Cantonal School Systems
While compulsory schooling in Switzerland is 9 years long, many of the specifics of the system vary by canton. In most cases, the primary level lasts 6 years, and the lower secondary level 3 years. In only a few cantons, the primary level lasts 4 or 5 years and entrance to the lower secondary level thus occurs either in school year 5 (duration: 5 years) or school year 6 (duration: 4 years). In more than half of the cantons, it is compulsory to attend pre-school. In almost all cantons, the municipalities are obliged to provide pre-school classes.
This table shows the school system for 2009/2010 and how the lower secondary schools are organized:
| Canton | Years of Kindergarten |
Years of Kindergarten provided | Years of Kindergarten legally required | Length of Primary School | Length of mandatory Secondary School | Separate Secondary Schools? | Cooperative Secondary Schools? | Integrated Secondary Schools? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
| Bern | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Lucerne | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Uri | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Schwyz | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Obwalden | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Nidwalden | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Glarus | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Zug | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Fribourg | 2 | 1 or 2 | 0 or 2 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Solothurn | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Basel-Stadt | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | Yes | No | No |
| Basel-Landschaft | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | Yes | No | No |
| Schaffhausen | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Appenzell Ausserrhoden | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Appenzell Innerrhoden | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| St. Gallen | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 3 | No | No | Yes |
| Graubünden | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
| Aargau | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | Yes | No | No |
| Thurgau | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
| Ticino | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 4 | Yes | No | No |
| Vaud | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 5 | Yes | No | No |
| Valais | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
| Neuchâtel | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 4 | Yes | No | No |
| Geneva | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
| Jura | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 3 | Yes | No | No |
Read more about this topic: Education In Switzerland
Famous quotes containing the words school and/or systems:
“The future is built on brains, not prom court, as most people can tell you after attending their high school reunion. But you’d never know it by talking to kids or listening to the messages they get from the culture and even from their schools.”
—Anna Quindlen (b. 1953)
“Before anything else, we need a new age of Enlightenment. Our present political systems must relinquish their claims on truth, justice and freedom and have to replace them with the search for truth, justice, freedom and reason.”
—Friedrich Dürrenmatt (1921–1990)