Education in Belgium

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The different levels of education in Flanders

Education in Belgium is regulated and for the larger part financed by one of the three communities. The national legislator only kept a very few, minimal competences for education as the age for mandatory schooling, and, indirectly, the financing of the communities. All the three communities have a unified school system, with small differences between the different communities.

The schools can be divided in three groups (Dutch: netten; French: réseaux):

Schools owned by the communities (GO! Onderwijs van de Vlaamse gemeenschap; réseau de la Communauté française)
Subsidized public schools (officieel gesubsidieerd onderwijs; réseau officiel subventionné), organized by provinces and municipalities
Subsidized free schools (vrij gesubsidieerd onderwijs; réseau libre subventionné), mainly organized by an organization affiliated to the Catholic church

The latter is the largest group, both in number of schools and in number of pupils.

Education in Belgium is compulsory between the ages of 6 and 18. Private home education is possible, though very rarely applied.

In the 2003 PISA-study [1] by the OECD, the Belgian students scored relatively high. The results of the Dutch-speaking students were somewhat better than the scores of the French-speaking students.

1 Stages of education
2 Pre-school
3 Primary school
4 Secondary school
- 4.1 Structure in Belgium
5 Higher Education
6 See also
7 External links
8 References

[edit] Stages of education

The different stages of education are the same in all communities:

Basic education (Dutch: basisonderwijs; French: enseignement fondamental), consisting of
- Pre-school (kleuteronderwijs; einseignement maternel): -6 years
- Primary school (lager onderwijs; enseignement primaire): 6-12 years
Secondary school (secundair onderwijs; enseignement secondaire): 12-18 years
Higher education (hoger onderwijs; enseignement supérieure)
- University (universiteit; université)
- Polytechnic/Vocational university (hogeschool; haute école)

[edit] Pre-school

Free pre-primary schooling (Dutch: kleuteronderwijs; French: einseignement maternel; German: Kindergarten) is provided to every child from the age of 2 years 6 months. In most schools the child can start in school as soon as they reach this age, so class size for the youngest children grows during the year. In the Flemish region, start dates are limited to 6 per year, after a school holiday period and the first school day in February.

The aim of the pre-school is to develop, in a playful way, children's cognitive skills, their capacity to express themselves and communicate, their creativity and independence. There are no formal lessons or assessments, and everything is done in a playful way.

Although it is not compulsory, more than 90% of all children in the age category attend pre-school.[2]

Most pre-schools are attached to a primary school. Some schools offer special pre-primary education for children with disabilities or other special needs.

[edit] Primary school

Primary school (Dutch: lager onderwijs; French: enseignement primaire; German: Grundschule) consists of six years and the subjects given are generally the same at all schools. Primary schooling is free and age is the only entrance requirement.

Primary education is divided into three cycles (Dutch: graden; French: degrés):

First cycle (year 1 and 2)
Second cycle (year 3 and 4)
Third cycle (year 5 and 6)

Education in primary schools is rather traditional: it concentrates on reading, writing and basic mathematics, but also touches already a very broad range of topics (biology, music, religion, history...).

Flemish schools in Brussels and some municipalities near the linguistic border, must offer French lessons starting from the first or the second year. Most other Flemish school offer French education in the third cycle. Primary schools in the French Community must teach a foreign language, which is generally Dutch or English, depending on the school. Primary schools in the German Community have oblidged French lessons.

There are also some private schools set up to serve various international communities in Belgium (e.g. children of seafarers or European diplomats), mainly around the larger cities. Some schools offer special primary education for children with disabilities or other special needs.

[edit] Secondary school

When graduating from primary school around the age of 12, students enter secondary education. Here they have to choose a direction that they want to follow, depending on their skill level and interests.

secondary education is consists of three cycles (Dutch: graden; French: degrés):

First cycle (year 1 and 2)
Second cycle (year 3 and 4)
Third cycle (year 5 and 6)

The first cycle provides a broad general basis, with only a few options to choose from (e.g. Latin, additional mathematics, technology). This should enable students to orient themselves in the most suitable way towards the many different directions available in the second and third stages.

[edit] Structure in Belgium

Secondary school is divided into four general types. Each type consists of a set of different directions that may vary from school to school. The general types are as follows:

