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Discovering the U.K.
The school year comprises of three terms, running from September to July. State schools
generally open early in September, but there are some geographic variations. There are
holidays of two to three weeks at Christmas and Easter, and five to six weeks during the
summer with a half-term break in late October, February, and May.
Independent schools usually open in mid or late September and have longer holidays at
Christmas, Easter, and summer although the half term break is seldom more than a week
long. Some independent schools for boys have lessons on Saturday mornings during the
term. The academic year for the universities runs from early October to early June.
General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is designed as a two year course of
study for students in years 10 and 11 (age 14-16) to prepare for GCSE testing. GCSE
testing is used as a stepping stone exam for job placement and higher education. GCSEs
are open to anyone and over 5.5 million GCSE entries, or about 22 million papers, are
marked by the awarding bodies each year. The exam timetables vary according to
examining body.
There are two sittings each year, with most students taking the exam in the summer when all
subjects are on offer. In most subjects, the exams are held from mid-May until the end of
June. The second sitting more commonly used for “re-sits” is in November. Most GCSEs
include coursework in addition to exams and the marks for coursework count towards the
final result.
The Advanced Level (A level) examination is
the flagship of the education program for those
aged between 16 and 18 in England, Wales,
and Northern Ireland. “A-levels” enable those
who wish to remain in school or in college after
the age of compulsory schooling to continue
their education for another two years. The
curriculum 2000 initiative was designed to
introduce an element of breadth into A-level
subjects that would be studied over two years
to complete the qualifications.
Whilst this system was the envy of many countries in terms of the depth it allowed, many
were aware that the subject combinations studied where often too specialised and narrow,
lacking the breadth that was desirable for general education at this level.