If you are going to be moving to Portugal with school-going children, it is important to know a bit about this.
Compulsory education in Portugal lasts from the age of six to fifteen. In state-run schools basic education is free. Financial assistance may be available for extra expenses such as school meals, transport and textbooks, depending on your financial circumstances.
The school year runs from the middle of September to the end of June for compulsory schooling, or to the middle of June for secondary schools. Individual schools set the actual dates but there must be at least 180 school days in each year.
Pre-school/Kindergarten (Jardims de Infância) attendance is optional and children may be accepted from the age of three.
Basic compulsory education (ensino básico) is divided into three ‘cycles’:
- A first cycle (1°Ciclo) lasting four years (for pupils aged six to ten)
- A second cycle (2° Ciclo) lasting two years (for pupils from ten to twelve)
- A third cycle (3° Ciclo) lasting three years (for pupils from twelve to fifteen)
The first cycle is primary school (escolas básicas), while the second and third cycles are combined primary and secondary schools (escolas básicas/secundárias).
Children who reach the age of six by 16 September are eligible to attend the first cycle of basic education. Those reaching this age by 31 December can also be admitted, but priority is given to older children when allocating places.
Pupils must attend school in the area where they live or in the area in which the parents are employed, although exceptions can be made in certain cases.
You will need the following documents:
- Registration papers (available from the school)
- Health certificate
- Three passport photos
- Proof of identity
- A leaving certificate from their previous school if applicable, with confirmation of the last level passed
Pupils are assessed at the end of each school year and at the end of each cycle. Those who are considered satisfactory will go on to the next stage. Pupils who do not meet the required standards may be asked to repeat the year.
Pupils who achieve the required standard in the general assessment at the end of the third cycle are awarded a certificate of basic education (diploma do ensino básico) by the school. After successfully completing their compulsory nine years of education children aged fourteen to fifteen may decide to continue secondary education, either as preparation for higher education or for more vocational/technical education.
Secondary education is not free; students have to pay for enrolment and tuition as well as for their textbooks and other materials, although financial assistance may be available.
In post-compulsory schooling there are two type of assessment – internal and external.
Internal assessment consists of a general written test in every subject at the end of the tenth and eleventh years and, in some subjects, at the end of the final year. The Class Council decides whether the student should advance to the next class or repeat the year based on both a general test plus continuous assessment.
External assessment takes the form of final written examinations in most of the subjects in the twelfth year. In order to pass, students must achieve a pass mark in every one of their course subjects.
On successfully completing their secondary education, students are awarded a certificate (diploma de estudos secundários) indicating the courses and the final marks obtained. Those who complete a technical course will also receive a level III vocational training certificate (diploma de qualificação profissional de nivel III).
The higher education system consists of public universities (universidades), polytechnics (escolas politécnicas), and a number of private or cooperative institutions of higher education.
Students may apply who have successfully completed the three years of secondary education and have a secondary school diploma, or a legally equivalent qualification. Depending on what type of higher educational establishment they apply to, students may also have to pass either a national examination organised by the Director –General of Higher Education (Direcção – Geral do Ensino Superior), or an entry examination set by the institution.
Graduate qualifications may be a bachelor degree (bacharelado), which requires three years of study, or licentiate (licenciatura) degree, needing four to six years.
A foreign language (English, French or German) is compulsory in the second cycle of basic compulsory education. However, some pupils may begin learning a foreign language in the first cycle.
In the third cycle, pupils will take on a second foreign language (English, French, German or Spanish). This means that, within their basic and secondary education, students have to study at least two foreign languages.
There are a number of International Schools throughout Portugal which are attended by a mixture of international and Portuguese pupils. Pupils may study on the International Baccalaureate (I.B.) programme, or for the British GCSE and GCE examination systems. Term dates and school holidays may differ from those of Portuguese schools.
