School-leaving Exams in Mathematics to Be Mandatory as of 2030/31

Bratislava, 9 June (TASR) - School-leaving exams in mathematics will be mandatory in Slovakia as of the 2030/2031 school year, Education Minister Tomas Drucker (Voice-SD) announced at a news conference on Monday. The change will therefore apply to students who start studying in the first grade of secondary school on September 1, 2027. The basic level of the mathematics exam should be mandatory for students of grammar schools, secondary technical schools and many vocational secondary schools. Students at secondary vocational schools will undergo a basic level of the mathematics exam. "Given that these schools are vocationally focused, their students participate in various practical training and dual education, there's no space to teach them a huge volume of theoretical mathematics," stated Drucker. Compulsory school-leaving exams in mathematics won't apply to some secondary schools, such as conservatories, sports schools or business academies, added the minister. According to Drucker, school-leaving exams in mathematics at grammar schools should be two-level. A lower (basic) level should apply to third graders. Only selected students would undertake a higher level in the final grade, i.e. those who want to continue their studies at technical universities, explained Drucker, adding that mandatory school-leaving exams in mathematics have also been introduced by Poland, Hungary, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France, Slovenia and Croatia. ko/df