The general philosophy of education in Sweden is far less competitive than in many countries – particularly the English speaking ones. There is great emphasis on fulfilling goals at an individual level and less on being ‘top of the class’. Exams are infrequent while opportunities to self-reflect on academic and social skills are more common. In fact, it can be a positive disadvantage to stand out – either at the top or the bottom. The aim is to deliver secure, confident individuals who will fulfil their roles within a well functioning society.   Swedes pride themselves on their continued thirst for knowledge with the result that there are lots of adult education options too – consistent with the pupil led ‘knowledge pull’ (as opposed to the teacher led ‘knowledge push’) philosophy of education.

State run schools are also far more informal than you might expect – some to the extent that the topic of discipline in Swedish schools has long been a political issue and certainly widely discussed amongst expatriates working in education. Teachers are known by their first names, school uniforms are unheard of, homework may be less voluminous than you’re used to and the classroom environment is relaxed. These cultural differences in good schools promote ‘pupil centred learning’ – an environment in which the student takes control of their own education and which sets them up perfectly for life in the adult world. However, it is a fine line so make sure you are secure that the school you choose meets the needs of your child.

The childcare and education system is traditionally state run – there are fewer, but nevertheless a growing number of private options. At every stage of the education system, there are choices to be made about what suits your child or you best – the Swedish philosophy allows for individual preferences. The public system provides good quality, low cost childcare and free education for all. The private options tend to focus on linguistic or religious needs or different educational philosophies. While they are run by companies or foundations they live entirely off government money and are not permitted to charge school feels - unless they are operating outside the Swedish curriculum (Ba

An Overview of the School System
and educational philosophy is available from Skolverket by clicking in the following diagram:

A rough outline, by age, of the school system is:
< 12 months             playschools or open preschools (öppna förskolor)
1 – 6 years               day-care (förskola, daghem or dagis)
6 – 7 years               pre-school and after-school program (6 års verksamhet & fritids)
7 – 16 years             compulsory education (afterschool program until age 10) (grundskolan)
16 – 19 years           post-compulsory education (gymnasium)
19 years -                 higher education/adult education

The School Year
Generally it starts around mid August (exact dates are decided by the municipality) and the first term runs through to December/January with a one week half-term break, giving a total of two weeks break with the Christmas holidays. A second term starts in January and the school year finishes in June.

This spring has two breaks in it - a sports week (sportslov) and Easter. The sports week is during the snow season and allows families to go away for skiing holidays. It is managed so that different regions of the country have different sports weeks to try and minimize overcrowding in the resorts. There are also a couple of long weekends based on Whitsunday and Ascension Day.

The autumn/fall term has just one mid-term break at the end of October.