A CLOSER LOOK ON THE

EDUCATION SYSTEM OF
SELECTED COUNTRIES OF THE
WORLD
BENCHMARKING is learning the best from the best
practices of the worlds best educational systems.

EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA
I. BASIC EDUCATION

Australia, called by many as the last paradise on earth, has a high

quality education system.

Their ES is similar with that of Canada and England.

Primary school is for six years, high school, six years (Subdivided
into JHS and SHS) and for college, three to six years.

During JHS, most students decide what to do after HS. [Options:

Theyll enter college and continue Y11 and Y12/Theyll get a job after
Y10/Theyll go to Technical and Further Education (TAFE) to learn
Technical skills.

The entry age for compulsory education is 6 y/o and exit age 15 y/o.

EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA
A. PRIMARY EDUCATION

It was provided by the govt and non-govt. The length of the program is 6 years
for 6 y/o to 12 y/o. (HE, children start PE at the age of 5 when they enroll in Prep
or Kinder year.
B. SECONDARY EDUCATION

It was provided by the govt and non-govt Co-Educational Comprehensive/MultiPurpose High School.
a. Junior High School- The age level of children in this level is 12 to 16 years old.
A Junior Secondary Certificate of Education (Y10 Cert.) is awarded at the end of it.
b. Senior High School- The age level of children in this level is 16 to 18 years
old. Its no longer compulsory education. A Senior Secondary Certificate of
Education (Y112 Cert.) is awarded at the end of it.
NOTE: Most students are enrolled in govt schools which operate under the direct
responsibility of the State or Territory Education Minister. The Federal government
provides supplementary financial support.

EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA
II. HIGHER EDUCATION
a. Main Purposes of Australian HE
1. To enable individuals to develop their capabilities for effective participation in the
workforce, for constructive contribution to society and for personal growth and
fulfillment .

2. To advance knowledge and understanding.

3. Aid the application of knowledge and understanding for the benefit of the
economy and the society

4. Enable individuals to adapt and learn, consistent with the needs of an adaptable
knowledge-based economy at the local, regional and national levels

5. Contribute to democratic civilized society. Australian universities are autonomous

self-accredited institutions established by Federal, State or Territory legislations.

EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA
Academic year begins in March and ends in November.
(Vacation: December 1 to February 28 every year) The
language of instruction is English.

University level studies begin with the undergraduate level.

To be admitted, a Senior Secondary Certificate of Education is
required.

The main stage of university education leads to bachelors

degree. Undergraduate studies last between three years,
(Arts, Sciences, Commerce) four years, (Education,
Engineering) five years (Veterinary Science, Dentistry,
Architecture) and six years (Medicine and Surgery) fulltime.
Arts and Sciences usually offer either a bachelors degree
(Passa) obtained in three years or a bachelors degree
(Honours) obtained in four years. An honours degree is

EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA
A graduate with a bachelors degree can proceed to

a
one-year to two-year post graduate course leading to a
postgraduate diploma. A student who has qualified for a
bachelors degree (Honours) may proceed to a masters
degree. This degree may be obtained after one year
(pass degree) or two years (honours degree) of full time
study.

A student who has qualified for a bachelors degree

(Honours) may proceed to study for a doctorate usually
Ph.D., higher doctorate in Science (DSsc) or Humanities
(Dlitt) upon submission of published wprk are awarded
the degrees.

EDUCATION IN CHINA
The most populous country of the world and the largest
education system in the world. (Over 200M students
attending public schools taught by over 9M teachers in the
Elem., J&SH)

The ES is highly centralized. The course syllabi are written by

scientists and professors hired by the National Educational
Commission The subject matter and instructional contents
are uniform for all.

The first 6 years of school make up the primary grades which

is devoted to development of Cognitive skills, and this is
followed by another 6 years of high school.

Class sizes ranges from 40-60 students and students have to

cover all topics in order to pass national exams.

