Canada’s Education System The Canadian government provides【1】public education for all students from Kindergarten to Grade 12.

Good morning. Today I’d like to continue our series talks about Canada. This morning I will talk about Canada’s education system.
   In Canada, students have many opportunities for education. Canadian children start attending Kindergarten at age 5. From ages 6 to 12, children study in Grades 1 to 6 at Elementary School. When students are approximately 13 and 14 years old, they attend Grades 7 and 8 in Junior High School. And, from age 15 to 18 or 19, they go to High School, starting with Grade 9 and ending with Grade 12. The Canadian government provides free public education for all students aged 5 to 18 or 19, or from Kindergarten to Grade 12. All children must attend school until they are at least 16 years old.
   From Kindergarten to Grade 12, the school year begins in early June. The school year for college students starts in early September and ends in May. For university students, classes begin in mid-September and end at the end of April. All students have 2 weeks of holidays during Christmas and New Year, as well as I week of holiday in February or March.
   The Canadian education system aims to be student centered, that is, it focuses primarily on the needs of the students, and strives to meet those needs. In addition, some of the important goals of education include teaching children to be creative, to use critical thinking skills when solving problems, and to work both independently as well as in a team. Honesty and integrity are also highly valued in Canadian education, and offenders face very serious consequences.
   The classroom is an active place. Students are encouraged and expected to participate in class discussions and activities. The teacher plans his/her lessons so that each student can learn. This sometimes requires much adaptation in teaching methodology, as the teacher endeavors to teach students in the way that they learn best.
   From Kindergarten to Grade 6, students follow the same basic curriculum. Starting in Grade 7, students must study a common curriculum, but they have the portion of choosing a few, various elective courses, according to their likes and interests. In high school, about 60 percent of the curriculum are mandatory, which means that all students must take the same courses. This also means that students are given the freedom to choose 40 percent of their courses. The courses chosen by each student will vary greatly, and will depend on the student’s intended career goals.
   After completing high school, many students will continue their education at college or university. This is called "post-secondary education", and, although it is subsidized by the Canadian government, students must pay tuition fees. There is no national entrance examination for college and university admission. Students are admitted to college or university based on their high school grades. Canadian students have many chances to enter university, even if they don’t do well in their high school studies. For example, a student who does not finish Grade 12 can still be admitted to university as a mature student, when they are at least 23 years old or older. And a student whose high school grades are too low for university, can first attend college, and then apply later on for university entrance.
   In Canada, colleges are very different academic institutions than Universities. At college, students take job related courses, they receive a diploma after 2 to 3 years of study, and they learn very practical skills. At university, students take a broad range of courses, they receive a Bachelor’s degree after 4 years of study, and they learn theoretical knowledge and new ways of thinking.
   Canada’s focus on student-centered education means that students can change their major, as well as transfer to a different college or university, if they want to. In fact, it is pretty much expected that most students will change their major at least once during their post-secondary education.