Special Country Features — United Kingdom

by - 1/07/2020

All illustrations: TRiiBU Studio / E-Learn Magazine

WASHINGTON  Em 2017, comecei uma série de reportagens sobre o sistema educacional de diversos países para a E-Learn Magazine, publicação global da empresa norte-americana de tecnologia para educação Blackboard. Entre os países perfilados estão Brasil, França, Colômbia, México, Nova Zelândia, Austrália, Singapura, Bélgica, Países Baixos e Luxemburgo. Confira abaixo a reportagem sobre o Reino Unido.


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Despite all of the concerns Brexit has raised for UK’s universities, such as funding issues, the land of hope and glory remains a great choice for students who want to attend some of its most renowned and best-ranked higher education institutions.

As early as the age of 5, the British start their journey in school. That’s when Primary Education begins for children in England, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales  and they take it very seriously since that early age. In 2016, no less than 66% of pupils met or exceeded the expected standard in reading, 70% did so in mathematics and 74% achieved their goals in writing. 

This was just the first year of the new national curriculum enforced in British primary schools. According to the UK’s Department of Education, the new assessments raised the bar on what students aged 5 to 11 must be taught, consequently preparing them for secondary school and beyond.

Then, from ages 11 to 16, comes the time for secondary education. Of course, not all students can go to Hogwarts, but all of them have a chance to get a great deal of learning. Over the past two years, the main goal is to prepare students for the General Certificates of Secondary Education (GCSEs), academic qualifications given for specific subjects. The GCSEs are highly valued by colleges and employers, so they are quite popular among young British students.

Out of all 50 available subjects, four of them are mandatory: English Language, English Literature, Sciences and Mathematics. Welsh and Irish Languages are also required in Wales and Northern Ireland, respectively. However, students are free to choose the other subjects they are going to specialize in — actually, they are encouraged to take a wide range of subjects so they can keep their options open for the future.

After school, British students can continue studying or apply for jobs.  Nevertheless, before going to a higher education institution, if they choose to, students are required to attend further education. Similar to the GCSEs, the A-level is a two-year program that develops their academic abilities before attending college. 

The UK has a 46% completion rate in tertiary education, which is a good rate when compared to other countries researched for this piece – although Canada, Japan, New Zealand and Singapore have superior numbers. The United Kingdom is ranked 18th in the System Education World Economic Forum ranking.  

What is a matter of concern for British educators is the rise in the student dropout rate during the first year of college. In 2014-2015, 6.2% of students quit higher education even before getting to the second year. 

The UK Has Some of the Most Renowned Universities in the World

With over 100 universities – and 13 of them being listed in the World’s Top 100 rankings – the United Kingdom is one of the best places in the world to get a university degree. However, it’s one of the priciest too: local students spend an average of US$ 5,900  per semester to study in their best campuses and international students pay more than twice that amount as the average cost is US$ 12,900 per semester if you come from another country. 

Business and administrative studies, biological sciences, subjects concerned with medicine, social studies and creative arts & design are considered the top five majors in the UK. 

All universities in the UK demand a tuition fee – none of them is public or government-owned, like in most countries. They are independent organizations and the majority of them have some kind of government funding – still, students that want to get a degree have to contribute financially, unless they have scholarships. 

Recently, the financing of universities has become a sensitive issue in the UK. With the country’s decision to leave the European Union (EU), and the subsequent inability to access EU funds for higher education, institutions are becoming increasingly more concerned that international students might not be able to go to the United Kingdom to get a degree anymore. The number of 438,000 international students is expected to drop in the near future, considering 127,000 come from other EU countries. As if this wasn’t enough trouble, Brexit could also have a bear on research funding, which is also seen as a major concern. 

Improving the Quality

Although universities are capable of collecting a huge amount of data, they do not always put it to good use. That’s why they are being encouraged to impact students’ lives with information and data to support their studies, while helping them be more efficient.

The Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) is a new way to improve the quality of British universities. It’s a government-based assessment of undergraduate teaching that includes all higher education institutions in England and also some in Scotland and Wales. They can be awarded with Gold, Silver and Bronze distinctions. In 2017, 42 institutions (out of a total of 134) were considered Gold in the TEF. 

As a way to improve students’ experiences at universities, schools like the University of Nottingham, for example, are also monitoring student attendance – which includes being present at all teaching activities, undertaking all assessments and informing universities when they’re not able to do so. The universities report non-attendance to British education authorities such as the Home Office and Student Loans Company when required. 

5 UK Highlights in Education

1 – The United Kingdom is the second country with more universities in the World 100 Top Rankings (13 institutions), just below the United States.

2 - Proportionally, the UK is also #2 in number of universities on the Top 100, with Singapore taking the lead. It is worth noting that Singapore has only eight universities and two of them are on the list (25%).

3 - The UK is also #2 on e-learning usage (210,000 online students), just below the United States. 

4 – The United States is the only country where a professor can make more money than in the United Kingdom.

5 – The UK is considered the most scholarship friendly country in the world. Top-ranked institutions, such as Cambridge and Oxford, offer scholarships that cover full tuition costs. 


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