20._EDUCATION

-> 2nd subject is to be chosen from foreign language or mathematics

* BRITISH SYSTEM OF EDUCATION, FAMOUS UNIVERSITIES

- schooling is compulsory from the age of five to the age of sixteen. So children have eleven years of obligatory school altogether.

- their school day starts generally at 9 a.m. and they finish at about 4 p.m.

-> Pre-education: (0 - 4):

- children younger than five years go to the nursery schools or nursery classes

- children in these school rather play then learning

-> Primary school:(5 - 11):

- is the first compulsory school attendance.

- primary school is divided into:

infant school – for children from the 5 to 7 (children acquire skills like writing, reading and maths)

junior school – for children from the 7 to 11 (with more complex subjects such as history, geography and science)

- students in primary school are called ,,pupils“.

-> Secondary school: (12-16):

- secondary school begins at 11 years and ends mostly at 16 years

- exams are marked in letters, usually from A (very good) to E (bad), U means fail

- most schools are universal, but sometimes you can find ,,selective schools:

-Grammar schools

-Secondary modern school/ Secondary technically school

-Comprehensive

- GSCE certificate (General Certificate of Secondary Education)

- that consists of eight or nine exams in maths, English, a foreign language, a science and a humanities subject

- pupils take GCSE at A-level – general certificate of Education, mixture of cause and written works ->

–> pupils must have it, if they want to the university

- if pupils don’t want an academic education after GCSEs, they can choose a vocational one

-> Further education

- next education is for the persons who are older than 16 years -> these schools are called colleges

- some schools are free but some schools are charged

-> Higher education

- is education which includes education at the university.

- first part is undergraduate course , which lasts 3 years and in end you receive title (BA).

- second part is postgraduate course , which includes masters degree (MSc, DSc- Doctor of Science)

- British high schools: Eton College, Harrow School, Rugby School, Winchester School

- British universities: Oxford, Cambridge

* AMERICAN SYSTEM OF EDUCATION

- in the USA there is not a national system of education – each of 50 states has its own laws regulating education

- every child gets minimum 13 years of education

- mostly public school = free of charge

-> Nursery school (pre-school)

- some children may attend pre-school from 3 to 5 years

- parents have to pay for this pre-school

-> Kindergarten (pre-school)

- between the ages of five and six

- they are divided into groups and spend their time playing

-> Elementary/grade school

- formally starts their compulsory education, and covers five grades/years.

-> Secondary school

a) Junior high school: grades 7 through 8 for ages 13 till 14

b) High school: grades 9 through 12 for ages 14 till 18

- students are graded on a system of A-F; with A being the best, and F meaning fail. There is no E grade, however.