Comparative Study of the Canadian and the Spanish Education System
Autor: Arlet Capeta Romero
Centre: INST.M E.MUNICIPAL DEL TREBALL
Document:
Education can be defined as the process of socialization of individuals and their learning
process. In its widest sense, it is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind,
character, or physical ability of an individual. So, I believe that people’s education is one of the
most important tools to make a country work properly.
My motivation to choose this topic began when I looked into the Spanish academic results.
Even with the effort, time, and dedication students in Spain put in their studies, they do not get
remarkable results.
Furthermore, last year I studied in Canada, an experience that allowed me to enjoy another
education system which is different from mine. Year after year, Canada appears as a country
with brilliant and exemplary results by international standards, without having to rely on a single
target or a rigid method of study for their high academic performance.
After seeing the difference between the Canadian and the Spanish education systems, I started
to think about the causes of their disparities. This project gave me the opportunity to search for
data about the school systems and teaching methods of these countries and make a
comparative study to draw conclusions. These conclusions are based on a more constructive
template that examines how the educational structures influence young people.
My hypothesis is: “the Canadian education system is better than the Spanish education
system”. However, I did not only want to prove my hypothesis, which may be relatively easy if
we look at existing studies on that matter, but also look into the causes that contribute to such a
result.
The methodology for my research mainly consists of comparing the different education
approaches both in Canada and Spain, but I also focus on analyzing other intervening factors
La Noia de Sucre
such as the society’s and its families’ structures and values in both countries. This will form the
theoretical framework of the project. Moreover, the practical part consists of surveys to obtain
different points of view from both countries. To have an internal point of view, I survey students
to observe their evaluation and other important factors on the process of the education that they
are receiving.
So, as I said before, I drew up a 40-question questionnaire and gave it to different students from
both countries. I could clearly see that one of the most important differences was the student-
teacher relationship and the school facilities. Another noteworthy aspect is that Canadians like
their education system and bet for public school while in Spain people are not happy with the
way they learn.
After seeing the theoretical and practical results, I could conclude that not only the school
subsystem makes an education system work, but that also the family and the society influence
to those results and are an inherent part of the education process. Despite the fact that the
Canadian system works far better than the Spanish one, I do not think it would be a good idea
to copy it, since each country has its own characteristics and cultural background, so that what
may suit one country may not work in another. It works well in Canada due to the total cohesion
between the three subsystems: the society, the family and the school itself. If we copied the
Canadian system in Spain, or any other country with different values than Canada, they would
probably not get such brilliant results as Canada does.
process. In its widest sense, it is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind,
character, or physical ability of an individual. So, I believe that people’s education is one of the
most important tools to make a country work properly.
My motivation to choose this topic began when I looked into the Spanish academic results.
Even with the effort, time, and dedication students in Spain put in their studies, they do not get
remarkable results.
Furthermore, last year I studied in Canada, an experience that allowed me to enjoy another
education system which is different from mine. Year after year, Canada appears as a country
with brilliant and exemplary results by international standards, without having to rely on a single
target or a rigid method of study for their high academic performance.
After seeing the difference between the Canadian and the Spanish education systems, I started
to think about the causes of their disparities. This project gave me the opportunity to search for
data about the school systems and teaching methods of these countries and make a
comparative study to draw conclusions. These conclusions are based on a more constructive
template that examines how the educational structures influence young people.
My hypothesis is: “the Canadian education system is better than the Spanish education
system”. However, I did not only want to prove my hypothesis, which may be relatively easy if
we look at existing studies on that matter, but also look into the causes that contribute to such a
result.
The methodology for my research mainly consists of comparing the different education
approaches both in Canada and Spain, but I also focus on analyzing other intervening factors
La Noia de Sucre
such as the society’s and its families’ structures and values in both countries. This will form the
theoretical framework of the project. Moreover, the practical part consists of surveys to obtain
different points of view from both countries. To have an internal point of view, I survey students
to observe their evaluation and other important factors on the process of the education that they
are receiving.
So, as I said before, I drew up a 40-question questionnaire and gave it to different students from
both countries. I could clearly see that one of the most important differences was the student-
teacher relationship and the school facilities. Another noteworthy aspect is that Canadians like
their education system and bet for public school while in Spain people are not happy with the
way they learn.
After seeing the theoretical and practical results, I could conclude that not only the school
subsystem makes an education system work, but that also the family and the society influence
to those results and are an inherent part of the education process. Despite the fact that the
Canadian system works far better than the Spanish one, I do not think it would be a good idea
to copy it, since each country has its own characteristics and cultural background, so that what
may suit one country may not work in another. It works well in Canada due to the total cohesion
between the three subsystems: the society, the family and the school itself. If we copied the
Canadian system in Spain, or any other country with different values than Canada, they would
probably not get such brilliant results as Canada does.