The Swedish government has advanced the proposal to extend compulsory education to ten years. By replacing pre-school class with a new first year of compulsory school, students will be better positioned to develop fundamental skills in reading, writing, and arithmetic.

The state public investigations report, titled “A ten-year compulsory school – The introduction of a new year 1 in compulsory school, compulsory school for pupils with intellectual disabilities, special school and Sami school” was published in 2021. The Swedish government has proposed introducing a ten-year compulsory education system by converting the preschool class into grade 1. Following this proposal, the government has decided on the bill “A ten-year compulsory school.”

The bill includes proposals for amendments to the Education Act, aimed at enhancing the knowledge base of schools, which entail the following:

• Primary school will be expanded to ten years by eliminating the preschool class as a school type and replacing it with a new first year in primary school.
• The adapted primary school, special school and Sami school will also be expanded with a new first year. As a result, the adapted primary school will offer ten years, the special school eleven years, and the Sami school seven years.
• The introduction of the new first year will extend the school duration and increase guaranteed teaching time by 534 hours per school type.
• Existing regulations for different school types will apply to the new first year, with education adapted to the students' age.
• Necessary information about a child shall be submitted to facilitate their transition from preschool or educational care to compulsory school, adapted compulsory school, special school, or Sami school.
• Necessary consequential amendments are made to the Education Act as well as to several other acts.

The amendments to the Education Act are proposed to enter into force on 1 July 2026 and are applied for the first time in relation to education and other activities conducted after 30 June 2028. Other proposed amendments to the law enter into force on 1 July 2028.

For more information: 

• https://www.regeringen.se/rattsliga-dokument/statens-offentliga-utredningar/2021/05/sou-202133/
• https://www.regeringen.se/contentassets/d2251095089b425f941b0cde4c33f388/en-tioarig-grundskola-prop.-202425143.pdf

Source: Eurydice Unit Sweden