3. National Curriculum in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

By law, all children in England and Wales of the age from 5 to 16 must receive a full-timeeducation, while in Northern Ireland, children must begin at age 4. For children under age 5, publicly-funded nurseries and pre-schools are available for a limited number of hours each week. After the age of 16, students can attend sixth form colleges or other further education institutions. Both options offer general education courses in addition to more specific vocational or applied subjects.

The U.K. introduced a National Curriculum in 1992 and state schools are required to adhere to it until students reach age 16. The Education and Skills Act of 2008 raised the compulsory age to 18, effective in 2013 for 17 year olds and in 2015 for 18 year olds. The government is including a provision in its Education Bill that will increase the participation age to 18 so that school leavers have the option of staying in school or move onto further training （independent schools are not obliged to adhere to the National Curriculum）. School learning is split into 4 key stages relating to the curriculum. Pupils progress through the stages as they go through the school years.

3.1　National Curriculum Core Subjects—5 to 11 Year Olds （Key Stages 1 and 2）

National curriculum core subjectsincludeEnglish, maths, science, design and technology, information and communication technology （ICT）, history, geography, art and design, music, physical education. Schools also have to teach religious education and are encouraged to offer personal, social and health education （PSHE） and citizenship, and at least one modern foreign language.

3.2　National Curriculum Core Subjects—11 to 14 Year Olds （Key Stage 3）

English, maths, science, design and technology, information and communication technology（ICT）, history, geography, modern foreign languages, art and design, music, citizenship, physical education. Schools also have to offer: careers education and guidance （during Year 9）, sex and relationship education （SRE）, religious education.

Throughout key stages 1 to 3 pupils are routinely tested in Standard Assessment Tests（SATs） but these are being phased out by the government.

3.3　Key Stage 4—GCSE

At GCSE （General Certificate of Secondary Education） level, students have to take English, maths, science, IT, citizenship and physical education.The GCSE is a single-subject examination set and marked by independent examination boards. Students usually take up toten （there is no upper or lower limit） GCSE examinations in different subjects, including mathematics and English language. The government is currently reviewing the national curriculum, exploring to slim it down. The revised curriculum is expected to be taught in schools from September 2013.

After taking the GCSE, students may leave secondary schooling; alternatively, they may choose to continue their education at vocational or technical colleges, or they may take a higher level of secondary school examinations known as AS-Level after an additional year of study. Following two years of study, students may take AS-Level （short for Advanced Level） examinations, which are required for university entrance in the U.K.

3.4　Scotland

Scotland has its own qualification framework that is separate from that in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. After seven years of primary education and four years of compulsory secondary education, students aged 15 to 16 may take the Scottish Certificate of Education（SCE）. The Scottish Certificate of Education is recognized throughout the U.K. as the equivalent to GCE A-level and is usually the entry qualification for university.