EDUCATION IN CHINA
Students wishing to attend university must pass one of the
two versions of the National University Entrance Examination.
(The quality and reputation of the school depend on the
number of students passing the examination.

Education, one of the fundamental Chinese traditions,

entered a new era of deep transformation after 1949.
Education was used as a vital tool for centralization and
unification of the country. The new educational system
include:
six years of primary education
Three years of Junior middle school, three years of Senior middle school.
Six years of university
Varieties of technical and vocational schools.

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
The ES is highly centralized and is administered by the
Mombusho or Ministry of Education. The school system from
kindergarten through university serves about 24M students,
with about 10% going to the University. About 1/3 go to the
private school and rest are enrolled in the public school
system.

The ES is sometimes seen as a model on how to operate

schools. The system gives us a mental picture of obedient,
quiet school children sitting on their desks, listening to the
teacher and working hard to pass the various entrance
examinations.

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
In 2005, a book Japan in the 21st Century: Environment,
Economy and Society states:
Japans educational system produces students who
perform better on international examinations than
Americans do, and Japanese students are indisputably
among the best in the world in solving mathematical
equations . . . Youngsters are well behaved, envied around
as law-abiding; Japans low crime rates are well known and
widely envied around the world. But what is even more
striking than the lack of crime is the overwhelming civility;
graffiti and vandalism are rare and school sports team not
only bow to each other before the game but rush over to

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
A. BASIC EDUCATION
.5 BASIC LEVELS
1. Kindergarten
2. Elementary School (six years)
3. Lower Secondary School (three years)
4. Upper Secondary School (three years)
5. University (Usually four years)

.There are also preschools (yochien) with mainly female

teachers. These are not official part of the ES. Perfectual
boards license teachers, appoint teachers to public
elementary and lower secondary schools and also license
preschools in their area.

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
Education is free and compulsory for children from 6 to 15
years. Classes are large and teaching methods are usually
lecture. Japanese students spend 243 days a year in school.
The school calendar is year-round with some breaks between
sessions.

STANDARD CURRICULUM
Japanese language (greatest emphasis)
Social Studies
Mathematics and Science along with Art
Music
Home Economics
Physical Education

EDUCATION IN JAPAN

SECONDARY SCHOOLS OFFERS

LOWER- grade seven, eight and nine. Men compose 2/3 of
the teachers in this level. Class size average is 38 and the
periods are fifty minutes long.
UPPER-academic (First year courses includes EnScieMa) ,
technical and vocational programs (Information
Processing. Navigation, Fish Farming, Ceramics and
Business English). The upper secondary schools are
ranked based on their success in placing graduating
students into prestigious universities.

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
B. HIGHER EDUCATION

Junior colleges for women who want to pursue courses stress

Home Economics, Nursing, Teaching, Humanities and Social
Science.

Private institutions make up 80% of university enrollments

although the public schools have the most prestige. To get
into the universities (more than 500), the student must take
two exams; National Achievement test and the other is given
by the university itself). Students who fail the test will take
another year to study and prepare to take the test again.
(ronin, which originally meant samurai)

EDUCATION IN JAPAN
60% of the universities have graduate schools, but only 7%
of university graduate sets masters degrees. At the
doctorate level, students enroll in medical programs and the
humanities.

Japanese education relies heavily upon examinations to

determine which schools the student will go to the next,
resulting in a push by students and parents (usually mothers)
for their children to study very hard for the test so that he or
she can get into the best schools. The entire ES seem to be
built on a principle that if you do well in exams, you will get
into good schools, or universities and automatically into a
good life-time job.

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

The constitution guarantees equal access to basic
education.

The identified values and principle of South African

education include equity and redress, access to basic
education opportunities for lifelong learning, quality, in
terms of providing learners with learning opportunities of
acceptable standards., efficiency, democratic
participation, sustainability of development and
relevance of education

The Ministry of Education in May 1994 was tasked to

deal with education and training at the National level.

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

A. BASIC EDUCATION
.Formal education is characterized into sectors or
levels. These sectors are closely linked to particular
levels:
Public ordinary school education
Independent school education
Special school education
Technical college education
Teacher training
Technikon
University training

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

Public school may be a regular public school or a public school for
learners with special educational needs. The levels are pre-primary,
primary, secondary and higher education.

Compulsory General Education and Training (GET) covers the reception

year, Grades R to Grade IX. The General Education and Training
corresponds to Level 1 of the National Qualifications Framework (NQF)
and is divided into three phases: foundation (Grades R to Grade III)
intermediate (Grades IV-VI) and senior (Grades VII-IX).

As a rule, children start primary education in the year when they turn 7
years old, Primary education is divided into Junior primary (Grades I-III)
and senior primary (Grades IV-VI). Grades VII-IX is the last stage of
compulsory education and will lead to General Education and Training
Certificate. Further Education and Training (FET) or senior secondary
education (Grades X-XII) is not compulsory. At the end of Grade XII,
students sit a public examination leading to senior Cetificate. Technical
secondary education which generally lasts for three years are offered in

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

The 8 Learning areas that form the basis of all basic
education up to the Further Education Training (FET)
certificate are:
Language, Literacy and Communication
Mathematical Literacy, Mathematics and Mathematical Science
Natural Science
Technology
Human and Social Science
Economics and Management Science
Arts and Culture
Life Orientation

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

A. HIGHER EDUCATION
.Tertiary and higher education corresponds to level 5-8 of the
National Qualification Framework (NQF) which is more
advanced than the Senior Certificate. Institutions of higher
education include colleges, technikons and universities.

.Most colleges offer a three-year programme leading to the

Diploma in Education (four year for higher diplomas). Nursing
colleges and hospital schools of nursing offer four year
course leading to a diploma. Agricultural colleges offer one
year certificate, two-year higher certificate and three year
diploma courses. Technikons also offer Bachelors (4 year
course) masters and doctoral degree programmes in
technology.

EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICA

Masters degrees (magister technologiae) usually require a
minimum of one year of study, the doctorates (Laureatus in
Technology/Doctor Technologiae) at least two years. An
honours degree requires one additional years of study. A
masters degree is obtained after one or two year of study
and a minimum of two years for a doctorate.

One school year consists of 41 weeks (196 days) divided into

4 terms.

Other relevant sectors of the educational structure include

special education, private education or independent schools,
adult and non-formal education and HIV/AIDS education.

HANK YOU FOR LISTENING

REFLECTION
Based on the various educational system
of other countries you have discussed,
how would you compare our Philippine
education system? In what aspects are
we similar with other countries? Is our
educational system globally competitive?

REFLECTION
Based on the various educational system of other countries, we can say that
Philippine Education is less competitive than that of the other countries.
Philippine education system nowadays is the same with other countries at most
points (Philippines is still coping up in this curriculum). The same number of
years in studying (6 years in Primary, 6 years in secondary and 4+ years in
college/university), If graduated in HS, he can already apply for a job, etc.
In our own opinion, our educational system is globally competitive at some
points. Globally competitive in terms of Academic competitions (Literally). Many
graduates are now working and are big help to the country at some aspects but
other graduates does not fit their graduated degree with their work and the
worst, most arent having a job today. Also, many Filipinos migrate outside the
country believing that theyll be having a greater life there (Its true but not to
all). But the change of curriculum into K-12 by Pnoy greatly affect the quality of
Education in the Philippines. According to Wikipedia, in the year 2014, the
National Achievement Test (NAT) and the National Career Assessment
Examination (NCAE) results show that there had been a decline in the quality of
Philippine education at the elementary and secondary levels. The students
performance in both the 2014 NAT and NCAE were EXCESSIVELY BELOW the
target mean score. These just mean that the Philippine Education system is less
globally competitive.

REFERENCES
Bilbao P. et. al, The Teaching Profession, p.117-124
Education in the Philippines,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_the_Philippines