LIVING

School education here is compulsory from six to 16; after six years of primary education, children then go on to do four years of educació secundària obligatòria (ESO or compulsory secondary education). The ESO can be done in a state-funded public school, such as an Institut d’Educació Secundària (IES) or a Secció d’Educació Secundària (SES), a state-subsidised private school (escola privada concertada) or a fee-paying, completely private school (escola privada).

In all state-funded and subsidised schools, pupils are taught in Catalan—although over the next few years, English will be phased in as the teaching language for some subjects. Private schools may teach in other languages and/or follow the national curriculum of another country.

The ESO syllabus was revised in 2007 and a new system was introduced. During the first three years, pupils now have to complete a certain amount of class hours in main subjects (matèries), some of which are compulsory each year, including Catalan and Castilian language and literature, a foreign language and maths. In addition, pupils do a specified amount of hours of matèries optatives (optional subjects)­—which vary between schools—and do a group project combining a number of different subjects. In the fourth year, they continue with their compulsory subjects, while having more optional ones to choose from; they also complete a group research project.

   Pupils who successfully pass this four-year course receive the Graduat en Educació Secundària Obligatòria Diploma. Those who want to continue with their academic studies and go on to university opt for the batxillerat, the non-compulsory higher secondary education qualification. The batxillerat is a two-year course, usually done between the ages of 16 and 18 with four specialist subject areas: humanities and social sciences, arts, technology, and natural and health sciences.

All students have to do a number of compulsory matèries comunes, subjects common to all batxillerat courses, as well as matèries de modalitat, subjects relating to their particular specialised area and matèries optatives. Each subject has a credit rating and students need to earn a total of 62. Compulsory subjects (e.g. Catalan and Castilian language and literature), account for 30 credits, plus two for tutorials. The remaining 30 are divided between matèries de modalitat, matèries optatives and a research project.

Students who gain their ESO at an IES or similar can normally stay on at the same school to do their batxillerat, but they will need to re-apply (see ‘Enrolling your child’ below). Alternatively they can apply to a semi-private or private school that caters for higher secondary students.