Updated 02.09 | Published 01.52
The quality of the Swedish preschools varies, various surveys point to. Therefore, the National Audit Office is now launching an audit to find out whether sufficient work is being done for an equivalent preschool – the authority’s first audit of the school form.
Education in preschool must be equivalent throughout the country and take into account children’s different conditions and needs, according to law. However, previous investigations have established that there are large differences in how the pedagogical task is carried out.
Among other things, the percentage of certified teachers differs greatly between different preschools – from 15 to 17 percent, according to a survey by Sweden’s Municipalities and Regions (SKR).
“That the preschool maintains high quality is above all important for children in socially vulnerable areas. But there the percentage of certified preschool teachers is often lower than in other places,” says Auditor General Helena Lindberg in a press release.
Recruiting staff with good knowledge of Swedish to preschools with multilingual children is also a challenge. In addition, there is a risk that deficiencies in the preschool are not detected in the supervisory work of various authorities, according to the National Audit Office.
The results of the review are planned to be published in December next year.