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Cologne is fighting against language deficits: the focus is on compulsory daycare!
Cologne mayor candidates are calling for compulsory daycare to provide language support before school starts, while daycare places are unevenly distributed.
Cologne is fighting against language deficits: the focus is on compulsory daycare!
There has been a worrying trend in Cologne for some time: the number of first graders repeating the school year is reaching record highs. The main reason for this is often inadequate language skills, especially among children with a migrant background. While some Cologne mayoral candidates are campaigning for compulsory daycare in the last year before starting school, the issue is causing heated discussions in the city.
Berivan Aymaz from the Greens and Torsten Burmester from the SPD demand that children with language needs be given a place in daycare. Burmester sees attending daycare as crucial for fair starting opportunities. He emphasizes that the community has a responsibility, especially to accommodate those parents who cannot find a daycare place. “Something is fundamentally wrong here,” says CDU politician Greitemann, addressing the unfair distribution of daycare places in districts such as Chorweiler and Mülheim. In Chorweiler, only 80 percent of three to six-year-olds have access to daycare, which means over 10 percent of the first-grader cohort did not attend daycare.
Language support is key
A central element in the discussion is language promotion. Loud pro-kita.com It is crucial to offer support to children whose native language is not German in daycare. Multilingual children can enrich the daycare group and promote intercultural competence. But this requires patience and alternative communication methods from educators. They are often faced with the challenge that children do not understand instructions, which makes support even more difficult.
To counteract the language barrier, patience, facial expressions and gestures as well as a playful approach can be helpful. Practical exercises such as memory games or a multilingual good morning ritual help to expand children's language skills.
A look at multilingualism
The importance of multilingualism is emphasized by numerous experts. How herder.de describes in detail, multilingualism does not pose any development risks, but rather has many advantages. Children who learn multiple languages often have better cognitive skills. In addition, multilingual education enables more flexible use of language, which has a positive effect on social interaction.
The NRW school minister has already started the exams for compulsory language support. But implementation remains a challenge, especially in disadvantaged districts where the real daycare place quota often falls short of expectations.
Together with aggressive proposals to reorganize daycare places and expand language support, it is time for everyone involved to pull together. This is the only way that Cologne children can have a fair chance of a successful school career.