ORGANISATION OF THE SCHOOL YEAR IN POLAND

Organisation of a school year in Poland for primary and secondary schools is defined by the Ministry of Education and Science. The school year lasts about 185 days and is divided into two semesters. School year starts at the beginning of September and finishes around the 20th of June. The Ministry issues every year the so-called school year calendar specifying the start and end dates of a school year, holiday periods, as well as dates of tests and exams. Holiday periods consist of 2-month long summer break, 2- week long winter break, Christmas and Easter break.

Classes usually start at 8 a.m. Each class lasts 45 minutes. Breaks last at least 5 minutes and no longer than 25 minutes a lunch break. Duration of a school day also depends on the size of the school building, the number of classrooms and other school facilities. Pupils attend primary and secondary schools five days a week (from Monday to Friday). The average class in Poland has about 25 pupils.

To assess the knowledge and skills of pupils teachers use a 6-grade scale of evaluation:
6-excellent, 5- very good, 4-good, 3-fair, 2-satisfactory, 1- unsatisfactory.

In Poland children at the age of 7 start primary school and attend it for 6 years. Primary schools are divided into two stages: the first stage (grades 1 to 3) offering elementary integrated education and the second stage (grades 4 to 6). At the end of the 6-year primary school pupils have to take an external competence test which assesses their elementary knowledge. All the primary school graduates have to continue their education in a 3- year middle school. At the end they are required to pass an external examination set by external commissions. Upon completion of above mentioned education children in Poland can choose one of the following types of upper secondary education school.

3-year general secondary school offering the Matura examination

3-year specialized secondary school offering the Matura examination

4-year technical upper secondary school offering the Matura examination

3-year basic vocational school

For those students who did not pass the matura examination or who were not accepted by higher education institutions there are post-secondary schools which last one or two years.