Unit 7 British Education System (英国的教育体制)
一、本单元重点内容
1. The purpose of the British education system (英国教育体制的目的)
2. The relationship between education and social class (教育与社会等级之间的关系)
3. The influence of the church on schooling (教会对于学校教育的影响)
4. The 1944 Education Act (1944年的教育法)
5. Comprehensive school {<英>(招收学生时不分资质的)综合中学}
6. Grammar school (文法学校)
7. The National Curriculum (全国教学大纲)
8. public school {(英国的) 私立中学}
9. GCSE General Certificate of Secondary Education (中学毕业证书)
10. GCE-A General Certificate of Education ---Advanced (高级水平测试结业证书)
11. GNVQs General National Vocational Qualifications (国家专业资格证书)
12. Old Universities (古老的大学)
13. Open University (开放大学)
二、本单元重、难点辅导
1. the purpose of the British education system
“The three R’s” (“reading, ’riting and ’rithmetic”) — to provide children with literacy and the other basic skills they will need to become active members of society and also to socialise children, teaching them rules and values needed to become good citizens, to participate in the community, an to contribute to the economic prosperity of an advanced industrial economy.
教授学生3R课程(即读、写、算)，为学生积极参与社会提供所需的基本知识和基本技能，同时使学生社会化，教授他们一些成为好公民所应具备的道理规范和价值观，以便能走上社会，为一个发达的工业化国家的经济繁荣作贡献。
2. the relationship between education and social class
1) class inequality can be erased or continued according to educational policy（教育政策可以铲除地位的不平等，也可以使这种不平等继续存在。这说明在英国，是否受到良好教育直接影响到你的社会地位）
2) the school tie is a clear marker of social class
校服的领带是社会阶级的一个明显标志
3) the famous boys’ public school (私立中学)：Eton (伊顿公学，位于伦敦以西) and Winchester （温切斯特公学，位于英格兰南部）
4) the “right” universities: Oxford(牛津) and Cambridge(剑桥) (nicknamed: Oxbridge)
3. the influence of the church on schooling
Historically, education was voluntary and many of the schools that existed were set up by churches. The influence of the Church on schooling is still strong: religious education was the only subject which the state insisted all schools teach their pupils. Daily prayers and singing hymns is still a regular part of school life. Changes: Christianity is no longer the only religion officially recognized. Some state- funded schools have Islamic religion as their creed.
*In 1989, the government introduced a Nationa
l Curriculum(全国教学大纲). It has reintroduced competition between schools.
4. The 1944 Education Act
The 1944 Education Act made entry to secondary schools and universities “meritocratic”. Children would be admitted to schools not because they were of certain social class or because their parents possessed a certain amount of money, but because of the abilities they displayed. All children were given the right to a free secondary education and the main concern was to make sure more children had access to a good education. 1944年教育法的颁布使中学和大学都录取才智和能力出众的学生。二次世界大战期间，英国进行了教育改革，1944年颁布了教育法。新的教育法强调平等就学的机会，无论家庭出身如何，父母财富多少，只要有真才实学就可以上中学和大学。所有的孩子都可以免费接受中学教育，主要是为了让更多的孩子有机会接受良好的教育。
5. the present education system
*state schools & private/independent schools(in UK, called public schools公学，指私立中学) Independent schools: are commonly called public schools which receive their funding through the private .sector and tuition rates, with some government assistance. Independent schools are not part of national education system, but the quality of instruction and standards are maintained through visits from Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Schools (学校检查员). These schools are restricted to the students whose parents are comparatively rich.独立学校经常被称之为“公学”,通过私营部门、学费和一些政府援助筹集资金。独立学校不是国民教育体系的一部分，但其教学质量和标准要靠视学员的巡视得以维持。只有哪些有钱人家的孩子才上得起独立学校。
1). pre-primary schooling (up to age 5)
nursery schools (托儿所)，day care(托儿所的日托), or play groups
*from ages of 5 (4 in Northern Ireland ) to 16, education is compulsory
2). primary schooling (5-11, 6 years) ---mainly state sector, co-educational / mixed primary schools
3). secondary schooling (11-- around19, 7 years)
① comprehensive schools (①90%; ②admit children without reference to their academic abilities and provide a general education, teaching students everything from academic subjects like literature to more practical subjects like cooking)
综合性中学是当今英国最普遍的中学。这样的中学在招收学生时不考虑学生的学习能力，提供普通教育，向学生传授学术课程（如文学）到实用课程（如烹饪）等广泛的知识。
② grammar schools ( a). select children at the age 11 through an examination called “the 11-plus”, in which those who get the highest marks go to grammar schools; b). lay emphasis on advanced academic subjects rather than the more general curriculum of the comprehensives and expect many of their pupils t
o go on to universities; c). the grammar school/non-grammar school division is still common in Northern Ireland, but throughout the rest of Great Britain grammar school are becoming increasingly rare)
文法学校是英国的一种中学。文法学校通过“11-plus”考试来选拔学生。一般是11岁的孩子参加这个考试，得到最高分数的那些孩子可以进入文法学校。这些学校把重点放在高级学术课程上，而不是综合性中学提供的那些普通课程，这些学校希望他们的学生能够尽可能多地考上大学。在北爱，文法学校与非文法学校之间的区别还很明显，但在英国其它地方，文法学校越来越少。
* after 5 years of secondary schooling, at about age 16, except Scottish students, the students sit their GCSE exams (General Certificate of Secondary Education)中学毕业证书考试
then they can:
① quit school;
② or prepare to sit university entrance exams;
Those who hope to attend university carry on their academic study in the 6th form for a further 2 years and then sit A-levels exams (General Certificate of Education-Advanced 高级水平测试结业证书)
③ or concentrate on vocational training
GNVQs (General National Vocational Qualifications 国家专业资格证书): the vocational equivalent
of A-levels
4). higher education
① only one privately funded university: the University of Buckingham
② oldest universities:
England— Oxford (12th C.) and Cambridge (13th C.)
Scotland: St Andrews, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen (阿伯丁) from 14th and 15th centuries
③ polytechnics (多科性理工学院)
④ Open University
The Open University was founded in Britain in the 1960’s for people who might not get the opportunity for higher education for economic and social reasons. It’s open to everybody and does not demand the same formal educational qualifications as the other universities. University courses are followed through TV, radio, correspondence, video and a network of study centers. At the end of their studies at the Open University, successful students are awarded a university degree.英国开放大学成立于20世纪60年代，主要针对那些因为经济和社会原因而没有机会接受高等教育的人。它向每个人开放，不像其它大学那样要求有正规的学历。该大学的课程主要通过电视、广播、函授、录像和学习中心网等手段来完成。在学习结束时，学习优异的学生会被授予大学学位。
注意：* the first degree (the Bachelor’s degree) courses are mainly full time and last 3 years, except in Scotland where they take 4 years
* in Oxford and Cambridge the BA converts to an MA several years (generally 4 years) later, upon payment of a fee