British Education in BSV: the British international school in Valencia
Our educational project is based on the British National Curriculum with the particularities and characteristics of a British international school in Spain.
This table shows equivalencies between the British and Spanish education systems, it may serve to understand the organisation and terminology used regarding the British education system and on this website.
| Academic Cycles | Age Group | British Curriculum | Spanish Curriculum |
| Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) | 2 – 3 3 – 4 4 – 5 | Pre-Nursery Nursery Reception | 1er ciclo Ed. Infantil 2º ciclo Ed. Infantil 2º ciclo Ed. Infantil |
| Primary Education Key Stage 1 | 5 – 6 6 – 7 | Year 1 Year 2 | 2º ciclo Ed. Infantil 1º curso Ed. Primaria |
| Primary Education Key Stage 2 | 7 – 8 8 – 9 9 – 10 10 – 11 | Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 | 2º curso Ed. Primaria 3er curso Ed. Primaria 4º curso Ed. Primaria 5º curso Ed. Primaria |
| Secondary Education Key Stage 3 | 11 – 12 12 – 13 13 – 14 | Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 | 6º curso Ed. Primaria 1º curso Ed. Secundaria 2º curso Ed. Secundaria |
| Secondary Education Key Stage 4 | 14 – 15 15 – 16 | Year 10 Year 11 | 3er curso Ed. Secundaria 4º curso Ed. Secundaria |
| 6th Form Key Stage 5 | 16 – 17 17 – 18 | Year 12 Year 13 | 1º Bachillerato 2º Bachillerato |
Academic Cycles | Age Group | British Curriculum | Spanish Curriculum |
Early Years | 2 – 3 3 – 4 4 – 5 | Pre-Nursery Nursery Reception | 1er ciclo Ed. Infantil |
Primary | 5 – 6 6 – 7 | Year 1 Year 2 | 2º ciclo Ed. Infantil |
Primary | 7 – 8 8 – 9 9 – 10 10 – 11 | Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 | 2º curso Ed. Primaria |
Secondary Education | 11 – 12 12 – 13 13 – 14 | Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 | 6º curso Ed. Primaria |
Secondary Education | 14 – 15 15 – 16 | Year 10 Year 11 | 3er curso Ed. Secundaria |
6th Form | 16 – 17 17 – 18 | Year 12 Year 13 | 1º Bachillerato |
What are Key Stages in a British international school?
The structure of the English National Curriculum is organised in different Key Stages which divide the academic stages according to the age of the students.
We can find a total of five Key Stages that go from Year 1 up to Year 13.
Regarding the youngest students there is no Key Stage as such. Their academic stage is known as Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This would include Pre-Nursery, Nursery and Reception students (2 to 5 years old).
Here you are able to get a clear view of each one of the five Key Stages.
Key Stage 1
This includes Year 1 and Year 2 (5 to 7 years old).
Key Stage 2
This includes Year 3 to Year 6 (7 to 11 years old).
Key Stage 3
This includes Year 7 to Year 9 (11 to 14 years old).
Key Stage 4
This includes Year 10 and Year 11 (14 to 16 years old).
Key Stage 5
More commonly referred to as 6th Form, this includes Year 12 and Year 13 (16 to 18 years old).
Grades in the English and Spanish curriculum
The British curriculum uses grade letters to represent a range of grades with A* being the highest grade and a U being unclassified.
The Spanish curriculum uses a 0 to 10 scoring system. 0 being the lowest mark and 10 being the highest.
In the British curriculum we can also find – or + symbols next to the letter grades. For example, an A+ is higher than an A but it doesn’t reach an A*. In the same way, a B- is lower than a B but higher than a C.
At BSV, the British international school in Valencia, teachers may also add a numerical grade regarding the students effort. The effort grade scale goes from 1 to 5, 1 being the highest grade and 5 the lowest.
As shown on the table, these are approximate equivalences if we compare the English and Spanish grade system.
Grade Letter | Points | Definition |
A* | 10 | Outstanding |
A | 9 – 9,9 | Excellent |
B | 7 – 8,9 | Very Good |
C | 6 – 6,9 | Good |
D | 5 – 5,9 | Pass |
E, F or G | 0 – 4,9 | Fail |
U | – | Unclassified |
