The UK vs the USA Education System - Essay Example

Compare and contrast the UK education system to the USA education system Compare and contrast the UK education system tothe USA education system The UK and USA education systems have evolved from a similar point to develop contrasting characteristic. USA is a former British colony. They two have depicted similarities in their legal and education systems over time despite the few amendments that have been done by both. Both countries have a free educational system that is mandatory for all school age children (Rugg, 2010, p. 3). Although the school age differs in both of these countries, their school age brackets are similar in a way. The setup and regulation of the two education systems follows a different mode. In the UK, all the public schools are possessed and sponsored by the central regime and partially by the local governments. There are Local Education Authorities that are mandated to oversee the learning in the state school. This is contrary to the American system. The school systems differ from one state to another. Each state is responsible for funding the public schools and controlling their programs. The federal government has little interference with the way states run their education system. In UK, students are always in uniforms; something that is rarely observed in the US (Shapiro, 2005, p. 4). The UK parents have to vote if their children will wear uniforms to school or not. Most of the state primary schools require their students to put on uniforms contrary to the American public schools. Similarity between the two systems is also observed in some sections. For instance, both have divided their year into three terms. Similarly, both start their year around September and end it between June and July. In the American education system, a child of 6 years I legible to join the elementary school (Rugg, 2010, p. 5). This is similar with the British system where a 6-year-old will join the infants section of the primary education. The basic structure of the two education systems differs but a thorough analysis reveals a little similarity. For instance, the UK has primary education, followed by secondary education and finally college or university for higher learning. This is different when it comes to America. One enters the elementary school, then the junior high school, then senior high school before proceeding to college or university for higher education (Rugg, 2010, p. 12). Another similarity is observed in the pre-school education. In both countries, nursery and kindergarten have not been properly addressed. In the UK, nursery education is provided by private schools, which many parents find expensive to afford. There is not set curriculum for the pre-school education. The children are taught on basic education skill with most of the focus done of training the children how to paint, sing and dance. This is similar to the American education system. Both education systems employ intense teaching methods for the primary school students. Students are taught all the basic subjects regardless of the school they attend; public or private. Teachers are cautious about welfare and comfort of the students above any other thing. Secondary education system differs in these two countries. In America, students have the ability to choose the type of secondary school to attend to. There are different secondary schools with different specialization. Some specialize in science whereas others in sports and other visual and performing arts. Students wishing to specialize in secondary school can actualize their choices. Despite the existence of such school, there are other ordinary secondary schools that offer normal secondary school curriculum. In the UK, all secondary schools follow the state given curriculum (Shapiro, 2005, p. 13). Grading and certification is another issue that contrasts these educational systems. A national examination is administered in UK that determines if one is to join university or college. It is called the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). This examination is taken by final graders in the secondary education in their final years. In America, there is nothing like a national examination. Every state has its own grading method; awarding their students with s High School Diploma (Rugg, 2010, p. 16). However, there are national examinations that test students on mathematics and English before they are allowed to join college. These are called the Stochastic Aptitude Tests. In the UK, the school system is lecturer based. This means that all the learning takes place in the classroom with little or no assignment given to students to be done out of class. This is contrary to the American system. In the US, the students have to do much of the learning. There is constant homework assignment requiring students to read and write on some of the class topics. The assignments are graded and used to determine the students overall grade at the end of the learning period; this entirely different from the UK system. Grading entirely depends on the student’s final exam (Shapiro, 2005, p. 13). College education depicts diverse differences between the two education systems. In the UK, universities are broken down into colleges based on the subject matter they offer. Students from the same college live together, study together and even eat together. There is a lot of autonomy between the colleges and between each college and the university (Shapiro, 2005, p. 17). When applying to university, you apply directly to the college you want to join rather than through the central university. This is contrary when it comes to the US university system. In America, students apply to the central university that admits them. They have to take a variety of courses from the various university colleges before deciding to major in their later years. Even after deciding on what subject matter students are to major in, they will be required to study course outside their subject. These are called electives. The US education system emphasizes on breadth; equipping learners with all-rounded knowledge whereas the UK system chooses depth; learners have to specialize only in their chosen subject (Rugg, 2010, p. 15). Higher education costs more in the US as compared to the UK. The UK passed a law in 2012 setting the maximum possible university fees for UK and EU students. The US government has no authority over university fees, since most of the universities are controlled by the states; they have their own fees requirement (Rugg, 2010, p. 3). Reference List Rugg, H. O., 2010. Foundations for American education. 4th ed. New York : Yonkers-on Hudson. Shapiro, H. T., 2005. A larger sense of purpose : higher education and society. 4 ed. Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press. Read More