Brief comparison of Norway and France Education System

1. NORWAY VS. FRANCE
A COMPARISON OF
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS
KEMBERLY D. SEREZO
MA in Education (Math)
PALAWAN STATE UNIVERSITY-GRADUATE SCHOOL
SUBJECT: COMPARATIVE EDUCATION TERM: SUMMER 2018
PROFESSOR: DR. ERLINDA A. GANAPIN

2. Objectives:
•Provide information about history and
demographic characteristic of Norway and
France
•Compare and differentiate the educational
system of Norway and educational system of
France
•Cite good features of educational system of
Norway and France

3. TOPOGRAPICAL LOCATION OF NORWAY AND FRANCE
FRANCE
NORWAY

4. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (NORWAY)
 Norway was once inhabited by Vikings until Christianity
was introduced by Christian Missionary
 Håkon V, who reigned from 1299 to 1319 made Oslo the
capital replacing Bergen.
 1397 - The kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden
were made a single administrative unit.
 1815 - Norway was given its own army, navy, customs, and
parliament and was permitted full liberty and autonomy
within its own boundaries.

5. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (NORWAY)
 1914 - Sweden, Norway, and Denmark agreed to maintain
the neutrality of the Scandinavian countries and to
cooperate for their mutual interest
 On April 8, 1940, allied U.K and France announced they
had mined Norwegian territorial waters to prevent their
use by German supply ships. Next day German forces
invaded Norway, occupying major cities and port
 1942 Germany installed a puppet government in Norway.
 German forces in Norway surrendered on May 8, 1945.

6. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (NORWAY)
1970 - Norway applied for membership in the European
Community (EC), now called the European Union (EU).
1994 - Norwegians voted down membership in the EU
in a November 1994 referendum

7. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (FRANCE)
 Before it was known as France, a country called Gaul, a
Celtic word which means Hero.
 In first century BCE, Gaul was conquered by Rome,
thereby adopting the roman language and culture
 Around 400 AD, Germanic tribes known as Franks began
entering Gaul. The name Francia—precursor of France—
was used, it referred to an empire outside Italy.
 During the French Revolution in 1798 several noble
families ruled France until the monarchy was overthrown

8. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE (FRANCE)
 About 10 years after the revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte
seized control of France, declaring himself the Emperor
of France. Napoleon Bonaparte waged several wars and
conquered a good portion of Europe before being
defeated at the Battle of Waterloo
 The modern era of French education begins at the end of
the nineteenth century.
 Jules Ferry, a Minister of Public Instruction in the 1880s,
is widely credited for creating the modern school (l'école
républicaine) by requiring all children between the ages
of 6 and 12, both boys and girls, to attend. He also made
public instruction mandatory, free of charge, and secular
(laïque).

9. Trivia:
 Norway is sometimes called the Land of the
Midnight Sun. One-third of Norway lies north of
the Arctic Circle, where there is almost
continuous daylight from May through July. In
midwinter the far north is dark almost all of the
time.
 The adult literacy in France is 99 %, one of the
world’s highest

10. Lets Compare
NORWAY FRANCE
Official Name Kingdom of Norway French Republic
Capital Oslo Paris
Languages Bokmal Norwegian, Nynorsk Norwegian & Sami French
Religions Evangelical Lutheran, Roman Catholic & Muslim Protestant, Christian, Muslim &
Jewish
Government type parliamentary constitutional monarchy Semi-Presidential Republic
Total land area 385, 252 kilometre2 / 148, 746 miles2  547,557 kilometre2 / 211,413
miles2
Currency Norwegian Krone  Euro
Population 5, 346, 102
0-24 years: 30.58 %
25-65 years and over: 69.42%
65,196,595
0-30 years: 35.8%
31-59 years and over: 64.2%
Student Population Primary Education: 444, 638
Lower Secondary: 184, 637
Upper Secondary: 200, 731
Post-Secondary: 14, 748
Higher Education: 288, 989
Adult Education: Approximately 1 million
 Primary School: 6.81 Million
 High School: 2.26 million
 Middle School: 3. 33 Million

11. ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS
• Norway is one of the world’s largest
exporters of petroleum and natural
gas.
• Norwegians enjoy one of the highest
per capita standards of living in the
world
• Norway was a founding member of
the European Free Trade Association
• One of the world’s leading economic
powers.
• A member of the Group of Eight
forum of highly industrialized nations
and of the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development
(OECD
• It is also the leading agricultural
producer in western Europe
• France is a member of the European
Union (EU), a successor of the
European Community (EC)that
promotes economic and political
cooperation among European
nations
NORWAY FRANCE

