Direccin Gral.

De Cultura y Educacin
Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

BRITISH EDUCATIONAL
SYSTEM: SURVEY AND THE MOST IMPRESSIVE FINDINGS.
Teacher: Claudia, Caedo. Subject: Lengua y Expresin Escrita I Student: Meaca, Magal. Course: 2nd Year.

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

Contents:

1. Introduction............3
2.

Findings..........4

2.1 Education in England: Secondary level..4 2.2 National opinion survey on the British educational system..5 2.3 Lists of Illustrations.7

3. Discussion..8 4. Conclusion..10 5. References..11

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

1. Introduction
The British educational system has been tested by an audience selection in a survey in which 426 parents, 204 teachers and 215 pupils attending secondary school were interviewed and give their own opinion about the topic. The entity that was in charge of this survey was TV Times Magazine a television listings magazine published in the United Kingdom by IPC Media. This survey threw remarkable results as regards not only the use of school uniform but also about more serious issues such as the approval or not of corporal punishment. The findings turn out to be impressive as you can observe the point of view of each social group, children, parents and teachers; and how uneven the answers may have been since the survey shows a complete disagreement among them. Nevertheless it is obvious that much like parents and teachers share a different vision about reality and that is why adults results should have shown a more coherent and logical pattern. In some cases it did and in some others it did not.

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

2. Findings:
2.1 Education in England: Secondary level. During the ages of 11 up to 18 adolescents are supposed to continue their studies in a secondary school. From the age of 11-14, students will study a broad range of subjects such as Music, Maths, Sciences, English, etc. When you reach 14, you generally enter into your first year of a 2 year process known as your GCSE). GCSE's are a set of exams that test your knowledge and skill. Students typically then select an additional 4 or 5 subjects in which to take GCSEs, and they can be subjects like French, German, Business Studies, and many other options. GCSE's mark the end of compulsory education for students in the UK. Once they have completed their GCSE's students then have the choice to either move into further education (with a view to higher education) or can leave school and look for work. It is important to say also that Full-time education is compulsory for all children aged between 5 and 16 (inclusive) across England. This can be provided by state schools, independent schools, or homeschooling. The most salient statistic is that about 94 per cent of pupils in England, and the rest of the UK, receive free education from public funds, while 6 per cent attend independent fee paying schools or homeschooling.

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

2.2 National opinion survey on the British educational system: The TV times magazine in Great Britain interview a series of parents, teachers and students that have children in the secondary level, or teach in that level or attend to secondary institutions. The survey included different types of people from different age and class group so as to ensure parents and pupils representatives. It consisted of a bunch of questions that dealt with issues such as: the aim of education (options for an answer were given): regarding to this question the results showed that according to the possible answers given by the magazine parents and teachers almost agree (for a difference of 5 %) that childrens education main aim is to prepare them for everyday life. While children high percentage with a 73 % thinks that the main aim is to prepare them for a career. Other possible options like none of them or I dont know were given a very low percentage. As regards the treatment of difficult issues, such as the obligatoriness of religious education the percentages (children: 30%; teachers: 52% and parents: 42%) showed a quite agreement among the interviewers. However when the issue is if parents should take their children away and educate them at home when they disapprove the way they are taught at school, childrens opinion with a percentage of 20 % showed in comparison with the teachers and parents opinion (first 50% and second 43%) that this decision should not be taken by their parents but that they should respect the methodology of the secondary schools.
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Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

As regards the standard of education in Great Britain, all of them agree that it is not excellent but definitely good. The other possible answer average and poor got a very low percentage. Last but not least regarding the school discipline, they all agree almost completely that it is not too strict, but that it is about right. Nevertheless when they were asked about the corporal punishment they all agree impressively that they approve it. The percentages were: children: 62%; teachers: 54% and parents: 81%

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

2.3 Lists of Illustrations:

Tv time magazine: survey about Britain educational system.

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

3. Discussion:
After seeing the results of the survey and the information about the secondary educational system in Britain, it is important to establish a relationship between them. Before we have discuss that the ages for the secondary level is from 11 years old up to 18. Students have to sit for a set of exams that mark the end of the compulsory education in UK. After that, students may decide to continue their studies or to get a job. If we analyze the results given by children who said that the 73% believe that the main aim of secondary education is to prepare them for a career is quite understandable that they look forward for a higher education which demonstrates that they do care about their future. Taking into account that they also believe that the education is good (53% in comparison with 1% in poor) we can affirm that they approve the way they are taught and also that they have the idea of following their studies which is obviously perfectly good. Nevertheless as we have seen the results of the survey are quite rational, I want to say that they agree with the treatment of difficult issues, they believe the education is good, that as regards the aim, schools will help children to be ready for their everyday life and that it also prepares them for a career, etc there is one issue that still concern me: The approval of the corporal punishment. If they generally believe that educational system is appropriate and well organize for children, why parents (81%), teachers (54%) and students (62%) think that this could or should be done? Maybe what they believe that it is needed for secondary institutions to be excellent is that they should be more strict (taking into consideration that for

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

instance parents think with a 54% that schools are not strict enough). The rest of the results such as the use or not of school uniform or how do they rate the performance of their teachers are topics that can always be discuss and that different opinions can be accepted as long as it has a coherent and logical justification.

Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

4. Conclusion:
To make a final conclusion, the secondary educational system in Great Britain is seen on the part of the main characters (parents, children and teachers) as a good system that should deal with ambiguous and transgressive issues such as religious or the nuclear disarmament; that teachers are generally seen as good at what they do and that the discipline in the schools is about right. Other issues that are well seen in general are the use of school uniform and of course the main aim of secondary education. The last one reflects different views of the specificity of the school but all of them such as that it prepares students for a future career, that it prepares them for everyday life or that it helps them to develop their true selves are a truthfully revelation that the Britain educational system is doing a decent and respectable work as regards students education. One last matter is that the 14 % and less of the interviewers responded by none of these or by I dont know, this answers prove that most of the people were interested in this and in becoming part of the survey.

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Direccin Gral. De Cultura y Educacin

Direccin de Educacin Superior
Instituto Superior de Formacin Docente y Tcnica N 10

5. References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_England

http://uk.internationalstudent.com/study_uk/education_system/secondary_education.sh tml http://www.hongkong.idp.com/uk/getting_started/uk_education_system. aspx http://www.schoolswork.co.uk/media/files/Undestanding_the_UK_educat ion_system.pdf

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