The additional funding is intended to prevent where you live, who your parents are and which school you attend from determining the opportunities a child receives. Schools can use the money, for example, for smaller classes and additional homework support.
In addition to the extra funding, the recently launched School & Community programme is also intended to improve equal opportunities. As part of this programme, schools organise additional activities after school in cooperation with other schools, municipalities and local organisations such as sports clubs and libraries. For example, children may have an extended school day or practical lessons with a business owner.
No commercial tutoring
The minister also wants to discourage the use of commercial tutoring agencies. Because not all parents can afford tutoring, he wants schools to offer tutoring themselves to all students. He is working on stricter guidelines for this. The minister is also introducing an approach to enable more children to participate in early childhood education, in order to prevent inequalities from an early age.
Gap continuing to widen
"The gap between groups of students has continued to grow in recent years," says Fatima Zohra Charki of the NJi. "Consider children and young people who grow up in a family or environment where they are not always optimally encouraged, for example because of financial worries or a language barrier. They are often unable to develop to their full potential because they do not receive the same opportunities as their peers. It is therefore a positive development that more money is now being made available to hopefully prevent this."
Charki is also clear about commercial tutoring agencies: "It is important that the minister also takes a critical look at commercial tutoring agencies. They are a perfect example of how differences in the socioeconomic status of families can increase inequality of opportunity. If you have money, you can pay for the extra tutoring. If you do not, you are out of luck. It is good if tutoring will soon be accessible to every child—or better yet, no longer necessary at all."