In Sweden - Education - Education system - Upper secondary education

UPPER SECONDARY EDUCATION

Upper secondary education in Sweden has passed through a period of reforms and developments in the last 25 years. In 1970 the then existing different types of schools for theoretical and vocational education at upper secondary level were amalgamated into one school, the gymnasieskola, designed to accomodate all young adults. The final leaving examination of the former gymnasium for university preparatory studies had been abolished two years earlier. During the 1970s and 1980s, a number of measures were taken to improve upper secondary schooling so as to match the needs of the labour market and those of higher education with the wishes and requirements of young people. At the end of the 1980s, a reform of the structure of the upper secondary school was initiated, which in 1991 led to major alterations to the 1985 Education Act. A new system of upper secondary education was introduced in the 1992–93 school year and was fully implemented by the school year 1994–1995.

The most important objective of the reform was to raise the general educational level and prepare every-one for life-long learning. A second objective was to increase the scope of individual choice for each pupil. The background was the rapid development in working life where new occupations are developed with more complex content and where future changes are unpredictable. By making the upper secondary school more flexible young people should be equipped to meet these challenges. In order to prepare all young people for the demands of a changing working life as well as for further studies, the reform extended all the upper secondary programmes to three years and introduced the same core subjects in all the 16 national programmes.

Municipalities are since 1992 obliged by law to provide upper secondary schooling for all pupils leaving compulsory school. Municipalities must offer a comprehensive selection of national programmes and admissions capacity for the various programmes must be adapted to pupils’ preferences. In principle, students have the right to have their primary option fulfilled. If a municipality is unable to provide all programmes, it can enter into agreement to cooperate with other municipalities. Two or several municipalities which together provide education in a national programme constitute a cooperation region for that programme. Certain programmes are organized for pupils from all over the country. Upper secondary education can also be provided by county councils, mainly in agriculture, forestry, horticulture and certain caring occupations.

Upper secondary education is voluntary and free of charge. (The right to start upper secondary education applies up to and including the calendar year in which the pupil is 20. Thereafter there is an opportunity to take part in adult upper secondary education.) Almost all, 98 percent, of compulsory school leavers continue studying in upper secondary school.

A compulsory school leaving certificate qualifies pupils to apply for upper secondary school, irrespective of the optional subjects taken at the upper level of compulsory school. However, in order to pursue a national programme or a specially designed programme pupils are required to have at least pass grades in Swedish, English and mathematics from the compulsory school.

National programmes

There are sixteen nationally determined programmes. All study programmes provide a broad-based general education and gives general eligibility for entrance to higher education. They also prepare for working life. All study programmes contain the same eight core subjects: Swedish, English, civics, religious studies, mathematics, science, sports and health as well as artistic activities. In addition to these, pupils take subjects which are specific to their programmes. Fourteen of the programmes include vocational subjects.

The national programmes are frameworks within which the pupils can choose various spezialisations. Most national programmes are divided into branches for the second and third year. In addition to the national branches that are drawn up centrally, municipalities may choose to set up local branches adapted to local needs and conditions.

The national programmes are the following:

The Parliament has approved the proposal by the Government to introduce a technology programme as from the school year 2000/2001.

Specially designed programmes

Pupils with interests other than those covered by the 16 national programmes can opt to follow a specially designed programme. A specially designed programme corresponds to a national programme in terms of the level of education and it is also normally three years. It always covers the eight core subject courses, but may then for instance combine courses from different national programmes and locally devised courses. In this way it offers both municipalities and pupils even greater freedom of choice and flexibility than the 16 national programmes do. Specially designed programmes may be compiled by municipalities and offered as alternatives to pupils applying for secondary school. A specially designed programme can also be individually tailored by a pupil together with the school in order to cater for his or her individual learning needs.

