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School advice in grade 8.
In group 8 of primary school the school gives advice about the education that best fits your child after primary school. What should parents know about this school advice? How is this school advice made? And when can you expect the school advice?
When is the final school advice for group 8?
The timeline runs from January to March. In January your child receives the school advice (usually called the provisional school advice), in February your child takes the secondary school transition test, and in March the final school advice follows.
How does the primary school make the advice?
The school advice shows at what level your child can best continue at secondary school. When giving the school advice the school looks at your child’s development, especially in the last years of primary school.
The test results from the student monitoring system are an important base for this. Also soft student traits, such as social-emotional development, work attitude, motivation, and the ability to plan and organize influence the advice.
Schools must include in the school guide how the school advice for group 8 is made and actively inform parents and students about this. This way all parents are involved in time with the transition to secondary school.
Provisional and final advice
From the school year 2023/2024 all children in group 8 receive their (provisional or first) school advice between 10 and 31 January.
Soon after, between 27 January and 16 February, your child takes a secondary school transition test. If your child gets a higher advice on the secondary school transition test than the provisional advice from January, the law says the school must raise the advice. Also if that is only for half a school type.
Only in exceptional cases can the school decide not to do this. The school must explain and support well why it is really not good for your child to raise the advice.
If the test score is the same or lower than the school advice from January, then nothing changes. All children and parents receive the final school advice by 24 March at the latest.
Example of school advice
An example: if your child gets a provisional vmbo-tl advice in January and scores on the secondary school transition test at vmbo-gtl/havo level, the school must change the January advice to a final vmbo-gtl/havo advice.
If the school thinks this is not in your child’s interest, the school can only adjust one school type by half or not adjust at all in exceptional cases. In both cases, the school must explain why it does not adjust.
The exception to this procedure is for students going to the practical education track or special education.
Single or double school advice
The primary school can give advice for one or two school types. A single advice is for example a vmbo-kader or havo advice. A double advice is for example a vmbo/havo or havo/vwo advice.
The primary school chooses which advice fits your child best. This can always be a single or a double advice.
The advice from the secondary school transition test is always a double advice, except for the vwo school type.
Placement at secondary school
With the school advice, parents can enroll their child in a secondary school. The school must place your child according to the school advice from primary school. For example, a school must place a student with havo advice at least at havo level.
If the school has a vmbo-tl/havo class, a havo class, and a havo/vwo class, the school can decide in which of these three classes to place the student.
Disagreeing with school advice
Usually, the teacher of group 8 has already spoken with you and your child about the advice before January, so it is not a surprise. But if you still disagree with the school advice, you can talk to the school and ask what the advice is based on.
You can also say why you think another advice fits your child better. Ask what image the school has of your child and tell whether this matches your image. Share your expectations too.
It is smart to have this talk early with your child’s teacher.
Still, you cannot demand the school to change the school advice if you do not agree. You and your child can look for secondary schools with a bridge class that has multiple school types, see below. This allows postponing the final choice of a school type.
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