Secondary education

Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually higher education or vocational education.

Overview

Secondary education is characterized by transition from primary education for minors to tertiary, "post-secondary", or "higher" education for adults. Depending on the system, schools for this period or a part of it may be called secondary schools, high schools, gymnasia, lyceums, middle schools, colleges, vocational schools and preparatory schools, and the exact meaning of any of these varies between the countries.

Secondary education by country

The systems and terminology remain unique to each country. For example, in the United States, secondary education is often divided into two phases, middle school and high school. In the United Kingdom, secondary schools offer secondary education to prepare students for General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), A-Level, and other examinations. In Australia, secondary education is called high school, ranging from Year 7 to Year 12 in every state except South Australia, where high school is Year 8 to Year 12.

Curriculum

The exact boundary between primary and secondary education varies from country to country and even within them, but is generally around the seventh to the tenth year of education. Secondary education occurs mainly during the teenage years. The purpose of secondary education can be to give common knowledge, to prepare for higher education, or to train directly in a profession. The emergence of secondary education in the United States did not happen until 1910, caused by the rise in big businesses and technological advances in factories (for instance, the emergence of electrification), that required skilled workers.

See also

• Education by country
• List of schools by country
• Higher education
• Vocational education