For the British Embassy's list of English-medium International schools in Portugal: go to: http://ukinportugal.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for-british-nationals/living-in-portugal/schools
This is just a brief outline but I hope it gives you something to get on with.
Have a great week!
Carol
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Portugalbuyingguide.com
Thursday 24 February 2011
Thursday 17 February 2011
Coping with those VIPs – your kids!
So…you’ve decided to follow your dreams – or that great job offer – and move to Portugal! And if you have children, the good news is that they generally adjust far quicker to a move than most adults.
The younger the child, the easier it is for them to adapt. It is generally acknowledged that children up to the age of seven are able to absorb what goes on around them very easily and language is usually something that they can pick up without too much effort. That is not to say that older children will not be able to cope, merely that it may require more effort on their part.
The essential thing is that you are enthusiastic about the move and that you include them in the preparations. If they think that you as a family are undertaking a huge adventure together, this will go a long way to making the move seem like something to look forward to rather than to dread.
Discuss the move with them and talk about what they can expect to find on arrival. Highlight the advantages of the move and point out that family and friends will be keen to visit them in their new home, where it will be up to them to show them around their new country …
Leaving friends behind is never easy but today, with the Internet, Facebook and emails, it is a whole lot easier. Just make very sure incidentally that when you decide to rent or to buy a property that you have access to the Internet.
A few points that are worth remembering:
- Encourage children to learn about Portugal in advance. Perhaps get an atlas and have a look at a map, read them a book about the country or you could perhaps take them to a Portuguese restaurant
- Take photos of their new home and area if they have not yet seen it yet so that it looks familiar on arrival
- I am a digital online photo album addict. Give your child a cheap digital camera and tell them to make an album of their journey from the UK to their new home…This comes with a warning – it’s addictive!
- Portuguese lessons before you leave the UK will mean that they will have a good idea as to what is going on once they attend school
- Arrange to visit new schools and meet teachers before the first day of school. When my daughter was young, her new school always appointed a ‘mentor’ for each new child – someone in the class who had been at the school for a while and could show her the ropes. You may suggest this…?
- Provide children of all ages with a notebook that they can write down all their friend’s email addresses and contact details to take with them. You may find that the computer, with all these vital details, gets damaged in the move
- There is nothing as comforting as a pet for younger children. Failing that, a favourite toy at hand at all times!
For older children it may be a little bit more difficult. Apart from just the language, there are the social aspects. Teenagers need backup from their peers and have usually formed a close group of friends from whom they get this. Leaving their friends and changing schools will be challenging – I can vouch for this personally as I did it many times and can still remember the feeling of isolation. BUT – given time - it all settles down and, with your support and over time, they will adjust and be happy.
I hope that has given you a few ideas. Remember, kids really do adjust very quickly – I know that the only problem my Swedish friend now residing in the States has is to make sure his five year old kids remember their mother tongue!
Happy week to you and we’ll chat soon,
Carol.
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Portugalbuyingguide.com
The younger the child, the easier it is for them to adapt. It is generally acknowledged that children up to the age of seven are able to absorb what goes on around them very easily and language is usually something that they can pick up without too much effort. That is not to say that older children will not be able to cope, merely that it may require more effort on their part.
The essential thing is that you are enthusiastic about the move and that you include them in the preparations. If they think that you as a family are undertaking a huge adventure together, this will go a long way to making the move seem like something to look forward to rather than to dread.
Discuss the move with them and talk about what they can expect to find on arrival. Highlight the advantages of the move and point out that family and friends will be keen to visit them in their new home, where it will be up to them to show them around their new country …
Leaving friends behind is never easy but today, with the Internet, Facebook and emails, it is a whole lot easier. Just make very sure incidentally that when you decide to rent or to buy a property that you have access to the Internet.
