Parents want the best option for their children when choosing a school. This is because schools now teach the kids beyond textbooks and getting good scores. Schools offer practical knowledge, teach leadership skills and groom the students.

To make the right choice, you should know about the different stages of school education in India. This will help you to understand the basic Indian education system.

Stages of school education

Pre-primary education
In India, the pre-primary education begins when children are 3 years old and continues till they are 6 years. This covers kindergarten and preschools. They are also known by various names like Pre-Nursery, Nursery, LKG - Lower Kindergarten, UKG - Upper Kindergarten and KG. However, the parents enroll their children in pre-primary in private schools much earlier.

Primary education
Parents enroll their children in a private school or a government school based on the budget. This stage is for children aged between 5 - 12 years, which is Class 1 - Class 4 or Class 5.. The government has made primary education mandatory for children aged between 6 - 14 years. Some states offer Class 1 - Class 4 as primary education, while other states offer Class 1 - Class 5 as primary education.

Middle school
This stage covers Class 5 - Class 8 and covers 4 years of academic study. At this stage, students are aged between 12 - 14 years. Middle school is known by different names like Senior school and High school. Some states offer Class 5 - Class 7 as Middle school, while others offer Class 6 - Class 8 as Middle school.

High School
This stage of education is from Class 8 - Class 10 and covers 2 - 3 years of academic study. At this stage, students are 14 - 16 years old. The schools that provide education up to the 10th standard are called by different names like High school, Secondary school and Senior school. Some states offer Class 8 - Class 10 as Secondary school while others offer Class 9 - Class 10 as Secondary school.

Senior secondary education
All the states follow the 10 + 2 pattern in education and this stage covers Class 11 - Class 12. This is for students aged between 16 - 18 years. The students at this stage have to choose their preferred streams. They can choose from Science, Commerce or Arts. Students can choose to get a Diploma instead of appearing for Class 11 and Class 12. Some states offer education for Class 11 - Class 12 in specific Junior colleges.