Encyclopedia
The term
public school has different meanings due to regional differences. In most of the world, it refers to a government-funded
primary or
secondary school; in some countries, it can refer to government-funded
higher education; in
England,
Wales,
Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland it refers to certain elite, private primary and secondary schools.
English-speaking nations
In many
English-speaking nations , a public school is a school that is financed and run by the government and does not charge tuition fees in order for children to attend. This is in contrast to a private school . Here, the word "public" is used in the sense of "
public library", i.e. provided to the public at public expense. These public schools range in classes from kindergarten to four years of high school or secondary school, normally lasting until one is 17/18 years of age.
There are variations on the name, such as "state school", which is used in the UK and some other countries. In
Hong Kong they are called "government schools".
British Isles
In the
United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, the term "public school" refers to fee-charging independent
secondary schools. The earliest known reference to a "public school" dates from 1364 when the Bishop of Winchester wrote concerning "the public school" at Kingston, which was then part of the diocese of Winchester. In the 19th century the term was used to refer to a select group of nine old English independent schools in the Public Schools Act 1868, but many similar schools were soon to be established, and they were later joined by a number of ancient grammar schools which conformed to the ethos of the nine schools named in the Act. These schools were 'public' in the sense of being open to all students without any geographical or religious restriction -- at the time of their founding most existing schools were run by the Church and only open to members of the same denomination.
The term "public school" is generally used now in the
United Kingdom to refer to any school which is a member of the Headmasters Conference - see the article Independent school for that sense of the term. The schools and their representative associations prefer the term "independent schools", but the news media in England and common usage often refer to them by the traditional name of "public schools". The term "private school" means the same as it does in other English-speaking countries.
In the
United Kingdom the term "school" is not generally used to describe institutions of further or higher education apart from medical schools, and is otherwise restricted to primary and secondary schools.
Northern and Central America
Canada
Education in Canada is a provincial responsibility and, as such, there are many variations between the provinces. Junior Kindergarten as an official program exists in some, but not most places. Kindergarten is available in every province, but provincial funding, and the level of hours provided varies widely. Starting at grade one, at about age five, there is universal publicly funded access up to grade twelve . Schools are generally divided into Elementary or Primary school , Intermediate or Middle school , and Secondary, or High School . In some schools, particularly in rural areas, the elementary and middle levels can be combined into one school. Commencing in 2003, Grade 13, or OAC, was eliminated in Ontario. It had previously been required only for students who intended to go on to university. Children are required to attend school until the age of sixteen.
Some Canadian provinces offer segregated, but still publicly funded, religious education. In Ontario, for example, Catholic Schools, while still being funded by the government, are given the title "Catholic School", as opposed to "Public School".
It is interesting to note that in Canada the syntax is "grade " is used almost exclusively.
United States of America
Education in the United States is provided mainly by local governments, with control and funding coming from three levels: federal, state, and local. Curricula, funding, teaching, and other policies are set through locally elected school boards by jurisdiction over school districts. The school districts are authorized by provisions of state law. Generally, state governments can and most, if not all, do set minimum standards relating to almost all activities of primary and secondary schools, as well as funding and authorization to enact local school taxes to support the schools -- primarily through real property taxes. The federal government funds aid to states and school districts that meet minimum federal standards. School accreditation decisions are made by voluntary regional associations. The first tax supported public school in America was in
Dedham, Massachusetts.
Public school is normally split up into three stages: Primary School , Junior High School and High School , with some less populated communities incorporating high school as 7th to 12th. Some Junior High Schools contain 7th to 9th grades or 7th and 8th, in which case the High School is 9th to 12th or 10th to 12th respectively. The middle school format is increasing in popularity, in which the Elementary School contains kindergarten through 5th grade and the Middle School contains 6th through 8th grade. In addition, some elementary schools are splitting into two levels, sometimes in separate buildings: Primary and Intermediate .
In the
United States, institutions of
higher education that are subsidized by
U.S. states are also referred to as "public." Unlike public secondary schools,
public universities charge for tuition, though fees for in-state students are usually lower than at private universities. Community colleges are examples of public institutions of higher education.
Elsewhere
In some countries, such as
Brazil and
Mexico, the adjective "public" is used to denote education institutions owned by the federal, state, or city governments. They never charge tuition. Public schools exist in all levels of education, from the very beginning through post-secondary studies. The later years of schooling would be comparable to the state university systems in most US states.
Europe
Denmark
The Danish School system is supported today by the public from day care to higher education.
To read more about the history of the Danish public school system, go to Education in Denmark.
Today, education in Denmark is broken down into six age groups:
- Pre-School Education
- Folkeskole Education
- Secondary Education
- Higher Education
- Adult Education
Pre-school is a type of school in Denmark covering the time before children enter compulsory education. Preschool is the time most students enter the Danish education system.
The Folkeskole is one type of school in Denmark, covering the entire period of compulsory education. This form of education cannot, as in the case of many other nations' education systems, be divided into primary and secondary education. The Folkeskole consists of a voluntary pre-school class, the 9-year obligatory course and a voluntary 10th year. It thus caters for pupils aged 6 to 17.
The historical overview of general
upper secondary education is divided into four headings, one covering the three-year Gymnasium, one covering the two-year Higher Preparatory Examination , one covering the 3-year Higher Commercial Examination Programme , and one covering the three-year Higher Technical Examination Programme .
Higher and Adult Education is managed by Universities which follow international convention. Students from the age of 18 can goto college on government grants. This grant is called SU.
France
The French educational system is highly centralized, organized, and ramified. It is divided into three stages:
- primary education ;
- secondary education ;
- tertiary or college education
PrimarySchooling in
France is mandatory as of age 6, the first year of primary school. Many parents start sending their children earlier though, around age 3 as
kindergarten classes are usually affiliated to a borough's primary school. Some even start earlier at age 2 in
pré-maternelle or
garderie class, which is essentially a daycare facility.
