Segregation of Roma students takes place in Slovakia and the government still has not changed the situation in practice, said the authors of “Answers to Questions Concerning the (Un)Segregation of Roma Pupils in the Slovak Education System” on March 28 as reported by the TASR newswire.
The authors said Roma students who are placed in special schools with disabled children receive a lower quality education and learn from significantly reduced curricula. "If we want to stop this, good education legislation is needed," said Vlado Rafael of the Open Society Foundation, as quoted by TASR.
According to Laco Oravec from the Milan Šimečka Foundation, Roma children who leave Slovakia with their parents achieve better results abroad. "This is also about the ability of a school to work with every child," said Oravec.
The Government Proxy for Roma Communities, Miroslav Pollák, admitted last year that segregation of Roma children does exist in Slovakia’s school system, stating also that this tendency receives support from various quarters, including from among Roma parents who place their children in segregated classes.
The government of Iveta Radičová obliged itself in its programme statement to introduce measures aimed at tackling segregation at schools and increasing Roma student's chances of integrating into society via better education.
The publication released on March 28 was written by 15 authors from nine non-governmental organisations.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