A few points that are worth remembering:
- Encourage children to learn about Portugal in advance. Perhaps get an atlas and have a look at a map, read them a book about the country or you could perhaps take them to a Portuguese restaurant
- Take photos of their new home and area if they have not yet seen it yet so that it looks familiar on arrival
- I am a digital online photo album addict. Give your child a cheap digital camera and tell them to make an album of their journey from the UK to their new home…This comes with a warning – it’s addictive!
- Portuguese lessons before you leave the UK will mean that they will have a good idea as to what is going on once they attend school
- Arrange to visit new schools and meet teachers before the first day of school. When my daughter was young, her new school always appointed a ‘mentor’ for each new child – someone in the class who had been at the school for a while and could show her the ropes. You may suggest this…?
- Provide children of all ages with a notebook that they can write down all their friend’s email addresses and contact details to take with them. You may find that the computer, with all these vital details, gets damaged in the move
- There is nothing as comforting as a pet for younger children. Failing that, a favourite toy at hand at all times!
For older children it may be a little bit more difficult. Apart from just the language, there are the social aspects. Teenagers need backup from their peers and have usually formed a close group of friends from whom they get this. Leaving their friends and changing schools will be challenging – I can vouch for this personally as I did it many times and can still remember the feeling of isolation. BUT – given time - it all settles down and, with your support and over time, they will adjust and be happy.
I hope that has given you a few ideas. Remember, kids really do adjust very quickly – I know that the only problem my Swedish friend now residing in the States has is to make sure his five year old kids remember their mother tongue!
Happy week to you and we’ll chat soon,
Carol.
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Portugalbuyingguide.com
Thursday 10 February 2011
Fires in Portugal: insure against this…
I have been watching the news and seen with horror the unbelievable fires in Australia. It may not be mid-summer right now, but let’s face it, one of the reasons we love Portugal is that wonderful summer sun. Sadly there is a flipside to this and that is the traditional summer curse of wildfires, much as in Australia.
Each year firemen or bombeiros are called out to tackle fires all over the country which, in late summer 2010 included blazes in the hills near Sintra, in Viana do Castelo and in Viseu. The extremes of heat are unfortunately conducive to fires starting up and they are then fanned by the wind. Temperatures in some areas of Portugal were forecasted to have reached 40C or 104 degrees Fahrenheit in late summer 2010 – it seems hard to even imagine those sort of temperatures now doesn’t it? Rainfall was also very low in 2010, the lowest on record for 24 years. The lack of rain in Portugal was in total contrast to the previous winter when it was recorded that it was the wettest winter since 1870 in Lisbon. Note to self: stop complaining so much about our rather wet climate…!
Just to give you an idea of what the emergency services had to deal with, at one stage it was reckoned that 50 fires were burning in central and northern parts of the country, with about 1,500 fire-fighters mobilised to tackle the blazes. Around 18,000 hectares (44,500 acres) of forests and bush land was believed to have been affected. In August 2010 two Portuguese fire-fighters were killed and many others injured.
Portugal's only national park - the Peneda-Geres National Park in the north-west of the country – was one of the areas under threat.
I am mentioning all this not to scare you: after all, there are fires throughout Europe: Spain, France, Greece to name but a few…No, what I want you to remember is that if you have a property in Portugal it is imperative that you have it properly insured against fire.
If you are using your property as a holiday home or a rental property the using a British-based company makes it very easy to discuss what you need and to claim too if you are in the unfortunate position of having to do so. If however you live in Portugal you may find it easier to use a local company. Unless you have a very good comprehension of Portuguese I would think that it is of primary importance that your documents can be provided in English and that there is someone there that can help you sort out any claims that you may have to make in English too.
Bye ’til next time…
Carol.
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Portugalbuyingguide.com
Each year firemen or bombeiros are called out to tackle fires all over the country which, in late summer 2010 included blazes in the hills near Sintra, in Viana do Castelo and in Viseu. The extremes of heat are unfortunately conducive to fires starting up and they are then fanned by the wind. Temperatures in some areas of Portugal were forecasted to have reached 40C or 104 degrees Fahrenheit in late summer 2010 – it seems hard to even imagine those sort of temperatures now doesn’t it? Rainfall was also very low in 2010, the lowest on record for 24 years. The lack of rain in Portugal was in total contrast to the previous winter when it was recorded that it was the wettest winter since 1870 in Lisbon. Note to self: stop complaining so much about our rather wet climate…!
