The Spanish Education system has been subject to a number of reforms
in recent years. Changes in Infant and Primary education have been
somewhat more successful to date than those in the Secondary system.
In most parts of Spain schooling is now available to children from the
age of three, although the obligatory age for starting school is five
years old. Children are admitted once a year, in September strictly
according to the calendar year of their birth. This means that
children born in January are the oldest in their class, and children
born between October and December actually start school before their
third birthday. The normal registration period for all ages is in May
for the following September, and may be done via the local town hall,
or by applying directly to a school.
Infant education
=================
Educacion Infantil or EI lasts for three years and teaches children
about social, personal and environmental values, as well as developing
their physical and mental skills. They are gradually introduced to
reading and writing from 4 years old and will have covered their
alphabet by the end of EI, although fluent reading ability is not
expected. EI is one of the newest areas of Spanish education and is
generally well-taught by dedicated specialist teachers.
Primary education
=================
At six (or nearly six) children progress to Educacion Primaria (EP).
This lasts for six years and is divided into three cycles or "ciclos".
The objectives of primary education are planned over each two year
period, at the end of which a child who is considered not to have
achieved these objectives, may be required to repeat the second year of
the cycle. Students study the following subjects throughout Primary
education: Spanish language Maths Conocimiento del Medio (A general
knowledge subject which includes biology, history, geography, general
and local knowledge and social awareness) Physical Education Art and
craft and a second language, usually English.
In addition most students will study Religion which mainly consists of
teaching Catholic doctrine. Schools are required to offer an
alternative to children who opt out, but if there are not many, they
may end up sitting in with another class or in the staff room with the
class teacher. In some schools this time might be used to offer extra
language support, but this would not be obligatory on their part.
In many regions of Spain the local dialect and culture is also taught
as a subject, although again, it is possible to opt out. English will
be taught by a specialist, but there is no obligation for the class
teacher to speak English. Classes are always mixed ability in Spain,
the concept of "streaming" is unknown.
The state system provides support teams of psychologist, sociologist
and speech therapist which are shared by several schools, and they may
give foreign children language support if they have time. Children
normally have the same class teacher for each two-year cycle.
Teachers make themselves available one hour a week to speak to parents
about their children's progress, which is well worth taking advantage
of. There are also parents meetings every term to discuss class work
and special projects and trips.
From about the third year children are introduced to term exams, but there is
no equivalent to National testing in the Spanish system. Although
state education is free, parents will have to buy all textbooks and
materials. Uniforms are generally not worn, except in religious
grant-assisted schools.
Secondary education
===================
From age 12 (or nearly 12) children move on to Secondary school (El
Instituto). Until about ten years ago, secondary school started at 14
and in some areas the first two years of secondary are still
accommodated in the Primary building if the local Instituto is not
physically big enough to hold them. The new secondary system is
modelled loosely on the British comprehensive system, moving away from
a two level system (similar to Grammar and Secondary Modern) to
complete mixed ability schooling. The first four years are called "la
E.S.O." (EducaciSecundaria Obligatoria). Children can leave school
at the end of this section, or at the age of 16 if they reach this
sooner. The E.S.O. is divided into two cycles with the same system
of repeated years at the end of each cycle as occurs in Primary
education.
A wide range of secondary subjects are taught, including a language
choice between French and English. Until recent years secondary
education in Spain was very conventional with a lot of rote learning
and constant tests and examinations. There have been marked
improvements with the introduction of project work, continuous
assessment and more up-to-date and relevant syllabuses. However, much
still depends on the approach of individual teachers, and there has
been a general lack of investment in retraining and resources to make
a total success of the scheme.
One of the main criticisms of the new Secondary system centres on the
discipline problems involving teenage children who are having to repeat
courses, which results in being placed in the same classes as younger more academically
inclined children. There is still much debate about the success of
reforms in secondary education, and improvements being introduced.
At the end of the four year E.S.O. students may leave school, go on to
the two-year "Bachillerato" academic course, or enroll on practical
training courses called "modulos". There are four types of
Bachillerato - Arts, Humanities, Natural and Health Sciences and
Technology. Modulos include office and administrative skills,
mechanics, catering, and hairdressing. After two years in Bachillerato
students have intensive examinations during the month of May and their
final mark is based on a combination of examination results and
continuous assessment. A month later, in June, students who wish to
go to University take a general University entrance examination (P.A.U.)
and the University course they are able to follow depends on the result
of this examination along with their Bachillerato results.
A far higher percentage of students attend University in Spain than in
Britain. There are very few University grants in Spain so sending a
child to University is a major investment. Students may take as long
as necessary to complete a University course, repeating courses and
spreading out examinations over years. There is a general tendency to
attend the University nearest to your home, and many students stay at
home or live with relatives in the city to save money.
School calendar and timetable
=============================
The school year starts in mid-September and ends in the third week of
June. There is usually a break of two weeks or so at Christmas, and
about a week and a half for Easter. There are no half-term holidays as
such, but there are short breaks throughout the year which are
organised around national, regional and local saints days and festivals.
There are two kinds of timetables, a divided day which allows at least
two hours for lunch, or the innovation of the "jornada continua", a
blocked day which finishes in the early afternoon. Most secondary
schools have now adopted this blocked day timetable, so your teenager
will be free from about 2 p.m. every day.
Homework
========
In Primary school, homework is at the discretion of individual class
teachers, but may be given from the first year of Primary onward. It
is sometimes assumed that parents will be involved in helping children
with their homework, and parents who are unable to do this for any
reason sometimes pay for tutors to help their children for an hour or
so every evening. At Secondary school there is usually a fairly heavy
load of homework and exam studying which require considerable sacrifice
and self-discipline on the part of students who wish to do well at
school.
