Primary Education: Latvian education is compulsory and free for children between ages 5 and 18. The first 9 years are spent panatskola primary schools that provide a basic academic education.
Latvia lies at the crossroads where east meets west on the shores of the Baltic Sea. At the beginning of 2003, the population of Latvia stood at just under two and a half million and its territory covered 64 589 km².
Latvia is situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic sea, sharing borders with Lithuania to the south, Estonia to the north, Russia to the east and Belarus to the southeast.