A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE UPPER SECONDARY EDUCATION SYSTEM IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

The quality control, especially of the Czech secondary schools, realised in this way, is very limited, because the leaving exams in all the secondary schools are decentralised on the micro level and the "output" is controlled by the state authorities on the mezzo and macro levels, only with the assistance of the Czech School Inspectorate (ČŠI).

The entry to the gymnasium, the technical and the vocational schools is organised mainly on a selective basis through competitive examinations, but at the present, the number of potential students has decreased to such a level, that the secondary schools must, in many cases, take all the leavers from the primary schools without any entrance examinations and so, are not able to control the "output" of these schools and the "input" of the applicants. The more prestigious the school is, the stiffer the entry requirements are. It is customary for young primary school leavers to try to get access to a gymnasium and, if turned down, to try some technical or vocational school, where no entry criteria are required for the applicants. The scale of social prestige between the types of secondary schools is, therefore, very clear and is similar to what can be observed in the West. There are great differences between the level of education in the state and private secondary schools and between their graduates. That is considered to be a great problem in the phase, when the secondary school graduates are entering the labour market or higher schools and universities.

The disproportion within the secondary school educational system caused by the communist labour-staff planning were removed and a new and broad variety of education was offered. However, after 1995, as a result of these transformations, the loss of inner cohesiveness in certain areas of the system became evident. The establishment and the rapid development of private schools, which appeared mainly among the secondary schools, especially among secondary technical schools, contributed greatly to this situation.

Secondary schools are divided into the following four types, between which there is more overlapping:

1. Secondary General School (Gymnázium), is named so in order to keep with the central European tradition. The study at the Gymnázium is completed with the final examination (Maturita), success in which means, that the student has completed "full secondary education" (úplné střední vzdělání).
   
2. Secondary Technical School (Střední odborná škola). The majority of students complete their studies with Maturita and have then completed "full secondary technical education" úplné střední odborné vzdělání).
   
3. Secondary Vocational School (Střední odborné učiliště) mainly offers "vocational courses". Schools of this type also train some of their pupils in professional courses, which are ended with the Maturita examination. The level of education, which they attain, is thus known as "full secondary technical education". The majority of students apply for jobs immediately on completion of their studies. Students attending three-year courses can take a two-year extension course (nástavbové studium) leading also to a Maturita examination after a total of five years of study.
   
4. The Integrated Secondary Technical/Vocational Schools (Integrované střední školy) provide the same type of education as both technical and vocational schools.

A distinctive example of such a loss of system cohesiveness is the secondary school graduation achieved by the passing of the Maturita exam. The fact that the school directors determine the content of the Maturita exam leads to the loss of one of the most useful tools for quality and content official control over secondary school teaching. Maturita has lost many of its functions, mainly because of the total impossibility to compare its content and demands.