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home language: the language spoken by the pupil in the family, i.e. the language the pupil speaks with father, mother, brothers or sisters, is not Dutch. That language is not Dutch if the pupil does not speak Dutch in the family with anyone or in a family with three family members (not including the pupil) with a maximum of one family member. Different siblings are always considered as one family member.
The calculation of the number of extra teacher hours to which a school in mainstream and special needs secondary education is entitled is done annually. Schools submit the necessary information for this purpose to the Education Services Agency of the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training on 1 February. The Education Services Agency also uses information from other government services for this purpose.
The school for mainstream or special needs secondary education determines its own targets, indicators and a timetable. The school can be guided in this by the Pupil Guidance Centre and/or the School Advisory Service.
Schools in mainstream and special needs secondary education can only use the extra hours of the GOK teacher to provide appropriate GOK support for each pupil as a school team and to meet the quality expectations of the frame of reference for educational quality.
External monitoring of the GOK policy, including the use of the specific resources allocated for it (for staffing and - only in mainstream secondary education - for operations), is carried out by the education inspectorate as part of the periodic school screening. The outcome of the school audit can have an impact on the allocated resources.
Operating resources based on pupil characteristics in mainstream secondary education
To encourage schools to develop a strong GOK policy, a system of differentiated funding based on the following indicators is used in mainstream secondary education:
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educational level of the mother
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participation allowance
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pupil home language
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place of residence/neighbourhood
Of the entire available operating budget, 11% is reserved for the pupil indicators. The amount available for each of the pupil indicators is divided among the schools in proportion to the number of pupils who tick the relevant indicator.
Operating funds in mainstream secondary education, calculated on the basis of pupil characteristics, can only be used within the framework of an equal education opportunities policy.
As part of the periodic school audit, the education inspectorate will also examine the use of the operating resources based on pupil characteristics when checking the quality of the school's equal education opportunities policy.
OKAN, The reception education for non-native newcomers in mainstream education
The target group of this welcome education in mainstream primary and secondary education are non-native newcomers; that is, pupils who simultaneously fulfil all the following conditions:
Age condition:
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Primary education: be 5 years of age or older or turn 5 at the latest on 31 December of the current school year;
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Full-time mainstream secondary education: at least 12 years of age on 31 December following the start of the school year, on the one hand, and have not reached 18 years of age on the other;
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Part-time vocational secondary education: meet the age requirements of the DBSO (at least 16 years or 15 years and be deemed to have already completed two years of secondary education), and have not yet reached the age of 18 on 31 December following the start of the school year. Do not have Dutch as their home language or mother tongue;
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Do not have sufficient command of the language of instruction to be able to attend classes successfully;
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Have been enrolled in a school with Dutch as language of instruction for a maximum of 9 months (the holiday months of July and August are not counted);
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Being a newcomer, i.e. residing in Belgium continuously for a maximum of one year.
Besides this first group, the term " foreign mother tongue newcomer" also refers to children who officially reside in an open asylum centre. For these children only the age condition remains. The other conditions expire if the pupil can present a certificate from the asylum centre where he/she is staying. This means that these pupils are eligible for reception education as long as they stay in the asylum centre and meet the age condition. For some pupils, this can be several school years. The school year after they no longer stay in the asylum centre, they are eligible for the continuation year in primary education.
In full-time mainstream secondary education and part-time vocational secondary education, a class council has the power to deviate from the conditions relating to age, length of stay and school career. The duration of reception education in secondary education is thus linked to the individual learning pathway of the pupil.
Dutch-speaking schools in Brussels and in municipalities bordering the language area
The number of pupils in Dutch-speaking education in Brussels continues to rise. More and more pupils have a non-Dutch-speaking background. That is why various measures have been taken whereby Dutch-speaking schools in Brussels receive extra facilities and support.
Within the framework of strengthening Dutch-speaking education and the integration of non-Dutch-speaking children in Dutch-speaking primary schools located in the peripheral and language border municipalities and in primary schools located in the municipalities bordering the peripheral municipalities and/or bordering the municipalities of the Brussels Capital Region, schools for special-needs primary education that meet the conditions receive extra teaching hours.
Specific support measures
GOK, the equal education opportunities policy
The GOK equal education opportunities policy launched in 2002 aims to combat exclusion, social exclusion and discrimination and therefore has a special focus on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. It includes:
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The establishment of local consultation platforms and a Pupil Rights Committee to implement the policy locally and provide legal certainty to pupils and parents [see 2.1-2.2];
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Specific support for this target group through GOK teaching hours or hours-teacher GOK and SES teaching hours and operating resources based on pupil characteristics: see above.
OKAN, reception education for foreign mother tongue newcomers in mainstream education
Reception education for foreign mother tongue newcomers in mainstream primary and secondary education is a specific and temporary educational offer aimed at welcoming foreign mother tongue newcomers who have recently arrived in Belgium. The aim is to help these pupils learn Dutch and promote their social integration as quickly as possible.
In full-time mainstream secondary education, reception education also aims to integrate foreign mother tongue newcomers into the type of education and course of study that most closely matches their individual capacities. In part-time vocational secondary education (DBSO), reception education for foreign mother tongue newcomers prepares pupils for better progression to employment and focuses on language skills, integration and self-reliance.
In primary education, reception education lasts at least until the end of the school year in which the non-native newcomer enters. Newcomers who arrive later in the school year generate funds for a second year of reception education. After reception education, in primary education, pupils can also generate resources during a follow-up year.
In full-time mainstream secondary education, reception education for foreign mother tongue newcomers includes a reception year, and support, guidance and follow-up of former non-native newcomers in regular education, and expertise transfer and building in regular secondary education with regard to former foreign mother tongue newcomers ('follow-up school coaching'). The combination of these two forms the whole of reception education.
