The canton of Neuchâtel wants to make it easier for allophone children or those who have had little experience of separation from their parents to enter school by offering them the opportunity to attend extra-family care structures. The pilot project called “Flora” will be launched in February in La Chaux-de-Fonds.
“It is a project which aims to facilitate the entry into school of allophone children or who have not yet had the experience of prolonged separation from their parents”, explains Saturday in Forum Estelle Brosteaux, project manager with of the Adult and Youth Protection Service in the canton of Neuchâtel.
The share of allophones among students entering the first year had been estimated at “around 19% in 2022 based on figures provided by school principals, she notes. But “this is an estimate and therefore an indicative figure”. The “Flora” pilot project will last three years and integrate the children into extra-family care structures in La Chaux-de-Fonds.
50 places per year
This program, funded by the canton, has a total capacity of 50 places per year. “The children will be welcomed into reception structures two mornings per week, five months before starting primary school,” explains Estelle Brosteaux.
Slots during periods of low attendance and without a waiting list were favored. They guarantee that no child participating in this project takes the place of other children in the participating structures. These discovery receptions have no impact on the regular places in extra-family reception structures.
-Also for parents
This project also aims to allow their parents to familiarize themselves with the school system in collaboration with the EPER. “Parents will thus be able to better understand the school’s expectations, be strengthened in their role as educational supports for their children and feel like partners with the teachers,” we can read in the press release.
If this first experience proves positive, the program could be extended to other regions of the canton.
lan with ats
Swiss
