Education in Spain

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Education in Spain
Educational oversight Ministry of Education
Ángel Gabilondo
National education budget ()
Primary language(s) Spanish and other co-official languages in several regions, including Catalan, Euskera and Galician
Federal system
Literacy (2003)
 • Men
 • Women		 98.1%
98.8%
97.4%
Enrollment
 • Primary
 • Secondary
 • Post-secondary		 5,917,074
2,479,631
1,871,430
1,566,013
Attainment
 • Secondary diploma
 • Post-secondary diploma
45.4%
38.1%

Education in Spain and its system is known as LOGSE for Ley de Ordenación General del Sistema Educativo, or the Law on General Education. State education in Spain is free and compulsory education lasts from ages 6 to 16 years of age.

Contents

[edit] Up to Secondary Level

[edit] Structure

Below Higher Education the system can be seen as consisting of four levels:

  • Pre-school (Educación Infantil, segundo ciclo) - 3 to 5 years of age
  • Primary School (Educación Primaria) six years of schooling - 6 to 11 years of age
  • Compulsory Secondary Education (Educación Secundaria Obligatoria) four years of schooling - 12 to 15 years of age
  • Post-Compulsory Schooling (Bachillerato) two years of schooling - 16 to 17 years of age

Children from 3 to 5 years old in Spain have the option of attending the Pre-school stage (infantil or popularly known as preescolar), which is non-compulsory and free for all students. It is regarded as an integral part of the education system with infants' classes at almost every primary school. There are some separate nursery schools (Colegios Infantiles).

Children (whose parents chose that they should) enter pre-school (Educación Infantil) in the autumn of the calendar year in which they turn three years old. Following this pattern, the ages given here as corresponding to the different phases are the ages turned by children in the calendar year in which the academic year begins. Age ranges are inclusive: 3 to 5 years of age is 3 academic years.

Spanish students aged 6 to 15 undergo primary (colegio) and secondary school (instituto) education, which are compulsory and (like the preceding preschool from age 3) free of charge. Successful students are awarded a Secondary Education Certificate, which is necessary to enter the post-compulsory stage of Schooling (principally the Bachillerato) for their University or Vocational (Formacion Professional) Studies. Once students have finished their Bachillerato, they can take their University Entrance Exam (Pruebas de Acceso a la Universidad, popularly called Selectividad) which differs greatly from region to region. The compulsory stage of secondary education is normally referred to by its initials: ESO (Educación Secundaria Obligatoria).

[edit] Preschool

Structured as two cycles of three years each:

  • Nursery or Kindergarten (Jardín de Infancia) (0–3 years of age)
  • Preschool (Preescolar) (3–6 years of age)

The second of these two cycles is included in the general state provision of education and, although not compulsory, is followed by nearly all children. The first 'cycle', nursery care, is largely privately provided and funded although there are some subsidies.second grade.

[edit] Primary school

Structured as three 2 year cycles:

  • First Cycle (6–8 years of age)
  • Second Cycle (8–10 years of age)
  • Third Cycle (10–12 years of age)

[edit] Secondary education

[edit] Compulsory secondary education

Compulsory Secondary Education (Educación Secundaria Obligatoria or ESO) is structured as two cycles of two academic years each (total 4 years):

  • 1st Cycle (12–14 years of age)
  • 2nd Cycle (14–16 years of age)

Upon finishing ESO the student has a number of options, including:

  • Post-Compulsory Schooling
  • Vocational Training (Ciclos Formativos de Grado Medio)
  • A programme to learn a profession in a year (Programas de Cualificación Inicial Profesional)
  • Work (ESO is compulsory up to the age of 16, and you have to be at least 16 to get a job)

[edit] Post-compulsory schooling

The post-compulsory programme offered by Spanish schools is the Bachillerato. It encompasses grades 11 and 12, and is the preferred continuing education option for many, particularly those wishing to go on to university. There is often a substantial increase in the level of pressure and the workload, from those characteristic of ESO, even within the same institution, as this option is (arguably) the most demanding (it is shorter than some other options). Upon completion, it entitles the student to sit the university-entrance exam (selectividad), or to follow some kind of higher vocational training.

There are currently five branches to choose from (it is possible, though, to take up a double option), a fact that directly influences almost half of the curriculum, the other half being made up of compulsory subjects, the so-called "core" curriculum. The common curriculum is as follows (for both years unless otherwise stated): Language and Literature (of both Spanish and another subject with a usually comparable workload only in case another language of Spain is co-official), a first foreign language (both years, usually English, but German and French are also common, and depending on the institution, Italian), Philosophy (1st year), Physical Education (1st year), Spanish History (2nd year), History of Philosophy (2nd year), and an optional one, which depends on both the school's offer and the student's interests.

Each branch is made up of three core subjects, and usually a further one can be chosen.

