I'm writing a fictional novel where the main character is English attending an English high school. I'm Australian so I obviously have no clue how it works so some help would be great. I need to know things like how does it work, when do you get to start choosing subjects, what kind of subjects do you take, how different are public schools from private schools there and similar things. Thanks in advance.
Primary & Secondary Education - 3 Answers
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1 :
The school years start off as reception. then go on to year 1, year 2 right up to year 11. From reception to year 10 you are taught compulsory subjects such as maths English, science, geography, physical education(P.E), history, religious education(R.E) and personal social health education (PSHE). in year 10 however, you take your options. Options consist of some compulsory subjects (maths, English, science, RE, PSHE, P.E) and then whatever else you choose you can take a GCSE in any subject that you have previously done or some new ones. Primary schools take years reception through to year 6. Secondary school take years 7 through to year 11. Private schools aren't much different, they just have smaller classes (15 to 20 as opposed to about 30 at a public school) and a higher teacher to pupil ratio. The subject options are business studies, sports studies, I.T multimedia, art, music, drama, graphics, food, resistant materials, electronics, textiles, French, German and a few others I hope that this helps and good luck with your novel.
2 :
My friend went to school in England for most of her life, so I'll get her to type this out. Firstly, in England, public schools & private schools are the same thing. The equivalent of a public school there is called a state school. In England, schooling generally starts at age 3, when one enters Nursery, although this is not compulsory. The next year is Reception (entered at age 4), then years 1 through to 6. You study literacy (English), maths, science, humanities (history & geography), art, music, ICT (computers) and PE (physical education). You sometimes study RE (religious education). In state schools, in Year 2 (aged 6-7) & Year 6 (aged 10-11) you take 3 exams called SATs in literacy, maths and science. In private school, you usually take exams every year. Nursery to Year 6 are all in Primary School. The school day is usually from 9AM to 3PM, with two 30 minute breaks in the day, and an hour for lunch at 12PM. Private schools usually have about 120 students. State schools have around 240 students. You start Secondary School at age 11, going into Year 7. You study English, maths, science, history, geography, art, music, ICT (computers), citizenship, design technology, a foreign language and PE (physical education). You sometimes study RE (religious education). In Year 9 (age 13-14), you used to take SATs, but these are not done any more. In Year 10 (aged 14-15), you choose the subjects you want to take for GCSE. A GCSE is an examination made up of formal exams and coursework, which is taken in one subject. You can get grades from A* (best) to G (worst). You usually take around 10 or 11 GCSEs. English, Maths, RE, Citizenship, ICT and Science are compulsory GCSEs, and PE must be done once a week (but doesn't have to be taken as a GCSE). GCSEs are completed in Year 11 (15-16). You need at least 5 A*-C grade GCSEs to get into college. The school day is usually from 8:30AM to 3:30PM, with one 30 minute break in the morning, and an hour for lunch at 12:30PM. There are about 5-6 classes in the day, but all schools differ. Private schools usually have about 600 students. State schools have around 1200 students. At 16, you can leave school, or stay on at your school for 6th Form College, where you take A-Levels, which are like GCSEs but on a more difficult, higher level. The grading system is the same, and you usually take 3 or 4 A-Levels. You leave 6th Form at age 18. If you need any more info, mail me.
3 :
Hi. As a starter for your research try www.allaboutschoolfees.com for a library of info on the UK private education system and links to private schools and other related sites. tombrown is also a good site for other info on schools.
