Introduction to Secondary Education (0827)

                                                             Unit:1

Introduction to Secondary Education

Secondary education normally takes place in secondary schools, taking place after primary education and may be followed by higher education or vocational training.

Secondary education (ix-xii)(9-12) is an important sub-sector of the entire education system. It provide the optimum setting to prepare young people, predominantly adolescents, for healthy and productive adult lives, including participation in social, political, and economic spheres. Prepare young men and women for the pursuit of higher education. Able to adjust with their practical lives meaningfully and productively.

Nature of Secondary Education

• Teaching is considered an art and a science, the teacher has to acquire not only knowledge,
  
  
  but also skills that are called tricks of the trade.
• Teacher education is broad and comprehensive and consideration must give to the social and cultural values of individuals and to the development of potential talents.
• Secondary Education Consideration must also be given to the nature of the learning process.

Significance of Secondary Education

Secondary education is an important segment in every person’s life.

·        It also serves as a means to potentially empower for the development of country

·        raise a person’s economic status.
·        Creating a base for potential future career.
·        Gaining and improving self-confidence.
·        Polishing lifelong learning skill.

Objectives of Secondary Education

The commission recommended that Secondary education organization be done on the basis of a separate unit from elementary and higher education.

 The objectives of secondary education are the tasks required of schools in carrying out the roles. It is useful to classify objectives into different groups.

General objectives are those which were found to be common to all countries in the region. They tended to be long term goals which have changes little over time.

Specific objectives stage in more details how the general objective will be achieved.

The commission fixed the following objectives of education:

General objectives:

·        To provide equity for all young people to obtain from secondary education the knowledge and skill appropriate to their needs and abilities.
·        To achieve national unity and national objectives of development.
·        To serve as an instrument for raising the quality of life of the people.
·        To serve as a preparatory stage for those who wish to pursue higher/professional education and training.
·        To improve learning through the use of both formal and non-formal approaches to education, using modern technologies and aids.
·        to establish close linkages with the community with a view to make the students aware of the real life situations and to check the alienation that exists between education and environments.
·        To establish close linkages with industry, agriculture and other places of work with a view to provide meaningful courses and adequate preparation for employment and self-employment.

Specific objectives

·        To develop the skills of learning and living to:
·        develop the ability to communicate;
·        encourage the urge to inquire;
·        gain personal satisfaction through effort in learning and accomplishment;
·        develop an appreciation of problem solving methods; and
·        help people to develop their ability to respond to experience in creative, and considered ways.
·        To develop appropriate values such as to
·        become self-reliant and to develop sense of responsibility for personal  and group action in ways that show care and considerations for others (e.g. respect for others).
·        accept the rights to individuals and groups
·        help students to develop a sense of personal identity and self-worth
·        Help people contribute to society in a meaningful, productive and satisfying way by preparing them to enter the world of work and adult . life.
·        To provide the knowledge required for satisfaction and as a basis for further education to
·        Develop an awareness of the factors of their non-living and living surroundings.
·        help people to develop an appreciation of the contribution that the arts and technologies have made to the lives of people;
·        develop in students an understanding of their nation, their culture, history and way of life
·        help people to develop an understanding of people from other countries and cultures and their relationships with them
·        Develop their understanding of human dependence on natural and man-made environments, and responsible attitudes to the use of resources.

Aims and Objectives of Education for Preparing Practicing Muslims and for Creative Islamic Social Welfare State

Aims:

·        The state shall endear as respects the Muslims of Pakistan:

·        To Make the teachings of the Holy Qur'an and Islamiat compulsory, in order to encourage and facilitate the learning of Arabic language
·        To promote unity and the observance of the Islamic moral standards.
·        Provide basic necessities of life for all such citizens.
·        Remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary education within minimum possible period.
·        The state shall discourage parochial, racial, tribal, sectarian and provincial prejudices among the citizens.

Objectives

·        To make the Quranic principles and Islamic practices as an integral part of curricula

·        To ensure all the boys and girls, desirous of entering secondary education, get the basic rights

·        To develop opportunities for technical and vocational education in the country for producing trained manpower.

·        To improve the quality of technical education

Secondary Education in Pakistan

Duration

Secondary education in Pakistan begins from grade 9 and lasts for four years.

It should improperly consist of classes IX- XII

For the present, it should be divided into classes IX-X (Secondary) and classes (higher Secondary).

Curriculum 

Commission recommended that the curriculum of education should be based on two principles. First it must compulsory core of subjects to give every pupil the knowledge needed to live a useful and happy life.  Secondly, it should include additional subjects and training to prepare him for a definite vocation and career.

Teacher Training

The commission was of the view that teachers must be trained properly before entering teaching profession. Teachers should be paid adequate salary. The services of Education Extension Centres already established to improve the quality of education, should be  fully utilized by the Central and Provincial Governments.

Examination

After end of each of the four school years, students are required to pass a national examination administered by a regional Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (or BISE).

Higher education

College education provides instruction from XI to XIV classes at two levels:

Intermediate colleges imparting instruction to XI & XII grades both in humanities and sciences; and (ii)

 Degree colleges with Xi, XII, XIII and XIV whereas some colleges with XV and XVI grades. At the completion of schooling at degree colleges candidates are awarded Bachelor's Degree (B.A or B. Sc. as the case may be).  In order to complete an honours course an additional one year study is required. After acquiring the, bachelor degree additional two years are required to obtain a master's degree. A doctoral degree usually requires three years study after the completion of a master's degree course.  The duration of post-secondary education varies in technical and professional fields.  The Polytechnic diploma is a three-year course.  Bachelor degree in medicine (MBBS) requires five years of study after the intermediate stage (12 years schooling). Bachelor's degree course in engineering and veterinary medicine are of four years' duration after the intermediate stage.

The Stage of Formal Operations (11-15 years) — Stage of Secondary Education

Begins around age 11 to 12, a child develops the reasoning and logic to solve all classes of problems.  Freeing of thought from direct experience.  The child's cognitive structures reach Maturity. After this stage, there are no further structural improvements in the quality of reasoning.  The adolescent fully developed formal operations

Both adults and adolescents with formal operational reasons are using the same logical processes.

Structure Developed in the Formal Operational Stage (Secondary Education)

Hypothetical-Deductive Reasoning

Goes beyond the confines of everyday experience to things which we have no experience" (Brainerd 1978, p. 205).  Deductive reasoning is reasoning from premises to conclusion or from the general to the specific.

Hypothetical-deductive is reasoning that "involves deducing conclusions from.  Premises which are hypotheses rather than from facts: that the subject has actually verified" (Brainerd 1978, p. 2(55).  In this manner the possible (hypothetical) becomes an arena within which reasoning can be used effectively.

Scientific- Inductive Reasoning

Inductive reasoning is reasoning from specific facts to general conclusions.

It is the main reasoning process used by scientists to arrive at generalizations or scientific laws. They form hypotheses, experiment, control variable, record effects, and form the results, draw conclusions in a systematic manner. Scientific reasoning is the ability to think about a number of different variables at the same time. It can determine the effect of one, all or some combinations of a set of variables.