The president of the Lanzarote Chamber of Commerce, José Torres Fuentes, and the Deputy Minister of Education of the Government of the Canary Islands, Manuela Armas, have met with those responsible for the Early Childhood Education centers of Lanzarote to inform them about the changes introduced by Decree 201/2008 and the modifications of deadlines that are estimated in the subsequent Decree 104/2011. The island director of Education, Juan Ramón Pérez, also attended the meeting.
The changes introduced by the regulations directly affect professionals who provide services in Early Childhood Education Centers from 0 to 3 years old, who must have a degree in Teaching with a specialization in Early Childhood Education or an equivalent or higher degree.
The deadlines proposed by the first Decree of 2008 are extended by another subsequent Decree, published in 2011, which extends the deadline for compliance with this requirement until the end of the 2014/2015 academic year.
"People who professionally provide educational care services in centers that have been serving the population from 0 to 3 years old before the entry into force of this Decree will have until the end of the 2014/2015 academic year to obtain one of the qualifications provided for in article 16.1.
In addition, the new regulations require that the pedagogical proposal of these centers must be developed by a specialist in Early Childhood Education or equivalent degree, and what we previously knew as nurseries are now called Infant Schools or Private Early Childhood Education Centers, depending on whether their ownership is public or private.