PART THREE: PROTECTING MINORITY RIGHTS also be hired temporarily to teach in schools. Persons belonging to the two national minorities and living outside the self-governing areas have the right to language education as an extracurricular activity when the minimum of a five-student threshold is reached. While, according to information provided by the Office of National Minorities, in 2016, no such class was organised, Italian was taught as a foreign language outside of the ethnically mixed area to approximately 1 000 primary school pupils and 5 200 upper-secondary school students. The government was of the opinion that these classes were also attended by members of the Italian community. PART THREE 81. Romani is taught within the framework of “Roma culture” as an optional subject in the 7th to the 9th grade of primary education, which is however offered in a limited number of schools because of the lack of qualified teachers and, reportedly, a lack of interest from Roma children, as well as through extracurricular activities, workshops and seminars. Romani classes are also organised in the Roma settlement kindergartens. Teaching is carried out by Roma assistants, whose qualifications are progressively improving to the required level for teaching. However, the Advisory Committee understands that the process of teaching Romani is also slowed down by the ongoing standardisation of the language. Whereas the authorities refer publicly to three languages, the Advisory Committee understands that there are several varieties of the Romani language in use; it remains unclear what progress has been made in the standardisation process and if that undertaking has been accepted by the Roma. A welcome development is, however, the publication of the ombudsperson’s leaflets in different Romani languages. 82. Finally, the Advisory Committee welcomes the fact that there is a system in place to ensure teaching of the first language of the new national communities and immigrants, with co-funding offered by the Ministry for Education, Science and Sport. In 2015-16, however, only 465 children attended these classes with co-funding of EUR 14 850 from the central authorities and combined support from other successor States of Yugoslavia for the relevant languages. Standard German is also offered as a foreign language in mainstream education, while the Gottscheer language, which is at risk of extinction, is taught on a voluntary basis for a small number of hours. In addition, there is uncertainty about whether teaching of the Gottscheer language will continue to be guaranteed under the agreement with Austria on culture …. Recommendations 83. The Advisory Committee calls on the authorities to pursue their efforts to promote high-quality minority language training for teachers in Italian and Hungarian. They should also support the development of teaching materials in the different Romani languages, in close co-operation with Roma community representatives, as well as increase teaching in these languages. 84. In consultation with representatives of the other minority communities, they should also promote and ensure adequate conditions for the teaching and learning of other minority languages taking into consideration the needs and interests of the potential beneficiaries.1073 The Special Rapporteur on minority issues has set out that, “whatever model or approach is in place in relation to the use of a minority language as a medium of instruction, children must always have an opportunity to effectively learn the official or majority language where they live”.1074 The Special Rapporteur on minority issues has recommended that the following principles be generally applied in those countries that provide public education in minority languages: 1. The principle of proportionality …. 2. The principle of active offer, where public education in minority languages is accessible and actively encouraged. 1073 Council of Europe, Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, “Fourth opinion on Slovenia”, ACFC/OP/IV(2017)003 (2018), paras. 80–84 (footnotes omitted). 1074 A/HRC/43/47, para. 66. 157