Learn Hardcore Croatian: Na stranici škole piše novi raspored ispita. - On the school’s page there is the new exam schedule.

Na is used for things that are thought of as a surface or a platform: na stolu (on the table), na televiziji (on TV), na internetu (on the internet), na stranici (on the page/website).

Web pages and printed pages are seen as flat surfaces you put text on, so Croatian uses na.

U stranici would sound wrong in this context; u is used more for enclosed spaces (in a room, in a box, in a book as a whole: u knjizi).

What cases are used in na stranici škole, and why?

Two different cases are used:

stranici – locative singular of stranica
- It is required by na when talking about a static location: na + locative = on/at (somewhere).
- So na stranici = on the page / on the site.
škole – genitive singular of škola
- A noun in genitive after another noun often expresses possession or belonging.
- stranica škole literally = page of the school → the school’s page.

So na stranici škole = on the school’s page (on the school’s website).

What exactly does piše mean here? Is it literally “writes”?

Piše is the 3rd person singular present of pisati (to write), but in this sentence it is used in an impersonal or semi‑impersonal way, and it is best translated as:

it says,
it is written,
is posted.

So Na stranici škole piše… is like saying On the school’s page it says… or On the school’s page it is written…, not someone writes.

The underlying idea is “there is text on the page and that text is X”, and Croatian can just use piše for that.

Who is the grammatical subject in this sentence?

The grammatical subject is novi raspored ispita:

It is in the nominative case.
It is what piše refers to (what “is written / is posted”).

Croatian allows flexible word order, so the subject does not have to stand before the verb.

The neutral English structure would be something like:

On the school’s page *the new exam schedule is written / it says the new exam schedule*.

You could also say in Croatian:

Novi raspored ispita piše na stranici škole.

That version puts the subject first and emphasizes the new exam schedule a bit more.

Why is it novi raspored, not novo raspored or novog rasporeda?

Adjectives must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case:

raspored is masculine, singular, nominative.
So the adjective must also be masculine, singular, nominative → novi.

Compare:

novi raspored – new schedule (masc.)
nova stranica – new page (fem.)
novo računalo – new computer (neuter)

Novog rasporeda would be genitive (e.g. nema novog rasporeda – there is no new schedule), which doesn’t fit here because in our sentence raspored is the subject in nominative.

What does raspored ispita literally mean, and why is ispita used?

Raspored ispita literally means schedule of exams.

Ispita here is in the genitive case after raspored:

raspored (schedule) + genitive = schedule of something.
So raspored ispita = schedule of exams.

Formally, ispita can be either genitive singular or genitive plural of ispit, but in this context it is understood as of (the) exams (genitive plural), because a schedule normally lists multiple exams, not just one.

Could I say raspored za ispite instead of raspored ispita? Is there a difference?

You can say raspored za ispite, and it will be understood, but:

raspored ispita (genitive) is the most natural and standard way to say exam schedule / schedule of exams.
raspored za ispite (schedule for exams) is grammatically fine, but sounds a bit more descriptive and less fixed, like “a schedule for (taking) exams” rather than the set term “exam schedule”.

There is also the adjective form:

ispitni raspored – literally exam schedule, very common too.

So the most idiomatic options are raspored ispita and ispitni raspored.

Why present tense piše and not something like je napisan (is written) or just je (is)?

All of these are possible, but they are not identical in nuance:

piše – very common, neutral, everyday:
- Na stranici škole piše novi raspored ispita.
- “On the school’s page it says / is posted: the new exam schedule.”
je napisan – more explicitly passive, a bit more formal or descriptive:
- Na stranici škole napisan je novi raspored ispita.
- “On the school’s page a new exam schedule is written.”
je (as in Na stranici škole je novi raspored ispita.)
- Means simply “there is” without highlighting that it is written text.
- More like: “On the school’s page there is a new exam schedule.”

In everyday speech, piše is very natural for referring to written/printed/posted information.

Can I say na školskoj stranici instead of na stranici škole?

Yes. Both are correct, with a small stylistic difference:

na stranici škole – literally on the page of the school (noun + noun in genitive to show possession).
na školskoj stranici – literally on the school page (adjective školskoj
- noun).

They mean the same thing in this context: on the school’s page / website.
In practice, na školskoj stranici may sound a bit shorter and more “adjectival”, but both are very natural.

Is the piše here the same verb as in On piše pismo (He writes a letter)?

Yes, it is the same verb pisati (to write), just used in a different way:

On piše pismo. – He writes/is writing a letter.
- Clear subject (on) doing the action.
Na stranici škole piše novi raspored ispita.
- The verb refers to written text existing on the page; there is no “writer” in focus.
- Functionally closer to English it says / it is written / is posted.

So it is the same verb pisati, but with an impersonal, “text-exists-here” meaning.