Things to think about when bring children to Spain
==================================================
The decision to bring children to Spain and incorporate them into the
Spanish state education system should be taken with great care, after
appropriate research, and bearing in mind the needs and personality of
each individual child. The following comments are generalisations
based on experience, but in the last analysis you know your own family
best, and only you can make the right decision about their future.
Never forget that the problems of changing from English to Spanish
schools is more than a problem of language, it is a problem of culture
and customs as well. Many people underestimate the impact of such a
change on their children, are unaware of the cultural differences
involved, and may misunderstand what is happening at the school in
relation to their child. The state system allows for parental
involvement and you should take every opportunity to communicate with
the school, with an interpreter if necessary, to iron out the kinds of
problems that will inevitably arise.
Age
===
As a general rule the younger your child is, the easier it will be for
him or her to adapt to a different school environment and pick up the
language along the way. However, even as early as five or six, a child
can find being thrown into a classroom where he doesn't understand the
language a disorientating experience. If your child has a tendency to
be aggressive or introverted, these tendencies could be accentuated by
the frustration or embarrassment of not being able to make him or
herself understood, and not understanding what is expected of him or
her. For all children there is an adaptation period, during which
little actual academic progress should be expected. This period may
range from a few months to a year or more, depending on the child, but
obviously, the older the child, the longer this period is likely to be.
However, this in itself should not be a deterrent to introducing
children into a Spanish school at primary level, as there is still
plenty of time for them to adjust and adapt.
At secondary age the process is much more tricky. Firstly your son or
daughter is coping with the normal problems of adolescence, which may
not be helped by such a radical upheaval. Also in terms of their
academic work, they are being introduced into a fairly intense
academic system which is alien to them in terms of its operation and
organisation, as well as its language. They will be expected to keep
up with studies in a wide range of subjects with little or no support
from teachers. Most children in this situation are placed in a year
below that corresponding to their age for good academic reasons, but
this fact in itself can cause problems at a psychological level. As
a general rule, it is very ill-advised to place an English child
"cold" into the Spanish system at this stage of their lives. However,
there are a number of ways around this problem if you are moving to
Spain with secondary age children.
Firstly you should obtain a Spanish language tutor for your child in
your home country for as long as possible before you intend to move.
A year would be a minimum to give a child some grounding in the
language. Your child should be taught not only the language itself,
but should be introduced to subjects such as Science and Maths as they
are taught in Spain, since many techniques and ways of calculating are
very different. Also, the level of these subjects is often higher
than the equivalent level in Britain, which is another reason why your
child may be put down a year on arrival in Spain. After such a
period of study, you would be well advised to obtain some sort of
objective assessment from a Spanish national with a professional or
academic background of your child's progress and likely ability to
cope at the level which will be expected.
Another way around the problem which depends on your economic
situation, is to place your teenage child in a private bilingual
school for at least their first year in Spain to give them a kind of
half-way house experience, before going totally into the Spanish
system. There are many such schools in Spain, particularly along the
Mediterranean coast, each with their own philosophy and educational
methods. Again, you need to research these, visit them and judge for
yourself their appropriateness for your own child. On an economic
level, bear in mind that apart from tuition fees, you will probably
also have to pay for school uniforms, text books, lunches, transport
as well as extra-curricular activities, school trips and so on, so be
absolutely sure what the full financial commitment is likely to be as
you may not be given all these details immediately.
Catchments area
===============
There are particular problems which have arisen in Spanish schools
which are located in areas with a high concentration of foreign
nationals. There are state Spanish schools where Spanish children are
in the minority, alongside English, Irish, Scandinavian, Russian and
East European children. Teachers at these schools will not speak the
first language of most of their students, and local Spanish people
often resent the lowering of standards for their own children that this
situation implies. Bullying is another real danger here. This can go
on between children of different ethnic groups, and not be dealt with
adequately by the school, purely becaqse teachers are at a loss to be
able to understand clearly what is going on. This is not the fault of
school staff, who as a general rule deal with such matters firmly. If
your child has a bullying problem, particularly one that involves
children of other foreign nationalities, you must approach the school,
with a translator if necessary, and explain the situation to them.
More often than not, if you approach the matter with a non-belligerent
attitude, you will find staff supportive and sympathetic. If you are
moving to a predominantly Spanish area, you are less likely to come
across this problem, as school staff will be more aware of your
children and will encourage their classmates to befriend them and make
them feel welcome.
School dinners
==============
If you are unable to have your children at home in the middle of the
day they will have to have school dinners as children are not normally
allowed to take packed lunches. Bear in mind that the menu will be
entirely Spanish, and that Spanish parents expect their children to eat
a good size lunch. Dinner monitors will firmly encourage your child to
eat, which can be traumatic if they are used to a more relaxed attitude
at home, and given that your child will not always understand
everything that is being said. Your child may come home complaining of
being force-fed something that he or she found disgusting to eat. You
child will NOT have been force-fed, but will have been cajoled into
making an effort, as all Spanish children are done by their parents at
lunch time. Again, tact and understanding is needed to deal with this
problem, but it can be very upsetting for your child. Please remember
that the Spanish adore children, and would never be intentionally
unkind to them. The fact is though, that if your child is a poor eater,
he or she will have to make an effort to eat more and more varied food.
Conclusion
===========
Moving your children to Spain can be a rewarding and enriching
experience for them. However, do not make the mistake of assuming that
because they are young they will automatically adapt to their new
situation, and do not underestimate the cultural as well as linguistic
challenges that such a change implies. However, with careful research,
patience, openness and understanding, there is no reason why your
child's move to Spain should not be a success.
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