VII.
Culture and social life:
Education policy:
British education aims to develop the abilities of people for their own benefit and that of society as a whole. Parents are required by law to send their children to school to get full-time education between the ages of 5 and 16. Going or not going to school has become a matter of the law. It is no longer an individual's free choice. All school children must receive religious instruction and attend daily worship at school. Government pays more attention to the quality of teachers and public examinations. University graduates usually have to take a one-year postgraduate course before they become teachers. Compulsory education begins at the age of five. At the age of seven they go to junior schools or junior departments of primary schools. At the age of 11 they complete their primary education and then go to secondary schools.

Oxford and Cambridge:
Oxford and Cambridge are two of most famous universities in Britain. Oxford University was found in the 12th century. It is in a town known as Oxford. The town, with a population of about 110000, lies about 85 kilometers to the northwest of London. Many Prime Ministers were from Oxford. Cambridge University is in another city, known as Cambridge and with a population of about 100000. The city is in southeast central England and on the Cam River. It came into being in the early years of the 13th century. Mathematics and sciences are famous since the days of Newton. A number of Cambridge mathematicians and scientists have won Nobel Prizes.