French secondary education is divided into two schools:
- the collège for the first four years directly following primary school;
- the lycée for the next three years.
The completion of secondary studies leads to the
baccalauréat.
BaccalauréatThe
baccalauréat is the end-of-
lycée diploma students sit for in order to enter
university, a
classe préparatoire, or professional life. The term
baccalauréat refers to the diploma and the examinations themselves. It is comparable to
British A-Levels,
American SATs, the
Irish Leaving Certificate and
German Abitur.
Most students sit for the
baccalauréat général which is divided into 3 streams of study, called
séries. The
série scientifique is concerned with
mathematics and
natural sciences, the
série économique et sociale with
economics and
social sciences, and the
série littéraire focuses on
French and
foreign languages and
philosophy.
Tertiary educationA striking trait of higher education in France, compared to other countries such as the
United States, is the small size and multiplicity of establishments, each specialized in a more or less broad spectrum of disciplines. A middle-sized French city, such as
Grenoble or
Nancy, may have 2 or 3 universities , and also a number of engineering and other specialized higher education establishments. For instance, in
Paris and suburbs, there are 13 universities, most of which are specialized on one area or the other, and a large number of smaller institutions.
- Grandes écoles & classes préparatoires
The
Grandes écoles of
France are higher education establishments outside the mainstream framework of the public
universities. They are generally focused on a single subject area, such as engineering, have a moderate size, and are often quite selective in their admission of students. They are widely regarded as prestigious, and traditionally have produced most of France's scientifists and executives.
Germany
Education in
Germany is provided to a large extent by the government, with control coming from state level, ' and funding coming from two levels: federal and state. Curricula, funding, teaching, and other policies are set through the respective states ministry of education. Decisions about the acknowledgment of private schools are also made by these ministries. However, public schools are automatically recognised, since these schools are supervised directly by the ministry of education bureaucracy.
Kindergartens are not part of the German public school system. . Article 7 Paragraph 6 of the German constitution abolished pre-school as part of the German school system. However, Kindergartens exist all over Germany, particularly in former
East Germany, where many of these institutions actually are public, but these Kindergartens are controlled by local authorities, charging tuition fees and are likewise not considered to be part of the public school system.
A German public school does not charge tuition fees. The first stage of the German public school system is the
Grundschule. After Grundschule , there are basically four options as to public secondary schooling:
A Gesamtschule largely corresponds to an American high school. However, it offers the same school leaving certificates as the other three types of German secondary schools - the Hauptschulabschluss , the Realschulabschluss, also called Mittlere Reife, and Abitur, also called Hochschulreife, after 13th or seldom after 12th Grade. Students who graduate from Hauptschule or Realschule continue their schooling at a vocational school until they have full job qualifications.
This type of German school, the
Berufsschule, is generally an upper-secondary public vocational school, controlled by the German federal government. It is part of Germany's dual education system. Students who graduate from a vocational school and students who graduate with good GPA from a Realschule can continue their schooling at an other type of German public secondary school, the
Fachoberschule, a vocational high school. The school leaving exam of this type of school, the
Fachhochschulreife, enables the graduate to start studying at a Fachhochschule , and in
Hesse also at an university within the state. The Abitur from a Gesamtschule or Gymnasium enables the graduate to start studying at a polytechnic or at an university in all states of Germany.
In Germany, most institutions of higher education are subsidized by German states and are therefore also referred to as
staatliche Hochschulen. Most German public universities and polytechnics do not charge for tuition, though fees for guest or graduate students are charged by many universities. However, many German states plan to introduce generall tuition fees for all students at public institutions of higher education in the near future.
See the article
Education in Germany for more details on public schools in Germany.
Australia
Education in Australia follows a three tier model:
primary,
secondary and
tertiary education. Education is primarily regulated by the individual state governments, not the federal government. Education is compulsory up to an age specified by legislation; this age varies but is generally 15 or 16, that is prior to completing secondary education.
Post-compulsory education is regulated within the Australian Qualifications Framework , a unified system of national qualifications in schools, vocational education and training and the higher education sector .
Primary and Secondary
Primary and secondary education may be provided by:
- Government schools
- Private schools
There has been a strong drift of students to private schools during the past decade.
Government schools educate the majority of students and do not charge large tuition fees . The major part of their costs is met by the relevant State or Territory government. Private schools, both religious or secular , may charge much higher fees.
Public schools can be divided into two types: open and selective. The open schools accept all students from their government defined catchment areas, while selective schools have high entrance requirements and cater to a much larger area. Entrance to selective schools is often highly competitive. In Victoria, for example, more than 3000 applicants sit the entrance exam each year competing for the 600 available places at
Mac.Robertson Girls' High School and
Melbourne High School.
Tertiary
Like in other countries, both private and public universities can be found in Australia;
as of 2004, there are 36 public, 2 Catholic and 1 other private universities in Australia. Admissions by Australian citizens to public and Catholic universities in Australia are based on the prospective student's academic achievement, and to a much lesser extent, the ability to afford tuition.
South Asia
Pakistan
In
Pakistan, the term "public school" has historically been used for British-styled boarding schools such as Abbottabad Public School and Bahawalpur Public School. This has established a strong branding for the term "public school", though most of these schools are private, boarding-centric and non-governmental.
India and Sri Lanka
In
India and
Sri Lanka, due to the British influence, the term "public schools" implies non-governmental, historically elite educational institutions, often modeled on British public schools.
See also
- Public high school
- Compulsory education
- List of education articles by country
Footnotes
