Education reform: new final exams, study paths and Basic Vocational Training

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. Subjects in Primary, Secondary and Bachillerato are grouped into three blocks: core subjects, specific subjects and subjects freely set by the regional governments. The national government sets the minimum content of core subjects and the regions can add to them.
2. New individual final assessments are created at the end of Primary, Compulsory Secondary and Bachillerato. To earn the Compulsory Secondary diploma or the Bachillerato certificate, students must pass the test with at least 5 out of 10.
3. The final Secondary grade is calculated with 70 % from the average of course subjects and 30 % from the final assessment. For Bachillerato, the split is 60 % and 40 %.
4. The fourth year of Compulsory Secondary now has two tracks: academic studies leading to Bachillerato, or applied studies leading to vocational training. Learning improvement programs start from the second year.
5. New Basic Vocational Training cycles are created, mandatory to offer and free of charge, replacing the old initial qualification programs. They lead to a Basic Professional certificate that allows moving on to mid-level programs.
6. In regions with a co-official language, students are guaranteed instruction in both Spanish and that language. If there is not enough publicly funded schooling in Spanish, the Ministry can pay for enrollment in a private school.
7. Public school principals are selected through a merit competition and need a training course in school leadership, though for the first five years this will not be mandatory. Their term is four years, renewable after a positive evaluation.
8. State-funded private schools may offer single-sex education without facing less favorable treatment when renewing their funding agreements. Primary school agreements will last at least six years.

Who it affects

• Students in Primary, Secondary and Bachillerato, who will face new final assessments and more study path options.: New tests and two tracks in the fourth year of Secondary.
• Families, who choose subjects such as Religion or Ethics and can choose the school and educational track.: More weight in educational decisions.
• Young people aged 15 to 17 struggling at school, who can enter Basic Vocational Training.: A new free route to earn a certificate.
• Teachers and leadership teams of public schools.: New requirements to become principal and more management autonomy.
• Students in regions with a co-official language.: Guaranteed schooling in both Spanish and the co-official language.

Words worth knowing

Evaluación final (final assessment)

An individual test taken at the end of an educational stage, required to earn the diploma.

Asignaturas troncales (core subjects)

Common subjects whose minimum content and class hours are set by the national government for all of Spain.

Concierto educativo (school funding agreement)

An agreement under which a private school receives public money in exchange for offering free places.

Lengua cooficial (co-official language)

A language official in a region alongside Spanish, such as Catalan, Galician or Basque.

Formación Profesional dual (dual vocational training)

Vocational training that combines classroom lessons with on-the-job learning at a company.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries