What is "EDUCATION" ?

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people sustain from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts.

Education System in INDIA . . .

Education in India is provided by the public sector as well as the private sector, with control and funding coming from three levels: central, state, and local. The Nalanda University was the oldest university-system of education in the world.  Western education became ingrained into Indian society with the establishment of the British Raj.

Education in India falls under the control of both the Union Government and the states, with some responsibilities lying with the Union and the states having autonomy for others. The various articles of the Indian Constitution provide for education as a fundamental right. Most universities in India are controlled by the Union or the State Government.

India has made progress in terms of increasing primary education attendance rate and expanding literacy to approximately two thirds of the population. India's improved education system is often cited as one of the main contributors to the economic rise of India. Much of the progress especially in Higher education, Scientific research has been credited to various public institutions. The private education market in India is merely 5% although in terms of value is estimated to be worth $40 billion in 2008 and will increase to $68–70 billion by 2012.

However, India continues to face stern challenges. Despite growing investment in education, 25% of its population is still illiterate; only 15% of Indian students reach high school, and just 7%, of the 15% who make it to high school, graduate. The quality of education whether at primary or higher education is significantly poor as compared with major developing nations. As of 2008, India's post-secondary institutions offer only enough seats for 7% of India's college-age population, 25% of teaching positions nationwide are vacant, and 57% of college professors lack either a master's or PhD degree.

As of 2011, there are 1522 degree-granting engineering colleges in India with an annual student intake of 582,000, plus 1,244 polytechnics with an annual intake of 265,000. However, these institutions face shortage of faculty and concerns have been raised over the quality of education.

Indian Department of Education
Ministry of Human Resource Development	Kapil Sibal
National education budget (2011–2012)
Budget	52,057 crore (US$9.84 billion)
General details
Primary languages	Hindi, English, or State language
System type	Federal, state, private
Established Compulsory Education	April 1, 2010
Literacy (2011[1])
Total	74%
Male	82%
Female	65%
Enrollment ((N/A))
Total	(N/A)
Primary	(N/A)
Secondary	(N/A)
Post secondary	(N/A)
Attainment
Secondary diploma	40%
Post-secondary diploma	7%

Education System in U.K. . . .

Education in UNITED KINGDOM is overseen by the Department for Education and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Local authorities (LAs) take responsibility for implementing policy for public education and state schools at a regional level.

The education system is divided into nursery (ages 3–4), primary education (ages 4–11), secondary education (ages 11–18) and tertiary education (ages 18+).

Full-time education is compulsory for all children aged between 5 and 16, with a child beginning primary education during the school year he or she turns 5. Students may then continue their secondary studies for a further two years (sixth form), leading most typically to A-level qualifications, although other qualifications and courses exist, including Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) qualifications, the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Cambridge Pre-U. The leaving age for compulsory education was raised to 18 by the Education and Skills Act 2008. The change will take effect in 2013 for 16-year-olds and 2015 for 17-year-olds. State-provided schooling and sixth form education is paid for by taxes. England also has a tradition of independent schooling, but parents may choose to educate their children by any suitable means.

Higher education often begins with a three-year bachelor's degree. Postgraduate degrees include master's degrees, either taught or by research, and the doctorate, a research degree that usually takes at least three years. Universities require a Royal Charter in order to issue degrees, and all but one are financed by the state via tuition fees, which have increased for both UK and European Union students.

                         Education in United Kingdom

Department for Education Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Secretary of State (Education) Minister for Universities and Science (BIS)	Michael Gove David Willetts
National education budget (2008–09)
Budget	£62.2 billion[1][2]
General details
Primary languages	English
System type	National
Compulsory education	1880
Literacy (2003[3])
Total	99 %
Male	99 %
Female	99 %
Enrollment
Total	11.7 million
Primary	4.4 million[4]
Secondary	3.6 million[4]
Post secondary	3.7 million[5][6]
Attainment
Secondary diploma	Level 2 and above: 70.7% Level 3 and above: 50.6%
Post-secondary diploma	Level 4 and above: 30.9% (2007 statistics for population aged 19-64)[7]

Key challenges for Indian Education system . . .

25% of the Indian population is illiterate.

Only 7% of the population that goes to school managed to graduate and only 15% of those who enrol manage to make it to high school and achieve a place in the higher education system.

A few reasons why education in India is given less importance in some areas are as follows:

• 80% of schools are managed by the government. Private schools are expensive and out of reach of the poor.
• More hands to earn remains the mentality amongst many families and therefore little kids are set out to fend for the family over going to school to garner an adequate education, in the most literal sense of the word.
• Infrastructure facilities at schools across rural areas and in slums dispense very poor quality of education.
• The teachers are not well qualified and therefore not well paid and therefore are not willing to work hard enough. This has been a classical Catch-22 problem that the government has been trying hard to fight against.

U.K. using Independent Study . . .

On any course you will be expected to do some independent study. This usually involves working on
your own (or sometimes in a small group with other students) to research a topic and produce written
work, or make a presentation at a seminar. This is an integral part of UK academic culture. Independent
study is intended to:

• help you develop skills such as critical analysis and problem-solving
• a piece develop your research skills (for example, finding relevent books and articles
• allow you to investigate a topic in more detail and develop your own ideas

Merits and Demerits Of Indian Education System . . .

Merits are

• . subjects are taught to the point 
• . more advanced things are taught compared to education in USA
• . there are higher expectations on how much a student should learn.

Demerits are

• . the education is based more on rote memorization rather than understanding the subject
• . it doesn't promote creativity in the student..
• . a lot of stress is on students to study for exams
• . India is not using Technology for Education

Merits And Demerits Of Education System Of U.K.

Merits

The UK education system is flexible, so you can study in a way that suits your lifestyle and career aspirations. When you study in the UK you’ll meet people from many nationalities, sharing their backgrounds and discovering new perspectives. You'll also gain recognized qualifications that are valued all over the world .

Demerits

First problem: Over emphasis on government targets.

Second problem: compulsory education.

Third problem: Specialist school status.