In the UK for example in 1880 it was compulsory until age 10, and by 1996 by age 16. It's relatively recent that it's shifting to 18. [0] In the largest EU cou

In the UK for example in 1880 it was compulsory until age 10, and by 1996 by age 16. It's relatively recent that it's shifting to 18. [0] In the largest EU countries like Germany, France, it's still 6-16, UK up to 17. Wiki may already be outdated and it may already be 18, but that goes to show that compulsory education to 18 is a pretty new phenomenon. For example, the UK said 17 by 2013, and 18 by 2015, up from 16 less than a decade earlier. As for France, as I mentioned it's 16, but it can be as little as 14 if you take up apprenticeship or work in your parents' company, there are exceptions that exist. In Germany 18 is the default if you go and do your abitur, sure (probably everyone among your friends with whom you talk to about their studies has done it.) but if you get your Hauptschulabschluss you can be done at 16 or even 15. Again this is likely changing and may already have, but quite recently so. [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compulsory_education http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compulsory_education As for Israel, as far as I know it's been age 5 to 15 (k10) since 1949, and this was amended as recently as 2009 for k12.