Education system

Primary education

Children are allowed to begin school at the age of four, but are not legally required to do so until the age of five. Primary education lasts eight years (of which seven are compulsory), in the last year of which pupils are advised as to the type of secondary education they should pursue.

Secondary education

practical education
This is education according to the following principles:
* assist pupils to develop themselves
* take care of a pleasant and save learning environment
* teach several theoretical and practical skills

vmbo
Secondary education, which begins at the age of twelve and is compulsory until the age of sixteen, is offered at several levels. VMBO programmes (four years) combine general and vocational education, after which pupils can continue in senior secondary vocational education and training (MBO) lasting one to four years.

havo and vwo
The two programmes of general education that grant admission to higher education are HAVO(five years) and VWO (six years). Pupils are enrolled according to their ability, and although VWO is more rigorous, both HAVO and VWO can be characterized as selective types of secondary education. Only the VWO diploma grants access to research universities, and the HAVO diploma is the minimum requirement for access to universities of applied sciences. The last two years of HAVO and the last three years of VWO are referred to as the tweede fase (literally, second phase), or upper secondary education. During these years, pupils focus on one of four subject clusters (profielen), each of which emphasizes a certain field of study in addition to satisfying general education requirements. Each cluster is designed to prepare pupils for programmes of study at the tertiary level.

A pupil enrolled in VWO or HAVO can choose from the following subject clusters:
1) Science and Technology (Natuur en Techniek)
2) Science and Health (Natuur en Gezondheid)
3) Economics and Society (Economie en Maatschappij)
4) Culture and Society (Cultuur en Maatschappij)

“Op school hebben we samen veel lol, maar je moet natuurlijk ook goed je best doen.”

“Veel huiswerk kun je al op school maken, dus thuis hoef je niet veel te doen.”

“Je mag op deze school veel meer en je kunt ook stagelopen.”

“Het is hier leuk, want je krijgt veel creatieve vakken zoals handvaardigheid en tekenen.”

“In de kantine kun je met je klasgenoten wat eten en drinken.”

“Het is hier anders dan op de basisschool, maar erg leuk! Je maakt snel nieuwe vrienden.”

“We vinden het hier heel gezellig en we hoeven gelukkig niet zover te fietsen.”

“Er zijn leuke docenten die je graag helpen met dingen waar je moeite mee hebt.”

“Je bent niet de enige die zenuwachtig is. Bijna iedereen vindt de eerste schooldag spannend!”

“Tip: pak je tas de avond van te voren in, dat scheelt ’s morgens veel tijd!”

“Je heb geen vaste tijden zoals op de basisschool. Soms ben je vroeg vrij en soms heb je tot laat les.”

“De spullen kunnen in je eigen kluisje. Dat scheelt, zo hoef je niet met een zware tas te sjouwen.”

“We hebben een heel leuk rooster en het is ook leuk om steeds vaak van lokaal te veranderen.”

“Je leert de andere kinderen snel kennen en er zijn ook leuke leraren en leraressen.”