Schools in Oslo are known for being the best performing in mathematics, reading and sciences. Education in Noway, in general, ranked 9th out of 75 countries in the 2018 PISA rankings. The region’s education system consists of the following stages.
Compulsory education starts at the age of six and ends at 16 years. The government mandates that all children attend school for ten years. Before compulsory education, most children are enrolled in either public or private daycare centers from the age of one to five. Enrollment to daycare facilities usually takes place from March 1st, annually.
All children are expected to enroll in schools in Oslo once they reach the age of 6. The first ten years of school are known as ‘grunnskole’ and consist of primary and lower secondary education. Children generally start school in August of the year they turn six years. Compulsory education is divided into two main units.
In the first grade, kids spend their school hours playing educational games, engaging in basic education, and learning social skills. However, from the 2nd to 7th-grade, students learn a variety of subjects, including social studies, English, maths, and gymnastics. At this stage, students are not graded. Instead, comments and unofficial grades are provided to measure the individual performance of a student. Upon completion of primary school, students progress to lower secondary after the 7th grade.
In lower secondary, students are graded and encouraged to maintain good grades to progress to upper secondary school. In the 8th grade, learners must choose a foreign language (French, Spanish, or German) to study. Additionally, they can choose to study English or Norwegian studies.
Although upper secondary education is optional, most students pursue it for three years to be marketable in the Norwegian job market. Since upper secondary is separated from lower secondary, learners must re-enroll and start at a new school. Public upper secondary schools are practically forbidden unless they offer some form of religious or pedagogical instruction. As a result, there are numerous private upper schools. In 2006, the government passed a reform that allowed students to choose either general or vocational studies in the upper secondary stage. This option paved the way for a variety of specialties depending on the learners’ preferences. The reform also made IT compulsory and provided free laptops for every school-going child.
Private schools are quite popular with foreigners because the language of instruction is a combination of English and Norwegian. Private schools are also cheaper than the Norwegian public schools.
Edarabia showcases all private schools in Oslo through which parents can filter by tuition fees, curriculum, rankings & ratings. There are many public, private and charter schools near you that cater to both expat and local students.
Depending on the level of education; kindergartens (pre-schools), primary, secondary and high schools will all have varying tuition fees. Most K-12 schools offer different curriculums and extra-curricular activities to support the intellectual and physical wellbeing of students. Admissions for the top international schools in Oslo tend to have waiting lists so it is recommended that parents apply well in advance to secure a spot for their children. Additionally, each school has ratings based on parent reviews and are ranked below accordingly.
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