In a series of articles, we will look at several educational systems, different from each other as a model, in countries with different cultural characteristics and mentality, located on different continents.
Germany
Typical of the German education system is the early specialization and profiling of students based on their achievements. After the fourth grade, students go to different schools – gymnasium, Realschule (real school), Hauptschule (main school) or Gesamtschule (comprehensive school).
- High school (grades 5/7-12/13) – students with the best results continue their studies here. Emphasis is placed on academics, natural sciences, information technology, classical and modern languages. The matriculation grade is used to apply to the university.
- Realschule (grades 5-10) – also a selective school, but with lower requirements. After graduation, students can choose between vocational high school, vocational college or dual education.
- Hauptschule (grades 5-9/10) – there are no special requirements, after the completion of the ninth grade students can continue with dual education.
- Gesamtschule – an alternative to the three-member system (gymnasium, Realschule, Hauptschule), does not separate students according to their achievements and allows for a matriculation exam to be held at the end of the upper secondary level.
Dual training is a combination of practice in production and theoretical lessons in vocational school. About 60% of the youth who complete 9-you Hauptschule class or 10-you class of the Realschule and have no ambition to continue their education at a higher level, start dual studies. The intern is paid for his work at a certain rate. Most of the professional training takes place at the factory, there are classes at school 1-2 days a week. Training usually lasts 3 years and ends with an exam. The dual education of the German education system enjoys international recognition. And while it can't fight youth unemployment, it can provide businesses with a skilled workforce.
The selective education system in Germany is often criticized for profiling students too early, as well as for limited access to good education for children from socially disadvantaged families or with immigrant backgrounds. On the other hand, advocates of the model argue that it is a way to encourage gifted children and keep the share of public education high.
France
In France, the motivation that drives French students is success. And since good grades and high achievements are the key to the desired professional realization, the main rule in school is "do what you have to do, not what you like." In France, the education system is managed centrally, there are uniform curricula for all schools in the country. Education is compulsory and free for children aged 6 to 16. Most students (about 80%) attend public schools. Fee-paying private schools are tied to religious instruction. The law also allows home education. Compared to other educational systems, the French organization shows interesting features - early socialization of children in public institutions (nurseries and kindergartens), late specialization of students (after the age of 15), full-time training, great competition, high requirements for discipline and compliance of the rules. Education at the École élémentaire primary school (6-10 years) lasts five years. All students then progress to the next level, Collège (11-14 years), without being divided according to their achievements. After four years of study at the college, they sit for an exam that determines what type of school they will continue in for the next level of education. Almost 80% of the students enroll in a Lycée (age 15-18) and after three years graduate with the Matura, which serves as the university entrance exam. After the first year at the lyceum, high school students can choose between a general profile or a technological profile. The type of matriculation also depends on the choice of profile: profile L – literature (with an emphasis on literature, foreign languages and philosophy), profile ES – economics and social sciences (economics, languages, mathematics), profile S – natural sciences (mathematics, physics , biology, chemistry), profile SI – technologies (industrial technologies, design, medicine, hospitality).
Students who do not have academic interests are directed to a vocational high school and prepare to practice a certain profession. If they wish, they can continue their studies and graduate with a professional matriculation. There is an opportunity to obtain a professional qualification in the educational centers, which, like the dual training in Germany, combine practical training with theory. The program covers young people between 16-25 years of age, has a duration of 1-3 years and provides paid practice to the trainees. Education in France is full-day – classes start in the morning and end in the late afternoon, with a two-hour lunch break. Due to all-day classes, students have little free time, sometimes they have to do homework at home until late at night. Compared to the rest of their peers, French students have more and longer study hours (55 minutes), but also longer vacations. Traditionally, Wednesday is a non-school day or there are classes only until noon, and on Saturdays classes are held until noon.
The relationship between teachers and students is not personal. The teacher treats his class as a group rather than as individuals. The main focus is on teaching and achieving learning objectives, learning is more like training specific skills. Usually the lessons in the upper classes are organized as a lecture, there is no discussion, mostly the teacher talks and the students take notes.
Students are under a lot of pressure to do well in school. Appreciation is the main element of their motivation. Only the best manage to enter elite higher schools (Grandes écoles) and after graduation become part of the French elite. During the lessons, the students are not active, they are rarely provoked to think independently. Rote learning is very common, sometimes lacking a real understanding of the learning material. The amount of written work is huge - notes are regularly taken in class, dictations are made, most exams are also written. In French school, it is believed that if you are not writing, you are not studying seriously. Very often homework is checked with a grade. The French school curriculum develops structured knowledge, the ability to systematically and logically create texts, the ability to concentrate and hard work. In the last high school grades, learning approaches the academic level.
According to the latest results of the international assessment PISA 2012, which examines not so much the school-acquired knowledge of 15-year-olds as their competences in mathematics, reading and science, French students show average achievements: mathematics - 25th place, reading - 21st (slightly above the average level), natural sciences – 26. When solving problems, the results are slightly above the average for developed countries.
The articles are part of a master's thesis on the topic "Radical reform in education - individuality instead of unification" in the specialty of Pedagogy for the acquisition of the qualification "teacher of economic disciplines" at the IU - Varna, protected with Excellent.
© 2023 Iliana Dechkova