History

Until the mid-19th century, little formal education was available in Seychelles

Seychelles

Seychelles , officially the Republic of Seychelles , is an island country spanning an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, some east of mainland Africa, northeast of the island of Madagascar....

. Both the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches opened mission schools in 1851. The missions continued to operate the secondary schools — Seychelles College run by the Brothers of Christian Instruction

Brothers of Christian Instruction

The Brothers of Christian Instruction also known as the De la Mennais Brothers is a Christian educational organization founded in 1819 by Gabriel Deshayes and Jean-Marie de la Mennais for the instruction of youth. Their aim remains that of their Founder :"to educate the young and to make Jesus...

 and Regina Mundi Convent run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny

Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny is a Roman Catholic religious order founded in 1807. Located around the world, its members perform a variety of charitable works, but they devote themselves especially to missionary work and providing education for the poor....

 — even after the government became responsible for education in 1944, though primary schools were established throughout the islands with mainly untrained teachers. After a teacher training college

Teacher training college

A teacher training college is a college of higher education that specialises in training students to be teachers.Many universities offer similar facilities, a number of which acquired their provision by taking over a teacher training college or by a teacher training college evolving into a...

 opened in 1959 'to cater for in-service teachers of promise without previous training, and to train new entrants to teaching' (quote from article by S. Quinlan: "The Teacher Training College" in Seychelles Government Bulletin, July 27, 1961) a two year training course was offered for secondary teachers or a one year course for in-service primary teachers, resulting in a supply of locally trained teachers becoming available. Since 1981 a system of free education

Free education

Free education refers to education that is funded through taxation, or charitable organizations rather than tuition fees. Although primary school and other comprehensive or compulsory education is free in many countries, for example, all education is mostly free including...

 has been in effect requiring attendance by all children in grades one to nine, beginning at age five. Formerly, school-age children were required to participate in the National Youth Service.

The literacy rate for school-aged children had risen to more than 90 percent by the late 1980s. Many older Seychellois had not been taught to read or write in their childhood, but adult education classes helped raise adult literacy from 60 percent to a claimed 85 percent in 1991.

Current status

Education is compulsory up to the age of 16, and free through secondary school up until age 18. Students must pay for uniforms, but not for books or tuition

Tuition

Tuition payments, known primarily as tuition in American English and as tuition fees in British English, Canadian English, Australian English, New Zealand English and Indian English, refers to a fee charged for educational instruction during higher education.Tuition payments are charged by...

. In 2002, the gross primary enrollment rate was 114 percent and the net primary enrollment rate was 100 percent. Gross and net enrollment ratios are based on the number of students formally registered in primary school and therefore do not necessarily reflect actual school attendance. Primary school attendance statistics are not available for Seychelles. As of 2002, 99 percent of children who started primary school were likely to reach grade 5.

Children are first taught to read and write in Creole

Seychellois Creole

Seychellois Creole, also known as Kreol or Seselwa, is the French-based creole language of the Seychelles. It shares official language status with English and French ....

. Beginning in grade three, English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 is used as a teaching language in certain subjects. French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

 is introduced in grade six.

Students can attend Seychelles Polytechnic (1,600 students in 1991) for pre-university studies or other training. In 1993, responding to popular pressure, the government eliminated the requirement of NYS participation in order to enter the Polytechnic. However, it strongly encouraged students to complete NYS before beginning to work at age eighteen. The largest number of students were in teacher training (302), business studies

Business studies

Business studies is an academic subject taught at higher level in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom, as well as at university level in many countries...

 (255), humanities

Humanities

The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....

 and science

Science

Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...

(226), and hotels and tourism (132). No opportunities for higher education are available on the islands. Instead, university and higher professional courses are usually pursued through various British, United States, and French scholarship programs.

External links

• Seychelles Ministry of Education
• Education Statistics and Quality of Education in Seychelles, Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ)