and private schools, in the school year 2004/2005 there were in total only 3785 primary schools,
out of which 3732 were public schools and 53 church and private schools [Statistická ročenka
České a Slovenské federativní republiky 1990-1992; Statistická ročenka České republiky 1993-
2005]. Therefore a total number of primary schools have, over 15 years, finally decreased by 115
schools, i.e. by 3% compared to the year 1990. In that period, church and private schools mostly
constituted only 1-1.5% of all the primary schools in CR.
4300 4200
4100 4000
3900 3800
3700 3600
3500 3400
1990/91 1992/93
1994/95 Public schools
1996/97 1998/99
2000/01 2002/03
2004/05 Church and private schools
Graph 1: Primary schools in the Czech Republic (1990-2005)
The number of secondary schools (SS) also considerably changed between the years 1990 and
2005. In the school year 1989/1990 there were only 1272 public secondary schools in the Czech
Republic, out of which 223 were grammar schools (G), 382 vocational colleges (SOS) and 667
secondary vocational schools (SOU), in the year 1990/1991 already 1301 secondary schools (228
G, 402 SOS and 671 SOU), out of which 1295 were public schools and first six secondary church
or private schools.
In the school year 1994/95 there were already in total 1880 secondary schools (349 G, 800
SOS and 731 SOU). In the following school year, a part of SOU turned into integrated secondary
schools (ISS). Thus, in the school year 1995/1996, a total number of secondary schools in CR
reached its maximum; in total there were 1927 schools (361 G, 832 SOS, 201 ISS a 533 SOU),
out of which 392, i.e. 20% were church and private secondary schools. This represents an increase
by 655 new schools, i.e. by 51.5%.
Also, the number of secondary schools started to diminish in the second half of the nineties.
This was again mainly due to financial demands of these schools and a decreasing number of
pupils/students. Specifically there was a decrease of interest in the study of SOU. In the school
year 1999/2000 there were in total 1754 secondary schools in CR (345 G, 826 SOS and ISS and
583 SOU), out of which 294, i.e. 16.8% were church and private secondary schools. In the school
year 2004/2005 there were in total only 1650 secondary schools (345 G, 797 SOS and ISS and
508 SOU), out of which 287, i.e. 17.4% were church and private secondary schools [Statistická
ročenka České a Slovenské federativní republiky 1990-1992; Statistická ročenka České republiky
1993-2005]. Therefore, a total number of secondary schools have, over 15 years, finally increased
by 378 schools, i.e. by 29.7%. In that period, church and private schools constituted mostly 15-
20% of all the secondary schools in CR.
Since the year 1996, primary schools have again become nine-year schools (1st stage takes five
years, 2nd stage four years). At the first stage of primary schools, the subject Basics is first taught
(propaedeutics of both social and natural sciences) and consequently the subject Science (Basics of
science). Science subjects are studied separately from the second stage of primary school – natural
21