Luxembourg education minister reveals details of new European school

A new state-run European school opening in Luxembourg next year will put pupils on an equal footing with their European peers when entering various further education systems across the EU, according to education minister Claude Meisch.

From September 2018 an accredited European school will be integrated within Lycée Edward Steichen in the northern region of Clervaux and will be free of charge to attend.

An accredited European school is an establishment which is not part of the official European School network but offers a programme which matches the teaching requirements and is overseen by the European inspectorate.

Meisch said having both schools under one roof will allow pupils to easily change between the Luxembourgish and European systems.

"The school's mission is to provide European, multilingual and multicultural education for national pupils from diverse origins," the minister said in an answer to a parliamentary question from DP MP, André Bauler.

"While we were putting the programmes in place and deciding on the choice of teaching material, we paid particular attention to the idea of an European education, mutual respect and openness towards the rest of the world."

European Bac officially recognised across EU

Since 2005 European schools have extended their curriculum to national schools following a recommendation from the European Parliament. This meant national schools were then able to offer the European Bac Baccalaureate.

"The European Bac is officially recognised as a qualification enabling admission to higher education in all countries of the European Union as well as in several other countries," Meisch said. "Pupils who have an European Bac have the same rights and advantages as pupils with a high school diploma within their home country and they can also get into any university or further education establishment in the EU."

Within the European school system, early education lasts two years, primary school five years and secondary school seven. Children are taught in the language of the chosen section and pick up a first foreign language – French, German or English in Luxembourg's case – in the first year of primary school. A second foreign language will be introduced during the first year of secondary school.

There is also the possibility to add a third language in the fourth year of secondary and a fifth language in the sixth year. In principle, any official EU language can be chosen as a third, fourth or fifth language.

From September 2018 a French and German language section of secondary will open at Edward Steichen European School and an English language section will be introduced according to needs, although no fixed date has been set.

Attracting foreign investors

Asked who the school is catered for, Meisch said it will be a free-of-charge "public school open to all".

"The school allows integration for foreigners' pupils, both for families who want to stay in Luxembourg and for those who are in the country for a set length of time. The curriculum at the European school is also accessible to national pupils who want to be part of a multilingual and multicultural school system."

Meisch said opportunities to study at an international and European school are currently stronger in and around Luxembourg City and that the option is not available to those living in the north of the country.

He said the lack of a European school in the north can also lead to multinational companies thinking twice about setting up in the region.

The minister said educational options are important when it comes to foreign companies, investors and scientific experts' decision-making process.

Speaking to the Luxemburger Wort last month Meisch confirmed an international school will also open in Junglinster in 2018 and another project, in Mondorf, is "still being elaborated".

The state-run International School of Differdange and Esch-sur-Alzette also follows the European curriculum.

(Heledd Pritchard, heledd.pritchard@wort.lu, +352 49 93 459)