Pre-registration for Early Childhood and Primary Education for the 2024-2025 academic year began this Wednesday, March 6, (and until the 20th) and, in Reus, the loss of an I3 line at Escola La Vitxeta is confirmed, which will be left with a single group. Despite opposition from families, and also from the City Council, the Department of Education has not backed down and I3’s offer for the next academic year in the city will be 580 public places divided into 29 groups (20 students per class), one line less than this year.
In recent weeks, families have held concentrations and, this Tuesday, a few hours before the start of pre-registration, they made their last attempt with a meeting with Serveis Territorials of the Department of Education. After all: “We assume the closure of an I3 line for the next academic year, but we start working to recover it for the next one, 2025-2026,” says the president of the AMIPA of La Vitxeta, Mercè Vallverdú.
During the meeting, the Department detailed the technical arguments that motivate the closure of an I3 line in the city, which is basically explained by the low birth rate. «By the numbers, Reus would have to leave with 28 I3 groups, that is, two lines less than the current ones, but Educació chooses to close only one, which is La Vitxeta, because by area it is the one with the fewest children. », transfers Vallverdú. Furthermore, the low birth rate is compounded by the saturation in secondary school, “and they choose to put more resources into ESO than into Early Childhood,” he adds. That is why “the Department argues that they cannot lower the ratio because that would mean more resources.”
The families of Escola La Vitxeta are understanding, but they point out two issues to be worked on to avoid more line closures in the city: zoning (the distribution of students according to their address) and the agreement with the subsidized centers, to that the ratios also go down. The first issue, that of zoning, depends on the City Council and there would already be a commitment to carry out a review. As it is proposed now, “it hurts us,” says Vallverdú, given that students who live near La Vitxeta, by area, have another school further away. With this change, families are confident that the school could recover the second line of I3 for the 2025-2026 academic year.
What the families want is a political commitment, and that is why they have worked to make their voice also reach the plenary session of the Reus City Council. Through the CUP they are promoting a motion that includes the commitment to review the zoning and also that the City Council never vote in favor of any closure of lines. “We will talk to all the municipal groups to get them to join,” notes Mercè Vallverdú.
2024-03-07 06:49:08
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