The Individual programme

The individual programme is meant to be a pathway within the upper secondary school for students who leave the compulsory school without full qualification to enter the upper secondary school’s national programmes, or students lacking knowledge of the Swedish language or having other individual needs which can not be catered for within a national programme. The aim is however to help and assist the student to transfer at a later stage to a national or specially designed programme. Since the individual programme shall both support and follow the student’s needs and interest, it can vary both in respect of duration and content. Within the individual programme there is also an opportunity to combine vocational training as an employee in a company (apprenticeship training) with study of core subjects at the upper secondary school.

Pilot scheme with a new modern apprentice education

A new form of apprenticeship programme in the upper secondary school is being tried out in order to strengthen the interaction between upper secondary school and working life. As an alternative study option it aims at giving the pupils the possibility to carry out most of their training at a working place as well as giving industry the opportunity to influence the content and organisation of the education. The content of the apprenticeship training is regulated by a contract between the pupil, the school, and the work place. The apprenticeship programme must meet the same goals as other national programmes (the pupils study the eight core subjects) and also leads to basic eligibility for higher education studies.

The apprenticeship programme is planned to become part of the regular school activities as from the autumn 2000.

Organisation of the school

The vast majority of upper secondary schools are municipal and most students attend the school in the municipality they live. The number of pupils normally varies between 300 and 1,500. All schools are co-eduactional. Various types of education within one school can be located to different buildings, and in many places upper secondary pupils and students in municipal adult education share the same building. The number of pupils per class does not usually exceed 30. Most of the independent (private) upper secondary schools are found in the major urban areas and there are great variations between them in terms of programmes on offer. The average number of pupils in independent upper secondary schools is approximately 130.

The school year has the same allocation of time in compulsory and upper secondary school. The school year is divided into two terms and should comprise not less than 178 and not more than 190 school days (Monday–Friday) and 12 days of holiday. The Autumn term lasts from the end of August to the end of December, the Spring term from the beginning of January to the beginning of June. The exact dates vary from year to year and from one municipality to another.

Curriculum

The curriculum for upper secondary school and for other non-compulsory types of school (municipal adult education, the national school for adults, the upper secondary school for intellectually disabled and adult education for intellectually disabled) came into force 1994.

The curriculum contains binding regulations for the school and thus steers its activity. The introductory section of the curriculum curriculum sets out the basic values and tasks that apply to the whole of the non-compulsory school system. The following sections deal with the specific tasks and goals of the different kinds of non-compulsory school.

Goals and guidelines are specified for the following areas: knowledge, norms and values, responsibility and influence of pupils, choice of education - work and civic life, assessment and grades, responsibility of the head teacher. The goals specify the orientation of work in the school and are (as in the curriculum for compulsory education) of two kinds: goals to aim for and goals to be attained.

Programme objectives and syllabi supplement the curriculum.There are programme objectives for all national programmes. There are syllabi for all courses, stating not only the aims and goals of the course but also the minimum knowledge to be attained by pupils on completion of the course. The syllabi for the core subjects are laid down by the Government and the National Agency for education lays down the syllabi for the various subjects specific to a programme. Decisions on local courses are made by the school organiser.

The timetables for national programmes, which are attached to the Education Act, express in units of 60 minutes the teacher or supervisor-led instruction time which is normally aimed for. The teaching-time may however vary according to the needs of the pupils. The teaching time is 2,150 hours for the arts, social science and natural science programmes and 2,370 hours for the other programmes, over the three years. The local education authority or school decides when different subjects are to be studied and how long the lessons should be.

All national programmes contain eight core subjects. They make up approximately one third of the total period of upper secondary education.

Core subject Tuition-time per three-year
programme in hours
Swedish/Swedish as a second language 200
English 110
Mathematics 110
Civics 90
Sports and health studies 80
Science 30
Religious studies 30
Aesthetic activities 30

In addition to the core subjects pupils take subjects which are specific to their programme. All pupils are also to carry out a project during their course of studies. In all programmes time is provided for local supplements, as well as for individual options to allow pupils to choose additional subjects and courses within the national programmes.

