UK

Education
system
(general)

Levels and Primary => Secondary => tertiary education

Curriculum Primar Secondary Tertiar
y Education y
Educat (11-18) Eduac
ion (5- ation
11) (18- ~)
 11- Subje
Subjec 16: cts &
ts: Art, Sub assess
Analys ject ment:
is, s: Subjec
Drama Engl t to
, ish, univer
Englis Mo sities,
h, course
der
Geogra s,
n
phy, For majors
Histor eign , etc.
y, Lan
Math, gua
Scottis ges,
h Geo
Gaelic gra
(in
phy
Scotla
,
nd) &
Scienc Hist
e ory,
(taught Soci
by a al
single Edu
teacher cati
) on,
Assess Reli
ment: gio
Tests n,
but no Coo
exams king
,
Mu
sic,
Phy
sica
l
Edu
cati
on,
and
Gre
ek
&
Lati
n
(in
Pub
lic
sch
 ools
)
Ass
ess
me
nt:
Exa
ms
(GC
SE
&
SC
E)
 16-
18:
Sub
ject
s: 2-
3
Ass
ess
me
nt:
Exa
m
(A
Lev
el)

Exams

UK Content in book US
Historical  The government attached School  Compulsory for
Background little important to attendance all children
education until the end of  Attend school
the 19th century => last for 5-7 hours a
government in Europe day
organize education for
 everybody. But today  5 days/ week, 9
education is one of the months/year
most frequent subjects for (September To
public debate. June)
 School and other  Public education
educational institutions from
existed in Britain long kindergarten to
before the government grade 12 is tax-
interested in education supported
 The government left alone  85% children
a small group of schools attend public
which had been used in schools. 15 %
the 19th century to educate attend private
the son of upper and schools.
upper-middle classes.
 Public means private:
Schools funded by the
government (directly or
via LEA- local education
authorities) are called
STATE schools=>
education provided in this
way is state education.
“Private education”
comprises “independent
schools” which are known
as “PUBLIC schools”
 At public school the
emphasis was on
CHARATER-
BUILDING and the
development of team
spirit rather than
academic achievement.
Public schools: traditional
images
 Are for boys (from 13
upward) from upper and
upper-middle class
families
 Take mainly fee-paying
pupils
 Are boarding schools
  Are divided into houses
looked after by
housemasters 
disciplines
 Select ‘prefects’ (among
senior boys) and ‘fags’
(among youngest ones)
 Emphasize team sports
 Enforce rules with the use
of physical punishment
 Are famous for lots of
homosexual activities
 Are not at all luxurious or
comfortable
 No longer fits the facts
“Boarding schools”- the
pupils lived in them
( involved in the
development of distinctive
customs and attitudes,
distinctive clothes, special
vocabulary) => prepare
young men to take up
positions in the higher ranks
(army, business, legal
profession, civil service,
politics)
=) Provided the only model of a
successful school that country
had

Organization  Comparatively little Varied  Highly varied:

central control or
uniformity (education is
managed by 3 separate
government departments)
 Central authorities’
missions up to the end of
compulsory education:
+ Ensuring the
availability of education
+ Dictating &
implementing its overall
opportunities high schools
students at the
same grade level
do not take the
same courses.
 Courses students
take based on his
or her abilities
and future goals,
and on the
particular course
 organization offering of the
+ Setting overall school.
learning objectives  Higher
- No authorities’ control education: the
over the actual operation wide variety of
of educational degree programs
institutions (e.g., detailed is remarkable.
programs,  Variety also
materials or institutions’ exists in schools
finances) academic
 Grass-roots’ standards and
independence or reputations.
autonomy
- The system has been
influenced by the public
school tradition that a school
is its own community -> a
sense of distinctiveness,
having their own uniforms
for pupils, having its own
school hall, some having
associations of former
pupils.
- -Universities haven even
more autonomy=> have
completely control what to
teach, how to teach, who
they accept, how to test.

