Brussels, 26/09/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 25 September, MEPs put questions to the European Commission regarding the reform underway in the European Schools, on the basis of an oral question raised by the education and culture committee. Recalling that the Commission had undertaken to reform the European School system, Erna Hennicot-Schoepges (EPP-ED, Luxembourg) questioned European Commissioner Siim Kallas, who is responsible for administrative issues, about the progress made with regard to the governance of the European Schools, their openness to the outside world and their capacity to take in pupils with specific needs. “Given the successive enlargements of the EU and the increasing number of agencies and places where the personnel of the European institutions are posted, is not reform of the system urgent, or even its transposition into the general national systems?” she asked. She went on to underline how urgent it is to make reforms move forward “as the perception of European Schools as elitist schools and the separation of pupils into categories within the European Schools themselves” are, she says, contrary to the aims of social cohesion and the single market.
Mr Kallas assured that “reform is a priority question for the Commission” which has “always recommended wider opening of the European School system”. He said that, in April 2008, concrete modalities had been adopted by the relevant authorities so that the “schools already accredited in member states may now teach the European programme and award a European baccalaureat”. It is up to the member states to take initiatives to implement opening of the European School system in their national schools, he stressed, while acknowledging the fact that few countries were really interested in having European Schools on their territory. He also asserted that the system was stepping up its efforts to integrate children with disabilities. During the school year 2004-2005, the European Schools took in 2,074 pupils with special needs compared to 471 the previous year.
Maria Badia i Cutchet (PES, Spain) asked Mr Kallas about the fate that was reserved for parliamentary assistants, whose children could, she said, benefit from free education, which is not the case today. Negotiations are underway on this point, the commissioner said. Cornelis Visser (EPP-ED, NL) regretted that pupils from the European Schools cannot always follow religious instruction in their own language. Why are the children from other categories of workers excluded from these schools? Ewa Tomaszewska (UEN, Poland) asked. Kathy Sinnot (IND/DEM, Ireland) called for a step forward to be made in order to be able to take in children with specific needs in all European Schools. The EP is financing a flagship project in this field. (M.B./transl.jl)