The Education System in Spain

1. The Education System in Spain International Programme: Coping with Inclusion in Primary Schools March 13-24, 2006

2. Summary 1. Education and Society 2. Spanish Educational System 2.1.Principles and Legislation of the Educational System 2. 2. Structure of the del Educational System 2.3. Calendars and School Schedules

3. 1. Education and Society Spain is located in the South West of Europe, occupying great part of the Iberian Peninsula and the archipelagos of “Islas Baleares” (Mediterranean sea) and “Canarias” (Atlantic ocean); Spain also possesses a small territory in the north coast of Africa. (Ceuta and Melilla) According to its geographic and historical conditions, Spain possesses a great linguistical and cultural variety, since its population is the result of historical interrelations among different cultures, with different traditions and different lanuages that provide a rich range of culture and art basis. FOR MORE INFORMATION... http://www.eurydice.org/Eurybase/Application/frameset.asp?country=SP&language=EN

4. 1.1. Main Legislative and Executive Organs: The Constitution of 1978 is the principal law that regulates Spain. The political form is the Parliamentary Monarchy, being the King the Head of State. The legislative power resides in the Parliament, which is representative of the Spanish population by general election every four years. 1.2. Religions: The Constitution guarantees the religious ideological freedom of the individuals and the communities. 1.3. Linguistic situation: The official language of Spain is “Castellano” (Spanish). Nevertheless, there are also other Spanish languages which are official in their respective regions. These languages are the Catalonian, the Gallego, the Valencian.

5. 2.1. Legislative framework of the Education: 2.1.Educational System : Principles and Legislation The legislative framework that governs the Spanish educational system is formed by the Spanish Constitution (1978) and four constitutional laws that develop the principles and rights established in it: • The Organic Act 11/1983 of University Reform (LRU) • The Organic Act 8/1985 regulating of the Right of Education (LODE) • The Organic Act 1/1990 of General Ordering of the Educational System (LOGSE) and • The Organic Act 9/1995 of the Participation, Evaluation and Government of the educational institutions (LOPEG) • The Organic Act 2002 on the Quality of Education (LOCE)

6. 2.2. Educational System: Structure The Spanish educational system is at present in a process of global reform of all its phases and levels of teaching. The educational system established by the LOGSE and the LRU: The LOGSE structures the educational system into two blocks, general and special teaching. General education: Children education, primary education, the secondary education, the specific vocational training of upper degree and the university education. Special teaching: Arts and languages teaching. Also the education of the adult people and the special education.

7. 4.1.1. General Teaching: • Children Education, The LOGSE establishes it as the first level of the educational system. It is a voluntary phase. This level finishes at the age of the 6 years old, and there are two parts: the first one till the age of 3 and the other till the age of 6. With respect to the methodology, the regulation that develops the law marks some principles based on the elaborate constructivists learning theories of Piaget, Vigotsky and Ausubel, among others, but establishes no specific method, since the educational team of each centre must decide what strategies and what pedagogical methods are the most adequate. The evaluation in the children education should be global, continuous and formative.

8. The primary education, is the first level of the obligatory teaching and is, therefore, free, with a global and integrative character. It comprises six academic courses, from the age of six to the age of 12. The evaluation of the learning processes should be global, continuous and formative. The promotion from a cycle to another will be done provided that the students have reached the corresponding objectives. The religion must be offered in all the centres and elective for the students. For those that, by decision of their parents, don’t choose that subject, other activities should be organized about analysis and reflection of different aspects of the cultural and social life.

9. Secondary education comprises the following phases: the obligatory secondary education, the degree and the specific vocational training of medium degree. • The complete obligatory secondary education the basic teaching and comprises four academic courses, between 12 and 16. The students that reach all the objectives of this phase receive the title of Graduate in Secondary Education that authorizes the development of a degree or to the specific vocational training of medium level. For those students who don’t achieve the aim, specific programs of social guarantee can be organized, in order to providing them a professional and basic formation that allow them to be incorporated to the active life or to continue with their studies.

