Gerard Gielen

Pedagogue/Sexologist MD gerard.gielen@khlim.begerard.gielen@hik.be

Professional situation

Katholieke Hogeschool Limburg /Limburg catholic university college HASSELTLecturer : department social work bachelor social educatorCourses : ICT & Research methology/Intercultural social work/Management of organizations65%

CVO Hoger instituut der Kempen/Center for adult education GEELLecturer : department of teacher trainingCourses : Psychology(head of the development group )/General didactics/Practical teaching methodology/Guidance of children in trouble35%

Welcome to Flanders

Hasselt

Geel

Catholic University College Limburg (Katholieke Hogeschool Limburg)

www.khlim.be

Education in Flanders

Nursery and primary education

Secondary education

Tertiary education

Bachelor - MasterBachelor - Master

Profession oriented Academic

Bachelor (180 ECTS) Bachelor (180 ECTS)

Master (60 ECTS)

New structure

ASSOCIATION KULeuven and ASSOCIATION KULeuven and KHLimKHLim

Who we areWho we areMerger 1995

Transformation Higher Education9 small institutions

6 Departments (faculties)

6 500 Students

600 FTEs (650 staff)

Tasks (by law)EducationScientific ResearchCommunity ServiceArts

CampusesHasseltDiepenbeekGenk

6 Departments (faculties)

Commercial Sciences & Business Administration

Health Care

Industrial Sciences and Technology (Engineering)

Media and Design Academy

Social educator and Special Education

Teacher Training

Department Social Agogical Sciences

Bachelor orthopedagogy (Social Educator/Special Education)

Regular 3 years day trainingSTUWER

They work with : mental, physical, sensorial…disabled people in (semi)residential settings and ambulant; youth in trouble and at risk youth prevention; youth with educational difficulties, drug/alcohol abuse problems, working with immigrants, learning problems, children, adults or old people in social need, poverty,….

Social challenge

Scientific and technological development.Labour market asks for flexible employees. Availability of the social educator increases.

Student focused education.Learn how to learn.Education of competences

Special activities

Creativity week Nature weekReflection days

International project

International collaboration : Romania, South-Africa, Morocco, Turkey, Surinam….

Stuwer adult project

Stimulating adults going studying againSpecial program for workers, other ways of learning

CVO Hoger Instituut der Kempen

CVO Technisch Instituut St. Jozef

Center for adult education

Geel

Hasselt

The evening school

The evening school HIKempen

Started in 1951 from a technical school Strongly related with ‘high school’ Two different schools:

– Secondary level: 3000 students– Higher level: 1500 students

About 320 teachers A wide variety of training programmes

Offer on secondary level ICT-training: Office, web-design, autocad, etc. Computer technician: hardware Languages: French, English, German, Spanish,

Polish, Italian and Chinese Technical: construction, welding, repair of cars and

byclicles, wood processing, printing, etc. Food: cooking, hotel techniques, etc. Personal care: beauty specialist Tourism

Offer in higher education

Management Accountancy Fiscal sciences Management Office Computer sciences Business

Communication Marketing

Teacher training (SLO)

Social work Orthopedagogic Counsellor for elderly

people Electro-Mechanics Guide Travel Guide

Studying traject teacher training (GPB-OPLEIDING): diplom pedagogical competences

5. POCc Communication and cooperation

7. POCg Group management

3. MBCo Education and society

4. MBCl Teaching and responsabilities

8. PPC Psycho-pedagogical competence

9. DCa General didactic competence

10. DCp Didactic competence initiation to practice

11. DCo Didactic competence practical teaching sessions

12. DCs Didactic competenc workplace practice

1. Otv Language skills

2. Oav General knowledge skills

Starting competence (O)

Society andprofessionalcompetentie (MBC)

Pedagogical-organisational competence (POC)

Psycho-pedagogicalcompetence (PPC)

Didactic competenc (DC)

6. POCb Guiding and problem solving

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840840 640640 580580

Students follow minimal 2 years lessons(+1/2 year for some students : preparation studies) : 4 semesters :modular system

Between 8 and 9 hours /week Theoretical and practical oriented

courses and work field practice in schools

Teacher training in adult school

CVO HIKempen

Position of Roma children in Belgium ?

Travelling gypsies : living together in camps (caravans) and moving from town to townLiving in poor situations in houses in the big cities : Antwerp/Brussels/GentBelgium : between 10000 and…. 50000 Roma inhabitants…. The government doesn’t really know because lots of them are illegal or travelling all the time!!!!!Lots of other immigration groups : travellers, Turkish, Maroccan, people from Eastern Europe, African people Belgium is getting more and more a multicultural situation (very good security system : ex. head of a family with 2 children who doens’t work gets about 1100 euro from government)

There is in fact no such thing as “the Roma population”, which is in fact far from homogeneous: there are traditional cleavages based on origin, language, religion and occupation as well as more recent divisions, such as economic status and kind of residence. Some groups are nomadic, some are sedentary (even if this is not the general perception); some are well integrated in mainstream population (minority in the general perception = migrants group)Some Roms live semi-nomadically: they travel in summer and stay at private or public camping sites during winter.

