Language study - English education system

Revision cards about the English education system -> Be sure to look at the summary and the PowerPoint!

The historical background

England was one of the last countries to organise education for everyone. Their education system was divided into 2 schools:

1) Public schools: their aim was team spirit and building character

2) Boarding schools: their aim was to prepare young men to take their position in the higher ranks of society

The introduction

The English educational system is divided into 3 major groups:

1) Primary school: from around 5 years old to 11 years old

2) Secondary school: from 11 to 15/16 (obligatory) or to 18 (optional). Within secondary school there are 2 major tests (GCSE’s):

→ O levels at 16

→ A levels at 18

3) Tertiary school: above 18 years old (university/college)

A - level

Advanced levels. This are the examinations that pupils at around 18 years old make if they inspire to go to college

College

Could be a part of a university or a stand alone educational establisment either for student from 16-18 or for students above 18 years old

Comprehensive school

A school that is publicly funded and it requires special qualifications to enter

Grammar school

A school that is publicly funded and it requires special academic achievements to enter

GCSE

General Certificate of Secondary Education

→ An examination that all 16 year olds take

Lecturer

Someone who teaches at university or college

Oxbridge

The combination of the words Oxford and Cambridge when talking about the two universities

Professor

A senior academic who is engaged in teaching

The 3 R’s

Basic literary and numeracyS

Supply teacher

Substitute teacher or temporary teacher

Swot

A slang term for ‘studying intensively’

Tuition

Teaching

Playing with marbles

Rope skipping

Playing hide and seek

Hopscotch

Jacks, five stones, knucklebones

Hand clapping games

Musical chairs

Leapfrog

Tag you are it

Michaela Community school

A school that combines values from the late 1950s with modern scientific research about learning

→ No talking without permission (punishment: staying in after school and writing the rules of the school)

→ Fast paced lessons (teacher immediately know if the pupils understand the subject matter)

→ Set number of seconds the student have to run to the canteen quietly

→ Before each meal they have to recite a poem (‘I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul’)

Summerhill

→ It is a famous independent school which was founded in 1923 by A.S. Neill

→ Its vision: the students learn because they want to learn, not because they have to learn

The Scandinavian model

→ Success is not strict control, success is trust, collaboration and an holistic approach

→ The Scandinavian model focusses on the development of social skills, creativity and critical thinking skills

→ There are compulsory subjects with electives