Agrupamento de Escolas de Arouca prides itself on the quality of its educational programmes,
the professionalism of its staff, the enthusiasm of its students and the high level of support
provided by parents and community members.
The school has been working with vocational courses for more than 25 years and currently
operates 11 classes in the areas of cooking and bakery; restaurant and bar; electronics and
telecommunications; multimedia; socio-cultural animation; and tourist information and
animation. Student numbers totalled 2000.
We are a public school that serves a rural area, and our priority is to actively seek participation
and involvement from the whole school community. The vocational courses give our students
great advantages, as they can take practical classes through a lot of practical training directly
connected to their vocations. Furthermore, the school gives them the opportunity to apply for
Erasmus internships to improve their acquisition of necessary qualifications and hunt for jobs.
In 2021, the school undertook a community survey to seek feedback from the community on
what is working well and what needs to be addressed so that we can continue to ensure that we
are delivering a good education. The school also tried to clarify the effectiveness of its services
and identify any changes that needed to be made. This was undertaken within the parameters of:
 Curriculum, teaching and learning quality
 Environment and credibility.
 Partnerships and services
The school’s values are: a high standard of teaching and learning; a safe and welcoming
environment; and family and community involvement. Our school has the commitment to teach
respect for self, others, and the environment. With responsibility, we try to achieve excellence in
all we do.