12. Best Features of Educational System of Norway and France
 All public institutions and higher
education is free (except for special
programmes and in
private/specialized schools) (e.g.
business schools)
 They have loan Fund (Norwegian
State Educational Loan Fund),
support Norwegian Student to study
abroad.
 They provide education regardless of
student social background
Based on 2015 PISA result
• 19th in Mathematics, 9th in Reading,
and 24th in Science, all results are
above OECD average
 Educational system is organized and
systematic, centralized and provides
free compulsory education
 system of education is carefully
monitored and regulated by the French
education ministry
 At higher levels the education system is
diverse that has adapted to new
educational methods, modern
technology, and improves its
management by decentralizing power.
 Tuition costs at all tertiary institutions
are low, and health insurance free
through to age 21.
• 2015 PISA result: 26th in Mathematics,
19th in Reading, and 27th in Science, all
results are above OECD average
NORWAY FRANCE

13. GOVERNMENT’S EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT
• 58,655,586,000 Norwegian
Kroner (NOK)
• Norway is the third most spending
country in education
• 7. 6 % of GDP goes to education
• Primary – USD 8, 247 per person
• Secondary -USD 9, 518 per person
• Tertiary – USD 15, 028 per person
• Total public education
expenditure in France is
71,558,000,000 Euros
• This is about 6.9% of the GDP
(Gross Domestic Product)
• primary schoolers - €6,120
• middle schoolers - €8,410
• high schoolers - from €11,190 to
€12,230
NORWAY FRANCE

14. GOALS OF EDUCATION
• Inclusive Education
• Increase responsibility for
school owners
• Greater demands for local
accountability
• Create a new national
education programme for
principals
• Enhance the competencies of
the teacher workforce
• Create national system for
evaluation and assessment
• Protect early childhood
• Universal primary education
• Access to lifelong education
• Achieve a 50% improvement in
levels of adult literacy
• Improve the quality of
education
• Gender equality in access to
school
• Internationalization of
education
NORWAY FRANCE

15. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
Maximum
Class Size
Category
26 Pre-school class
23 Primary school
class
25 Middle school class
20 High school class
Maximum
Class Size Category
28 Primary School
30 Lower Secondary School
30 Upper Secondary School

16. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
• School year - from August to mid
June consists of two semesters
1st Sem – August to Mid.
December
2nd Sem – Beginning of January to
June
• Christmas holiday- mid December to
early January
• Education is mandatory for all
children aged 6 – 16
Primary Education
Lower Secondary Education
• School year- Starts at the beginning of
September to June
• Major holiday breaks are as follows:
All Saints, two weeks (since 2012) around
the end of October and the beginning of
November;
Christmas, two weeks around Christmas
Day and New Year’s Day;
Winter, two weeks starting in mid February;
Spring, or Easter (Pâques), two weeks
starting in mid April;
Summer, two months starting in early July.
(mid-June for high school students
• The school day starts around 8.30am and
ends at 4.30pm
NORWAY FRANCE

17. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
Kindergartens (barnehage) aged
1-5
It is an institution for children below
compulsory school age.
(class hour 8:00 – 3:00)
They have few songs, they count,
say some of colors, basic manners,
more on play
• Education is compulsory from 6 to
16 years of age
Primary – 6 years
Lower Secondary Education- 5
years
Nursery School aged 2-6
Optional
24 hours of education per week is
compulsory at kindergarten
Children learn to speak, read and
write. They are taught basic things
such as numbers and letters of the
alphabet.

18. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
1. Primary school (Barneskole)
• Grade 1-7 aged 6-12 (7 years)
• Grade 1- playing educational
games, learning social skills and
basic education (e.g. learning the
alphabet, basic addition and
subtraction and basic English).
• Grade 2-7 - children are taught a
wide range of subjects from
math to gymnastics and English
to social studies.
Nursery School aged 2-6
• The most important part of kindergarten is the
grande section (big form) which is the year
when students are taught how to read
1. Primary School (Ecole Primaire) aged 6-11 ( 6
years)
• they will learn to write and develop their reading
• There are five levels:
• Cours préparatoire (CP) or 11ème – age 6 to 7
years old
• Cours élémentaire (CE1) or 10ème – age 7 to 8
years old
• Cours élémentaire (CE2) or 9ème – age 8 to 9
years old
• Cours moyen 1 (CM1) or 8ème – 9 to 10 years old
• Cours moyen 2 (CM2) or 7ème – 10 to 11 years old

19. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
2. Lower Secondary School
(Ungdomsskole)
Grade 8 – 10 aged 13-15 (3 years)
• Grade 8 - they have to pick an elective
(valgfag), which is typically a foreign
language (e.g. German, French or
Spanish) or additional English or
Norwegian studies.
• During lower secondary, pupils are
graded and need to maintain good
grades in order to attend their upper
secondary school of choice. Free tuition
2. Lower Secondary School/Middle School
(College) aged 11-15 (5 years)
• All pupils are accepted; there is no
entrance exam or requirements for state
schools.
• There are four levels:
6ème – 11 to 12 years old
5ème – 12 to 13 years old
4ème – 13 to 14 years old
3ème – 14 to 15 years old
• Brevet- First official diploma awarded at
the end of the 9th grade after achieving
basic skills

20. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
3. Higher Secondary/High School/lycée
aged 15-18 (3 years)
• Their final four years are spent
at lycéé high school preparing to pass
their baccalauréat or “bac” which is
necessary to enter university
a lycée general, a lycée technique or
a lycée professionnel
• Baccalaureat-High School Diploma and
needed in order to get into a university
or any professional work
3. Upper Secondary School/High school
(Videregående skole)
Grades 11-13 aged 16-19 (3- 4 years)
• not required and pupils choose to follow
either a general studies or vocational
studies.
• General education – 3 years and Vocational
training – 4 years
• Apprenticeship training – 2 years
(Healthcare, childhood and youth
development)
• Practical training in industry – 1-2 years

21. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
Higher education
• The main structure is a 3+2+3 model
3-years bachelor‘s degree,
2-years master‘s degree
3-years doctoral programme.
Adult education
• Adults who have not completed
sufficient primary and lower
secondary learning are entitled to
education at these levels.
Higher education
• organized in accordance with the LMD
system (Licence-Master-Doctorat)
the Licence and Licence
Professionnelle (bachelor's degrees)- 6
semesters (3 years)
the Master's degress - 4 semesters (2
years)
Two types:
1. Research master’s, enable students to
progress to doctorate
2. Vocational Master’s, prepare students for
the world of work

22. STRUCTURE OF SCHOOLING
NORWAY FRANCE
An alternative option
• Folk high schools do not have a
curriculum or examinations, and
offer both short courses (2-94 days)
and long courses that last up to ten
months.
• Provides courses in a wide variety of
subjects for young adults who have
completed their compulsory studies
Vocational Education
• Students may choose between
studying for a baccalauréat
technologique or abaccalauréat
professionnel
baccalauréat technologique which
prepares them for professional
higher studies
abaccalauréat professionnel that
readies them to enter the job
market immediately through
vocational training.

23. Grading System
NORWAY FRANCE
Grade Scale Grade Description US
Grade
Notes
THF 18.00 -
20.00
Très Honorable avec Felicitations du Jury (Highly
Honorable with Praise)
A+ Relatively
rare
TB 16.00 -
17.99
Très Bien (Very Good - Highest Honors) A+
B 14.00 -
15.99
Bien (Good - High Honors) A
AB 12.00 -
13.99
Assez Bien (Quite Good - Honors) B
P 10.00 -
11.99
Passable (Satisfactory) C
P 8.00 -
9.99
Passable (Sufficient) D Passable as
long as the
overall
average of
grades
remains
above 10
E 0.00 - Échec (Fail) F
Grade scale Grade Description
6 A+ Highest
5 A or A-
4 B
3 C
2 D Lowest passing grade
1 E

24. TEACHER SALARY
TEACHER SALARY
2, 000 – 8, 800 with extra
duties Euros per amount
HOURS OF TEACHING
28 hours/week
NORWAY FRANCE
• Median Salary - 484, 149 (NOK)
• Kindergartens
400, 000 – 450, 000 (NOK)
• Primary school - 500,000 (NOK)
• High School - 540, 000 (NOK)
HOURS OF TEACHING
24 - 28 hours/week

25. EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS/CRITICISM
1. Students often have to change school
when they enter lower secondary school
and upper secondary school because
many schools only offer one of the levels.
2. One out of four 15 years olds leaves
comprehensive school without sufficient
skills
3. Every fourth students drops out of
upper secondary education or training
4. More than 400,000 adults in Norway
have weak literacy and numeracy skills
5. A weak system of teacher education
1. Some schools close on Wednesday
afternoon
2. Older pupils may have lessons on a
Saturday
3. Students, even younger children,
are expected to do homework most
evenings
4. 30 percent of students may repeat
at least once in their schooling life.
5. Many public universities are
overcrowded with students in their
initial year
NORWAY FRANCE

26. REFERENCES:
• Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
• https://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/norway.php
• https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-type-of-government-does-france-have.html
• https://www.indexmundi.com/norway/government_type.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Norway
• https://www.classbase.com/countries/norway/education-system
• https://www.udir.no/Upload/Brosjyrer/5/Education_in_Norway.pdf?epslanguage=no
• https://www.nuffic.nl/en/publications/find-a-publication/education-system-norway.pdf
• https://www.ssb.no/en/utdanning/artikler-og-
publikasjoner/_attachment/287176?_ts=158d834b638
• https://www.justlanded.com/english/Norway/Norway-Guide/Education/Higher-education
• https://www.lifeinnorway.net/education-in-norway/
• https://www.oecd.org/education/school/38529305.pdf

27. THANK YOU!