The education system in England has been developing for many centuries and today is one of the best in the world, meeting high quality standards. The streamlining of the learning process was achieved after the adoption of the first important legal act in this area, namely the Education Law of 1944. From this began a glorious story.
Education in England today is compulsory for all citizens of the country at the age of five to sixteen. There are two sectors in the structure of the educational system: public (free education) and private (paid education). In general, there are two systems in the state on which the educational process is based: one of them operates directly in England, Northern Ireland and Wales, and the second - in Scotland.
Secondary education
In England, schools are very diverse. Boarding schools are common, where students not only receive knowledge, but also live. Such educational institutions appeared in Britain in the early Middle Ages, they were mainly opened at monasteries. And from the twelfth century, the Pope introduced an obligation for all Benedictinemonasteries to create charitable schools. Later, they began to charge tuition fees.
At first, in aristocratic families, the belief prevailed that it is better for children to study at home than in monastic schools, but then the understanding came that, regardless of origin, it is better for children to learn together with their peers. This opinion became the foundation for the formation and development of privileged boarding houses, some of which function to this day and have been teaching and nurturing the elite of British modern society for more than a thousand years.
Classification
The education system in England includes:
1. Preschools.
2. Full cycle schools for children aged three to eighteen.
3. Institutions for younger students, which are divided into Junior Schools and Primary Schools.
- Children aged seven to thirteen study at Junior Schools. They are taught a special general initial cycle of subjects, and ends with an exam, the successful passing of which is necessary in order to enter high school.
- Primary Schools accepts children between the ages of four and eleven. In the second and sixth years of study, SATs are taken - they, as in the previous case, are needed for admission to high school.
4. Institutions for senior students are divided into Senior Schools, Secondary School and Grammar School.
- Senior Schoolsdesigned for children thirteen to eighteen years old. In such schools, teenagers first study for two years, then take the GCSE exams, after which they complete another two-year training program.
- Secondary School provides educational opportunities for children from the age of eleven.
- Grammar School also teaches children from the age of eleven, but there are in-depth programs. In such a school, you can even get a full preparation for entering a higher educational institution.
5. University preparatory schools are for older teenagers between the ages of sixteen and eighteen.
In addition, schools in the United Kingdom are classified according to the gender of the students. There are separate schools for boys and girls, as well as mixed schools. There are many supporters of separate education for children of different sexes in the country, who argue their position by the fact that boys and girls develop differently physically and emotionally, and in the case of separate education, they do not have to adapt to each other.
Preschool education in England
It is available in both private and public schools. Often, the British send their children to nurseries and kindergartens at the age of three or four years. Pre-school education in England continues until the child reaches the age of seven and includes learning to read, write, and count. As a rule, the development of children occurs in the form of play. Many private schools in the countrythere are preparatory classes for children from five years old. Upon graduation, children continue to receive primary and secondary education in the same educational institutions.
Primary school
As already mentioned, most parents send their children to school as early as five years old (preparatory classes). In general, primary education in England begins at the age of seven and continues until the children reach the age of eleven. After that, children move on to secondary school, usually within the same educational institution. In this sense, education in Russia and England is not much different. In primary school, children study mathematics, English, music, geography, history, art and industrial technology. Parents choose the necessary items themselves.
High School
It should be noted that education in England is in English, and for children under the age of sixteen it is mandatory. Secondary schools educate teenagers between the ages of eleven and sixteen and prepare them for the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) or National Certificate of Vocational Qualification (GNVQ).
Secondary education in England, as one of its most important tasks, is responsible for the formation of independent, self-confident, creative individuals. At school, students master a general special cycle of training in various subjects, followed by exams. To successfully pass the exams (in seven to nine subjects), which is necessary forhigh school admissions, students start preparing for them at the age of fourteen.
University Preparatory School
After completing the compulsory educational cycle, sixteen-year-old boys and girls can either go to work or continue their studies at the Sixth Form, a school where preparation for entering a university is carried out. Those who wish are invited to master the two-year A-levels course, which involves passing two exams: after the first year of study - AS, and after the second year of study - A2-levels. In the first year, four or five subjects are studied, and in the second, three or four. At the same time, their students choose independently from fifteen to twenty proposed options, there are no compulsory disciplines. Thus, young people determine their future specialization, which they will later devote three to five years of study at a higher educational institution.
Foreign students usually start their education in England with two years of A-levels.
Vocational and higher education
Great Britain has more than six hundred private and public universities and colleges where young people can find a profession. Educational institutions offer a variety of training programs. Passing the A-levels preparatory course gives students the opportunity to receive either professional or higher education in England. The first is to master the course of professional training in the chosen speci alty, and the second already includes bachelor's, master's,PhD and MBA.
Tuition fees
Education in England is paid both for its citizens and for foreigners, but for the latter its cost is much higher. Citizens of the country have the opportunity to study on credit, and the state requires its return only if, after receiving a diploma, a person can get a job with a salary of at least 21,000 pounds a year. Otherwise, you don't need to repay the debt. Recently, the debate in the English Parliament about whether or not to raise the cost of education has not ceased, and many deputies are inclined to think that it should be increased.
International assessment of the quality of educational services
Ongoing international studies indicate that in the last decade the quality of secondary education in England has a negative trend in relation to the preparation for universities of school graduates. As for higher education, the UK traditionally ranks second or third in international rankings of higher education institutions.
