information guide for IMMIGRANT STUDENTS information guide for IMMIGRANT STUDENTS information guide for immigrant students written by: Sección de Multiculturalidad e Inmigración (Multicultural and Immigration Section) translated by: Centro de Comunicación Internacional, S.L. published by: Gobierno de Navarra, Departamento de Educación (Government of Navarra, Education Department) designed and illustrated by: NG IMAGEN Y DISEÑO printed by: A.R.C. SPACE GRAPHIC copyright: NA-2357/2004 INTRODUCTION This guide aims to help those families arriving in Navarra with school-age children to find out about all the education opportunities available in our Community and to provide them with all the information they need in order to make the right decisions. The document describes the education system and its characteristics, outlines how education centres here are organised, explains the rights and obligations of students and gives other useful information both for students and their families. It also aims to provide families with the basic information available to them at education centres and the Local Schooling Commissions. The education centres themselves can then complete this information with details concerning their educational projects, organisation and rules. We hope that this simple guide shall contribute towards real equality of opportunities in the education system and shall help enhance the attention and warm welcome received by all those arriving in Navarra with the intention of forming part of our Community. Luis Campoy Zueco Minister of Education CONTENTS SCHOOL ENROLMENT FOR IMMIGRANT STUDENTS ......................... 6 THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN NAVARRA ............................................... 10 HOW EDUCATION CENTRES ARE ORGANISED .................................... 21 STUDENTS’ RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS ................................................ 23 FAMILIES’ RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS .................................................. 24 SCHOOL CALENDAR ..................................................................................... 25 STUDY GRANTS AND AID ........................................................................... 26 RECOGNITION AND VALIDATION OF STUDIES ................................... 26 USEFUL ADDRESSES AND TELEPHONE NUMBERS ............................. 27 ANNEX: THE COMMUNITY OF NAVARRA .................................................... 35 SCHOOL ENROLMENT FOR immigrant students Local Schooling Commissions: towns and local council telephone numbers The Department of Education has promoted the creation of Comisiones Locales de Escolarización (Local Schooling Commissions) in different Navarran towns in order to counsel families arriving in our Community with school-age children. The counselling provided involves information about the education system and how to register children in Navarra’s education centres. It also suggests how the children in question may access schooling in accordance with the wishes of their family and availability at local centres. This proposal takes parents’ freedom of choice into consideration and attempts to achieve a certain degree of balance of students at different centres. It also monitors the students’ enrolment. The Local Commissions are run by the Comisión de Escolarización de Departamento de Educación (Department of Education’s Schooling Commission) and exist in the following towns: 6 town local council telephone number ALSASUA........................................948-562161 BARAÑAIN .....................................948-286310 BURLADA.......................................948-238312 ELIZONDO.....................................948-580006 ESTELLA.........................................948-548200 ETXARRI-ARANAZ..........................948-460004 LODOSA.........................................948-693032 MUTILVA BAJA................................948-244946 PAMPLONA ...........................010 / 948-420100 SANGÜESA.....................................948-870005 TAFALLA.........................................948-701811 TUDELA .........................................902-242010 VILLAVA..........................................948-136680 7 Student enrolment procedure How to apply for a place at the education centre of your choice All families with school-age children have the right to apply for a place at any state or state- subsidised education centre without discrimination on the bases of race, religion or gender. Students applying for a place at an education centre for the first time can apply for information at one of the Comisiones Locales de Escolarización (Local Schooling Commissions), specifically created for this purpose, at an actual education centre or at the Departamento de Educación del Gobierno de Navarra - Department of Education of the Government of Navarra: Negociado de Información y Asesoramiento de padres y alumnos: C/ Sto. Domingo 1, Pamplona. Tel. 848 42 66 17. The application for acceptance, together with the documents required, is then presented at the education centre proposed by the relevant Local Commission or at the family’s first- choice centre. The normal period for the presentation of applications is in February. The list of all those students accepted is published in March and registration takes place at the end of June, beginning of July. The extraordinary period for applications and registration is at the beginning of September. Students making applications at other times of the year shall be accepted at centres with vacancies. The Local Schooling Commissions counsel new immigrant students as to their possible registration at an education centre taking into equal account the wishes of their parents and availability at centres. 8 Any family that considers that its right to register their child at a state or state-subsidised education centre is being violated in any way should inform their Local Schooling Commission or the Department of Education’s Schooling Commission: Tel. 848-428922. Reserving places for socially or culturally underprivileged students All Navarran centres are subsidised with public funds and, as a result, reserve at least two places per student group in the first year of Infant Education. The same number of places is also reserved if there are vacancies available in the 2nd and 3rd years of Infant Education and the 1st year of Compulsory Secondary Education. 9 THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IN NAVARRA Education is compulsory in Spain until the age of 16. After the age of 16, students decide whether they wish to continue studying or would prefer to enter the job market. Education at all Primary and Secondary Education Centres in this community, be they state- run or state-subsidised, is free. A large part of the cost of the second cycle of Infant Education at state-subsidised centres is also covered by the state (85 %). Education from 0 to 3 years of age Is non-compulsory. Families pay a monthly fee in accordance with their income. There are both state- and private-run infant schools in Navarra. The period for pre-registration at state-run infant schools in Pamplona is published in the press and is normally open throughout March. Families pay a monthly fee in accordance with their income. Ask for more information about infant schools in Pamplona at Pamplona City Council’s Escuelas Infantiles (Infant Schools), C/ Conde Oliveto, 4 - 2º Izq. Tel. 948 22 11 01 & 948 22 11 03 or the Instituto Navarro de Bienestar Social (Government of Navarra’s Social Welfare Institute): C/. González Tablas, s/n. Tel. 848 42 69 00. For more information about infant schools in the rest of Navarra, ask at your local Town Hall or at the Pre-school centre you wish to register at. 10 Education from 3 to 6 years of age (Infant Education) Is also non-compulsory. Education from 3 to 6 years of age is absolutely free at state-run centres and a large part of the cost at state-subsidised centres is also covered by the state. All students in Navarra over the age of three are registered at state schools or state- subsidised Infant and Primary Education centres. In rural districts, transport, when needed, is free and school canteens are heavily subsidised when students need to travel to centres in different localities. Primary Education This stage covers the 6- to 12-year age group. Education for this age group is compulsory and free at all centres. It is divided into three cycles, each cycle consisting of two years, students possibly needing to remain a further year in primary education. Primary education is available at state and state-subsidised schools. As is the case with Infant Education and Compulsory Secondary Education, transport is free of charge in rural districts and school canteens are subsidised when students need to travel to centres in different localities. 12 Compulsory Secondary Education Is also free and is provided at Institutos de Educación Secundaria - IES (Secondary Education Institutes) and state-subsidised centres. Compulsory secondary education is divided up into four years, consisting of two two-year cycles and caters for the 12- to 16-year age group. When necessary, students may need to repeat a year. When students pass this stage of education, they are entitled to the Título de Graduado en Educación Secundaria (Compulsory Secondary Education Qualification). This qualification permits them access to the “Bachillerato” (Sixth form/Baccalaureate), Middle Grade Vocational Education or the job market. 13 The Education System 1st cycle of Infant Education: 0 to 3 years 2nd cycle of Infant Education: 3 to 6 years