10. The “degree” (Bachillerato) has a duration of two years (16-18 years old). The students that obtain a positive evaluation in all the matters of any of the modalities, receive the title of secondary graduate, with which they can get to university or so specific superior levels. The teachings in the secondary education are structured in modalities, some more professional than the other, facilitating so that each student can elect his own formative itinerary in function of his capacities and professional and academic interests. There are four modalities: arts, natural and health sciences, liberal arts and social sciences, and technology. The methodological orientation of the processes of teaching and learning in the degree tries to favour the capacity of the student to learn by himself, to work in group and to apply the appropriate methods of investigation. The evaluation is continuous. It is carried out by subjects and in relation to the educational objectives and the criteria of evaluation established in the own curriculum of each educational administration.

11. The vocational training provides the assembly of teachings that qualify for the qualified performance of the different professions. The specific vocational training constitutes the strictly professional formation. There are two degrees: the vocational training of medium degree and the vocational training of upper degree. The first one of them is inserted immediately after the obligatory secondary education and it is necessary to possess of the title of Graduate in Secondary Education. The students that surpass the teachings of specific vocational training of medium degree and of degree will receive, respectively, the title of Technician and of Upper Technician of the corresponding profession.

12. 4.1.2. University Education: Five types of teachings exist: • Teachings only of first cycle, that have a clear career guidance, without continuity with a second cycle. • Teachings of two cycles without intermediate qualification. • Teachings of two cycles with intermediate degree. • Teachings only of second cycle. • Teachings of third cycle. Besides these conducive modalities with official recognition, the universities can offer courses of professional specialization, very extended and demanded, although they are not recorded among the studies of general state.

13. 4.1.3. Teachings of Special State: • Dance and Music • Drama Studies • Art Studies • Conservation and restauration of Cultural Goods • Language Studies

14. 4.1.4. Special Education: The concept of special educational needs is in relation to the idea of diversity of the students and is defined like the assembly of supports and adaptations that the student needs to carry out his processes of development and learning in the educational system in ordinary centres. The schooling differentiated in units or central specific of special education only will be carry out when the needs of the student cannot be attended in an ordinary educational centre. This situation will be revised periodically, so that the access of the students to a state of greater integration can be favoured, provided it is possible14.

15. Attention to the students with special educational needs The 2002 organic act on the quality of education (LOCE) establishes the concept of ‘pupils with specific educational needs’, which comprises three types of pupils. • Pupils who require compensatory education. • Foreign pupils: pupils coming from foreign countries. • Highly-gifted pupils. • Pupils with special educational needs: pupils with physical, psychical, sensorial disabilities or with serious personality or conduct disorders. The centres of children education, are suitable places to make students with special educational needs develop their maximum possibilities. With respect to the objectives these students should obtain are the same as for the remainder of their companions, nevertheless, the goals should be more specific and the method more individualized according to the development and capacity of each student.

16. Teaching Methods and Materials Both in mainstream and in the specific Special Education schools, the methodological assistance lent to these pupils must comply with the educational principles established for the school-age population in general: • Take the pupil's level of development as a point of departure. This means accommodating each pupil's intellectual, communicational-linguistic, social-affective and motor characteristics, since here diversity prevails. • Guarantee significant learning. More than anyone else, pupils with special educational needs require learning to be applicable to their daily living skills and to serve as a basis to gain access to subsequent learning. • Enable pupils to undertake significant learning on their own (learning to learn). In order to achieve this, pupils with special educational needs must be provided with the necessary skills and procedures to be able to learn on an independent basis. • Promote both physical and intellectual activity. Such pupils must be active elements in their learning process in order to be able to assimilate and fully comprehend the activities and operations they are undertaking. This may be achieved with the aid of their teacher or their peers although they will admittedly need more help and/or a different kind of help in order to do so.

17. 2.3. SCHOOL SCHEDULES

19. Students of Cádiz University, Spain Verónica Coello Delgado Fátima García Roncel Nuria Vázquez Fernández Coordinator: Patricia Sabbatella