Localisation

In Flanders and Brussels only 28 official camping sites are available for about 400 families. 400 others have their caravans on private sites, mostly not complying with urban regulations, so they live in the permanent threat of being chased away. The other Roma live in houses, the majority being forced to do so by the lack of camping sites. The Roma are living in houses, mainly in the cities, but also they move a great deal because they don’t want to stay in one place or for working purpose.

By law, Belgium municipalities have the obligation to allocate a piece of land to (Romani) travellers (caravan dwellers) when they arrive but it is forbidden to stay on forbidden places and the places are limited. Same problems as everywhere in Europe : very low participation in education/racism from site of autochthons (July 2010 700 French Roma had to leave Belgium : big media event)

Educational participationA survey of 1994 shows that 94.6 % of the Voyager children were registered in a school but only 80.3% attended school more than four days a week (20% stayed at home on Wednesday since there was no class in the afternoon).Absenteeism increased with the age of the children (from 13-15y), causing big problems in secondary schools.The biggest problem is among the Roms: only 18.8% of the children from 15 years attend school.The girls are staying home at early level and have children at early age.

Living circumstances

It is very difficult to see how they earn their money : buying and selling cars or second hand machines, lot of social security, unskilled, temporary jobs and illegal activities (begging/stealing ???????)

For the Roma who live in the country without legal documents only the informal labour market is available.

Lots of them are living from social security (unemployment wages)

The recently immigrating Roma are considered either as asylum seekers or illegal residents. For asylum seekers the usual provisions are available for a limited time. More than 200.000 people are asking for asylum per year. After a time these Roma become illegal residents, and for these persons there is no policy at all except expulsion.

Within the Belgian law they have a right to urgent medical care and education

Roma/Sinti/Travellers and communitydevelopment

In the past the work for Roma/Sinti/Travellers was done by charitable organizations, mainly Catholic. From the beginning of the 1970’s these local organizations were invited to unite in order to receive subsidies from the Government. This is how the Vlaams Centrum Woonwagenwerk was founded in 1977. This organization is the only professional one in Belgium.There are also several Catholic missions with volunteers Some local governments have social workers who spend some time to travellers (institutional or in temporary projects).

Actual situation

City Ghent has an estimated 5000 Roma living in and around the city, according to Tinten, a non-governmental organisation behind the weekly food distribution programme that serves the city's illegal immigrants.

The explosion of Roma, or Romani - people entering Belgium from newly annexed Eastern European countries over the past few years - has been a hot topic in the media: television documentaries detailing the harsh circumstances in their home countries

There were stories of tour operators capitalizing on faulty newspaper headlines that "Belgium welcomes all Roma" with a one-way bus ticket from Sofia to Brussels costing as little as €56; or articles discussing the political loopholes and opposing viewpoints surrounding the migration boom. "The Roma" seem to be everywhere.

"For many people, even if they don't have a house, even if they don't have money, living in Belgium is still better than there.“

….

Educational approachTill 2002 different educational and stimulating projectsSince 1 September 2002, all the temporary projects have been replaced by an integrated support provision, paying special attention to children from deprived backgrounds. The Act on equal opportunities in education

In principle, each pupil (legal/illegal) has the right to enroll in the school chosen by their parents or caregivers.

GOK (Gelijke onderwijskansen) : equal educational opportunities

The Act on equal educational opportunities ensures that schools adopt a long-term and targeted strategy to address the educational disadvantages of deprived pupils and to encourage their integration.

To this end, schools receive additional funds for monitoring and support. As a result, children with fewer development opportunities are given better support.

The five equal opportunities indicators which can provide additional support to the school in primary education and the first stage of secondary education are:

1. The parent is a barge skipper, fairground worker, circus artist, circus manager or a caravan dweller. 2. The mother hasn’t obtained a certificate or qualification of secondary education (or equivalent certificate). 3. The child is temporarily or permanently living outside the family. 4. The family lives on a replacement income. 5. The language the child speaks with his family at home is not Dutch.

A pupil with at least one of these characteristics is a pupil eligible for GOK

A school obtains extra support provision if 10 percent (for primary and the first stage of secondary school) or 25 percent (for the second and third stage of secondary school) of its pupils are eligible for GOK.

The funds which the school acquires on the basis of the act on equal opportunities can be used for the recruitment of additional staff.

By opting for a comprehensive approach, the school provides better educational opportunities to children of deprived backgrounds, as well as to children who do not meet the equal opportunities indicators.

Therefore there are beneficial effects for all pupils. Once the department has awarded the additional support to the school, the school is free to use the funds and allocate the hours. Funding is awarded for a period of three years.

Domains

Prevention and remediation Socio-emotional development Language skills Pupil and Parent participation Study orientation Intercultural education

Educational problem for Roma

The most urgent problem for Roma is regular school attendance. They follow mostly vocational training, part time education or special education.Belgium : compulsary education but no obligation to

attend school (home education is possible)

Some programs and studies

There is a broad consensus that to be effective in combating poverty and discrimination, interventions must start early, and that education is one of the most critical areas of intervention for Roma children.

Several individual programs are working in the big cities : most of them are temporary projects.

In Belgium there is a lack of integrated programs : most of them are temporary and on basis of temporary fundings

But there is a difficult political situation in Belgium (no government for almost a year) so ….

Good practices : sport ?