Primary and Lower secondary education

No distinction is made between primary and lower secondary education in the Danish education system.

The Education Act of 1975 was implemented in 1976. The Act introduced a system of nine years of comprehensive school (grundskole) and a voluntary tenth year (Year 10). The present system of primary and lower secondary education was implemented in 1994, in accordance with the Folkeskole Act of 1993. As of 1 August 2009, compulsory education has been extended to 10 years. Schooling is not compulsory, but only very few children are home taught.

The Folkeskole

The State school in Denmark is the municipal Folkeskole. It is attended by approximately 88 % of an age cohort. The Folkeskole comprises compulsory education from pre-school class to Year 9 and an optional Year 10 .

The teaching takes its point of departure in the individual student's abilities and wishes. Students are taught in classes and they remain together throughout the entire period of compulsory school. The teaching is differentiated within the framework of the class.

The Ministry of Education lays down general curricular aims and optional guidelines. There are no prescribed textbooks.

According to the Folkeskole Act, the school must provide the children with both subject-specific qualifications and prepare them broadly for their role as citizens in a democratic society. There is close cooperation between the school and the parents.

The class teacher – normally the Danish teacher – in principle remains the same throughout the whole or greater part of the 10 years. The class teacher cooperates with the pupils on the solution of special tasks in relation to the class, ensures continuity of guidance and maintains maximum contact between the family and the school.

Pre-school class

The pre-school class (børnehaveklasse) is compulsory and forms the bridge between kindergarten/daycare activities and primary school.

Before 2009, the pre-school class was optional but was attended by nearly all children. (Only 246 children starting in Year 1 in 2004 had not attended the pre-school class.)

A ministerial order lays down a framework for goals and content of the pre-school class. Play is an important element of the teaching, which must encompass the following topics: language and forms of expression, nature and natural science phenomena, practical music, motion and motor function, social skills, interpersonal relations and cooperation.

Evaluation

The students are continuously evaluated, and teachers write progress reports twice a year. Progression to the next form is usually automatic.

Final examinations are offered at two levels: the Folkeskolens Afgangsprøve (Leaving Examination) after Year 9 or 10, and the Folkeskolens 10.-klasseprøve (Year 10 Examination, formerly Folkeskolens Udvidede Afgangsprøve, Advanced Leaving Examination) after Year 10 only. The examination subjects include Danish, mathematics, English, German and physics/chemistry. Standard rules for all examinations have been developed to ensure uniformity throughout the country. For the same reason, the questions in written examinations are set and marked centrally. There are no pass-marks for these examinations.

The Ministry of Education sets written examinations while teachers conduct oral exams. Examinations are attended by external examiners. Assessment throughout the Folkeskole is continuous, and progression to the next year is automatic. General progress (no mark) in each subject is reported to parents at least twice a year until Year 7. From Year 8, a mark is awarded in those subjects in which the leaving examination can be taken. All students receive a leaving certificate listing subjects taken, marks awarded for the year's work and examination results, if any.

As a part of the education process, regular evaluations of the students’ learning outcomes are to be carried out. The evaluations are to gauge the students’ level in terms of acquiring the knowledge and skills in the subjects and topics in accordance with the level and end objectives. The evaluations are to form the basis for providing guidance to the individual student and for the further planning and organisation of the teaching as well as being a tool for assisting in keeping the parents informed of the students’ learning outcomes.

It is made clear that the regular evaluations of the students’ learning outcomes must be in accordance with the level and end objectives of the individual subjects as they are defined under Common Objectives.

As a part of the process of evaluating the students’ learning outcomes, a range of obligatory national tests have been introduced. The tests are used in order to be able to follow the individual student’s acquisition of knowledge and skills so that the education process can be planned to a greater extent according to the individual student’s strengths, weaknesses and potential.

Students must complete the following tests:

• Danish, with a focus on reading in Years 2, 4, 6 and 8.
• English in Year 7.
• Mathematics in Year 3 and 6.
• Geography in Year 8.
• Biology in Year 8.
• Physics/chemistry in Year 8.

