Education Discussion

Odd man out 1. single sex, mixed, coeducational 2. compulsory, voluntary, optional 3. independent school, public school, state school 4. nursery, primary, secondary 5. grammar school, comprehensive school, non-selective school 6. streaming, mixed ability grouping, ability grouping 7. continuous assessment, nal examinations, intelligence testing Education Discussion What comes to mind when you hear the word education? Would you prefer to send your child to a mixed or single sex school? Do you think you had a good education? Is day school always a better alternative to boarding school? Should rich people be permitted to buy educational advantages by sending their children to private schools or should all schools be run by the state? Do you prefer a system where children are put in fast and slow streams or is it better to create mixed ability classes? Should corporal punishment be permitted in schools? Do you think the quality of education is slipping? Which system do you favour for measuring childrens progress -nal examinations or continuous assessment? Do the "three Rs" (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic) make up the most important part of the school curriculum? What do you think of the idea of all education being online Is the level of education in your country good? What would you like to change about the education system of your country? What kind of experience and qualications do you think a governments education minister/ secretary needs? What do you think Mark Twain meant when he said, never let school interfere with your education?# In which country do you think you can receive the best education? What kind of education did you have in your home? Is education a human right? Why? Do you know anyone who attended a private school? Do private schools offer higher quality education or are they just prestigious? Do you think teachers are paid enough? Do you think teachers are well educated? Is it difcult for people without a university education to get good jobs? Should education be free? Should people go straight from school to a university? Which is more important, the essential skills in life you've learned to develop on your own or the articial structure in college about the "real" life? We should not just prepare for life, but live it. Do you agree?

Education Discussion

From grade schools to universities, Europes underfunded, antiquated education systems are failing a new generation.
From grade schools to universities, Europes underfunded, antiquated education systems are failing a new generation. these are windows on a Europe that is failing its young generation. As the world rapidly shifts from an economy based on labor and industry to one driven by knowledge and innovation, Europes education systems arent keeping pace. Indeed, some seem to be slipping into virtual dysfunction. Its well known that the continents underfunded and over bureaucratized universities produce too few graduates with often outdated skills - an obvious threat to Europes prosperity. Less well known is the fact that many European countries, for all their talk of social equality foreclose opportunities for education and social advancement. minds are a terrible thing to waste

A scathing report comes out this week from Londons Centre for European Reform. A grim education malaise grips higher learning in Europe, the authors conclude. Most of its best universities are clearly in the second division, they say, worsened by an exodus of academic talent. Europes education malaise isnt just about making tomorrows workers a little smarter. Nor is it merely about keeping pace with foreign competitors in the global marketplace. To the contrary, its about preserving Europes social fabric. Without vibrant, knowledge-infused economies, the whole foundation of the modern European welfare state falls apart. Already, schools and universities graduate too many students, , straight onto the welfare rolls - a cost explosion that threatens to blow up Europes budgets and drag its economies down even more. As violent riots set Pariss ablaze once again last week, Europe got another glimpse of the price it will play if it cant offer its youth upward mobility and employable skills.

Once a powerhouse, Germany ranks 20th of 30 OECD countries in math and reading.
Numbers tell part of the story. At all three levels primary education, secondary schools, universities America and Japan signicantly outspend Europe, according to 2005 OECD gures. The United States funnels 2.6 percent of its GDP into its universities alone, compared with just 1.1 percent each for Germany, Italy and France. Last year even Turkey passed these three. In the most recent global ranking of top research institutions compiled by the Jiao Tong University in Shanghai, only nine European colleges made it into the top 50, the majority of them in the United Kingdom. Less than a quarter of Europes working-age population has a university-level degree, compared with 38 percent in United States and 36 in Japan. Study after study, by OECD and others, as shown high/school achievement stagnant or slipping. The problems are particularly acute for the Continents Big Three, divers of Europes economy. Exhibit A is Germany. Once a powerhouse of training and education, it now ranks 20th among 30 OECD countries in math and reading skills, and 23rd in the number of college graduates.