Comparison of the Education Systems in UK, US and SL GROUP MEMBERS: 2013/MIT/061 – MS. P.H.G. PERERA MPHIL/PT/2015/048 – MS. S.H.D. SENANAYAKE

Comparison of the Education systems   US UK SL Learning is based on Constructivism, cognitive theory Behaviorism , cognitive theory The educational approach Cooperative, collaborative and competitive Stages Age 3 – 5 years: Nursery school Age 5 – 11 years: Primary school Age 11 – 16 years: secondary school Age 16 – 19 years: Further education Age 19+ years: Higher education Age 5-11 years: Elementary school Age 11-14 years: Middle school Age 14-18 years: High School Age 18+ years: College Age 5-10 years: Primary Age 10-14 years: Junior secondary Age 14-16 years: Senior secondary Age 16-19 years: Collegiate Age 19+ years: Tertiary Tertiary Education BA: 3 years MA: 1 year PhD: 3 years BA: 4 years MA: 2 years PhD: 5-7 years or longer Certificate - 1 year or less Diploma - 1–2 years Bachelor's degree General degree - 3 years Honors/Special degree - 4 years Master's degree - 2-3 years Doctorate - 3+ years

Comparison of the Education systems cont.   US UK SL Home schooling Around 2.5 million 20,000–100,000 Virtually no homeschooling Approximate Age ranges of students 5-70 years , 28% over 50 years. 5 years – 60 years 6 years – 60 years Type of classrooms Mostly Student centered Mostly Teacher centered Learning responsibility Faculty and students share responsibility for learning Learning responsibility primarily lies on the students School Learning is aimed towards developing main areas Cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains Cognitive, affective domains mainly, psychomotor domain to a lesser extent Cognitive Practicality / application of knowledge Homework makes up a large portion of the grade, and final exams are worth approximately 30% Homework is rarely assigned, and the final exam is worth 80%+ of the final grade Homework is assigned however final exam is worth 100% Use of technology for teaching High Medium Low Cost Moderate Very low/Free education

Advantages and Disadvantages   US UK SL Advantages - Many job opportunities are available - Students guidance is high in their chosen field - Financial assistance is available for most of the courses - scholarships and assistantships - Parents have the choice to select a private school or state school for the child. - Formal and strict educational system and focuses deep on the subject - Quality education Offers a huge range of academic and vocational opportunities available at all levels, from further to higher education. - Students can have free education until Advanced level and tertiary education is also free for government - Universities and less cost for private universities compared with other countries. - Student can follow tertiary education based on their academic qualifications. Disadvantages - The cost of education is slowly rising every year. - Each state follows a different curriculum of courses creating students of varying standards of education. - In job sectors, the student may be rejected by employers due to an over-qualified profile - Stressful - Tertiary education takes more time - Takes more time to complete tertiary education in some degrees

Characteristics of proposed Best teaching method (This method is based on Finnish, Japanese and German education systems) Age   6 – 10 Comprehensive school for which school attendance is mandatory. 11 – 13 14 - 15 16-18 Science stream Art stream Commerce stream Vocational training / work experience 19 Pre-course at uni / work experience University 20 -21 22

Characteristics of proposed Best teaching method (This method is based on Finnish, Japanese and German education systems) The basic compulsory educational system is the nine -year comprehensive school for which school attendance is mandatory. Home schooling is allowed for students who are unable to come to school. Schools up to university level are state funded, therefore free for students. Classes are small, seldom more than twenty pupils. Pupils are expected to learn two languages in addition to the language of the school. Students in lower grades (from year 6 - one through nine needs to be taught art, music, cooking, carpentry, metalwork, and textiles. Inside the school, the atmosphere is relaxed and informal. A healthy teacher student relationship is encouraged. Outdoor activities are stressed. Homework is minimal to leave room for extra-curricular activities Reading for pleasure is actively encouraged. In school at least 2 hours per week needs to be allocated. There are no high-stakes tests. Grading students is based on their actual skills, not on the marks they gain at a special test where they might not perform due to fear, panic, etc…