3. System of Education in Great Britain

1. System of Education in Great Britain

2. System of Education in Great Britain includes the following stages:

Primary
education
Secondary education
Further education
Higher education
Postgraduate education

3. Schooling in England

Schools in England are supported from public funds paid to
the local education authorities;
Education in Britain mirrors the country’s social system: it is
class-divided and selective. The first division is between
those who pay and those who do not pay;
Compulsory schooling in England from the age of 5 to 16;
After the age of 16 a growing number of school students
are staying on at school, some until 18 or 19, the age entry
into higher education in Universities, Polytechnics or
colleges.

4.

5. Secondary Education

After the age of 11, most children go to comprehensive schools
of which the majority are for both boys and girls;
About 90 percent of all state-financed secondary schools are of
this type;
At 16 students in England and Wales take GCSE (General
Certificate of Secondary Education) examinations. In 1988 these
examinations replaced the GCE and O-level which were usually
passed by about 20 percent of school students;
At 18 some students take A-level GCE examinations, Usually in
two or three subjects. It is necessary to have A-levels in order to
go to a university or Polytechnic;

6.

7. University

The academic year in Britain’s universities, Polytechnics,
Colleges of Education is divided into three terms;
Good A-level results in at least two subjects are necessary to get
a place at a university. However, Good exam passes alone are
not enough. Universities choose their students after interviews;
There are about one hundred universities in Britain. The oldest
and best-known universities are in Oxford, Cambridge.

8.

After three years of study a university graduate will
leave with the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, Science,
Engineering, Medicine etc;
Later he may continue to take a Master s Degree and
then a Doctor s Degree;