Just to give you an idea of what the emergency services had to deal with, at one stage it was reckoned that 50 fires were burning in central and northern parts of the country, with about 1,500 fire-fighters mobilised to tackle the blazes. Around 18,000 hectares (44,500 acres) of forests and bush land was believed to have been affected. In August 2010 two Portuguese fire-fighters were killed and many others injured.
Portugal's only national park - the Peneda-Geres National Park in the north-west of the country – was one of the areas under threat.
I am mentioning all this not to scare you: after all, there are fires throughout Europe: Spain, France, Greece to name but a few…No, what I want you to remember is that if you have a property in Portugal it is imperative that you have it properly insured against fire.
If you are using your property as a holiday home or a rental property the using a British-based company makes it very easy to discuss what you need and to claim too if you are in the unfortunate position of having to do so. If however you live in Portugal you may find it easier to use a local company. Unless you have a very good comprehension of Portuguese I would think that it is of primary importance that your documents can be provided in English and that there is someone there that can help you sort out any claims that you may have to make in English too.
Bye ’til next time…
Carol.
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Portugalbuyingguide.com
Thursday 3 February 2011
3 villages that I love
Am I right in saying that we do like to be beside the sea side? Looking out my window, it’s a gloomy day – sun and sand sound just the thing! Then Ericeira may be for you – I know it’s not exactly an historical village but I just had to share it with you on the way to Óbidos and Sintra!
When I first saw it, years ago now, it was totally undiscovered. Today it is really well known for its surfing, water sports and sunbathing, but it is still as lovely as when I first saw it.
The town is not too far north of Lisbon – 50 kms northeast of the city to be exact. Ericeira was once just a small fishing village and this feeling still remains, although a fair number of tourists now visit, especially the surfers. It is perched on cliffs overlooking the Atlantic and the pretty narrow streets with whitewashed chapels and white houses edged in blue are a joy to wander around before heading to the sandy beaches. When we were here we gorged ourselves on very reasonably priced seafood – yum!
Moving down to Óbidos …this has got to be one of the most beautiful villages ever. If I had my way, I would buy a home nearby, perhaps outside the city walls – it really is so spectacular and atmospheric. Narrow cobbled streets, lined with whitewashed, bougainvillaea-draped houses, are surrounded by huge castle walls. I walked the walls right around the town, peeping into people’s lives as they went about their daily business – fascinating. Although not right on the sea, nearby is the large lagoon of Lagoa de Óbidos where you can swim, sunbathe or even hire windsurfing equipment.
And then finally Sintra. Sintra is a UNESCO world heritage site and it soon becomes clear why. This is a truly lovely town, only about 20 miles from Lisbon, with a plethora of castles to be visited and much to see and do. There are lovely green forested areas on the walk up to the castles above the town, which are cool and relaxing to stroll through in the summer months. Not only that, but Sintra is near the coast and many beautiful beaches lie only a short drive away. The best way to get there is to take the tram: all year round an old-fashioned eléctrico tram service ferries people from Sintra to various villages and beaches.
I’m not the only person from the UK to love the place: Lord Byron visited in the 18th century, writing that the town is "perhaps in every respect the most delightful in Europe," and calling it a "glorious Eden" in his epic poem Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. He helped to put the town on the tourist map and it became popular for those on the European ‘Grand Tour’. Today it is just as lovely.
I hope my wanderings have given you a few ideas as to where to at least visit as you look to buy that property you have been searching for – do let me know when you find it won’t you?
Until then, all best wishes,
Carol
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.portugalbuyingguide.com/
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