- Describing the forms of education in the country
- Identifying an ‘inclusive setting’ in the country
- What an ‘official decision of SEN’ means in the country
- What ‘out-of-education’ means in the country
The EASIE data collection covers all recognised forms of education at ISCED levels 02, 1, 2 and 3.
This means any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector: municipality, local or regional educational provider from the public or private sector, working with/for ministries responsible for education and areas such as health, social, welfare, labour, justice, etc.
6–14
Compulsory basic education in Slovenia is organised as integrated primary and lower-secondary education, i.e. as a single structure, nine-year basic school. Children enrol in grade one in the calendar year of their sixth birthday. School entry may be postponed by a maximum of one year.
What are the typical age ranges for the ISCED levels?
| ISCED LEVEL 02 | ISCED LEVEL 1 | ISCED LEVEL 2 | ISCED LEVEL 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–5 | 6–11 | 12–14 | 15–18 |
Privately founded kindergartens and schools must meet the statutory requirements on programme, premises and staff qualifications. They provide their own officially-recognised education programmes and receive public funding (in full or part). Private kindergartens or schools which hold concession are regarded as part of the public network of kindergartens and schools and provide public programmes. The share of learners attending private kindergartens and schools is low (ISCED 0: 5%, ISCED 1 and 2: 1%, ISCED 3: 2%).
The social-care residential institutes which fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities provide the special education programme. It is provided for children, young people and adults with moderate, severe and profound mental development disabilities.
The programme aims to stimulate the learner’s development in the field of perception, physical, emotional and mental abilities, and communicative and social skills; train them to become conscious of health issues and live independently; enable them to attain basic knowledge and skills and get them accustomed inactive and to some extent independent inclusion in the surroundings. It is organised in levels. As a rule, each level is made of three years: the compulsory part at levels 1, 2 and 3 and optional part at levels 4, 5 and 6, up to the age of 26.
Parents have the right to educate their child at home while the child is formally enrolled in a basic school which provides primary and lower-secondary education (ISCED 1 and 2). The school assesses the learner’s knowledge annually. If the learner does not meet the required knowledge standards, they must attend education/lessons in the school from the next school year on.
Learners who attend home-based learning are considered as pupils of the particular basic school, therefore they are included in all relevant forms of recognised education. However, based on administrative data, approximately 0.7% of learners are educated at home (out of all learners enrolled in any form of recognised education reported in EASIE data table 1 in row 1.2).
In the EASIE data collection, an inclusive setting is operationally defined as:
A recognised form of education where the child/learner follows education in mainstream classes alongside their peers for the largest part – 80% or more – of the school week.
The 80% time placement benchmark clearly indicates that a child/learner is educated in a mainstream class for the majority of their school week. At the same time, it acknowledges possibilities for small group or one-to-one withdrawal for limited periods of time (i.e. 20% or one day a week).
Very few participating countries can provide exact data on children/learners spending 80% of their time in a mainstream group/class. However, all countries can apply one of three agreed proxies that provide an approximation to this benchmark:
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 80% or more
- Data is available on the number of hours of support allocated to a child/learner
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 50% or more.
In the EASIE data collection, the agreed operational definition is:
An official decision leads to a child/learner being recognised as eligible for additional educational support to meet their learning needs.
Countries may have different types of official decision, but for all official decisions:
- There has been some form of educational assessment procedure involving different people. This procedure may involve the child/learner, parents, school-based team members, as well as professionals from multi-disciplinary teams from outside the child’s/learner’s (pre-)school.
- There is some form of legal document (plan/programme, etc.) that describes the support the child/learner is eligible to receive, which is used as the basis for decision-making.
- There is some form of regular review process of the child/learner’s needs, progress and support.
ISCED 1, 2 and 3
In Slovenia, the ‘official decision of SEN’ is a ‘SEN guidance decision’ (odločba o usmeritvi) issued by the National Education Institute of Slovenia in the administrative procedure which is regulated by law. The decision is based on an expert opinion of the multidisciplinary SEN guidance commission.
The decision determines: the educational needs of the child, the appropriate education programme in which the child is/will be placed and the school/educational institution in which the child will be enrolled; the scope, form and provider of additional professional assistance; devices, premises and equipment and other conditions that need to be provided; a temporary or permanent attendant; a Slovenian sign language interpreter; reduced number of children/learners in the group/class; the time limit for testing the adequacy of the placement; and other rights regulated by law (e.g. free transportation).
