Outline
EDUCATION IN GREAT BRITAIN
↓
→ BSc-Bachelor of science
→ B.Ed– Bachelor of education
→ MSc-Master of science
→ M.Ed- Master of education
EDUCATION IN GREAT BRITAIN
Every child must receive full-time education from the age of 5 to 16.
– free-run schools
– maintained out of public founds
– fee-paying (private) schools
– including PREPARATORY SCHOOLS (Prep-schools) -up to the age of 13.
and PUBLIC SCHOOLS- from the age of 13
– the most prestigious are boarding schools of high standard of education.
– E.g. Eaton, Rugby
– they are usually single-sex.
– for handicapped or talented children
– they are educated separately
– education at home
– an academic year has3 terms- the first lasts to christmas, the 2nd to Easter and the last one till the summer holiday.
– classes are from Monday to Friday (five-day week), but some public schools have 6.
– they usually start at 8 AM, but finish at 4 PM.
– they get letters A,B,C-if they pass and D,E,F,G-if they fail.
– U-unclassified- when we don´t have enough marks to be evaluated.
– to standardise education, Standard Assessment Tests (SAT) has been introduced. Pupils are tested regularly-all of them 4 times during their studies:
– tested in several subjects.
Education). They are tested usually in 4 subjects.
NOT FOR EVERYONE:
-is taken in 2- 4 subjects. (3 is normal and most common)
– Many children start their schooling in nursery school where they spend a few hours each day playing and doing some activities. They stars socializing with other children.
– is provided by creches for children up to 3 years
– and nurseries/kindergartens for children up to the age of 6.
– it´s voluntary, but it´s good to attend, because it prepares kids for compulsory school attendance.
Have 2 stages:
– from the age of 11 to 16.
– finished with an O-level examination leading to GCSE.
IN THE PAST
– in the past there was a selective system, when at the age of 11 every child had to sit for the Eleven-Plus Examination which were tests in English, arithmetics and an Intelligence test.
– Those with the highest marks went on to grammar schools.
– those with worse marks went on to technical schools providing courses heading to particular occupation.
– those with the worst marks went on to secondary modern schools offerring more practical education emphasising on various skills and handicrafts.
AT PRESENT
– later comprehensive schools (high schools) were introduced.
– They are large schools attended by all children at the age of 11 to 16 without any selection.
– the selective system was abolished because some people argued that it´s impossible to judge children´s abilities in sucha an early age.
– BUT: there is an individual approach to pupils who are allowed to choose the subjects according to their interests,abilities.
– there are also some compulsory subjects: English, Science, foreign languages,.. about 8 subjects with their electives (seminars)
– in May/June in their final year (at the age of 16) they sit for their GCSE exams in the 3 compulsory subjects and other options- this is this O-level exam.
– the results are published in the middle of August and it´s quite long for the pupils to plan the next stage of their education.
– All examinations are marked: A,B,C=passed. D,E,F,G= failed
– from the age of 16 to 18
– according to the results from GCSE exam students apply for places in VI Form Colleges.
– they are 2-year courses, where students opt for usually 3 subjects to be taken to advanced level →A-level to get GCE.
– the jump from O-level to A is the biggest one in the UK education , because it´s very difficult for many students.
– the marking system is the same, but it´s very important to gain high grades, because there is a point system which allows them to get a place at university. So the higher your number of points the better university you can attend or choose.
– in February of the final year students choose 3 universities and 3 Polytechnical Colleges which they wish to attend. Wise students pick a very good university for thir first choice. (must have 18 points so their marks should be: AAB,AAA)
– those who don´t do well in their A-level, must go through a system called The Clearing House which provides all the information about coíllege and university places for these students. They can also take another year and reset any exam both at GCSE and GCE.
– in VI Form Colleges there is an individual form of study. Students study on their own in libraries preparing presentations, essays, for debates,...
– of course, they must be prepared for the exams, because no one knows what tasks will appear there.
A-level exam- standardised for all students in the whole country strictly supervised.
– sent to Central Examination Board to be evaluated.
Colleges mostly offer classes only for undergraduate students-studying for
bachelor´s degree.
Universities are larger and offer graduate students studying, and many of them have separate professional schools- Medicine, Law Schools,etc.
UNIVERSITIES- a certain percentage of students go on further education to university-where they study for 4 years to get a bachelor´s degree which might be: BA, BSc, B.Ed ← they usually add them after their names.
– some graduates go on to study for a further degree: MA, Msc,M.Ed. Or even for a doctorate PhD.
– a popular form of degree course is the 4-year one: The first 2 years are spent at university, the 3rd year is spent working in a job connected with the course and the last year is back at the university for studying and for taking the examinations.students study a main subject throughout their degree course which is a combination of compulsory and elective subjects.
– they get credits and grades. ABCDE-if the pass and FX- if they fail.
– students have lectures and seminars/discussion groups and there are practicals for those who do a science subject. At some universities students have individual tutorials or supervision.
– the oldest and best universities are Oxford University and Cambridge including the University of London+in each bigger town.
COLLEGES
– others study for a certificate or diploma at colleges of further education which train people in a particular skill with work experience.
POLYTECHNICALS
– schools in industrial cities.
– students may live ´in-hole´(in-hole-of residence) of modern blocks. They can have their own room or share washing and kitchen facilities.(in AmE it is called DORMITORY (dorm))
– some people return to school later and attend evening classes run by Adult-Education Institute.
Some may attend the open university which is open for everyone.