Education

Literacy rate:

Males and females age 15 and over can read and write

99% of the population is literate

Switzerland has upheld high standards for educating the Swiss population with a public school system. Private schools are available but the majority of families send their children to public schools because of their reputation. In 2003 international PISA student assessments revealed better scores for public facilities. Switzerland has little to offer as far as resources, which is why their economy must rely on intelligence from the community. The country does not have a federal minister of education to keep consistency among the school systems. Despite the lack of educational organization each canton has a leader of education and the board of leaders will meet periodically to keep the system as unified as possible. Basic issues such as the length of the school year, the school day, and the number of years in each level are constant within each canton. Right now the main focus in the education department is to synchronize topics such as math, science, and foreign language because the subjects apply to situations globally.

Switzerland has divided their educational system into four main sections; preschool, primary, secondary I, secondary II, and tertiary/ adult education. The second and third stages of schooling are required and last for nine years. Depending on the rules of the canton, children have the opportunity to participate in two years of kindergarten. The age at which children are able to start attending primary school will depend on how many years of kindergarten they have completed, but the average is about 6 years of age.

Village School: Chaneltal

Secondary I is the second stage in compulsory school, in this stage the children have a general education curriculum they need to follow. Some secondary schools focus on preparing the children for career oriented activities and educate them on how to be successful in apprenticeships. The general education schools want to expand the student’s cultural knowledge and prepare them for higher level classes and global issues. Secondary II schooling takes place when the child is around 16 years old and has decided to further their education. If the child decides to continue through then this process will take another 3 or 4 years. The goal of secondary II is to prepare for the tertiary stage of education or to prepare the students for immediate delivery into the work world. Approximately ¼ of the students decide to take a break between secondary I and secondary II in order to study in a province of another language, or participate in an internship program because it will enhance further educational experiences.

The tertiary stage of education is when pupils can decide to continue with general education or professional education. A professional education can take two separate roots; the universities of applied sciences or the higher technical schools. Applied science schools were only added in 1993, but more people are attending as more majors are added to the school. Women are beginning to attend more because teaching, health and social work curriculums have been added. In 2003 39% of the students accounted for were women, but in the technological departments only 10% of the students accounted for were women. The main benefit of attending an applied science school is the practical job experience included. Higher technical schools are specialized for career related work and are organized by the government. There are currently 100 schools at the federal level. Students are prepared for more than 150 different job qualifications and by the time they graduate each student should be able to handle middle management positions.

Zurich Institute of Technology

The Swiss community is continuing to improve their education because they want their population to be equipped with the proper knowledge for global issues and partnerships with other countries. Currently Switzerland is working to introduce the English language at an early age because it is an international language. There are challenges in education that will continue to be overcome.