Education in Ottonia

Education in Ottonian Federal Republic

Federal Department of Education
Director of Education	Karlotta Skyldsunn
General details
Primary languages	Allamunnic, Eonese (regional)
System type	National
Literacy (2015)
Total	99.9
Male	99.9
Female	99.9
Enrollment
Total	n/a
Primary	99.9% (graduating)
Secondary	99.9%
Post secondary	75%
Attainment
Secondary diploma	95%
Post-secondary diploma	60%

Education is mandatory for all youths from ages 5 to 16. All youths up to the age of 20 are entitled to a public education, often referred to as the Standard Education.

The school year in North Ottonia begins in January (generally on the third week of the month) and is divided into three fourteen-week trimesters, separated by 3-week breaks in the spring and summer, and a 4-week break between academic years. Grade/year placement is based on the age a youth will turn during that academic year: for instance, Primary 1 (often abbreviated as P1)

History of Education in North Ottonia

See also: Education in Ottonia

Modern Education in North Ottonia

Standard Education

The core of education in North Ottonia is the Standard Education (sometimes shortened to StandEd). While enrollment in Standard Education is mandatory between the ages of 5 and 16 for a total of ten academic years, youths are entitled to remain enrolled up through the age of 20, when they will have completed a total of 15 academic years. In practice, very few students drop out at the ten-year mark; more common is dropping out at the thirteen-year mark (when a student would be 18), and the majority end up completing the entire 15 year track.

This is partially due to the existence of penalties meant to discourage youths from prematurely discontinuing their education without good reason. However, also important in this high graduation rate is the power of peer pressure and the importance ingrained in North Ottonian youths in completing Standard Education, both for educational reasons but also as a sort of national rite of passage.

Primary School

Primary school in Standard Education is usually referred to as Day School (often called "D-School" or "D-Level"). It consists of six academic years, with children of age 5 enrolling and graduating at age 11. Day School is relatively lightly structured; the first two or three years of Day School consist largely of educational games and activities in which children learn the alphabet and early writing, basic mathematics, science, and begin to be introduced to a second language in basic terms. Moreover, formal grades are not assessed in Day School; while assessments maybe give and graded to gauge children's progress in learning material. While it is possible for a child to be held back a grade if they are having serious trouble progressing academically, this is relatively rare.

The amount of time per day spent in school for Day school students is relatively long compared to later grades; this is in large part to ensure that children are not left at home unattended while parents may be working or older siblings may still be in class. As such, Day School also serves a rather explicit daycare function.

Grade levels in Day school are denoted by "D" followed by the year of progression. They are, with their accompanying age ranges (age at entry to age at progression):

• D1 - Ages 5 to 6
• D2 - Ages 6 to 7
• D3 - Ages 7 to 8
• D4 - Ages 8 to 9
• D5 - Ages 9 to 10
• D6 - Ages 10 to 11

Basic School

After a youth completes six years of Day School, they matriculate to Basic School (often called "B-School" or "B-Level"), which is essentially an extended middle school or lower secondary school. Basic School consists of six academic years, with students from ages 11 thru 16. Starting here, study becomes more rigorous, with formal grades being assigned while youths are given more freedom in their course selection; outside of a core curriculum, they have free choice of any elective courses that they are eligible for (when requirements exist they are usually based on past courses taken or age, depending on the elective). Core subjects include Allamunnic language & writing, mathematics, science, history & civics, technology, physical education, and second language. Common electives are home economics, hardware, more in-depth writing and history courses, and arts classes.

Notably, Civics classes are mandatory at B5 level. Typically at the conclusion of the course, B5 students take the National Basic Civics Assessment (NBCA), which must be passed with a mark of 80% or higher to achieve full franchise and eligibility for public office and civil service professions in North Ottonia.

At the Basic School level, clubs also become more important; club sports are popular and widely-followed, while professional interest clubs help students start to learn about professions they may be interested in. It is generally strongly-encouraged for students to have at least one club they are actively involved in, although many will also maintain less-active membership in other clubs, especially recreational clubs. While the school day for Basic School is notably shorter than that of Day School, many students will spend between 1 and 2 hours per day (usually closer to the former) extra on school grounds in club activities.

When a youth completes their B5 year, they are considered to have completed the mandatory segment of the Standard Education; at this point, students may discontinue their education, although this incurs penalties such as a dramatically-increased likelihood of conscription into the Federal Guard or Service Corps, as well as missing out on the Advanced School experience with their peers. Youths who choose to drop out typically do so to continue a family business or trade (in which case they will continue less-formal training on the job) or to enter Junior Officer Candidate Training for the North Ottonian Federal Defense Service. Those without a very clear rationale for dropping out at the conclusion of Basic School tend to experience strong pressure from kin, peers, and mentor figures to continue to Advanced School.

Grade levels in Basic School are denoted by a "B" followed by the year of progression. They are, with their accompanying age ranges (listed as age at entry to age at progression):

• B1 - Ages 11 to 12
• B2 - Ages 12 to 13
• B3 - Ages 13 to 14
• B4 - Ages 14 to 15
• B5 - Ages 15 to 16

Advanced School

Advanced School (sometimes called "A-School" or "A-Level") serves as an upper secondary school. It consists of four academic years, encompassing students between 16 and 20 years of age. Here, education becomes significantly more specialized; students matriculating from Basic School have typically been encouraged to start focusing their education into areas of possible professional interest, although the first two years are mostly concerned with some final general education courses. Starting with the A3 level, students are generally funneled into a proper program where they can prepare either for a specific profession or apprenticeship, or for higher post-secondary education.

A-level students are granted the most autonomy of anyone in the Standard Education system. Their class days can vary wildly in length based on course load and scheduling, and may even fall outside what would be normal school hours in Day or Basic School. By this point students are also typically involved significantly in an extracurricular club which may take a large amount of their time outside the school day.

It is more common for students to drop out after their first two years of Advanced School than it is for them to drop out after the end of Basic School, since the penalties incurred are similar in nature but less severe, and 18-year olds often are able to find jobs with longer-term prospects or are needed to work at a family business. Still, the vast majority of those that enroll in A-School tend to graduate on time.

Program groups in A-School often become close-knit, and it is notable that celebrations and extra-curricular partying at this level tends to be more adult-oriented; students are often beginning to be able to legally use intoxicants and school or organizationally-sanctioned festivities become fairly frequent at this level. This culminates with the "Week of Farewells" when graduating A-Level students tend to party, drink heavily, and play public pranks in the third week of December, after schools have typically ended but Midwinter Festivities have not yet begun.

Grade levels in Advanced School are denoted by an "A" followed by the year of progression. They are, with their accompanying age ranges (listed as age at entry to age at progression):

• A1 - Ages 16 to 17
• A2 - Ages 17 to 18
• A3 - Ages 18 to 19
• A4 - Ages 19 to 20

Higher Education

North Ottonia has a fairly extensive higher education system. In addition to the ten "prestige universities" (City-based universities that pre-date the unification of Ottonia), there are also five state university systems each with multiple campuses. The state university systems administer several university colleges, primarily aimed at vocational and pre-professional degree programs typically not exceeding master's degree in level. Meanwhile, the flagship universities, alongside the "prestige universities" are the primary institutions for the earning of PhD-level degrees (although they also offer lower-level degrees, as well), as well as being the primary destinations for foreign students seeking to study in North Ottonia.