The Department of Education presented the Methodological Guide to desegregation in Education and Education. It aims to contribute to improving application practice in preventing and eliminating segregation in the school environment in Slovakia, following the definition of segregation in education and education introduced in the School Act in spring 2023.

The Methodological Guide explains segregation as a cross-cutting phenomenon in relation to all grounds of discrimination listed in the Anti-Discrimination Act, focusing in particular on clarifying the concept of segregation in education and education on the grounds of race, ethnicity and colour. The Methodological Guide offers framework guides for schools and founders to deal in a practical way with situations with a risk of segregation by different types of sites with a concentration of Roma population in Slovakia.

The aim is also to contribute to the strategic aim of improving the quality and inclusiveness of education in Slovakia and reducing the impact of socio-economic background on pupils’ performance and their chances of being fully operational in life. The Ministry also responds to the European Commission’s action against Slovakia for breach of the European Racial Equality Directive. The topic of desegregation in education is also part of the Slovak recovery and resilience plan. “Actions are, of course, a strong incentive to act. But we don’t do this for them. We are doing this to give every child in Slovakia a chance to live well,” stressed Minister Tomáš Drucker.

Raising awareness of inclusion and desegregation in school settings, developing model desegregation plans with proposals to address prevention and desegregation for different types of sites and situations, and eliminating unjustified inclusion of Roma children in special schools for children and pupils with mild mental disabilities are the main objectives of the forthcoming national desegregation project.

The Guide clarifies segregation as a cross-cutting phenomenon in relation to all grounds of discrimination listed in the Anti-Discrimination Act. The practical part of the handbook provides specific guidance to address situations at risk of segregation by different types of sites with a concentration of Roma population in Slovakia. In particular, it deals with discrimination and segregation, referred to in international law as ‘racial segregation’.

The next step of the project is the introduction of a single system for monitoring the risk of segregation. Pilot monitoring will start in 2024. Its primary objective is to correctly shape and evaluate desegregation policies with the ambition of translating them into effective inclusive actions. The purpose of the analysis will not be to evaluate or penalise schools when a risk of segregation is identified. On the contrary, the purpose of school monitoring will be to provide targeted assistance and support to each school based on the identification of real needs. 

By the end of 2025, the Ministry of Education will publish a comprehensive monitoring report prepared on the basis of administrative data evaluation at all levels of education from the monitoring of segregation risk. It shall also include information and data on the application of desegregation standards in the comprehensive portfolio report.