PACE -
PARTNERSHIP
FOR A NEW
APPROACH TO
EARLY CHILDHOOD
EDUCATION

GENERAL INFORMATION:
- preschool-age children: 1.700
- preschools: 60
- sector workers (public/private management and teachers): over 300


L'ORIGINE DEL PROGETTO
PACE capitalises on the results of the AEPIC pilot project, extending them from the Bethlehem area to the entire West Bank.
The context
In Palestine there are over 1,700 preschool institutions (infant-toddler centres, kindergartens, preschool classes). The vast majority is located in the West Bank and is managed by the private sector.
The Palestinian Ministry of Education is responsible for the accreditation of all 0-6 facilities and staff training. This is a historic moment, as the Palestinian government has decided to take charge and create a more inclusive, quality pre-school system.
The Project faces the following problems:
- weak professional skills of preschool staff, that uses educational methods focused on discipline and the obligation to learn; university-school cooperation is inadequate;
- low level of children’s participation in preschool education, with very low enrollment rates across the West Bank;
- antagonism between public and private operators.

GENERAL INFORMATION:
- preschool-age children: 1.700
- preschools: 60
- sector workers (public/private management and teachers): over 300


GOAL
The PACE Project seeks to support the Ministry of Education and private Palestinian educational institutions in the effort to increase the quality, accessibility, and sustainability of the early childhood education services system, fostering public-private partnerships.
ACTIVITIES
According to its three objectives (quality, accessibility, sustainability), the project will:
- Increase the professional skills of ministry and university staff in the field of pedagogy and management of early childhood educational services and the staff of 60 public and private preschools in the areas of teaching, environment planning, and family participation – in other words, a substantial training investment is expected on all the key players in the sector, empowering the pilot schools involved in the AEPIC Project.
- Ensure access to early childhood education services for children and families residing in marginalised areas of the West Bank through the opening of 30 new public preschool classes and the expansion and/ or reorganisation of the premises of 15 existing private preschools, supporting the effort of the Palestinian Ministry of Education and private actors to raise the preschool participation rate in low-schooling areas;
- Launch a pilot Centre for the Creative Reuse of waste materials with mixed management (public-private) in Bethlehem, able to supply schools in the Governorate and promote a culture of matter reuse and research in the West Bank. This fosters the creation of a “bottom-up” public-private partnership, with cooperation on concrete issues of common interest.
PROJECT MATERIALS
LICENSING CRITERIA FOR PRIVATE PRESCHOOLS
PARTNERS
- Ministry of Education and Higher Education of the Palestinian National Authority
- Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem
- Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem
- Greek Catholic Patriarchate of Jerusalem
- Cultural Association Ibdaa’
- Municipality of Reggio Emilia – Institution for Schools and Infant-Toddler Centres
- Reggio Children Foundation – Loris Malaguzzi Centre
MEDIA PARTNER
PHOTOS AND VIDEOS
