Poland education: grade levels

A comparison of the Polish, Canadian, American, British, and German grade level systems

The education system in Poland is an interesting one. And it continues to evolve.

Below, we outline the different grade levels, and years of compulsory education, in Poland. We also compare Poland’s grade level system to that of five other countries—Canada, the United States, Britain, France, and Germany, and one international curriculum—the International Baccalaureate (IB).  continue reading...

On this page:

• Poland
• Britain
• Germany

For each country, we highlight the years of compulsory education in blue. This doesn’t apply to the IB program, though, since it’s not affiliated with any one country.

Poland

Poland is unique in that it has a shorter period in which education is compulsory. Compulsory education in Poland starts at the age of 6, at the so-called zero year (zerowka) or Grade zero (in either preschool or elementary school). It ends at the age of 14—the equivalent to Grade 8 in many countries.

This means Poland only has 9 years of compulsory education. This is shorter than in Canada and the US, where children are required to attend school for at least 10 years. In both Canada and the US, school attendance is required from grade 1 until at least Grade 10 (in some provinces and states, students are required to complete high school).

Britain

In Britain (and all of the UK) as well, compulsory education is 12 years. Children must attend school from the reception year (right before Year 1) until Year 1. In France and Germany, meanwhile, compulsory education runs 9 years, from Grade 1 to 9 on the North American system.

Germany

In Germany, students, at age 12, can attend Realschule, Mittelschule, Gymnasium, or Gesamtschule, instead of Hauptschule. Each of these types of secondary school has a different focus and grade range.

People who read this also viewed:

• Nursery schools
• Montessori nursery schools
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know FSA School
• Montessori preschools
• Preschools in Warsaw
• Private & non-public preschools
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know FSA School
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know KIDS & Co.
• Private primary schools in Warsaw
• Private & non-public primary schools
• Social primary schools
• Private bilingual elementary schools in Warsaw
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know The English Playhouse and The English Primary
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know FSA School
• Our Kids Interview: Get to know Polish British Academy of Warsaw
• Private middle schools
• Private high schools in Warsaw
• Private high schools
• Boarding high schools
• Social high schools
• Choosing a high school in Poland
• Mokotow High School Campus - a new Warsaw high school and Thames British School campus

• Advice Guide
  • ABC of educational terminology: Glossary of terms and concepts
  • The admissions process
  • Advantages and disadvantages of studying in an international school
  • The application process
  • Benefits of Polish private schools
  • Bilingual schools
  • Boarding schools
  • Choosing a private or nonpublic school in Poland
  • Compare schools in Poland
  • English schools in Warsaw
  • Homeschooling
  • International schools in Kraków
  • International schools
  • Private school interviews
  • Music education
  • Myths about private education
  • Non-public schools in Poland
  • School open houses
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know EF Academy Oxford
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know Open School
  • Our Kids interview: Get to know Regent College International Schools
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know The American School of Warsaw
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know The British School Warsaw
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know Wrocław Cosmopolitan School (two interviews, new video)
  • Poland school profiles
  • Private day schools
  • Gifted schools & programs
  • Private Jewish schools in Poland
  • Language schools
  • Private school tuition and costs in Poland
  • Private schools in Poland
  • Private schools in Poland offering French-language immersion
  • English immersion schools
  • Poland school uniforms
  • Public versus non-public schools in Poland
  • Private school questions
  • Private school rankings
  • Reasons for choosing private schools - Our Kids’s survey report
  • Religious schools
  • Schools and classes for children with ADHD in Poland
  • Social Schools
  • Special educational needs (SPE) certificates
  • Special needs schools
  • Study abroad at a private school
  • The first annual non-public school fair in Poland
  • The first annual Our Kids non-public school expo in Warsaw was a great success
  • Third Private School Expo in Warsaw - summary
  • Types of schools
  • Types of schools in Warsaw
  • Warsaw preschool costs
  • Why private school?
  • Why parents go private
• Grades
  • Boarding high schools
  • Choosing a high school in Poland
  • Mokotow High School Campus - a new Warsaw high school and Thames British School campus
  • Montessori nursery schools
  • Montessori preschools
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know FSA School
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know KIDS & Co.
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know Polish British Academy of Warsaw
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know The English Playhouse and The English Primary
  • Poland education: grade levels
  • Preschools in Warsaw
  • Private & non-public preschools
  • Private & non-public primary schools
  • Private bilingual elementary schools in Warsaw
  • Private high schools
  • Private high schools in Warsaw
  • Private middle schools
  • Nursery schools
  • Private primary schools in Warsaw
  • Social high schools
  • Social primary schools
• Locations
  • Boarding schools in Warsaw
  • English schools in Kraków
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) schools in Warsaw
  • International schools in Warsaw
  • Montessori schools in Warsaw
  • Non-public schools in Warsaw
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know EF Academy
  • Our Kids interview: Get to know Excellence in Education better
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know PRIMUS Non-Public Primary School No. 47 and Non-Public Secondary School
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know the Canadian School of Warsaw
  • Our Kids Interview: Get to know The Primary and Secondary Schools of the Sisters of Nazareth in Warsaw
  • Private Catholic and Christian schools in Warsaw
  • Private day schools in Warsaw
  • Private language schools in Warsaw
  • Private schools in Bialystok
  • Bydgoszcz schools
  • Częstochowa schools
  • Private schools in Gdańsk & Gdynia
  • Katowice schools
  • Private schools in Krakow
  • Lublin schools
  • Olsztyn schools
  • Private schools in Poznań
  • Private schools in Rzeszów
  • Szczecin schools
  • Private schools Warsaw
  • Private schools in Wrocław
  • Zielona Góra schools
  • Private schools in Łódź
  • Private special needs schools in Warsaw