The Five Ages of Education

British education has many different faces, but one goal. Its aim is to realize the potential of all, for good of the individual and society as a whole.

1. Around hall of 3-and 4-year-olds in Britain receive nursery education, and many other children attend pre-school playgroups, mostly organized by parents. Children of nursery age need care as well as education, however, and it is not just their mental requirements, but social, emotional and physical needs that must be met. In nursery schools, qualified teachers, usually primary teachers with a nursery teaching qualification, work alongside helpers and nursery nurses to achieve this.

2. Compulsory primary education begins at the age of 5 in England, Wales and Scotland, and 4 in Northern Ireland. Children usually start their school career in an infant school and move a junior school or department at age 7. In some parts of the country, though, children begin at a first school at age 5, and move on to a middle school at age 8,9 or 10. Primary schools vary in size and location, some having as few as two teachers and others as many as 30.

Subjects covered include English mathematics and science, along with technology, history, geography, music, art, and physical education.

At 7 and 11 years old (and a secondary school, at 14 and 16) teachers measure children’s progress in each subject against attainment targets. In English, for instance, there are five basic targets: speaking and listening: reading: writing: spelling and handwriting.

3. In Britain, most children of compulsory secondary school age (11 to 16) receive free education financed from public funds. This may be a comprehensive (mixed ability) or a grammar school. A small proportion attend private or independent schools, not financed by the state. The large majority of schools teach both boys and girls together. The school year in England and Wales normally begins in September and continues into the following July, in Scotland, it runs from August to June and in Northern Ireland from September to June.

4.All Britain’s universities enjoy complete academic freedom. They appoint their own staff and decide what and how to teach. First degree courses usually last three or four years.

The Open University is a little different, because it relies on distance learning.

England and Wales’s 34 polytechnics tend to be more vocationally –orientated than universities, providing degree and subdegree vocational courses as well as traditional academic degree courses. Many polytechnics have close links with business, and many students have jobs and attend part-time. For those without standard entry qualifications, access and foundation courses can provide a way in to higher education. The number of access courses in Britain is increasing rapidly.

5.Education doesn’t stop with leaving school. Further education in particular is learning which, with its strong ties with commerce and industry, is vital in the effort to keep Britain economically competitive.

Over 500 colleges of further education run courses on everything from catering to business studies. Most further education courses are vocational, but many colleges offer more academic courses, such as GCSEs and A levels. Students may attend college part- time, day by day or block release from their jobs or in the evening. The new National Vocational Qualifications, based on standards of competence set by industry, are designed to ensure the relevance of vocational qualifications to employers. They are based on defined levels of attainment, to which qualifications can be assigned.

Topical vocabulary

1. phasing -in поэтапное введение

2. curriculum учебный план

3. around приблизительно

4. nursery детский сад

5. alongside рядом с

6. primary начальное обучение

7. infant school дошкольное заведение

8. junior school младшие классы (средней школы)

9. to vary отличаться

10.as few as всего

11.to cover охватывать

12.science естественные науки

13.to measure оценивать, определять

14.attainment достижения

15.target цель

16.handwriting почерк, каллиграфия

17.to acquire приобретать

18.to broaden расширять

19.range диапазон

20.to demand требовать

21.content содержание

22.vocational профессиональный

23.artificial искусственный

24.non graduate студент последнего курса

25.bachelor бакалавр

26.to tend иметь тенденцию

27.to appoint назначать

28.vital насущный

29.full-time student студент очного отделения отделения

30.to ensure обеспечить

Ex.1. Suggest the Russian for:

1. infant school

2. to vary

3. as few as

4. to measure

5. attainment

6. target

7. to cover

8. science

9. to acquire

10. handwriting

11. to tend

12. to demand

13. content

14. vocational

Ex.2. Match the words and phrases in column A with those in column B.

A B

1. graduate a) достижения

2. to vary b) всего

3. non-graduate c) оценивать

4. vocational d) расширять

5. attainment e) отличаться

6. to measure f) насущный

7. to broaden g) обеспечить

8. as few as h) профессиональный

9. vital i) студент последнего курса

Date: 2015-10-22; view: 612; Нарушение авторских прав