Education system in Ireland

The education system in Ireland has three levels . A distinction is made between the three areas of primary, secondary and higher education (universities and technical colleges). Since the 1960s, the education system has been subject to major changes due to sustained economic growth. In 2011, 92 percent of the primary schools were owned by the Catholic Church .

The Department of Education and Science determines the guidelines, funding and general direction of the education system.

In addition to the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland , the Higher Education Authority and, at the local level, the Vocational Education Committees as government institutions, many other bodies under both public and private law implement the ministerial requirements . Richard Bruton has been Minister of Education since 2016 .

In 2006, 58% of Irish students were in private school . The private schools are more efficient than the public schools. However, this can be explained by the family and socio-economic background of the students.

Overview

Under the Education (Welfare) Act of 2000, all children between the ages of six and fifteen must attend a state-approved school or otherwise receive a minimum level of education. The Irish Constitution gives parents the right to home-school their children. For this purpose, an application must be submitted to the competent authority in which the planned home schooling and the individual needs of the child are explained in more detail. As part of the examination process, the authority appoints a person who asks a parent or legal guardian about homeschooling in a personal interview. If the authority deems it necessary, they appoint a person to assess the home-based education on site and assess the child's learning success.

The language used in class is English in all areas , with the exception of the schools in the Gaeltacht and the gaelscoileanna (Irish-speaking schools, so-called gaelscoil ) outside the Gaeltacht, where Irish is taught. At universities, courses are mostly offered in English.

In 1973, passing an Irish language test was abolished as a condition for completing secondary school. However, teaching the Irish language is still compulsory in publicly funded educational institutions. There are exemptions for students who have spent a long period of time abroad or who have learning difficulties.

vacation

Holidays at primary schools

• The school year runs from September 1st to June 30th. For reasons of flexibility, the school can also be opened in the last two or three weeks of August.
• The school year has 183 days (minus six study / administration days 177).
• The first major break is the last week of October (commonly known as the Halloween holiday).
• The Christmas holidays run from the last day of school before December 23rd to the first day of the week after January 6th (17-21 days).
• The second break in the half-year is a minimum of two days and a maximum of five days in the third week of February, the Shrove break.
• The Easter holidays consist of the week before and after Easter (10 school days).
• There are also flexible holidays, which are usually around the public holidays in May and July (?).

Holidays at secondary schools

• The school year in secondary schools is one month shorter and runs from September 1st to May 31st. For reasons of flexibility, the school can also be opened in the last two or three weeks of August.
• The school year has 167 days.
• The first major break is the week after the last weekend in October
• The Christmas holidays are identical.
• The second break in the six months is the third week of February.
• The final exams (Junior Certificate, comparable to Middle Reife and Leaving Certificate, comparable to Abitur ) begin on the first Wednesday in June.

Although the summer holidays are twice as long as in Germany, because of the afternoon classes, Irish students attend classes for as long as German students (total annual hours).

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Healy Stuart: Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton TD.Retrieved March 17, 2017 . 
2. ^ Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: "PISA 2006 - School Achievements in International Comparison - Scientific Competencies for Tomorrow's World". 2007. Bertelsmann Verlag, pp. 268-269
3. ↑ Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 (Section 17) (English) ( Memento of the original of September 30, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ^ Citizens Information Board: Teaching your child at home
5. ↑ Application Form R1 - Home Education (registration form from the authority with an explanation of the examination procedure)
6. ↑ Richard Burke, Minister for Education announced at press conference on April 5, 1973 ( Memento of the original from September 26, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.