Bulgaria the education system in my country

The educational system in my country

THE STRUCTUREThe structure of the educational system in Bulgaria

comprises the following levels

Pre-school education

School education

Higher education

Basic Secondary education

According to the type of instruction and the educational level, schools are:

Primary: grade 1 through grade 4; Lower secondary: grade 5 through grade 8; Basic: grade 1 through grade 8;Upper secondary schools, also called high schools: grade 9 through

grade 12;Specialized upper secondary schools/Specialized high schools;Secondary general schools, grade 1 through grade 12;Vocational upper secondary schools - grade 8 or 9 through grade 12

or grade 13; Vocational schools: from grade 7 or grade 9 with a three-year

training course; from grade 9 with a four-year training course; and professional colleges (vocational colleges) with a course of study of up to two years;

Sports schools;Arts schools;Special schools.

According to the way of funding, schools are:

State- State schools, which are of national importance and are funded by the national budget

Municipal - Municipal schools are of local importance and are funded by the municipal budget

Private - Private schools are not funded by the state or municipal budget and pupils pay fees for their education.

PRE-SCHOOL EDUCATION

Pre-primary education embraces children between 3 and 6/7 years old. Optional kindergarten education is provided for

children between three and six years old. However, prior to starting school, children

must attend a one-year pre-school program.

BASIC EDUCATIONBasic education (1-8 grades) in Bulgaria comprises:

primary school (grades 1-4) pre-secondary school (grades 5-8).

Within the framework of the same educational level additional vocational qualification could be obtained by running vocational-technical programmes upon completion of grades 6, 7 or 8. Learning resources /text books/ are free and are provided by the school. After successful completion of grade 4, a Certificate of Primary Education is issued. A Certificate of Basic Education is issued after successful completion of grade 8.

SECONDARY EDUCATION• Secondary education in Bulgaria can be divided

into secondary general /comprehensive and profile-oriented/ and vocational. Secondary general education can be attained at secondary comprehensive schools - 4 years and profile-oriented schools-4, 5 years. Students can enter the profile-oriented schools upon completion of grade 7 or 8 after passing entry examinations, according to the profile of the school (mother tongue/literature, mathematics, humanities etc.).

• Secondary vocational education can be attained at technical schools upon completion of grade 8 and a 4-years training, as well as upon completion of grade 7 and a 5-years training with intensive foreign language instruction. It is also provided by professional technical schools within a 3-years educational programme.

Specialized secondary schools – admission upon completion of grade 8 (theses are schools with emphasis either on science and/or mathematics, or on humanities, or sports, or arts etc.) They cover grades 9 through 12/13.

Vocational secondary education is available at the vocational-technical and in the technical schools. The vocational-technical schools offer 4 years of

training upon completion of grade 8 and 5 years of training upon completion of grade 7. Both result in specialized secondary education.

Secondary education (upper level) is offered by:

Secondary comprehensive schools, they cover: primary school level – grades 1 through 4; junior high school – grades 5 through 8 and secondary school level – grades 9 through 11.

Specialized schools with emphasis on foreign languages (language schools) – admission after grade 7 and upon entry exams. They cover grades 8 through 12/13.

Special education

Special education there is a network of schools – boarding schools, funded entirely by the government, for children with physical and mental disabilities. The priorities in this sphere are still to be met: adoption of legislation for providing financial support, development of alternative forms of education, establishment of a system of general schooling for admission of children from other schools and socialization of children with special needs, introduction of programs for integrated forms of education, individual instruction, etc.

The forms of instruction are:

Daytime

Evening

Part-time

Individual

Independent

Distance

Correspondence

The structure of the syllabus is based on three types of instruction: compulsory, compulsory chosen and optional.

Compulsory (General) education in Bulgarian schools is provided through the teaching and training of subjects related to the following fields of culture and education:

The structure of the syllabus

Bulgarian grammar and literatureForeign languagesMathematics, Computing, Information technologySocial sciences and civic educationNatural sciences and ecologyArtsCulture and technologyPhysical education and sport

The students in the secondary comprehensive schools go in for school-leaving exams in the following subjects:

SCHOOL-LEAVING EXAMINATIONS

Bulgarian language and LiteratureA general subject of their own choice (excluding Bulgarian language and Literature); the subject has to be included in the compulsory curriculum for the last schooling year.

Bulgarian language and Literature:The main subject of the specialized school; if it is Bulgarian language and Literature, the examination is in the second important subject of the school.

The students in the specialized/specialized secondary schools sit for school-leaving exams in the following subjects:

GRADING SYSTEMUsual grading system in the school

Full Description: 2-6;

6: otlichen (excellent);5: mnogo dobur (very good);4: dobur (good); 3: sreden (sufficient); 2: slab (poor).Highest on scale: 6Pass/fail level: 3/2Lowest on scale: 2

The Regulations on the Implementation of the Public Education Act and the school activities regulations:

- Pupils are not allowed to be absent from school without valid reason-The absence of a pupil from classes without a valid excuse counts as an ‘unexcused absence’-Provided a pupil is 15 minutes late without a valid excuse for three school hours, this is considered as an ‘unexcused absence’ for one school hour-A “transfer to another school till the end of the school year” penalty may be imposed on a pupil if he/she has more than 15 ‘unexcused absences’, with the exception of pupils in their final upper secondary school grade in both day and evening form of instruction.-If pupils fail to perform their obligations, established by the Regulations on the Implementation of the Public Education Act and the school activities regulations, they are penalized by: reprimand;� warning for transfer to another school;� transfer to another school until the end of the school year;� moving from daytime to independent form of instruction – for pupils aged �16 and above.

HIGHER EDUCATIONThe types of higher education institutions are Universities,

Colleges and Specialized Higher Schools.The university type of higher education is provided at the universities and the specialized higher schools – academies, institutes. It includes the followings stages:

• First stage – a course of study of at least 4 years, leading to a Bachelor’s degree upon graduation;

•Second stage – a course of study of at least 5 years, or 1 year following a Bachelor’s degree, leading a Master’s degree upon graduation;

•Third stage – a three-year course of study upon obtaining a master’s degree, leading to a Doctor’s degree.

Colleges are included in the system of higher education and allow the acquisition of non-

university (undergraduate) education. College graduates acquire the qualification and educational degree of “Specialist in .....”, which allows them to

practice the profession acquired. They may continue their education at a higher institution on

the basis of the qualifications acquired at secondary schools.

COLLEGES

TYPES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Four types of higher education institutions:

Higher Education College (non-university higher education institution) University Equivalent to Universities Specialized Higher Education Institution/Technical University Academy

Certificate/diploma awarded

Grade fourth Leaving CertificateBasic Education Completion CertificateDiploma of Completed Secondary EducationDiploma of Completed Secondary Education

and Certificate of Professional Qualification Diploma of higher education