ISCED 0
The Act Regulating the Integrated Early Treatment of Pre-school Children with Special Needs has been in force since 1 January 2019. It determines the procedure and stakeholders of integrated early treatment of pre-school children with SEN and those at risk. Early treatment centres form multidisciplinary teams which draft an individualised family support plan that includes recommendations for help and support best suited to the child’s and family’s needs. Regarding education, the plan may specify the suitable education programme, recommend steps needed for a child’s transition to kindergarten, how to provide an inclusive environment, needed adjustments of organisation and transition between programmes, physical assistance, use of sign language and communication appropriate to deaf-blindness, reduced number of children in a group, etc. Data on children (ISCED 02) included in early treatment is not collected at national level.
To establish the facts and circumstances necessary for the optimal placement of the child/learner, an SEN guidance commission (komisija za usmerjanje) is established. The commission drafts an expert opinion. The opinion is based on available expert documentation relating to the special needs of the learner; the report of the school/educational institution including the teacher’s written report; interview with the applicant (usually parents or school); where necessary, interview with the learner and/or after examining the learner; and if needed, acquired additional psychological and medical documentation.
The National Education Institute of Slovenia sends an expert opinion to the parents or the applicant for the initiation of the procedure and to the educational institution in which the child/learner is or will be included. Parents or applicants may submit their comments on the provided expert opinion. On the basis of the comments submitted, the commission may supplement the expert opinion, give additional explanation or repeat the assessment procedure of the SEN learner. Prior to issuing a decision, the National Education Institute ensures that the school/educational institution fulfils the admission conditions.
Children with SEN and children at risk (ISCED 0) can be identified within the family, health system via primary preventive health care, and other treatment in a kindergarten, educational institution, social care institution, or via services of social work centres. For an individual child, a multidisciplinary team of members who are important for helping the child and the family in the field of health care, education and social care is formed within the centre for early treatment. The tasks of the multidisciplinary team are: diagnosis of the child; assessment of the abilities and needs of the child and their parents, drafting and monitoring of an individual family assistance plan, assessment of the achievement of the objectives of the individual family assistance plan, informing on possible forms of assistance and social rights, drafting a plan for the transition to kindergarten or the educational institution for children with SEN or the social welfare institutions and basic school.
An expert opinion (strokovno mnenje) is drafted by the SEN guidance commission. It includes basic information about the child, synthesis of opinions of all members, definition of impairment, and placement into an appropriate programme and setting. If necessary, the commission specifies additional professional assistance, adjustment of room and equipment, a temporary or permanent attendant; a Slovenian sign language interpreter, a reduced class size, transfer between programmes, and other rights of the child according to the law.
An individualised programme (individualiziran program) is drafted by the expert group of the school/educational institution in co-operation with the parents and the child/learner. It determines the organisation and implementation of additional professional assistance; objectives and forms of work in individual fields of education; strategies for inclusion of a child/learner with SEN in the group; necessary adaptations in assessment of knowledge, attainment of standards and progression; the use of adapted and auxiliary educational technology; the provision of physical assistance and/or Slovenian sign language interpretation; the transition between programmes and the necessary organisational adaptations; time schedule of classes; skills for maximum autonomy in life (adaptive skills) and an inclusion plan for employment.
The multidisciplinary team within the early treatment centre prepares an individual family plan, in which it determines the appropriate medical, social and pedagogical assistance for each child and their family. If the medical doctor decides the individual family plan is not needed, the necessary treatment and assistance to the family is determined in agreement with the parents. A record of the agreement with the parents is drafted, which can be part of the report.
If the time limit to test the appropriateness of the placement in the SEN guidance decision is set, the National Education Institute of Slovenia is obliged, on the basis of an opinion prepared by the school/educational institution in which the child/learner is enrolled and the opinion of the SEN guidance commission, to initiate the procedure for testing, and also to obtain a report on the implementation of the individualised programme and its evaluation. If it is established that the placement is appropriate, it is upheld. If it is established that the placement is not appropriate, it is amended in accordance with the established child placement procedure.
If the circumstances affecting the appropriateness of the placement of the child/learner change, a request for the amendment of the SEN guidance decision or the its early termination may be filed. The initiator shall clearly specify the facts and evidence on which the request is based and justify the benefits for the child/learner or the school/educational institution proceeding from a potentially amended SEN guidance decision. The previous decision shall be confirmed or amended.
The individualised programme has to be evaluated at least once in each educational period and amended if necessary.
According to the law the multidisciplinary team has to monitor the implementation of an individual family assistance plan and assess the achievement of the objectives of the individual family assistance plan.
Within the EASIE data collection, specific questions examine children/learners who are out of education. This means children/learners who should, by law, be in some form of recognised education, but who are out of any form of recognised education. A recognised form of education is any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector.
All children and young people of certain ages who are not enrolled in officially-recognised programmes.