The Educational System of Great Britain

The educational system of G.B. is extremely complex and bewildering.It is very difficult to generalize particular types of schools as schoolsdiffer from one to the other. The department of education and science isresponsible for national educational policy, but it doesn’t employ teacher or prescribe curricula or text books.

Each school has it’s own board of governors consisting of teachers, parents, local politicians, members of local community, businessmen and sometimes pupils. According to the law only one subject is compulsory. It is religious instruction.

Schooling for children is compulsory from 5 to 16, though some provision is made for children under 5 and some pupils remain at school after 16 to prepare for higher education.

The state school system is usually divided into 2 stages (secondary and primary).The majority of primary schools are mixed.They are subdivided into infant schools (ages 5 to 7),and junior schools (ages 7 to11). In junior schools pupils were often placed in A,B,C or D-streams, according to their abilities. Under the pressure of progressive parents and teachers the 11+ examination has now been abolished in most parts of the country. There are several types of schools in G.B.Grammar schools provide an academical cause for selected pupils from the age of 11 to 18. Only those children who have the best results are admitted to these schools. They give pupils a high level of academic education which can lead to the university.

Technical Schools offer a general education with a technical bias and serve those pupils who are more mechanically minded. The curriculum includes more lessons of science and mathematics. Secondary modern schools were formed to provide a non-academic education for children of lesser attainment. The curriculum includes more practical subjects. Comprehensive schools bring about a general improvement in the system of secondary education.

EDUCATION SYSTEM IN THE UK

Across the UK there are five stages of education: early years, primary, secondary, Further Education (FE) and Higher Education (HE). Education is compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 (4 in Northern Ireland) and 16. FE is not compulsory and covers non-advanced education which can be taken at further (including tertiary) education colleges and HE institutions (HEIs). The fifth stage, HE, is study beyond GCE A levels and their equivalent which, for most full-time students, takes place in universities and other HEIs and colleges. Early Years Education In England since September 2010, all three and four year olds are entitled to 15 hours of free nursery education for 38 weeks of the year. Early Years education takes place in a variety of settings including state nursery schools, nursery classes and reception classes within primary schools, as well as settings outside the state sector such as voluntary pre-schools, privately run nurseries or childminders. In recent years there has been a major expansion of Early Years education and childcare. The Education Act 2002 extended the National Curriculum for England to include the Foundation Stage which was first introduced in September 2000, and covered children’s education from the age of 3 to the end of the reception year, when children are aged 5. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) came into force in September 2008, and is a single regulatory and quality framework for the provision of learning, development and care for children in all registered early years settings between birth and the academic year in which they turn 5. The EYFS Profile (EYFSP) is the statutory assessment of each child’s development and learning achievements at the end of the academic year in which they turn 5