  • Arts: History of Art, Volume (sculpture), Colours (painting)
  • Nature and Health Sciences: Biology, Chemistry, Physics/Earth Sciences/Mathematics
  • Sciences & Engineering: Physics, Maths, Chemistry/Technical Drawing
  • Social Sciences: Applied Maths, Economics, Geography, Sociology/Psychology
  • Humanities: Latin, Greek, History of Art/Psychology

At undergraduate level, every degree has its own branch requirement (entrance is usually possible from two different branches or more, even though some degrees have no such specification). Arts has a limited choice of related degrees at University, mainly History of Art. Humanities have a wider choice, including Physiology, Oriental Studies, Philosophy. Social studies have preference for entering degrees in Law, Economics, Business, Geography. Sciences & Engineering, as its name states, has preference in all engineering careers, and also in Maths, Chemistry and Physics. The main requirements for nature and health sciences are; Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, Biology, Physiotherapy, Chemistry, Dentistry, Geology, Environmental Sciences. Despite this, some courses accept students from any branch, such as Philology, History, Social Work, Educational Sciences or Tourism are a preference to some branches over others when applying for entrance.

[edit] Provision and Costs

Schools in Spain can be divided into 3 categories:

  • State schools (Colegios Publicos)
  • Privately run schools funded by the State (Colegios Concertados)
  • Purely private schools (Colegios Privados)

According to summary data for the year 2008-2009[1] from the ministry, state schools educated 67.4%, private but state funded schools 26.0%, and purely private schools 6.6% of pupils the preceding year.

All non-university state education is free in Spain, but parents have to buy all of their children's books and materials.This, nominally at least, also applies to colegios concertados. Many schools are concertados = state funded up to the end of ESO but are puely private for the bachillerato years. This drop in the fraction of pupils in educacion concertado is matched by increases of approximately equal size in the fraction in both state and purely private education for bachillerato[1].

There are private schools for all the range of compulsory education. At them, parents must pay a monthly/termly/yearly fee. Most of these schools are run by religious orders, and include single-sex schools.

Schools supply a list of what is required at the start of each school year and which will include art and craft materials as well as text and exercise books. Expect to spend a minimum of around ninety pounds (GBP) per child,[citation needed] but in some regions, the autonomous government is giving tokens to exchange them in book shops for free, this is being adapted in 2006 in regions, such as Andalucia, where kids from 3 to 10 will get the books for free, on the following years it is expected for all compulsory years. School uniform is not normally worn in state schools but is usually worn in private schools.

[edit] Availability

[edit] Schools

All but the very smallest villages have their own primary school, and there is widespread coverage of school transport. Small village schools are grouped together under the auspices of their local teacher's centre for the provision of specialist teachers for subjects such as music, English, etc. Most larger villages and towns have a secondary school.

[edit] Arrangements for foreign pupils

Many schools have a specialist teacher to help immigrant children of all nationalities learn Spanish. It is quite common for secondary pupils to be placed in the class a year below their actual age in order for them to learn the language and cope with normal school work. A pupil who does badly in end-of-year exams, especially if the staff feel that they have made insufficient effort, can be required to repeat the year, but this can only happen once.

[edit] Admissions

In the Comunidad de Madrid at least there is a largely unifiorm admissions process for state funded schools, both colegios publicos and colegios concertados. Here the main admissions procedures for pupils wishing to join a school in the autumn are carried out in the spring of the year in question. Parents can chose the school to which they wish to send their child. It is not uncommon that there be insufficient places in a popular school for all the children for whom places are requested. In such cases places are allocated according to rather strictly defined admissions criteria as defined in Annex IX to the order estabilishing the process [2]. The royal decree governing the same process in Extremadura [3] includes admissions criteria structured in a very similar way but differing in the number of points allocated, notably for residence near to the school.

[edit] School hours

Primary school hours at present[citation needed] are typically from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., or full time classes from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., depending on each school, except during June and September when they work mornings only, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. There is a move towards a single session day in primary schools which would bring them in line with secondary schools. To achieve this, each school submits to the education authority a programme of extra curricular activities to be offered in the afternoons, and if approved, the proposal to move to a single session day is put to a vote by the parents for their approval.[citation needed]

Some schools have a dining room and provide lunches, but many do not.[citation needed] Many schools offer the possibility for working parents to take their children as early as 7:00 a.m., and which in some cases includes breakfast as well as providing sport or leisure activities. Secondary schools (Instituto de Enseñanza Secundaria or commonly Instituto, or IES) work from 8:30 a.m. to 2:20 p.m. throughout the school year. In both cases, there is a break that normally lasts half an hour, starting at about 11:00 a.m. At some secondary schools there are 2 breaks of 15 minutes. (2009)

[edit] School terms

Broadly similar to the English three term system, but with slightly shorter holidays at Christmas (December 23-January 7) and Easter (one week), and longer in the summer. In 2005, the summer holiday ran from June 22 until September 1/September 15, depending on the regions. The English half-term holiday does not exist, but there are frequent odd days and long weekends relating mainly to religious holidays and regional and national holidays.

