In the coronavirus crisis, Spain is following in the footsteps of Italy in virtually all respects. Yet another field that this applies to is education. This Wednesday, the Spanish education ministry has proposed to the state's autonomous communities - which run the education system in their territories - that a "pass" grade should be given almost universally to infant, primary and secondary school students. Everyone will pass the course, although not with the same grade, which the teachers will award based on student performance in the first two terms. A repetition of the whole year will be reserved for "very exceptional" cases and only based on a joint decision by the school's teaching team.
The final evaluation for the school year will include a personalized report for each student, which will be used as the basis for the plans for supplementary classes that will be launched both over the summer and from September on. When students fail an individual subject they will have to make it up when the new term begins in September, but will not have to repeat the whole year. Holding students back will be for "very exceptional" cases. According to minister Isabel Celaá, it will have to be "solidly justified".
Final year students, without recovery
The main exception to the recovery classes will be for secondary students in their final year - the second year of the batxerillat, as well as students in their last year of other courses - who will not be affected by the possible need to repeat specific subjects. These students will be able to obtain a pass for the whole course even if they have been deemed to have failed certain subjects. The educational centre's teaching team, made up of around a dozen teachers, will decide if the student has done enough to obtain an overall pass for the course. Thus, the whole team will decide whether a final year student goes on to their university entrance exams or not. The examinations for entry to university courses, popularly known as the selectivitat, have already been postponed from their normal June dates until 7th-9th July, but full details of possible changes to their formats have still to be given.
Schools to close as usual in June
As well, the Spanish government and the educational authorities in the different autonomous communities have also agreed that the school year will end in June, as it always does, despite the many classes missed due to the closure of schools for the last month since coronavirus restrictions were put into place. Thus, after days of debate, it has been decided that classes will not be extended during the summer. However, the door has been left open for each territorial educational authority to organize or provide support for compensatory activities during the summer, "in a variety of formats and combined with recreational activities."