Structure of the Chinese education system

In China, the education is divided into three categories: basic education, higher education, and adult
education. By law, each child must have nine years of compulsory education from primary school (six
years) to junior secondary education (three years).

Basic Education

Basic education in China includes pre-school education (usually three years), primary education (six
years, usually starting at the age of six) and secondary education (six years).

Secondary education has two routes: academic secondary education and

specialized/vocational/technical secondary education. Academic secondary education consists of junior
(three years) and senior middle schools (three years). Junior middle school graduates wishing to
continue their education take a locally administered entrance exam, on the basis of which they will have
the option of i) continuing in an academic senior middle school; or ii) entering a vocational middle
school (or leave school at this point) to receive two to four years of training. Senior middle school
graduates wishing to go to universities must take National Higher Education Entrance Exam (Gao Kao).
According to the Chinese Ministry of Education, in June 2015, 9.42 million students took the exam.

Creative commons image Icon Higher Education

Higher education is further divided into two categories: 1) universities that offer four-year or five-year
undergraduate degrees to award academic degree qualifications; and 2) colleges that offer three-year
diploma or certificate courses on both academic and vocational subjects. Postgraduate and doctoral
programmes are only offered at universities.

Adult Education
The adult education ranges from primary education to higher education. For example, adult primary
education includes Workers’ Primary Schools, Peasants’ Primary Schools in an effort to raise literacy
level in remote areas; adult secondary education includes specialized secondary schools for adults; and
adult higher education includes traditional radio/TV universities (now online), most of which offer
certificates/diplomas but a few offer regular undergraduate degrees.

Term times and school hours

The academic year is divided into two terms for all the educational institutions: February to mid-July (six
weeks summer vocation) and September to mid/late-January (four weeks winter vocation). There are
no half-terms.

Most schools start from early morning (about 7:30am) to early evening (about 6pm) with 2 hours lunch
break. Many schools have evening self-study classes running from 7pm-9pm so students can finish their
homework and prepare for endless tests. If schools do not run self-study evening classes, students still
have to do their homework at home, usually up to 10pm. On average, a primary school pupils spend
about seven to eight hours at school whilst a secondary school student spends about twelve to fourteen
hours at school if including lunch time and evening classes. Due to fierce competitiveness to get into
good universities, the pressure to do well for Gao Kao is intense. Many schools hold extra morning
classes in science and math for three to four hours on Saturdays. If schools do not have Saturday
morning classes, most parents would send their children to expensive cramming school at weekends or
organise one-to-one private tuition for their children over the weekend.

A GLOBAL TEACHER is a competent teacher who is armed with enough skills, appropriate attitude and
universal values to teach students with both time tested as well as modern technologies in education in
any place in the world. He or she is someone who thinks and acts both locally and globally with
worldwide perspectives, right in the communities where he or she is situated.

12. GLOBAL EDUCATION AND THE GLOBAL TEACHER More specifically a global Filipino teacher should
have the following qualities and characteristics in addition to knowledge, skills and values:
Understands how this world is interconnected; Recognizes that the world has rich variety of ways if
life; Has a vision of the future and sees what the future would be for himself/herself and the students;
 Must be creative and innovative; Must understand, respect and be tolerant of the diversity of
cultures;

13. GLOBAL EDUCATION AND THE GLOBAL TEACHER Must believe and take action for education that
well sustain the future; Must be able to facilitate digitally-mediated learning; Must have depth
knowledge; and Must possess good communication skills (for Filipino teachers to be multilingual). And
lastly but more importantly, Must possess the competencies of a professional teacher as embodies in
the National Competency-Based Standards for Teachers (NCBTS).

14. GLOBAL EDUCATION AND THE GLOBAL TEACHER Must believe and take action for education that
well sustain the future; Must be able to facilitate digitally-mediated learning; Must have depth
knowledge; and Must possess good communication skills (for Filipino teachers to be multilingual). And
lastly but more importantly, Must possess the competencies of a professional teacher as embodies in
the National Competency-Based Standards for Teachers (NCBTS).

Students in New Zealand are supported to solve problems, process information, work with others,
create and innovate. Whichever level you’re studying at, New Zealand can give you a high-quality educ

Tertiary education

Ages 18+

Higher Education

New Zealand has eight state-funded universities, 16 Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics (ITPs) and
about 550 Private Training Establishments (PTEs), which include English language schools.

Choose the type of institution that’s best for your career path:
•Universities offer higher degree-level education. Programmes are research-led and generally academic
rather than vocational. In the 2015/16 QS World University Rankings, all eight of New Zealand’s
universities were in the top 100 in at least one subject.

•ITPs and a few larger PTEs offer vocational degree-level education.

•PTEs tend to offer specific vocational programmes, mainly at certificate and diploma level.ation that
will enable you to achieve your goals.

Secondary school
Ages 13-18 (Years 9-13)

New Zealand has three types of school:

 state schools, where 85% of Kiwi children go

 state-integrated schools, which may be run by a religious faith or use specialist
teaching methods
 private schools.

Students at secondary schools - also known as high schools or colleges - work towards
the National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA). Secondary schools also
offer some vocational subjects, such as tourism and computing.

Some schools also offer Cambridge International Examinations and International

Baccalaureate programmes.
Intermediate school

Ages 11-12 (Years 7-8)

Intermediate School

Intermediate schools are a bridge between primary school and secondary school.

Primary education starts at Year 1 and continues through to Year 8. Years 7 and 8 are offered either at a
primary school or at a separate intermediate school.

Primary school

Ages 5-10 (Years 1-6)

Primary School

Primary school students study subjects guided by New Zealand National Curriculum: English, the arts,
health and physical education, languages, mathematics and statistics, science, social sciences and
technology.
Students’ abilities in reading, writing and maths are regularly assessed against expectations for their age
level, as set out by New Zealand’s National Standards.

National Standards

Early childhood

Ages 0-5

Early Childhood

Early childhood education provides education and care for children before they are old enough to go to
school.

New Zealand has more than 4000 licensed early childhood education services available, including
kindergartens, childcare centres, play centres, home-based care and playgroups.