[edit] Religious education

A non-evaluable religion class is taken in all schools in accordance with the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church, and Islam, Judaism or Protestantism in the schools where there are important minorities.[citation needed] Parents are asked when they enroll their children whether or not they wish them to take religious education, taking Civism lessons or Religious Culture, where the history of the religions is studied.

[edit] Qualifications

The Certificate of Secondary Education is awarded at the end of compulsory secondary education after passing every subject but 2, and a student who achieves appropriate grades graduates from Compulsory Secondary Education and can apply for one of the different types of post-compulsory schooling.

The modalities of post-compulsory schooling depend on each region, but are commonly, Arts & Letters (Bachillerato de Humanidades), Natural and Health Sciences (Bachillerato de Ciencias de la Naturaleza y la Salud), Technology (Bachillerato Tecnológico), Social Sciences (Bachillerato de Ciencias Sociales) and Arts (Bachillerato de Arte), having three different thematic subjects each, and several common subjects such as Spanish, foreign language, philosophy, history, etc.

Middle or superior vocational training is also a common possibility after ESO or after post-compulsory schooling, they are called middle grade training cycles (Ciclos Formativos de Grado Medio) or superior-level training cycles (Ciclos Formativos de grado Superior) for a Technician Degree, or it can be taken after post-compulsory schooling, receiving a Superior Technician diploma and direct entrance to several related University degrees, there are more than 200 different specialties.

Students with appropriate qualifications and wishing to enroll in Spanish universities must usually take an entrance exam called Selectividad, that consists in six tests, three for each subject and a test for each history or philosophy, foreign language (commonly English) and Spanish grammar and literature (Autonomous communities that have a co-official language, have also another test about co-official language grammar and literature), after passing their Bachillerato. The Spanish School Leaving Certificate is equivalent to a number of GCSEs. The Bachillerato is equivalent to A-levels. Therefore, Spanish students obtaining the appropriate grades required for entrance into universities in Europe, including England, are not precluded.

  1. REDIRECT paper

[edit] Higher education

Main article: Higher education in Spain

[edit] Technical college

Accessed with a post-compulsory schooling degree or through a middle-level training cycle (Ciclo Formativo de Grado Medio) while being at the age 18 before December 31 of that year and passing an entrance exam. The schooling covers a set of formation cycles that are organized in professional modules. Upon finishing, individuals can access to university studies related to their training cycle studies. For example, if a student receives a degree in computer science, they may study computer science engineering. It has no access exam but the marks are considered for the university admission.

[edit] University

University courses are structured in cycles, and have a "credit" as a measure for the lessons. First cycle courses are accessed with pre-enrollment. These are 3-year terminal studies, and when finished, a student can obtain a certificate as well as a teaching or engineering diploma. This also allows students to study in the second cycle. Studies of 1st and 2nd cycle (4 or 5 years) are accessed with the university pre-inscription. Passing it gives the right to obtaining an academic degree (Licenciatura), architecture or engineering qualification.

Passing the first cycle, for students in these studies, does not qualify for obtaining an official title, but it can be of worth for incorporating into other studies of the second cycle. Studies of second cycle are accessed through the first university cycle, or with the possession of a graduate, architect, engineer (diploma level) or teacher, whenever these studies conform to the norm of access for each second cycles. Passing it gives the student the right to obtain a university degree, architecture degree or engineering degree. Studies of the 3rd cycle are called Ph.D. programs (doctorate). The access is regulated by the university itself, through the Doctorate Commission. It is necessary to have the degree course, architecture or engineering.

Own degrees are nonregulated studies leading to an unofficial degree, recognized only by the granting university. These courses have the same structure as the regulated studies: therefore, there are first cycle degrees, first and second cycle degrees, and second cycle degrees.

The universities regulate access to their own degrees and they fix the academic fees. They can also offer unofficial postgraduate degrees. Spain has internationally recognized universities, the most notable being

Other universities of historical relevance and reputation are the University of Salamanca and the University of Alcalá.

[edit] See also

Academic Awards in Spain

[edit] External links

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Data and Numbers for the year 2008-2009 p4, retrieved 25th Feb 2009, Ministry of Education, Social Policy and Sport
  2. ^ Annexes to Order Establishing Admisions Process., see Annex IX for criteria for allocating places, retrieved 17th May 2009, The 'Consejeria de Educacion' of the Comunidad de Madrid
  3. ^ Decree 42/2007 - Extremadura., see Annex (there is only one) 'CRITERIOS DE PRIORIDAD PARA LA ADMISIÓN DE ALUMNOS', retrieved 17th May 2009, Boletin Oficial del Estado - Extremadura
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