Primary school is a reflection of our society. This also includes pupils who stand out and who find it more difficult to integrate into the school community.
Since 2017, the Ministry of Education has reformed and expanded the framework for responding to specific needs at school. This has included, among other things, a major increase in the staff deployed in such cases. As a result, more than 1,000 additional staff members have been recruited to date.
Despite these efforts, support services are facing major challenges more than ever, reflecting the way our society is evolving. The Ministry therefore held meetings with around 140 representatives from the sector and from parents’ organisations in order to improve future measures. For Minister Claude Meisch, inclusion is a permanent challenge. The system must therefore be adapted so that it can respond as effectively as possible to changes in society.
The new inclusion plan is intended to function more efficiently, more quickly and in a more targeted manner, in order to meet the needs of children, parents and teachers.
To achieve this, a crisis procedure will be introduced in every school so that acute situations can be dealt with quickly and safety in schools can be guaranteed. At the same time, resources on the ground will be strengthened, especially through more specialised teachers (I-EBS) and assistants (A-EBS), making more individualised support possible. Cooperation between schools, experts and other services will also be improved, for example through local committees and more flexible intervention by teams.
At the same time, the range of specialised structures will be expanded and brought closer to children at regional level, in order to improve accessibility and provide support tailored to their needs. Greater emphasis will also be placed on prevention, especially at an early age, so that problems can be identified and addressed sooner. In this context, a pilot project for Cycle 1 is being prepared. It is due to be launched next year in 15 schools and will provide additional resources in the areas of language, motor skills and socio-emotional development. The project will be evaluated after at least three years and may then be rolled out more broadly.
New services such as the ONE school service (OSD) are intended to strengthen the link between school and family and ensure more comprehensive support. The system will also be improved structurally through a reform of the national inclusion commission, with more staff and a reserve pool for ESEB personnel.
Finally, the new portal www.inclusion-scolaire.lu makes it easier for parents to access key information.