The tests are computer based and adaptive, meaning that they are continuously adapted to the individual student. In this way, it is assured that the tests provide a precise picture of each student’s academic level. No two students receive the exact same test. It is therefore not possible to make internal comparative evaluations of the tests within a specific class.

The test is one of a number of pedagogical tools available to the teacher. Together with the results of the evaluation, which the teachers also make use of, these tools are used in the planning of the further programme of education. The test results are also used in guiding the individual student and with a view to strengthening cooperation with parents. The parents are therefore informed in writing about the results of the tests.

In order to strengthen the process of carrying out an ongoing evaluation of the Folkeskole, a written student plan is prepared for all students at all levels. The student plans contain information about the results of the ongoing evaluations in all subjects and the course of action decided based on these results.

Folkeskole curriculum

The Ministry of Education publishes curriculum guidelines for the individual subjects, but these are seen purely as recommendations and as such are not mandatory for local school administrators. Schools are permitted to draw up their own curricula as long as they are in accordance with the aims and proficiency areas laid down by the Minister of Education. However, nearly all schools choose to conform to the centrally prepared guidelines as their binding curricula.

Compulsory Subjects:

• Danish: All years.
• English: Years 3 to 9.
• Christian studies: All Years, except for the year in which confirmation takes place.
• History: Years 3 to 9.
• Social studies: Years 8 and 9.
• Mathematics: All Years.
• Science: Years 1 to 6.
• Geography and biology: Years 7 to 9.
• Physics/chemistry: Years 7 to 9.
• PE and sport: All Years.
• Music: Years 1 to 6.
• Art: Years 1 to 5.
• Textile design, wood/metalwork and home economics: one or more of Years 4 to 7.

Schools must offer instruction in German in Years 7 to 9. The pupils may be offered instruction in French instead of German in Years 7 to 9.

Compulsory Topics: In addition to the ordinary subjects in the basic school, the following topics are compulsory and must be included in the instruction: Traffic safety; Health and sex education and family knowledge; Educational, vocational and labour market orientation.

Optional Subjects: In Years 8 to 10, students must choose at least one optional subject. In Years 8 and 9, the students must be offered optional subjects corresponding to an extent of no less than 4 lessons per week and in Year 10 corresponding to an extent of no less than 6 lessons per week.

Instruction may be offered in the following subjects and topics: French, Word processing, Technology, Media, Art, Photography, Film knowledge, Drama, Music, Textile design, Wood/metalwork, Home economics, Engine knowledge, Other workshop subjects, Vocational studies, Spanish, Everyday French, Everyday German, Common immigrant languages, Electronic data processing.

After the introduction of the Folkeskole Act of 1993, Science was included in the curriculum of Years 1 to 6. This subject combines Geography, Biology, Physics and Chemistry. It provides the basic knowledge for further study in these subjects in Years 7 to 10. The reform of the Act also introduced French as an alternative foreign language, and possible alternative to German.

Subjects in Year 10: In Year 10, instruction must be offered in the subjects of Danish, mathematics, PE and sport, Christian studies/religious education, social studies, English, and physics/chemistry.

Private schools

Some 11% of all compulsory school-age students attend a private school. The private school sector offers teaching which compares with that required in the Folkeskole, but the framework for the organisation of the teaching is less restrictive. The private schools are so-called private, self-governing institutions. The State covers approx. 85% of the expenditure of private schools.

Private education is required to measure up to that of the municipal schools. The Ministry of Education confers on private schools the right to use the municipal schools' final examinations and thereby exercises a form of indirect quality control. The parents of each private school choose a supervisor to check that its performance measures up to the demands of the municipal schools.

Continuation schools (efterskoler)

Students in Years 8-10 can choose to attend a continuation school (efterskole). Continuation schools are State-supported private boarding schools which put great emphasis on social learning, sports, music etc. in addition to the normal subjects.