Curriculum, subjects, number of hours
Educational goals and subjects
In the secondary school curriculum, there is room for three types of goals:
-
Minimum targets set by the government
-
Educational goals jointly defined by education providers
-
Targets set by education provider
Targets set by the government
The minimum targets set by the government consist of targets from:
-
Basic education: comprises the set of minimum objectives applicable to a structural component, supplemented by philosophical education.
-
Specific minimum objectives: specific minimum objectives are objectives relating to the skills, the specific knowledge, insights and attitudes that a pupil in full-time secondary education has in order to enter into subsequent education. Specific attainment targets are acquired through the specific part of a course of study, i.e. the part that does not belong to basic education or the complementary part. They are developed from the characteristic elements of a particular field of science.
Minimum objectives (except for philosophical education) are considered necessary and attainable for a certain pupil population. By minimum objectives is meant a minimum of knowledge, insight, skills and attitudes intended for that pupil population. Every school has the social mission to achieve the minimum objectives in terms of knowledge, insight, skills and certain attitudes among pupils. These targets must be achieved at the population level.
Educational goals jointly defined by education providers
In the double finality and in the labour market finality, there are objectives that lead to one or more recognised professional qualifications. They are acquired through the specific part of a field of study, i.e. the part that does not belong to basic education or to the complementary part. The government determines which vocational qualifications and/or partial qualifications are linked to fields of study.
Differential objectives may involve an extension or deepening of already existing objectives. In other words, differential goals can be very diverse, e.g. basic education extension goals, goals that monitor coherence between finalities with a view to horizontal student mobility, goals that are discipline-specific, etc.
Curriculum dossier
The whole of these objectives is included in the curriculum file. A curriculum file describes, in a coherent manner and from an educational perspective, the whole of the formation of a structural component (with the exception of philosophical education) and brings together all objectives applicable to that structural component. Community education and the associations of school boards of subsidised education jointly compile a curriculum dossier for approval by the Flemish Government. The fact that there will be only one curriculum file per stream in the first stage and per structural component in the second and third stages, respectively, across all schools and education networks, will facilitate school change within the same programme for a pupil because the set of educational goals remains the same.
Targets set by education provider
In addition to government-imposed targets, education providers may include additional targets in the curriculum. Indeed, following curriculum dossiers, school boards develop curricula that are limited in scope and leave sufficient room for the input of schools, teachers, teacher teams or pupils. The curricula also require approval by the Flemish Government, with the exception of curricula for philosophical education.
Weekly class schedules
Educational providers are authorized to draw up class schedules. In doing so, they must take into account the following conditions:
- the class schedule includes at least 28 weekly class hours;
- the timetable is the sum of the weekly class hours devoted to
- 1) the basic education: the set of attainment targets that apply, supplemented by philosophical education
- 2) the basic option(s) or course of study;
- 3) the differentiation or complementary part: remediation or deepening.
In the first stage, the number of hours to be devoted to the various components is fixed as follows:
First year A: at least 27 hours of basic formation + at least 5 hours of differentiation
First year B: at least 27 hours of basic training + at least 5 hours of differentiation
Second year A: at least 25 hours of basic training + 5 hours of basic option + at least 2 hours of differentiation
Second year B: at least 20 hours of basic training + 10 hours of basic option + at least 2 hours of differentiation
Basic education
Basic education is the set of attainment targets that apply, supplemented by philosophical education. The new attainment targets are formulated in function of key competences (see next section), and no longer in function of courses. Education providers are thus responsible for determining the courses or course clusters (= a group of two or more courses) in which basic education will be taught.
Basic options and occupational fields
The basic option basically covers the student's choice of study. Within the basic option, in some cases another more specific choice is possible in the form of a package. In the second year A, the student chooses a maximum of one basic option and/or package. In the second year B the student can choose a maximum of three basic options/packages.
The basic option has an orientation function and does not determine the pupil's further study choice. In the second grade, the choice for each field of study remains possible. In the second year of first stage, the following basic options and packages are possible. The packages are always indicated in italics under the basic option to which they belong.
| Second year A | Second year B |
|
Economics and organization Freinet Pedagogy Art and creation Artistic training Ballet Creation and design Classical languages (Greek and Latin) Greek-Latin Latin Society and welfare Modern languages and sciences Sports Rudolf Steiner pedagogy Voice techniques Agro- and biotechnology Construction and wood techniques Graphic communication and media Maritime techniques Mechanical-electrical Textile Voice sciences Industrial sciences Engineering sciences Top sports Food and catering Yeshiva |
Economy and organization Art and creation Society and welfare Hair and beauty care Fashion Care Advancement option (*) Sports Voice techniques Electricity Wood and construction Agriculture and horticulture Mechanics Print media Painting and decoration Textiles Sea fishing and inland navigation Food and catering Bakery-butchery Restaurant and kitchen |
(*) The advancement option prepares students for entry into advancement finality or dual finality in second stage.
Learning outcomes, basic literacy attainment targets and additional targets Dutch
Learning outcomes are minimum objectives that are deemed necessary and attainable for a particular student population. By minimum objectives is meant a minimum of knowledge, insight, skills and attitudes intended for that pupil population. Each school has the social mission to achieve the attainment targets related to knowledge, insight, skills and certain attitudes in its students. The attainment targets must be achieved at the population level. The attainment targets related to certain other attitudes must be pursued among students.
In the first stage, there is a set of attainment targets for the A stream and a set of attainment targets for the B stream. Within these sets of attainment targets, certain attainment targets are referred to as basic literacy. The attainment targets for basic literacy must be achieved by each individual student by the end of the first stage. Basic literacy are those attainment targets aimed at being able to participate in society.
Curriculum files
A curriculum file coherently describes, from an educational perspective, the whole of formation and brings together all the goals. In the first stage there are two curriculum dossiers: one for the A stream and one for the B stream. The attainment targets, basic literacy attainment targets and the extension targets of Dutch must be literally included in the curriculum files.
The curriculum files are cross-network and are drawn up jointly by Community Education and the associations of school boards of subsidized education and approved by the Flemish Government.
For quality control, the education inspectorate focuses on the achievement of the goals of the approved curriculum file in school inspections.
Learning plans
Following the curriculum files, a school board develops learning plans that are limited in scope and allow sufficient room for input from schools, teachers, teacher teams or students. A learning plan must include the attainment targets verbatim, transparently distinguishing which goals achieve the attainment targets.
Although each school board is authorized to develop a curriculum, this is usually done as a form of service by the umbrella organization to which the school board is affiliated. This centralized approach leads to more uniformity in curricula.
Curricula are an additional tool for the education inspectorate to frame a school's quality policy.
For the curricula, see the Flemish education website.
Teaching methods and didactic materials
School boards freely choose their teaching methods and resources. The term teaching methods includes numerous items, such as:
- home tasks
- extramural activities (school outings)
- teaching methods
- teaching materials
- evaluation forms
Regarding the cost of teaching materials, schools are bound by the contribution scheme.
At the beginning of the school year or upon enrollment, a school is required to provide parents with a contribution plan. This includes all expected costs for the upcoming or current school year. This contribution plan informs the student and parent of school costs. A school must also offer parents and students the option of paying school bills in installments so that not everything must be paid at once.