Slovenia

Curator
Miha Andrič

Quick facts

Course:

Part of the philosophy curriculum
Compulsory
16-18 years old
7.000 students per year
1 year, 70 hours per year, of which 15 hours are dedicated to ethics
Essay, written exam and oral exam (internally assessed)
Part of the philosophy curriculum
Elective for all students; compulsory for those that do not attend religious instruction
16-18 years old
170-230 students per year
1 year, 105 hours per year, 2-3 hours per week, 15 hours dedicated to ethics
Essay, written exam and oral exam (internally assessed)
Part of the philosophy curriculum
Elective
17-18 years old
170-230 students per year
1 year, 210 hours per year, 6 hours per week, 100 hours dedicated to ethics (if ethics is elected as one of the topics)
National state exam

Ethics is taught in Slovenia within three different philosophy courses that are offered to secondary school students at the pre-university level.

1. A compulsory philosophy course in general grammar schools
This course consists of 70 lessons per school year (2 lessons per week) that students take in their 3rd or 4th grade of high school. 15 lessons of the course are dedicated to ethics. The age of the students ranges from 16 to 18 years old. Approximately 7000 students take this class each year. All the students are internally assessed through oral tests, written exams and essay writing.

2. An elective philosophy course
This course consists of 105 lessons per year (2-3 lessons per week) that students might take in their 3rd or 4th grade of high school. 15 lessons of the course are dedicated to ethics. The age of the students ranges from 16 to 18 years old. The course could be offered as (1) an additional elective philosophy course in the 3rd grade of high school, or (2) the only philosophy course for students in vocational schools or classical gymnasiums. Approximately 250 students take this class each year. All the students are internally assessed through oral tests, written exams and essay writing.

3. An elective final exam preparation course (Matura exam course)
This course consists of 210 lessons per year (6 lessons per week) that students might take in their 4th grade of high school. The age of the students ranges from 17 to 18 years old. Approximately 200 student take this class each year. Ethics is an elective topic within the course and it is up to the discretion of the teacher to choose it or not. If ethics is selected as (one of) the topic, up to 100 lessons are dedicated to it. The main objective of the course is to prepare students for the final philosophy exam organized by the National Examinations Centre (RIC). It consists of (1) an extended essay, which is internally assessed by a mentor (20% of the final grade), (2) an interpretative essay, which is externally assessed (35% of the final grade, and (3) an argumentative essay, which is externally assessed (45% of the final grade).