Style Learning for its own sake (i.e., Decentralized - No national

more emphasis on the quality of funding and education system
person than the qualities of administration in the US
abilities) - In public
 Priority given to schools,
understanding rather than decisions are
acquiring factual made by boards
knowledge & skills of education at
 More emphasis on the state/ or
academic ability than district level.
practical ability. Spending for
 High priority given to public education
sports=> help to develop is also
the “complete” people determined by
 (Learn for its own sake: One state and local
effect of traditional British education
emphasis on academic learning leaders.
as opposed to practical training  Education
can be seen in the way that standards and
people gain qualifications for requirements
certain professions. (pp go to differ from state
specialized institutions. Ex: you to state.
can study law at university but
this alone doesn’t qualify u tobe
a lawyer.

Recent  Wider social process of Curriculum No national

developments increased egalitarianism curriculum but
 everyone must have certain subjects are
equal educational generally taught in
opportunities all public schools
 Changes in government systems across the
policies: country
 Fading distinction
between grammar
schools & secondary
modern schools
 Most eleven year-
olds attending the
same local schools
(comprehensive
schools)
 The introduction of a
national curriculum
(late 1980s)
 Schools can ‘opt out’
of the control of the
LEA and put
themselves directly
under the control of
appropriate
government
department
 Persistence of
decentralization: 3
curricula ( 1 for
 England and Wales,
another for Scotland
and 1 for Northern
Ireland)

School life  No countrywide system of Democratic Offer equal

nursery (i.e., pre-primary) ideal opportunity for
 School time: education to all
- Three terms, starting citizens.
from September
- Monday to Friday
- No half-day
- Before 9 am to 3-4 pm
each day (longer for older
children)
- A an-hour-and-a-
quarter lunch break (2/3
puplis have lunch
provided by schools)
 Teaching methods:
- Vary
- Maintain a balance
between formal lessons
with the teacher & group
activities with teacher’s
supervision in class
At age of 7 and 11- take
national tests in Eng,
Maths, science
 Teaching staff:
- Primary schools: a
teacher per class
- Secondary school
upwards: a teacher per
subject

Public exams The organization of the exams President Federal aid for
which schoolchildren take from Johnson’s education in 1965
the age of about 15 onwards Great Society “Great society”-
exemplifies both the lack of liberal hope of
uniformity in British education greater quality and
& also the traditional “hands- less poverty
off” approach of British His federal programs
 governments backed 1.3 billion
1. The exams are not set by dollars, were
the government, but initiated to provide
rather by independent remedial schooling
examining board. from poor families
2. The boards publish a
separate syllabus for each
subject. No unified
school- leaving exam or
certificate.
3. The exams have nothing
to do with school year as
such. They are divorced
from the school system.
GCSE: General Certificate of
Secondary Education
SCE: Scottish Certificate of
Education
A Levels: Advanced Levels
GNVQ: General National
Vocational Qualification
Degree: a qualification from a
university

Education  At 16, pp are free to leave A nation at In the 1983 report

Beyond school if they want to. risk  13 % 17-year-
Sixteen 1. Enter the labor force olds are
2. Study 2 more years for functionally
higher education -> take illiterate
A level exams  Among
 Universities: make their own minority
choices of who accepted teenagers, it
( normally based on A level maybe 40%
results and an interview)  Average
 Low drop-out rate: achievement
+ The availability of higher of high school
education has increased students on
greatly in the second half ò most
the 20th century. standardized
+ Universities only take the tests are lower
better students. than the mid
+ Full- time really means full 1950s
time.  R,W and math
>< The expansion of higher skills are so
education is putting an strain on poor
these characteristics.
+ most students have to pay fees
+ more than 1/3 students now
have par-time jobs-> they cannot
spend on their studies.
+ reduce the high quality of
British university education
+threaten to reduce its
availability to students from low
income families.