ipated that 30 percent of all first to eighth graders would attend
such schools by 1975, that 50 to 60 percent would attend by 1980, and
that a full 80 percent would live in boarding schools by 1990.

There is a wide diversity of schools that do not fall into the standard
educational system. In terms of special education there are elementary
schools for the blind, deaf, mentally retarded, and children who are
otherwise handicapped. All children in these categories begin their
schooling at the age of seven with the exception of the retarded, who
begin at eight. These children attend school for eight years and may
then continue in schools of general education, technicums, or other
schools. Retarded children, after completion of the eight years, go on
to special enterprises that are supervised by the Ministry of Public
Health.

Children who are either recuperating from, or are prone to, illness
attend primary and secondary schools located in areas where the climate
is propitious for their recovery. Children in these schools are accepted
at any point between the first and eleventh grades. Although the
curriculum is somewhat modified, the basic content of the courses is
essentially the same as in the regular primary and secondary schools.
Most pupils attend these schools only temporarily, generally from four
or five months to a year.

When the Communists came to power they stipulated that private schools
could continue only if they had express permission from the government
and were operated under governmental authority. In the early years of
communist rule, diplomatic missions continued to operate schools for
the children of foreign emissaries. In 1973, however, the only private
schools were the secondary school, known in Bulgaria as a seminary, and
the Ecclesiastical Academy of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.

In addition to these special schools, there are technical and vocational
schools of various kinds that are not part of the regular school system.
Between secondary and higher technical schools fall the advanced
technicums, which function on a postsecondary level. Courses generally
run from two to three years, depending on the field of specialization.
There are advanced technicums for such specializations as mining,
medicine, veterinary medicine, and industrial chemistry. All schools
include courses in Marxism-Leninism, higher mathematics, and physical
education in addition to the courses of specialization. Also on