General Secondary Education (Dutch: Algemeen Secundair Onderwijs; AS0;French: Enseignement Secondaire général. About 40% of all pupils [3].): A very broad, general education, preparing for higher education. Once students have completed all six years, it is expected that they will continue studying (e.g.: university or college). The job market considers an ASO diploma alone as useless, so a continued study in higher education is not only implied but even necessary to get a job. Possible directions include (eventually combinations of): ancient Greek and Latin, Modern Languages (stressing French and Dutch, English and German), Sciences (chemistry, physics, biology and geography), Mathematics, Economy, and Human Sciences (psychology, sociology, media).
Technical Secondary Education (Dutch: Technisch Secundair Onderwijs; TSO;French: Enseignement Secondaire technique. About 30% of all pupils.): The TSO is divided into two groups of education again: TTK and STK. The TTK courses focus more on the technical aspects, The STK courses focus more on the practical matter. Both have a generally education into math, languages, history, science en geography but mostly not that in that extent as in ASO courses. It's given in a less theory and in a more technical and practical approach. Once students have completed all six years they are either ready for the job market (STK courses mostly) or continue study (TTK courses mostly). The continued studies could be a seventh specialization year (mostly SSK students take a this as an option), bachelor studies or even master studies. Possible directions include several Office management-like directions, practical ICT, Tourism, Health, Trade, Engineering, Communications,...
Vocational Secondary Education (Dutch: Beroepssecundair Onderwijs; BSO;French: Enseignement Secondaire professionnel. About 30% of all pupils): Very practical and very job specific education. Afterwards, several directions offer seventh, sometimes eighth, specialisation years. Possible directions include Carpentry, Car mechanics, Jewelry, Masonry... BSO is the only type of secondary education that does not qualify students to pursue higher education. If the student elects to follow the optional 7th (and sometimes 8th), he/she will receive a diploma of the same level as a TSO diploma, which does allow him/her to pursue higher education.
Art Secondary Education (Dutch: Kunstsecundair onderwijs; KSO;French: Enseignement Secondaire artistique. About 2% of all pupils.): These schools links general and broad secondary education development with active art practice, ranging from performance arts to display arts. Depending on the direction, several subjects might be purely theoretical allowing for higher education. Directions include dancing (Ballet school), acting, and several graphical and musical arts. Many students graduating from these schools go to music conservatories, higher ballet or acting schools or art colleges to fulfill themselves in their art.

Students with disabilities can follow Special Secondary Education (Dutch: Buitengewoon Secundair Onderwijs; BuSO; ;French: Enseignement Secondaire spécial), in different types.

[edit] Higher Education

Higher education in Belgium is organized by the two main communities, the Flemish Community and the French Community. German speakers typically enroll in institutions in the French Community or in Germany.

[edit] Admission to universities and colleges

In Belgium anybody with a qualifying diploma of secondary education is free to enroll at any institute of higher education of their choosing. The 3 major exceptions to this rule are those wanting to pursue a degree in:

Medicine/Dentistry: prospective medicine or dentistry students must take an entrance exam organized by the government. This exam was introduced in the 1990s to control the influx of students. This nowadays is only held in Flanders, not anymore in all French Community Universities
Arts: entrance exams to arts programs, which are mainly of a practical nature, are organized by the colleges individually.
Engineering Sciences: leading to the degree of Master of Science (Dutch: Burgerlijk ingenieur, French: Ingénieur Civil), these faculties had a long standing tradition of requiring an entrance exam (mainly focused on mathematics); the exam has now been abolished in the Flemish Community but is still organized in the French Community.

[edit] Cost of higher education

The registration fee for any university or college is fixed by the government, and indexed yearly. Depending on whether the student is eligible and applies for financial aid, there are 3 prices:

Bursary-student: A student who is eligible and has applied for financial aid. (registration fee approximately €80)
Almost-bursary student: A student who is not eligible for financial aid, but has a family income below €1.286,09. (registration fee approximately €320)
Non-bursary student: Anyone not eligible for financial aid with an income above €1.286,09. (registration fee approximately €520)

The financial aid awarded by the community governments depends on the income of the student's family, and other familial circumstances, but is never more than approximately €3300 per year.

[edit] Bologna changes

Prior to the adoption of the Bologna process, the Belgian higher education system had the following degrees:

Graduate degree (Dutch: gegradueerde, French: gradué): typically a 3 year long program at a college, with a vocational character, also called short type or one cycle higher education.

Candidate degree (Dutch: kandidaat, French: candidat): the first 2 years at a University (3 years for medicine studies) or at some colleges offering long type or two cycle programs. This diploma had no finality than to give access to the licentiate studies.

Licentiate diploma (Dutch: licentiaat, French: licencié): The second cycle, leading to a degree after typically 2 years (3 years for civil engineers or lawyers, 4 years for medicine).

A University education was not considered finished until the licentiate diploma is obtained. Occasionally it was possible to switch specializations after obtaining the candidate diploma. For example, a student with a mathematics candidate diploma was often allowed to start in the third year of computer science class. Sometimes a graduate diploma was also accepted as an equivalent to a candidate diploma (with additional courses if necessary), allowing for 2 or 3 more years of education at a University.

Since the adoption of the Bologna process in most European countries, the higher education system in Belgium follows the Bachelor/Master system:

Bachelor's degree: 3 years. Distinction is to be made between the professional bachelor (Dutch: professionele bachelor), which replaces the former graduate degree and which has a finality, and the academic bachelor which replaces the candidate degree and which gives access to master's studies
Master's degree: 1 or 2 years

In Belgium, both Universities and Colleges are allowed to teach Bachelor and Master classes, either professional or academical.

After obtaining a Master's degree, talented students can pursue research projects leading to a doctorate degree. PhD's are only awarded by Universities.