Funding
For the organisation of reception education for foreign mother tongue newcomers, primary schools can receive additional teaching time and an extra operating allowance per foreign mother tongue newcomer (BaO).
In full-time mainstream secondary education, schools receive extra teacher hours that can only be used for organising reception education and which are calculated on the basis of the number of regular foreign mother tongue newcomers. There is also extra support for guidance, support and follow-up of former foreign mother tongue newcomers in mainstream education and for the transfer and development of expertise in regular education regarding former foreign mother tongue newcomers ('follow-up school coaching').
Also in part-time vocational secondary education (DBSO), centres for part-time education receive extra teaching hours for each young person who is a foreign mother tongue newcomer. This framework can only be used for the organisation of reception education.
Conditions for funding/subsidies
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In primary education, depending on the type of school, a minimum of 4 or 6 foreign mother tongue newcomers must be enrolled as regular pupils, or 12 per school community (or an increase of 4 over the previous determination). There is no minimum number for the continuation year.
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In mainstream secondary education, no minimum number of foreign mother tongue newcomers is required. Each regular foreign mother tongue newcomer is funded/subsidised. With every increase of 4 in the number of foreign mother tongue newcomers, the package of extra teacher hours can be recalculated. For every decrease in the number of newcomers who speak a foreign language by 4, the package of extra teacher hours will be recalculated.
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The schools commit themselves to providing teachers with specific further education focused on reception education.
Guidance for pupils
Primary education
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An individual work plan and learning pathway must be drawn up for each foreign mother tongue newcomer.
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Schools can use the additional teaching periods for a full-time separate reception class (15 foreign mother tongue newcomers generate teaching periods for 1 FTE). Usually, however, foreign mother tongue newcomers enter with peers in the regular class and the additional teaching hours are used for a number of hours of classroom support or a part-time reception class.
Secondary education
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An individual learning pathway should be worked out for each foreign mother tongue newcomer that meets the developmental goals of reception education and in which the level is adjusted throughout the year for each pupil based on his/her abilities and intermediate results.
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The learning pathway must also clearly show the follow-up of the foreign mother tongue newcomer. This is done in cooperation with the relevant Pupil Guidance Centre.
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The weekly timetable of the reception year covers at least 28 hours-teacher and a maximum of 32 hours-teacher (including religion/non-confessional ethics/own culture and religion/cultural reflection). A maximum of 4 weekly hours-teacher can be filled by the school other than for learning Dutch. The content can, for instance, be based on an analysis of the individual abilities, interests and prior knowledge of the foreign mother tongue newcomer.
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All information is transferred upon transfer to mainstream secondary education. Schools also receive funds to follow up and supervise former reception pupils after their transfer to regular education. This guidance is provided by a follow-up school coach. Besides guiding the pupils, the follow-up school coach is also tasked with improving the understanding and expertise of teachers in the reception school and in regular schools.
Development goals
The learning programme of the reception year is very much focused on the acquisition of Dutch and integration/naturalization. To this end, Dutch language development targets apply to newcomers.
Study enrichment
At the end of the full effective period that the foreign mother tongue newcomer attended full-time mainstream secondary education as a regular pupil, he receives a certificate of regular class attendance. The class council of the reception education also formulates a recommendation regarding the pupil's progression to further education. After going through reception education, the former foreign mother tongue newcomer is integrated into full-time mainstream secondary education, taking into account the regulatory admission requirements. In practice, this usually means that the intake of the former foreign mother tongue newcomer takes place either on the basis of a decision by the admission class council or on the basis of age. The admission class council must take into account the advice of the class council of the reception school when making its decision. Any decision that deviates from the advice must be justified.
Support
Schools accommodating foreign mother tongue newcomers can contact the pedagogical guidance services and Centre for Language and Education of KULeuven for support.
Dutch-speaking schools in the Brussels-Capital Region & in municipalities under the influence of other language areas
We first discuss the specific measures for Dutch-speaking education in the Brussels-Capital Region and then those for primary schools located in municipalities adjacent to the peripheral municipalities and/or bordering the municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region.
Dutch-speaking education in the Brussels-Capital Region
Enrolment right
The Brussels Capital Region (BCR) is subject to special priority arrangements for enrolment of pupils [see 2.1.2].
Part-time Art Education (DKO)
In the BCR, institutions for DKO receive 30% extra teacher-hours if the school boards are part of a cross-network Cooperation Forum.
Support policy
The School Advisory Services receive additional resources to support competence development for the implementation of the decree of 21 March 2014 on measures for pupils with special educational needs in a capital city context with regard to Dutch-speaking schools in Brussels. Moreover, they foresee a transfer of the insights gained to education in the Flemish Region. Furthermore, they also open up their knowledge in the field of language skills education to schools located in the Flemish Region, with priority to schools in the Vlaamse Rand.
To this end, the School Advisory Services work closely with the Education Centre Brussels of the Flemish Community Commission.
Since 1 September 2008, the Education Centre Brussels brings together various organisations that support Dutch-speaking education in Brussels (such as Learning Resource Centre and School Building Work, After-School Centre).
For the support structures for Dutch-speaking education in Brussels regarding the FCC, Flemish Community Commission see also [2.7.1.10].
Support for Dutch-speaking primary schools located in the wide periphery around Brussels in special needs primary education
In the framework of strengthening Dutch-speaking education and the integration of foreign mother tongue speaking children in Dutch-speaking primary schools located in the peripheral and language border municipalities and in primary schools located in the municipalities bordering the peripheral municipalities and/or bordering the municipalities of the Brussels Capital Region, special needs primary schools that meet the conditions receive extra teaching periods.