The Ministry of Public Education (MEP) has released the 2026 school calendar, which is now available to the national educational community. The calendar, published under the theme “School shapes us, writing drives us, and values guide us,” outlines key dates for the academic year and serves as a planning tool for teachers.
The official document includes significant events, national celebrations, and regular educational activities to help educators with their yearly planning. The full calendar can be accessed on the MEP website at https://calendario.mep.go.cr/2026.
Among the notable dates are two weeks before classes begin, from February 9 to February 20, 2026. During this period, training sessions will be held nationwide for teaching staff, technical-teaching personnel, administrative workers, and support staff. These sessions aim to strengthen professional skills among approximately 90,000 employees.
Classes will start on Monday, February 23 and end on December 9. Holy Week will take place from March 29 to April 5; mid-year vacation is scheduled from July 6 to July 17; graduation ceremonies are set for December 10 and 11. The academic year is divided into two periods: February 23 to July 3 and July 20 to December 9.
To support students in vulnerable areas during the holiday break from December 15, 2025 to February 13, 2026, public schools in these regions will keep their cafeterias open.
The calendar also highlights annual observances such as International Migrants Day—established by the United Nations General Assembly in response to global interest in protecting migrants’ rights—and International Human Rights Day commemorating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
MEP has recently addressed concerns raised by students and parents regarding results from the National Standardized Summative Test for primary and secondary education in 2025. This follows cases where minimum passing grades were not achieved.
Additionally, MEP announced that it has issued Directive No. DM-1723-2025–MEP aimed at guiding implementation of its Digital Educational Transformation Strategy. In partnership with UNESCO and UNICEF through a Letter of Intent signed with the United Nations (UN), MEP plans joint actions against hate speech and violence prevention while promoting responsible use of artificial intelligence.
A new digital tool called “EDUCARELI”—a video game designed for sixth-grade students—is now available to enhance learning in Religious Education Studies.
Five schools affiliated with UNESCO’s Associated Schools Network have presented projects focused on environmental sustainability.
