Curriculum, subjects, number of hours

The national legislation determines the scope of primary or single-structure education through the core curriculum and outline timetables. 

The core curriculum is established in  the Regulation of the Minister of National Education of 14 February 2017 on the core curriculum for preschool education and the core curriculum for general education in primary schools, incl. for pupils with a moderate and severe intellectual disability, and for general education in stage I sectoral vocational schools, general education in special schools preparing for employment, and general education in post-secondary schools, as subsequently amended (Rozporządzenie Ministra Edukacji Narodowej z dnia 14 lutego 2017 r. w sprawie podstawy programowej wychowania przedszkolnego oraz podstawy programowej kształcenia ogólnego dla szkoły podstawowej, w tym dla uczniów z niepełnosprawnością intelektualną w stopniu umiarkowanym lub znacznym, kształcenia ogólnego dla branżowej szkoły I stopnia, kształcenia ogólnego dla szkoły specjalnej przysposabiającej do pracy oraz kształcenia ogólnego dla szkoły policealnej (z późn,. zm.).

The core curriculum sets general and detailed requirements (learning outcomes) which define the desirable and necessary range of knowledge and skills for pupils to acquire at a given stage of education. The extent to which pupils have met the requirements set in the core curriculum is verified in two ways: teachers working with pupils monitor on an ongoing basis the progress made and the extent to which the core curriculum has been implemented, and pupils take external exams (the eighth-grader exam at the end of the primary school).

All schools are required to follow the core curriculum. They implement it through school curricula as part of the education process. Curricula describe how the educational aims are achieved and contents are implemented in individual subjects or types of classes. Teachers may implement curricula which they develop independently or other curricula which they choose. 

A curriculum can be:

• developed by the teacher individually or in cooperation with other teachers;

• chosen by the teacher from among the set of curricula developed by other author(s), for example, from among those available on the market;

• developed by other author(s) and modified by the teacher.

The curriculum proposed by the teacher or a team of teachers should be adapted to the needs and abilities of the pupils concerned.

The head of a given school approves curricula for the use at the school at the request of the teacher (or a group of teachers), after consultation with the school's teaching council.

Learning process in the primary school

Stage I of the primary school covers Grades I, II and III. Teaching at this stage aims to ensure smooth transition from preschool education to school education. It is organised on an integrated basis.

Teachers teach classes according to a timetable which they have developed, with the duration of lessons and breaks determined by pupils’ activity. 

Education at Stage II (Grades IV to VIII) is divided into subjects.

The Regulation of the Minister of Education of 20 May 2024 on the outline timetables for public schools (Rozporządzenie Ministra Edukacji z dnia 20 maja 2024 r. w sprawie ramowych planów nauczania dla publicznych szkół), which came into force on 1 September 2024 and was partly amended in 2025, specifies the number of hours for classes in primary schools. 

For the current outline timetables, which are based on the regulations in force, see below.

Outline timetables for the primary school

The outline timetable sets the weekly number of class (teaching) hours for pupils in each Grade, including, in particular, class hours for compulsory general education classes (see below). 

Grades I to III of the primary school (Stage I: early school education), the minimum number of teaching or class hours per week in the 3-year period is as follows:

Compulsory integrated teaching (Polish language, Social education, Natural sciences, Mathematics, Technology, Modern foreign language, Music education, Art education, ICT education, and Physical education): in total, 60 hours per week in the 3-year period. The generalist teacher who conducts classes distributes hours among the individual types of classes.

As part of compulsory classes in Grades I to III, 3 hours per week are allocated to physical education.

Separate regulations specify the number of hours for subjects such as Religion or Ethics; National or Ethnic minority language or the Regional language; National or Ethnic minority history and culture, and geography of the country with which a national minority identifies itself; Sports; Additional classes; Sign language; and Counselling (psychological and educational support). These are not included in the total duration of compulsory classes.

Grades IV to VIII of the primary school (Stage II), the minimum number of teaching or class hours per week in the 5-year period:

* Additional hours are allocated to a modern foreign language which is the second language of tuition in bilingual classes.

Weekly number of teaching / class hours:

(1) The number of compulsory teaching or class hours for pupils in individual grades at Stage I is 20 for Grades I, II and III. Additionally, throughout the early school education period, 3 hours are allocated by the school head.

(2) The number of compulsory teaching or class hours for pupils in individual grades at Stage II (Grades IV to VIII):

• Grade IV: 24,

• Grade V: 25,

• Grade VI: 25,

• Grade VII: 32 (plus 2 additional hours for the foreign language of tuition in bilingual schools),

• Grade VIII: 31 (plus 2 additional hours for the foreign language of tuition in bilingual schools).

(3) The number of rehabilitation class hours for pupils with disabilities is defined separately.

The school head specifies the number of hours to be allocated by the school head for each school year, in accordance with relevant separate regulations.

Separate regulations define the number of teaching or class hours for Religion or Ethics; Health education; National or Ethnic minority language, or the Regional language, and National or ethnic minority history and culture; Career guidance; and Sports classes/activities in sports classes or sports schools, or sports championship schools.

For further details, see the updated Eurydice publication ‘Recommended Annual Instruction Time in Full-Time Compulsory Education in Europe 2024/2025’. 

Teaching methods and materials

Teachers have teaching autonomy guaranteed by the law, and thus they are free to choose forms and methods of teaching, based on achievements in education sciences. However, organisational and financial factors, including the size of classes and available resources (for example, computers, audiovisual equipment and other teaching aids) have impact on the effectiveness of the teaching process. Schools are autonomous in the selection of learning and teaching resources which teachers use in their classes. For some compulsory subjects, such as Computer science, Physical education and Foreign languages, a class should be divided into smaller groups in accordance with the legislation.

Teachers may choose to use or not to use a textbook, other educational resources or exercise materials in implementing the curriculum. Other educational resources replace or supplement a textbook; these could be, for example, contents downloaded from the Internet, copied or created by the teacher to conduct classes (slide shows, presentations, notes, excerpts from literature, etc.). 

Textbooks for primary education should be chosen from among those approved for the use at school by the minister responsible for school education. The school head publishes annually the list of textbooks and/or other educational resources and exercise materials which will be used in a given school year.

Pupils in primary schools receive publicly funded textbooks and exercise materials for general education. All primary school pupils have had access to free textbooks since 1 September 2017. Such resources funded from State-budget grants reduce the costs of education incurred by parents.

Practically all primary schools in Poland have access to the Internet and enable teachers and pupils to use it. Thus, schools are required by law to install special Internet safety software in computers used for teaching and learning purposes. The software should protect pupils, in particular, against pornography, brutal and aggressive contents, and contents breaking social norms and promoting hatred and discrimination.