General Studies is a multidisciplinary subject offered at different levels of education. Its scope varies by country.
North America
Some North American universities offer the
Bachelor of General Studies A Bachelor of General Studies (BGS) is a highly interdisciplinary undergraduate academic degree offered by colleges and universities that "allows students to combine and explore multiple subjects."
The concept of general studies derives from the ...
degree.
England, Wales and Northern Ireland
General Studies is a
GCSE
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...
and former
A-level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
examination offered to 16- to 18-year-olds in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It overlaps with
PSHE and citizenship.
The GCSE syllabus covered arts and culture, politics and the economy, society and ethics, science and technology, and the relationships between these topics.
The A-Level syllabus was introduced in the 1950s, and intended to "“broaden minds by encouraging students to develop their thinking skills, capacity to construct arguments and ability to draw conclusions", according to the AQA examination board. The syllabus covered " Culture and Society" (including culture, religion, philosophy, politics and the media); and "Science and Society" (including scientific research, technology and mathematics). It was withdrawn as an A-Level subject from 2017, with final examination in 2020.
Hong Kong
General studies is a knowledge-oriented school subject taught in
primary schools
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...
of Hong Kong. The Government of Hong Kong states that "General Studies provides students with opportunities to integrate knowledge, skills, values and attitudes across the Key Learning Areas (KLAs) of Personal, Social and Humanities Education (PSHE), Science Education (SE) and Technology Education (TE)."
[Government of Hong Kong, https://www.edb.gov.hk/en/curriculum-development/kla/general-studies-for-primary/index.html]
Malaysia
In Malaysia, general studies is part of the
STPM
The Malaysian Higher School Certificate ( ms, Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia), commonly abbreviated as STPM, is a pre-university examination in Malaysia. It was formerly known as the Higher School Certificate (HSC). Since 1982, STPM has been ...
examination, which is better known as its Malay name, Pengajian Am.
See also
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Boston University College of General Studies
The College of General Studies offers a two-year, general education core curriculum within Boston University. CGS is constructed in team system that limits the number of students in sections. The core curriculum is an interdisciplinary course of ...
*
Columbia University School of General Studies
The School of General Studies, Columbia University (GS) is a liberal arts college
A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such c ...
, a liberal arts college at Columbia University
*
Liberal arts
Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the ...
*
Liberal arts education
Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the ...
References
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Schools in Hong Kong
Educational qualifications in the United Kingdom