In the 14 vocational programmes at least 15 weeks of the pupils’ total time should be spent on training at a work place. The school is responsible for procuring such training opportunities and for supervising pupils under such training.

Assessment/certification/guidance

The award of marks in upper secondary education is a continuous process, i.e. marks are awarded on the completion of every course and not for individual subjects or for each term. Marks are also given for special project work.

Marks are awarded on a four-category scale: Fail, Pass, Pass with Distinction and Pass with Special Distinction. The scope of a course is expressed by a number of upper secondary school points. Pupils are not compared with one another. Attainment is measured in relation to the goals for the entire course. The criteria for awarding marks is specified in the different syllabi. To support this centrally compiled tests have been developed in certain subjects. At the end of upper secondary schooling students receive a leaving certificate which summarises the marks they have achieved in all courses studied. All three-year programmes meet with the general eligibility requirements for access to studies at institutions of higher education. The two programmes which focus more on university entrance also meet most of the specific entrance requirements.

The Government has proposed and the Parliament approved that an upper secondary examination should be introduced for pupils starting education in the school year 2000/2001, including a more extensive dissertation work.

Overall responsibility for educational guidance has been given to the school heads of the upper secondary school. They have to ensure that the pupils obtain guidance on the educational choices at the school as well as guidance to further studies and vocational training. Vocational guidance is concerned both with the labour market as a whole and with individual sectors. Practical guidance on working life is also organized in most of the programmes, and contact with working life is an integral part of teaching. Cooperation between schools and working life proceeds partly through the medium of joint committees for the programmes of local upper secondary schools. Some municipalities also have joint planning committees.

Teachers

Teachers of general subjects have a university degree in two or three subjects. They have also received one year’s training in the theory and practice of teaching, subsequent to their subject studies. The minimum requirements for a University Diploma in Education for Upper Secondary School, valid as from the academic year 1993–94, are four years’ study with 2 years for the main subject, 1 ½ years for other subjects (2 years for modern languages, Swedish, civics or artistic-practical subjects) and one year’s pedagogical training. Upper secondary schools also have subject teachers with a Ph.D. degree or similar qualification. All teachers are municipal emlpoyees and they work full-time as well as part-time.

Vocational teaching in upper secondary schools is provided by subject teachers with advanced economic or technical qualifications or by vocational teachers who have completed vocational training and studies of vocational theory. They have also acquired long experience of their trades and undergone teacher training at institutes of education.

Teacher training is currently being reviewed by a commission of inquiry, appointed by the Government. Its tasks are, among other things, to define objectives and priciples for regulation of teacher training as well as to put forward proposals as regards dimensioning and recruitment to teacher training courses. One aim is to boost recruitment to teacher-training courses in mathematics, natural sciences and technology.

The municipalities, which are the employers of teachers, also have the responsibility for the in-service training of teachers.

Statistics

In 1998-99 there were 309,100 pupils in upper secondary education. There were 624 upper secondary schools, of which 13 per cent were run by private organisers and 17 per cent were run by county councils.

There were 23,500 annual workers in upper secondary education. The pupil/teacher ration was 13.2.

Percentage of students per type of programme:

Individual programmes 6%
Specially designed programmes 5%
National Programmes

whereof

Natural sciences
Social sciences
14 Vocationally oriented programmes

 88%

 

20%
25%
43%

Almost all pupils (97 %) leaving compulsory in the spring 1998 were enrolled in upper secondary education in the following autumn.

Around three quarters (74 %) of pupils starting upper secondary education in 1994-95 had completed an upper secondary program within the next four years.

Almost half of the pupils (45 %) who completed upper secondary education in the spring 1995 had begun higher education studies within the next three years. Ten years earlier the share was around 20 per cent.

Three quarters of the 16-19 year-olds participated in upper secondary education.

Data are from 1998, the source is the National Agency for Education, report 167 "Child Care and School Statistics 1999:2"

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