dimanche 17 février 2008

Education in France

The French educational system is divided into three different stages:
primary, secondary and higher education.
At the primary and secondary levels, the curriculum is the same for all French students in any given grade.
Many parents start sending their children around age 3 to kindergarten , and Primary school is for pupils aged 6 to 10.
The names of the grades seem complicated and illogical, don't they??
Maternelle (Kindergarten)
Age Grade Abbreviation
3 -> 4 Petite section PS
4 -> 5 Moyenne section MS
5 -> 6 Grande section GS
École élémentaire (Primary school)
Age Grade Abbreviation
6 -> 7 Cours préparatoire CP
7 -> 8 Cours élémentaire première année CE1
8 -> 9 Cours élémentaire deuxième année CE2
9 -> 10 Cours moyen première année CM1
10 -> 11 Cours moyen deuxième année CM2

















French secondary education is divided into two schools:

  • the collège for the first four years directly following primary school;
  • the lycée for the next three years.

The Brevet des collèges is the first official diploma a pupil has to sit at the end of the final year at "collège"

The completion of secondary studies leads to the baccalauréat, it is the end-of-lycée diploma students sit for in order to enter university, a classe préparatoire, or professional life. The term baccalauréat refers to the diploma and the examinations themselves. It is comparable to English & Welsh A-Levels, American SATs or ACTs, the Irish Leaving Certificate, Australia's Higher School Certificate and the German Abitur.

Collège (Junior High)
Age Grade Abbreviation
11 -> 12 Sixième 6e
12 -> 13 Cinquième 5e
13 -> 14 Quatrième 4e
14 -> 15 Troisième 3e
Lycée (High school)
Age Grade Abbreviation
15 -> 16 Seconde 2nde
16 -> 17 Première 1ere
17 -> 18 Terminale Term or Tle
the school year extends from early-September to early-July.

Major holiday breaks are as follows:

All Saints (la Toussaint), one and a half weeks around the end of October and the beginning of November;
Christmas (Noël), two weeks around Christmas Day and New Year's Day;
winter (hiver), two weeks starting in mid-February;
spring (printemps) or Easter (Pâques) , two weeks starting in mid-April;
summer (été), two months starting in early-July.

1 commentaire:

JoAnna a dit…

What a great, concise explanation of that which is the French education system. It is so confusing to me!

BONJOUR!