One in six pre-schoolers in Flanders struggles with Dutch
Nearly 16 per cent of five-year-olds in Flanders do not have a sufficient grasp of Dutch to start primary school, according to the latest language screening results. The proportion of children with an adequate command of the language has fallen by 1.1 percentage points compared to last year.
The screening, known as the Koala test, found that 15.54 per cent of children do not speak Dutch well enough to advance to primary school, writes Het Laatste Nieuws. 11.12 per cent fall into the "orange zone", meaning they may require additional support. A further 4.42 per cent are in the "red zone", indicating they need intensive assistance - an increase from 3.77 per cent last year.
The figures are even higher in cities such as Antwerp and Ghent, where 13.1 per cent and 9.7 percent of children, respectively, require extra help.
Stricter requirements
The Flemish government is considering stricter language requirements to better prepare children for primary education.
Education minister Zuhal Demir has proposed introducing minimum standards for vocabulary and listening skills in nursery schools. A panel of experts is working on detailed guidelines, reportedly focusing on structured vocabulary development rather than rote learning.
However, there is still political debate over how children who fail to meet the language criteria would be handled. The Flemish nationalist N-VA argues that they should repeat their final year of nursery school, while the Christian democratic CD&V prefers to leave the decision to teachers.
The government is expected to reach an agreement on the new measures this week.
#FlandersNewsService | Illustration © BELGA PHOTO BRUNO ARNOLD
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