Living in the Languedoc:    Education:    State Schools

Since 1967, school attendance has been compulsory for those from 6 to 16 years of age. In the French system, forms are numbered from 12 (first year of primary school) to 1, followed by terminale, with the collège beginning in form 6, at approximately 11 years of age. A child progresses from Nursery school, to Primary School, then Secondary School and, possibly, on to tertiary education.

Nursery Schools. All 3-5 year olds can go to nursery classes.

Primary Schools France has 60,000 primary schools catering for pupils during their first five years of formal education:
The first three years (CP - cours préparatoire - and CEl/CE2 - cours élementaire 1 and 2) provide a grounding in basic skills.
The next stage - CM1/CM2 (cours moyen 1 and 2) takes the children up to the end of primary school.

Secondary Schools Secondary schooling is divided into two successive stages, known as cycles. collège and lycée, both described on the next page .

The state system is available to all, and is well regarded, but if your child is exceptionally bright, you should be thinking about the private sector.