Understanding Uruguay’s educational landscape

Initial education typically covers ages three, four, and five. It aims to stimulate children's emotional, social, motor, and intellectual development.

In 2022, it catered to 122,432 children, countrywide. ⁽⁶⁾

Primary education typically covers ages six to twelve in six grades. Children are divided into groups of 20-25, and each group has a teacher, who lectures in a variety of subjects. In addition, special activities such as music, physical education, and English are scattered throughout the week.

In 2022, 300,787 children attended primary, with 83 % of them attending state (public) schools, and 17 % private schools. ⁽⁶⁾

Following primary education comes secondary education, which is divided into two phases. The first one is called “Basic secondary education” and typically covers ages 13 to 15 in three grades (formerly, and in this project, known as “1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd grades”; recently renamed “7^th, 8^th and 9^th grades”).

In 2022, 166,477 students attended it in its three modalities: general education (79% of students enrolled), vocational education (20%) and rural basic cycle (1%). ⁽⁶⁾ In this work, I will primarily focus on general education.

Adolescents usually have between 12 and 13 different subjects, each taught by a different teacher and assessed separately. In general terms, if students fail a subject, they can sit an exam covering the whole syllabus (the most common exam periods are in December and February) to approve it. If students fail more than half of their subjects, they must repeat the year.

The second phase of secondary education is called “Upper secondary education.” It is also divided into three grades (called 4th, 5th, and 6th in this work) and typically covers the ages of 16 to 18.

Its 180,267 students in 2022 attend one of its two modalities: general education (73 % of students) and vocational education (27). ⁽⁶⁾

In general education, students in 5^th and 6^th grade get to choose an orientation or class based on their career interests. The orientations in 5th grade are commonly known as Humanities, Biology, Science, and Arts. From these stem the orientations of 6^th grade, commonly known as Law, Economics, Medicine, Agronomy, Architecture, Engineering, and Arts.

Vocational Education is mostly imparted by the University of Labor of Uruguay (UTU). In it, students choose an area of focus for their three-year diploma. Examples include Agriculture, Business Administration, Construction, Design, Industrial Mechanics, and Information Technology, among others.

Tertiary education is intended for adults who want to pursue professional training and academic learning. In 2022, 232,470 students were enrolled in it.

According to Uruguay’s General Law of Education (n.° 18,437, from 2008), mandatory education goes from year four in initial education and covers all of primary and secondary education. ⁽⁷⁾