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Education encompasses both the teaching and learning of
knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency. It thus
focuses on the cultivation of skills, trades or professions,
as well as mental, moral & aesthetic development.
Formal education consists of systematic instruction,
teaching and training by professional teachers. This
consists of the application of pedagogy and the development
of curricula. In a liberal eduction tradition, teachers draw
on many different disciplines for their lessons, including
psychology, philosophy, information technology, linguistics,
biology, and sociology. Teachers in specialized professions
such as astrophysics, law or zoology may teach only in a
narrow area, usually as professors at institutions of higher
learning. There is much specialist instruction in fields of
trade for those want specific skills, such as required to be
a pilot, for example. Finally, there is an array of
educational opportunity in the informal sphere- for this
reason, society subsidizes institutions such as museums and
libraries. Informal education also includes knowledge and
skills learned and refined during the course of life,
including education that comes from experience in practicing
a profession.
 Education systems are established to provide education and
training, in most cases for children and the young. A
curriculum defines what students should know, understand and
be able to do as the result of education. A teaching
profession delivers teaching which enables learning, and a
system of polices, regulations, examinations, structures and
funding enables teachers to teach to the best of their
abilities. Sometimes education systems can be used to
promote doctrines or ideals as well as knowledge, which is
known as social engineering. This can lead to political
abuse of the system, particularly in totalitarian states and
government. Education is a broad concept, it refers to all
the experiences in which children can learn something.
Instruction refers to the intentional facilitating of
learning toward identified goals, delivered either by an
instructor or other forms. Teaching refers to learning
facilitated by a real live instructor. Training refers to
learning toward preparing learners with specific knowledge,
skills, or abilities that can be applied immediately.
Primary education
 Primary (or elementary) education consists of the first years of formal, structured education. In general, primary education consists of six or seven years of schooling starting at the age of 5 or 6, although this varies between and sometimes within countries. Globally, around 70% of primary-age children are enrolled in primary education, and this proportion is rising. Under the Education for All program driven by UNESCO, most countries have committed to achieving universal enrollment in primary education by 2015, and in many countries it is compulsory for children to receive primary education. The division between primary and secondary education is somewhat arbitrary, but it generally occurs at about eleven or twelve years of age. Some education systems have separate middle schools with the transition to the final stage of secondary education taking place at around the age of fourteen. Mostly schools which provide primary education are referred to as primary schools. Primary schools in these countries are often subdivided into infant schools and junior schools.
Secondary education
In most contemporary educational systems of the world,
secondary education consists of the second years of formal
education that occur during adolescence. It is characterized
by transition from the typically compulsory, comprehensive
primary education for minors to the optional, selective
tertiary, "post-secondary", or "higher" education (e.g.,
university, vocational school) for adults. Depending on the
system, schools for this period or a part of it may be
called secondary or high schools, gymnasiums, lyceums,
middle schools, colleges, or vocational schools. The exact
meaning of any of these varies between the systems. 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 schooling.
Secondary education occurs mainly during the teenage years.
In the United States and Canada primary and secondary
education together are sometimes referred to as K-12
education, and in New Zealand Year 1-13 is used. The purpose
of secondary education can be to give common knowledge, to
prepare for higher education or to train directly in a
profession.
Higher education
Higher education, also called tertiary, third stage or
post secondary education, is the non-compulsory educational
level following the completion of a school providing a
secondary education, such as a high school, secondary
school, or gymnasium. Tertiary education is
normally taken to include undergraduate and postgraduate
education, as well as vocational education and training.
Colleges and universities are the main institutions that
provide tertiary education. Collectively, these are
sometimes known as tertiary institutions. Tertiary education
generally results in the receipt of certificates, diplomas,
or academic degrees.
 Higher education includes teaching, research and social
services activities of universities, and within the realm of
teaching, it includes both the undergraduate level
(sometimes referred to as tertiary education) and the
graduate (or postgraduate) level (sometimes referred to as
graduate school). Higher education in that country generally
involves work towards a degree-level or foundation degree
qualification. In most developed countries a high proportion
of the population (up to 50%) now enter higher education at
some time in their lives. Higher education is therefore very
important to national economies, both as a significant
industry in its own right, and as a source of trained and
educated personnel for the rest of the economy.
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