General Education (A) Level of Pre-school Education (1)

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General Education (A)Level of Pre-school
Education (1)

• Ministry of Education and Science
• 2004

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Number of pre-school education institutions and
children
Data source LR Central Board of Statistics,
2002 Information from MoES GED, 2003
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Norms for establishing groups (1)

• MoES has set the acceptable minimum and maximum
  number of learners in a group in a general
  pre-school education institution
• in a group of children under 3 years of age 10
  to 12 children
• in a group of children from 3 to 5 years of age
  10 to 16 children

Delegation in the point 6 of Article 5 of MoES
Law On General Education MoES Instruction No.313
of May 5, 2000
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Norms for establishing groups (2)

• In the groups of general pre-school education
  institutions, which provide programmes for
  preparing five and six years old children for the
  acquisition of basic education
• in republican towns and regional centres 12 to
  20 children
• in other communities 8 to 16 children
• The stipulated minimum number of children per
  group for implementing programmes of special
  pre-school education is 8

Delegation in the point 6 of Article 5 of MoES
Law On General Education MoES Instruction No.313
of May 5, 2000
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Changes in the number of children involved in
pre-school education (in )
Data source LR Central Board of Statistics,
2002 Information from MoES GED, 2003
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Changes in the number of five and six years old
children involved in pre-school education (in )
Information from MoES GED, 2003 .
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Network of education institutions founded by
municipalities (for preparing 5 and 6 years old
children for school) in 2003
Information from MoES GED
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The aim of pre-school education

• By facilitating the formation and comprehensive
  development of a harmonious personality,
• to develop the activities of each child,
  stimulating internal willingness to inquire the
  surrounding world and start the accumulation of
  ones own life experience
• to develop childrens understanding of the
  processes of public life and their belonging to
  the state of Latvia, while keeping their own
  ethnic identity
• to prepare a child for the acquisition of basic
  education programmes

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Areas of activities of the Ministry of Education
and Science in pre-school education quality
assurance (1)

• developing and revising normative documents in
  order to facilitate the compulsory preparation of
  children at pre-school age for school
• stipulating requirements for the implementation
  of compulsory preparation of five and six years
  old children for the acquisition of basic
  education

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Areas of activities of the Ministry of Education
and Science in pre-school education quality
assurance (2)

• developing a model programme of pre-school
  education and introducing the education programme
  principle
• upgrading the system of pre-school teacher
  pre-service and in-service training
• methodological organizational activities
  (seminars, conferences, development of
  methodology aids)

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Normative documents in pre-school education

• approved model programmes of pre-school education
  and list of material resource provision
• (Article 4, Law On Education, MoES
  Instruction No.290 of May 21, 2002)
• devised instruction for recording and enrolling
  the five and six years old children in pre-school
  education programmes
• (MoES Instruction No.3 of May 21, 2002)
• stipulated requirements for teacher training and
  qualifications
• (Regulations No.347 of October 3, 2000, issued
  by the Cabinet of Ministers, MoES Instruction
  No.8 of July 18, 2001)

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Pre-school education programmes

• are being developed in compliance with the
  national approach to pre-school education and the
  environment of the respective education
  institution
• curriculum implementation takes place in stages
  oriented towards childs development, not
  specific knowledge to be assessed

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Organization of pre-school education process (1)

• pre-school education programmes are being
  implemented during the whole calendar year
• the length of teaching and learning
• for children under 2 years of age 15 minutes per
  day
• for children from 2 to 3 years of age 25
  minutes per day
• for children from 3 to 4 years of age 30
  minutes per day
• for children from 4 to 5 years of age 45
  minutes per day
• for children from 5 to 7 years of age 120
  minutes per day
• (Article 28, Law On General Education)

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Organization of pre-school education process (2)

• basis for organizing learning activities games
  and plays
• assessment has to be given orally, emphasizing
  the positive, significant aspects of childs
  activity, behaviour, achievements, thus
  encouraging the child to develop his/ her skills
  and abilities
• (Model programme of pre-school education)

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Teaching and learning process in pre-school
education

• learning activities are organized in an
  appropriate environment for the whole group
  together or in smaller groups, or individually
• the formation and development of knowledge,
  skills and abilities take place during the
  teaching and learning process
• cooperation with families

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In the course of acquiring a pre-school education
programme (1)

• the formation of childs social skills,
  enhancement of the world of emotions and
  feelings, exercising of attention, development of
  senses, perception, thinking, memory and
  imagination take place
• communication culture and life skills are being
  developed
• familiarization with the environment, events
  taking place in social life and processes in
  nature takes place
•  

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In the course of acquiring a pre-school education
programme (2)

• speech development, preparation of hand for
  writing, beginning of learning to read, formation
  of mathematical images, shaping/ plastering,
  working with appliqués, drawing, designing and
  working with different materials take place
• childs physical development is being enhanced
• singing, listening to music, and development of
  musical rhythmical movements take place

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Total number of licensed pre-school education
programmes in 2002 and 2003
Data source MoES General Education Licensing
Commission, 2003
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Proportion of pre-school teachers acquiring
higher education (in )
Information from MoES GED, 2003
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Methodological organizational activities (1)

• conferences for the heads and methodologists of
  pre-school education institutions
• seminars for the specialists of Education Boards,
  heads of methodology associations, specialists
  from support institutions

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Methodological organizational activities (2)

• annual exhibitions of methodological resources
  developed by the teachers working in pre-school
  education institutions
• methodological publications
• Mana rotalspele (My Playing Game)
• Es macos, lasit, rakstit (I Learn Reading And
  Writing)
• Es un daba (Me And Nature)
• Es un mana drošiba (Me And My Safety)
• Es un mana veseliba (Me And My Health)
• Mana dzimta vieta (The Place Where I Was Born)

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State earmarked subsidies for pre-school education

• Earmarked subsidies allocated for
• the compulsory preparation of five and six years
  old children for school in municipal education
  institutions
• teacher salaries and compulsory state social
  insurance allocations
• in 2002, earmarked subsidies have been allocated
  in the amount of Ls 1 753 150
• in 2003, earmarked subsidies have been allocated
  in the amount of Ls 6 042 944