Editing Colombia (section)

=== Education ===
{{Main|Education in Colombia}}
The educational experience of many Colombian children begins with attendance at a [[preschool]] academy until age five (''Educación preescolar''). Basic education (''Educación básica'') is compulsory by law.<ref>Colombian Constitution of 1991 (Title II – Concerning rights, guarantees, and duties – Chapter 2 – Concerning social, economic and cultural rights – Article 67)</ref> It has two stages: Primary basic education (''Educación básica primaria'') which goes from first to fifth grade – children from six to ten years old, and Secondary basic education (''Educación básica secundaria''), which goes from sixth to ninth grade. Basic education is followed by Middle vocational education (''Educación media vocacional'') that comprises the tenth and eleventh grades. It may have different vocational training modalities or specialties (academic, technical, business, and so on.) according to the curriculum adopted by each school.<ref name="sistema educativo" />
[[File:Facultad_de_Minas_-_M5.jpg|thumb|left|M5 building – [[National University of Colombia]], designed by [[Pedro Nel Gómez]]]]

After the successful completion of all the basic and middle education years, a [[high-school diploma]] is awarded. The high-school graduate is known as a ''bachiller'', because secondary basic school and middle education are traditionally considered together as a unit called ''bachillerato'' (sixth to eleventh grade). Students in their final year of middle education take the [[ICFES Examination|ICFES test]] (now renamed Saber 11) to gain access to higher education (''Educación superior''). This higher education includes undergraduate professional studies, technical, technological and intermediate professional education, and post-graduate studies. Technical professional institutions of Higher Education are also opened to students holder of a qualification in Arts and Business. This qualification is usually awarded by the [[National Service of Learning (Colombia)|SENA]] after a two years curriculum.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://unevoc.unesco.org/go.php?q=World+TVET+Database&ct=COL|title=UNESCO-UNEVOC World TVET Database|website=unevoc.unesco.org}}</ref>

''Bachilleres'' (high-school graduates) may enter into a professional undergraduate career program offered by a university; these programs last up to five years (or less for technical, technological and intermediate professional education, and post-graduate studies), even as much to six to seven years for some careers, such as medicine. In Colombia, there is not an institution such as college; students go directly into a career program at a university or any other educational institution to obtain a professional, technical or technological title. Once graduated from the university, people are granted a (professional, technical or technological) diploma and licensed (if required) to practice the career they have chosen. For some professional career programs, students are required to take the Saber-Pro test, in their final year of undergraduate academic education.<ref name="sistema educativo">{{cite web|url=http://menweb.mineducacion.gov.co/nnormas/normas_basicas_4.swf |title=Ministerio de Educación de Colombia, Estructura del sistema educativo |date=29 June 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070629194012/http://menweb.mineducacion.gov.co/nnormas/normas_basicas_4.swf |archive-date=29 June 2007 }}</ref>

Public spending on education as a proportion of gross domestic product in 2015 was 4.49%. This represented 15.05% of total government expenditure. The [[Gross enrolment ratio|primary and secondary gross enrolment ratios]] stood at 113.56% and 98.09% respectively. [[School-life expectancy]] was 14.42 years. A total of 94.58% of the population aged 15 and older were recorded as literate, including 98.66% of those aged 15–24.<ref name="UNESCO">{{cite web|url=https://uis.unesco.org/en/country/co|title=UNESCO Institute for Statistics Colombia Profile|access-date=5 May 2017|archive-date=6 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170506052541/http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/co|url-status=dead}}</ref>