Training

School duty applies for children between 6 and 15 years. The majority of the students continue to the upper secondary school where there are theoretical, technical and vocational orientations. Private schools are located next to the state.

Low wages mean that young Czechs are attracted to the teaching profession. In 2014, about half of all primary and secondary school teachers were over 50 years old. The school is modernizing, among other things, to make the teaching profession more attractive.

• COUNTRYAAH: Country facts of Czech Republic, including geography profile, population statistics, and business data.

The Roma minority is discriminated against in education. Many Roma children have long been placed in schools for students with mild intellectual disabilities. These were formally abolished in 2004, but the practical schools that were introduced then led to few improvements. About 30 percent of the students in the practical schools were Roma. Studies show that even Roma children who attend regular schools are discriminated against. According to a report from Amnesty International 2015, it is also common for Roma children who attend mixed classes to be harassed by both teachers and other students. The progress you can point to, according to Amnesty, is mainly due to the involvement of individual teachers, not the actions of the authorities. Some Roma parents have tried to get around the problems by sending their children to private schools. Some families have been indebted to do so.

From 2016, new rules apply, which means that all pupils with special needs – including children with disabilities, children from socio-economically disadvantaged families and from culturally different environments – will be prepared place in ordinary schools where they will receive extra support.

Prague is the center of a long educational tradition; scientists from all over Europe have worked here. Among them is the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe (1546–1601). The botanist Gregor Mendel (1822–1884) in Brno conducted thousands of cross-fertilization of plants for research purposes. The Czech Republic has more than 60 universities and colleges, most of them privately owned. Most famous is the University of Prague in Prague, founded in 1348.

Nowadays, almost every third of the youth go on to college, and more women (36 percent) than men (25 percent) are pursuing higher education. However, the proportion is lower than in many other EU countries, although the gap is narrowing. However, an increasing proportion of students drop out of their studies before taking their degree. According to EU statistics, 22 percent of Czechs between the ages of 25 and 64 had college education in 2015, compared to an average of 33 percent for all member countries.

• Searchforpublicschools: Offers schooling information of Czech Republic in each level – compulsory, technical and higher education programs.

FACTS – EDUCATION

Number of pupils per teacher in primary school

19 (2013)

Public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP

13.9 percent (2015)

Public expenditure on education as a percentage of the state budget

13.9 percent (2015)

2014

November

Protests against Zeman

The celebration of the 25th anniversary of the “velvet revolution” in 1989, when the communist regime fell, leads to widespread protests against President Miloš Zeman, who made a series of pro-Russian statements, not infrequently with what has been described as vulgar language. A few days later, Zeman invites Russian President Putin to an international symposium on the Holocaust in January.

October

Success for government parties in the Senate elections

The government coalition retains its majority in the Senate after two electoral votes to elect 27 of the House’s 81 members. The three government parties win 19 of the mandates that are at stake and receive a total of 46 members. The turnout in the second round is the lowest since the Czech Republic’s independence in 1993, only 16.69 percent.

May

Record-low turnout in EU elections

On May 25, elections to the European Parliament will be held, but just over 18 percent of Czechs vote. The populist party ANO becomes the largest party with just over 16 percent of the vote, ahead of the Top 09 which receives just under 16 percent and the Social Democrats receiving just over 14 percent. The three largest parties have all adopted an EU-friendly line on the most important issues. The EU-critical parties ODS and the European Party of Free Citizens receive just under 8 percent and just over 5 percent of the votes.

February

Sobotka’s government wins a vote of confidence

The new government under Bohuslav Sobotka wins his first vote of confidence in parliament.

Former head of government is prosecuted

Prosecution is brought against former Prime Minister Petr Nečas, He is accused of bribery in connection with the scandal that befell his government (see June 2013). According to the indictment, he must have offered lucrative work to three MEPs to support him in an important vote.

January

New S-led government is presented

Social Democrats leader Bohuslav Sobotka presents his government proposal consisting of eight Social Democrats, six members of the ANO populist party and three Christian Democrats. Three of the ministers are women. Foreign Minister becomes Social Democrat Lubomír Zaorálek, a strong advocate for the EU. The post of finance minister goes to the country’s second richest man, ANO leader Andrej Babiš, who once said he would like to run the Czech Republic as a family business. The government will now be approved in a vote in the lower house in February.