Two-year-olds with a language delay are required to attend preschool

1. Who makes which proposal?

The VVD wants all two-year-olds with a language delay to attend compulsory preschool education, she writes in her election manifesto. The party combines this with a general reduction of compulsory education to the fourth year of life.

2. Why?

“We believe that all children should be able to participate at school and in society,” explains Member of Parliament Simone Richardson, who is speaking on this subject on behalf of the VVD. “During the first years of life, children lay the foundation for further learning development. If language development lags behind in that phase because the parents do not speak the Dutch language at home, it proves difficult to catch up. It has been proven that preschool education can make a difference. To promote equality of opportunity, we believe it is important that all children who are entitled to it make use of it.”

Municipalities determine which children are eligible for preschool education. If the child health clinic determines that a child is lagging behind or is at risk of falling behind, he or she can receive an ‘indication’ for sixteen hours of preschool education. They will then be offered a special program at the playgroup or daycare center.

According to the Ministry of Education, 57,900 children aged 2.5 to 4 years were eligible for preschool education in 2021. 80 to 85 percent use it. “We want to give parents who are not yet doing so a push,” says Richardson. “The VVD is normally not in favor of making it mandatory, but in this case it is about the right of children to a good start.”

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A childcare center in The Hague. When it comes to childcare, it is hardly about childcare as an “equality instrument”, says The Hague education councilor Hilbert Bredemeijer.” class=”dmt-article-suggestion__image” src=”https://images.nrc.nl/qEhZuP8p_F0rScgVcAmJrohQQLg=/160×96/smart/filters:no_upscale()/s3/static.nrc.nl/images/gn4/stripped/data101716943-92151d.jpg”/>

3. Is it feasible?

According to the VVD, the staff shortage can be solved through closer cooperation between daycare centers and schools. “You could create combination jobs,” says Richardson, “then people who currently have a part-time job can work more hours.”

But can you also force one group to attend preschool education and not the other? That is not yet clear. According to Richardson, the next cabinet must figure this out.

Lowering the compulsory education age from five to four years, as the VVD also wants, does not seem to be a problem. Already, 98 percent of four-year-olds go to primary school.

4. Does it make sense?

According to the Education Council, preschool education is certainly useful. The Ministry of Education agrees. Multi-year research (the so-called pre-COOL research) has shown that preschool education ensures that children who grow up in “less favorable socio-economic circumstances” catch up compared to peers who grow up in a “promising” environment.

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