Catalan schools have lost 20,416 students in the infant and primary stages compared to last year, according to the Minister of Education, Anna Simó, at the press conference to present the 2023-2024 school year.
The persistent demographic drop that is noted year by year is emptying the classrooms and shrinking schools. Fewer students enter the system and more leave, and the loss is consistent in each of the courses, from 3 to 12 years. In addition, according to department sources, there is a migratory movement of students out of Catalonia, an aspect that has not yet been accounted for.
In the second cycle of infants, from 3 to 6 years, 10,495 students are lost and in primary, 9,921 in total. The consequences of the decline are classrooms with fewer children per teacher and therefore there will be "greater educational quality," according to Simó.
In the 6th grade of primary school, the last year of the stage, in June of last year there were some 81,570 students, who nine years ago began I3 with approximately the same magnitude (some 3,500 fewer because some families do not send their children to school until 1st grade).
In this academic year, the forecast for the promotion of 3-year-old children is almost 58,000, the lowest figure since 2006 and distant by 23,600 fewer students compared to that of this academic year.
In the infant stage, the greatest loss of students occurs in I4 and I5 compared to the 2022-2023 academic year. The classrooms have shrunk by more than 4,000 students in I4 and as many (4,600) in I5. The weight loss has been rapid. Of the 68,400 students who have left the infant stage this September and have gone to primary to the 58,000 who will enter I3 for the first time this year.
The same happens in elementary school. In 1st grade, the forecast is that there will be 71,650 students, practically 10,000 fewer than those who started this course six years ago. The highest step occurs in 5th grade, with 4,400 fewer students.
The demographic decline began to be noticed in the students who are now doing the 3rd year of ESO, but there were no falls as pronounced as those seen in primary school.
In the secondary stage, greater stability is observed, with practically the same student body as in the previous year (344,525).
In high school and FP there are, again, changes. Or rather, a trend that already began last year is consolidating. A strong loss of students in high school (11,656 less than the previous year) and a new increase in Vocational Training (FP) of 8,300 more students, of which almost half correspond to students who enroll in intermediate training cycles.
More resources
The 3-year-olds now entering schools are the children who were born during the pandemic. "Although there will be fewer of them, they will enter a reinforced school with more teachers and more resources than ever."
Thus, the counselor indicated that despite the drop in students, the staff of teachers and educational personnel is increasing. To the 3,500 teachers who joined the Education workforce last January (due to the reduction in teaching hours agreed with the unions), this year 1,190 more teachers and educational staff will join. 190 teachers and about 1,000 professors.
The staff of administrative and service personnel has also been expanded with 468 more professionals to relieve the bureaucratic tasks of the centers.
Another aspect that the councilor has highlighted has been the increase in enrollment in public and private nursery schools in the second year of free infant 2. This has increased the stage 0-3 years by 8.4 percent
