Canada is the second largest country in the world after Russia; as this is a “Nordic” country, occupying the entire northern section of the subcontinent with the exception of Alaska, which belongs to the United States; the border between the two states is here marked by the meridian of 141º W. Another artificial border that follows the parallel of 49º N separates Canada from the United States to the S for 2000 km, with respect to which there is a territorial continuity that is emphasized by the arrangement in the meridian sense of the main orographic elements of North America. Undoubtedly, this conventionality of borders derives from the extraordinary vastness of spaces in North America and from the “novelty” of its human occupation; it also underlines the scarce relevance of the borders between the two great states, in which forms of civilization and ways of life can be found in certain similar aspects, determined by an extremely advanced process of industrialization that is largely based on the presence and exploitation of enormous natural resources. Canada also has an extraordinary opportunity for development and for years has been at the top of the rankings for wealth and quality of life, presenting itself at the beginning of the 2000s as a fully mature country from a political, economic and territorial point of view. On the territorial level, the gradual rebalancing of the population and infrastructures is progressively bringing Canada to full control of its large space. Traditional land of immigration, over the years Canada has welcomed hundreds of thousands of people coming first from Europe – consisting of the migratory waves of the early twentieth century and the fifties – and more recently also from the rest of the world. presenting itself at the beginning of the 2000s as a fully mature country from a political, economic and territorial point of view. On the territorial level, the gradual rebalancing of the population and infrastructures is progressively bringing Canada to full control of its large space. Traditional land of immigration, over the years Canada has welcomed hundreds of thousands of people coming first from Europe – consisting of the migratory waves of the early twentieth century and the fifties – and more recently also from the rest of the world. presenting itself at the beginning of the 2000s as a fully mature country from a political, economic and territorial point of view. On the territorial level, the gradual rebalancing of the population and infrastructures is progressively bringing Canada to full control of its large space. Traditional land of immigration, over the years Canada has welcomed hundreds of thousands of people coming first from Europe – consisting of the migratory waves of the early twentieth century and the fifties – and more recently also from the rest of the world.
Education
The provinces and territories are responsible for education; According to toppharmacyschools, the federal government is responsible for the education of the Indians and Inuit living on reservations. The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC) has a coordinating role.
School attendance is compulsory from 6 to 16 years of age, school attendance is free until the end of secondary school (at the age of 18) in state schools. Primary school (Elementary School) begins at the age of 6 and lasts 6 to 8 years, depending on the province; Kindergarten for five-year-olds is also compulsory and part of primary education in Prince Edward Island. This is followed by the secondary school (high school), which ends with access to the university. Schooling is a total of 12 years, in Quebec 11 years, which is why students in Quebec must first acquire a college diploma in order to be admitted to the university. Classes are held in one of the two official languages, English or French, depending on the composition of the population or the school authority.
Qualification in the professional and academic field takes place mainly at colleges and universities. The colleges award diplomas and certificates and usually offer vocational programs or university preparation courses; University degrees are Bachelor, Master and Doctoral degrees. A large part of higher education is publicly funded, but private funding through fees has increased significantly; this is especially true for the high number of foreign students. There are over 90 universities; the largest are the Université de Montréal (founded in 1878) and the University of Toronto (founded in 1827).
