Foreign Languages Teaching in Greece

Primary Education

In Primary Schools, English is the compulsory foreign language. In 2003 – 2004, it started to be taught from Grade 3 for three hours per week.

Lower Secondary Education

The teaching of foreign languages (English, French and German) is integrated in the curriculum. English is compulsory for all pupils in all three Grades, while pupils are obliged to choose between French and German, as a second compulsory option.

In the 1st Grade of the Junior High School, English is taught for three hours per week.

In the 2nd and the 3rd Grades English is taught for two hours per week. French or German is taught in all three grades in Junior High Schools, for three hours per week.

Remedial teaching is provided in the afternoons through attendance of a special course in foreign languages.

Upper Secondary Education

  • Senior High Schools (Lycea)

English is one of the subjects taught as part of the general education in the three grades of the Senior High School. In the 1st Grade, English is taught for three hours per week and in the 2nd and 3rd Grades, English is taught for two hours per week. French or German is an optional subject in the curriculum. They are taught two hours per week, in all three grades.

  • Technical Vocational Schools (TEE)

In the 1st and 2nd grades of the first cycle of Technical Vocational Schools, English is taught for two hours per week in all specializations, except for the specializations of Applied Arts and of Beauty and Hairdressing, in which French is taught for two hours per week. English for Specific Purposes, in accordance with the individual specialization, is also taught in the second cycle of Technical Vocational Schools, for two hours per week, except for the specializations of Applied Arts and of Beauty and Hairdressing, in which French for Specific Purposes is taught for two hours per week.

Tertiary Education

English is the compulsory foreign language in all Universities and Technological Education Institutes, followed by a variety of optional foreign languages like French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, etc, according to the curriculum of each Technological Education Institute or University. Except for the foreign languages included in the curricula, there are also courses of neighbouring languages such as Bulgarian, Romanian, Serbian and Turkish on offer in Technological Education Institutes or Universities.

Read more about the Foreign Languages Teaching in Greece:

Greece Index