Education in different ways...

On 3rd and 5th of March we had lessons with Tove about Comperative education.
The first class was started this important sentence: Which way the European schools so different? Why? The answer is quite easy: because of the different ways of thinking. That is the reason the idea of harmonising the education system in Europe- at the beginning of '90's didn't work. Countries in Europe appreciate their own values and try to secure them. These are cannot be changed, because they are deeply rooted in culture.

We learnt about the Scheim-model, which shows the culture in three different dimensions:

1. artefacts
2. values
3. basic assumptions

1. Artefacts: everything you can observe

Examples:

how does the school look like? how old is the institution?Is it possible to move around the furniture in the classroom?: opened/locked classrooms, furniture, canteen/lunch box...etc.

2. Values:

Examples:

the way you eating, reproduce what the teacher says, how is the structure of the day? teachers-children interaction : how much authority you see in the class? how the children behave? uniform for children and teachers?
Lunch, canteen: Norway, Denmark: lunchbox; Finland, Great-Britain: canteen
Related with the values:

• lunch box: free choice - parents, homes
• canteen: healthy + social - community
• break during the daytime: way of securing mother do not work in full-time job, only in part-time

3. Basic assumptions: indicator

Examples:

how much parents and family mean for the society?
This society is emphasie the indipendence: an individual is independent from the other individual, so this system subserve for the "strong people".
How can artefacts and values be interpreted?
What gives meaning for the school and what does not?
How does the school think that children learn in the very best way? - e.g.: there are so many didacticals: reproducing what was told; work together; learning by drama, handwork...etc.

Then we examined the different school systems (Martin McLean) in Europe with the dimensions above:
There are 3 educational systems in Europe:

1. The encyclopedic approach: comes from France, this is the most influential in Europe (Italy, Portugal, Spain, Eastern-Central Europe, Belgium...) and all over the world.

Values:

uniformity:

• knowledge on as many issues as possible
• teaching of equal quality: the same curriculum, same methods, same books, same progression
• standardised and centrally managed tests to ensure the same quality
• matter is about teachers and teaching: the freedom of the teachers are kept + every children have to have the same opportunity

rationality:

• logical way of thinking: no religion, no emotions
• exactness in language and arguments
• clear, precise demands
• understanding of structures and systems
• Science, French, Phiosophy and History
• ability to talk perfect and precise

elitism:

• competition as a method in teaching and career - no cooperation
• the private schools as a parallel system to the public: promote the best students, who have to reach a certain standard. "Second-chance schools" were established for slow-learner students

2. The humanistic approach: English elit system (Great-Britain and Ireland):

Values:

the ideal: The gentleman:

• high moral standard: the individual will develop empathy, sense of duty, responsibility,
• will be prepared to take leadership
• strong feeling of brotherhood
• destiny: to be a leader somewhere

individualism:

• close contact between student and teacher - the tutor system
• you cannot learn unless you motivated, which is up to the teacher, tutor
• learning is a individualised process and cannot be uniform and systematic
• small groups, which helps to make the best relation with students

specialisation:

• in very early age - age of 16 - student can choose the few subjects he/she wants to study - nobody can force him/her to waste time on issues he/she does not feel for
• What does it mean for the society? - Only 50% of youngsters continue their studies after the age of 16, and just very few of them goes to university. So there is an opposition between educated and unskilled people.

3. The naturalistic approach: Germany, The Netherlands, Skandinavia

Values:

decision of the community:

• Community needs to decide about the structure of the educational system. The teachers stream the children: the teachers decide which kind of school suit for the child: Hauptschule for workers and farmers, Realschule for merchants, tradesmen; Gymnasium for doctors, lawyers, decision makers.
• Community has an economical viewpoint: preparation for the future jobs - lot of focus on working place experience (it starts in the age of 16).
• everybody has a function in the community
• every job has its own dignity
• motto: "You should not waste any person, because everyone can do a job."

influence of parents:

• the school imitates the parents way of socialising
• parents have much influence: they decide the way school should be run...
• the learning process is as important as the product
• skills oriented

After we went throuhg the different educational system we diveded to groups and we had to examine our educational system by the artefacts and the values behind them, then we had to present our answers.


Some typicals from the countries we come from:


Hungary:

• students raising for teacher when he/she entering to the classroom
• students raising their hands if they want to sign for something
• the beginning of June: teacher's day, when students have to perform for teachers (telling poems, singing) and every class have to give flowers each of the teachers
• examination: during the whole year

Turkey:

• the system of morning school and afternoon school, because of economy reasons (crowd)
• uniform against to don't let poorer children out
• examination: end of the year

Spain:

• long school day: from 9 am to 5pm (12pm-3pm: lunchbreak)
• examination: end of the year

Poland:

• wearing uniform
• examination: during the whole year

Czech Republic:

• examination: during the whole year

Belgium:

• in Chatolic school: morning starts with a prayer

Summary of the artefacts:

• rituals, morning assumbly, rutine
• long schoolday
• oral examinations
• uniform
• prays
• student raising
• teacher's day
• assessing-presenting-memorising

Values which conect to the artefacts above:

• equality
• respect
• utility(there are some certain subject, which are more appriciated, than the others. Reason: these subjects - e.g.: Math, History, Literature, Foreign languages...etc. help in further studies.)
• discipline
• school is the most important activity

It was really interesting for me to look through in educational systems in Eruope. It gave me the explanation to the root of our differences, which deeply effected by the culture. Although all of the countries we come from belong to the encyclopedic French system, we have some differences as well - as you can see above. Even so the educational system of these countries completely different from the Danish educational system, though it's not "clear" Scandinavian system: the mixture of the English (working in small groups) and the naturalistic approach.